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Come Ride with Us! |
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Relive the golden age of railroading!
Experience the classic Missionary Ridge Local,
take an all-day excursion to Summerville, Georgia,
or see the beautiful Hiwassee River Gorge.
All this and more at the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum,
the largest operating historic railroad in the Southeast!
A Brief History of TVRM
In 1959, a small group of Chattanooga railfans, concerned about the dissaparance of steam locomotives and passenger trains for the railroads of America, organized the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum (TVRM).
In 1961, the TVRM was formally chartered as a non-profit, educational corporation.
The first eight years were devoted to collecting whatever equipment was obtainable by donation while seeking a permanent site for construction of an operating railroad in the Chattanooga area.
In 1969, this search ended successfully when the Southern Railway System (now Norfolk Southern) gave TVRM a 4-acre tract in East Chattanooga located adjacent to the original c.1856 Southern main line. This rail line had been abandoned upon completion of Citico Yard in 1954 (now renamed Debutts Yard) and an alternate double-tracked route around the base of Missionary Ridge which bypassed the single-track tunnel and its operational bottleneck.
Beginning in 1969, TVRM volunteers began the arduous reconstruction of railroad right-of-way and the eight-track East Chattanooga storage area. TVRM’s mainline penetrates Missionary Ridge about ½ mile east of the Depot, passing through a 979-foot long tunnel bored between 1856 and 1858. Our construction proceeded for the next six years at a slow, but steady, pace until stopped by a 146-foot long gap in the line which had been created by the removal of the original Tunnel Boulevard culvert.
In 1977, TVRM completed construction of a modern bridge panning the 4 highway lanes of Tunnel Boulevard and resumed track construction, which permitted doubling the length of our line, leading to a terminus near Cromwell Road (complete with a wye) where today all trains are turned.
Since TVRM is a volunteer (non-profit) organization, what might have taken a commercial railroad about four months to complete took us nearly 20 years.
Today, however, TVRM’s 6-mile roundtrip run stands as the only full-size operating railroad museum in the state and is providing the only regularly scheduled passenger service in east Tennessee – and generally pulled by a steam locomotive. It is the largest operating historic railroad in the southeast and Chattanooga’s "Trademark Attraction."
A significant milestone in TVRM development occurred in 1981 when a major investment allowed the installation of the turntable and shop at East Chattanooga and saw a good start on the 1890-era Grand Junction Depot at Cromwell Road, which was opened in August of 1984. Many other needed improvements were also made, with the result being that today the visitor can see, feel, smell and experience a slice of railroad history out of the 1930’s; complete with a walking tour through a working repair shop.
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The Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum is proud to offer
a wide variety of rides to suit your needs.
Since the late Nineteenth Century, passengers and train crews have the pleasure of traveling along one of the most beautiful river gorges in the US as the railroad tracks hug the Hiwassee River. In the 1960s, the last scheduled passenger train traveled the line thus ending the ability of the public to view this breathtaking landscape from the comfort of the rails except for a period during the steam excursions of the 1980s and 90s. In 2001, the last freight train traveled the Old Line as CSX ceased operations and the rail line was thought to have been abandoned for good.
This changed in 2004. The Tennessee Overhill Association and the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum partnered together for a trial run at passenger excursions along the gorge. The results were spectacular.
Now in 2006, the Hiwassee River Rails Adventure trains are again set to depart with an expanded schedule!
In addition, with further improvements made to the railroad, the trip has been lengthened to include riding to the top of the Great Hiwassee Loop. At the top you'll be passing over a bridge 62 feet above the tracks on which you've just traveled as the rails negotiate a spiraling formation. The Loop track has been known by many names, Great Hiwassee Loop, Bald Mountain Loop, and Hook & Eye to name a few, but you'll call it amazing!
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For a quick trip, our Missionary Ridge Local takes
only 55 minutes..
but packs all sorts of excitement from a ride
through a Civil War era tunnel,
to a guided tour of our restoration shop.
Looking for something a little longer?
Try our Chickamauga Turn, a 5-1/2 hour roundtrip ride
to historic Chickamauga, Georgia.
For the true rail enthusiasts wishing to experience a day on the rails was like,
we offer multiple Dixie Land Excursions throughout the year.
All trips are subject to availability.
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Directions and Contact
The Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum's main terminal is called
Grand Junction Station.
It is conveniently located near main roadways and is easy to find
even if you're not familiar with the area.
CHATTANOOGA IS IN THE EASTERN TIME ZONE.
Our other station is the East Chattanooga Depot.
Here is where our restoration shop is located.
If you ride our Missionary Ridge Local, you'll get a tour of our shop
and watch the locomotive be turned on the turntable.
 
Contact us at (423) 894-8028
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The Chattanooga
Discovery Experience! |
(Click here for Directions to Chattanooga, Tennessee!)
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| Discovery |
Watch These Stories
on Tennessee Treasures TV! |
Old World Charm |
Inspiring Wonder and
Appreciation for the
Natural World.
Amphibians
Birds
Penguins
Butterflies
Fish
Invertebrates
Mammals
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See, Learn
and Discover! |
Click to watch the story of
Chattanooga's Read House Hotel
Click to watch the story of
The Tennessee Aquarium
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Chattanooga's
Read House opened on New Year's Day
in 1872, built by
Dr. John Read
and son Samuel.
Throughout history,
it has hosted such
well known names
as Winston Churchill, Charles Lofton, Tallulah Bankhead,
Al Capone,
and Gary Cooper. |
The Chattanooga Discovery Experience!
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