Regauging
Prior to the Civil War, the rail gauge of most railroads in the South were exactly five ft (1.524 m) gauge. In 1886, the change to the northern standard of 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) was mandated on June 1, and the W&A accomplished this along all 138 miles (222 km) in less than 24 hours, beginning at 1:30 p.m. on May 31 and finishing at 10 the next morning. This was done by over 400 men, prying up one rail and moving it closer to the other by exactly three inches (76 mm), leaving a compatible gauge of 4 ft 9 in (1.448 meters). The General and many other locomotives were also regauged at this time.
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