The Lancaster & Chester Railroad - South Carolina

The Lnacaster & Chester is a railroad that just screams to be modeled!  Originally narrow gauge, this 30 mile railroad is a lot of fun.  Big rivers, lots of bridges, and huge amounts of character.  Its a shortline that is over 100 years old and still making money.  Let's take a ride/

The huge cotton gin barn sits next to the company office, a testament to the by gone days of king cotton.

This stone structure is the company headquarters.  I took a bunch of shots in case I ever way to build it.  The small structure has a lot of charm.  This is on Main street in Lancaster, SC.

The wide open, unfenced yard is full of rail, debris, and old rail cars.

Next to the office is parked one of the locomotives.

I love this concrete loading ramp!

The track is bolt together sections on ancient ties.  Reminds me of the Georgia Northeastern.

There are lots of creeks and rivers, and old wooden trestles are all along the line.  Many look easy to model.

Some of the track is just amazing...

Gerdau Ameristeel makes railroad spikes.  There are about 50 gondola cars lined up the track.

This is not my photo but gives you an idea of what is being loaded in the gondolas.

This railroad is covered in chemical plants.  There are several of them an all are quite large.

Wow!  Look what I found in the sleepy little town of Richburg!  This preserved Porter tank locomotive.  H. K. Porter #5980 was built in 1917 and served the Edgemore and Manetta Railroad in South Carolina.

The interior is still in tact.  Probably because of the barbed wire surrounding the locomotive.

While the paint job is terrible, the town did build a nice steam cover to protect the locomotive.

Old barns and buildings are everywhere, many dating back to cotton production days.

A chemical unloading facility.

Another nearby fuel storage and distribution center.

There were minerals/chemicals on the ground so I'm assuming its lime or something similar.

An old Southern switcher was at work switching tankers at the chemical plant.

Chester is an old town with a lot of charm and character.  In the yard sat six locomotives.  All were in bright blue livery and in great shape.  The sign of a railroad with cash.

The sun was bright, so getting photos was tough.

The paint wasn't too old on the huge locomotive.

Yes, that is a tunnel motor on a railroad with no tunnels.

While I was there an engineer fired up this locomotive, then started the rest of them.  I love the make-shift spark arrestors.  Most of this railroad is on the highway and easy to railfan without breaking rules.  I plan to visit again sometime.