The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad (reporting mark GSM) is a freight and heritage railroad in North Carolina with a depot in Bryson City. The railroad operates over the western leg of the "Murphy Branch", a former branch line of the Southern Railway.
The route of the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad passes through fertile valleys, through a tunnel and across river gorges in the Great Smoky Mountains of Western North Carolina.
The railroad has four diesel-electric locomotives, #711, #777, #1751 & #1755. In addition, the GSMR owns three steam locomotives; 2-8-0 Consolidation #1702, and former Southern Railway 2-8-0 #722. Both of these locomotives require extensive restoration before they can operate again. Locomotive #1702 has been out of service since the end of the 2004 season. The 722 has never operated on the GSMR. The third engine is a former Swedish State Railways 4-6-0 #1149, which had been purchased in 2010 from the defunct Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad. This engine was originally slated to be moved to the GSMR in spring 2011. However, as of winter 2012, it remains stored as the railroad is determining how to fund the move.
In addition to running tourist excursions year-round, the railroad also moves freight on its own tracks between Dillsboro and Andrews. GSMR interchanges with Norfolk Southern Railway in Sylva near Jackson Paper Manufacturing. In 2003, the railroad ran 963 excursions.
The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad is owned by American Heritage Railways, which is the parent company of the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad and the Texas State Railroad.
Read more about Great Smoky Mountains Railroad: Towns and Attractions Served, Popular Culture
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