Abandoned railyards leave a legacy of hidden treasures
One of numerous train engines that
was serviced at the High Springs yards
a century earlier. High Springs was a
major railroad hub in the late 1800s.
The original two-story depot can be seen
in the by background.
By David S Wisener
Today Editor
HIGH SPRINGS - Alachua County stands to by the most culturally important land
associated with the City of High Springs.
Despite this, it does not seem to be aware of the extent of what it may be inheriting.
Alachua County is in the process of acquiring land parcels from CSX transportation Inc., which comprise the former rail line that ran between High Springs and Newberry, in order to convert the line into a rails to trails project.
Included in the county’s potential purchase is the land on which High Springs’ massive rail yards once resided.
This is noted on the second page of the Florida Greenways and Trail Council’s (FGTC) project description for the core door as presented at its December 14 meeting.
The FGTC is a subcommittee of the Florida Department of the Environmental Protection and as such is primarily concerned about preserving biological life, yet it states in its subsection on the corridor’s historical and cultural resources that, “although not identified as historic by the State Division of Historical Resources, there are remnants of a railroad roundhouse and supporting rail yard located in the vicinity of High Springs.”
The former passenger depot located nearby at 20 NW Railroad Ave., however, is a marked Florida Heritage site designating “Railroading in High Springs.”
The depot was moved from its original location adjacent to the former yards in 1994.
Railroading is thus recognized by the State as part of Florida Heritage, but a property has to be submitted to the State for consideration of historic status, so just what exactly remains of the rail yard, and is it worth preserving?
“Henry Plant made High Springs the division headquarters of his rail system in 1895,” said Bob Watson, Director of the High Springs Historical Society Museum.
“There was a huge roundhouse, machine shops, two large water towers, a two-story hospital: it was a major railroad hub,” he said.
The High Springs Museum is in the midst of a long term project of constructing a to-scale model of the rail yards based on 1917 blue prints.
The entire complex covered more than 50 acres of land, approximately half the size of Disney’s Magic Kingdom as a point of comparison.
The population of High Springs exploded to almost 2,000 by 1900, making it the second largest city in the county and half the size of Gainesville.
As of 1925, nearly 400 people were employed directly by the railroad, with several more working in ancillary roles.
When asked if anything remained of the extensive operations, Watson said quite a bit was still extant.
“All of the foundations for the buildings are still there, including the roundhouse and the shops,” he said. “When they built things back then, they built them to last.”
Watson said CSX had actually approached the City and Historical Society about the possibility of turning the land into a park.
“We’re all supposed to get together sometime at the beginning of the year to discuss things further,” he said.
Watson noted that preliminary ideas for a park would include clearing out the underbrush that covers the entire area and making several paths with signage in front of the historical remains which tell the story of the buildings and industry that once stood there.
Alachua County Today – Thursday, December 31, 2015
One of numerous train engines that
was serviced at the High Springs yards
a century earlier. High Springs was a
major railroad hub in the late 1800s.
The original two-story depot can be seen
in the by background.
By David S Wisener
Today Editor
HIGH SPRINGS - Alachua County stands to by the most culturally important land
associated with the City of High Springs.
Despite this, it does not seem to be aware of the extent of what it may be inheriting.
Alachua County is in the process of acquiring land parcels from CSX transportation Inc., which comprise the former rail line that ran between High Springs and Newberry, in order to convert the line into a rails to trails project.
Included in the county’s potential purchase is the land on which High Springs’ massive rail yards once resided.
This is noted on the second page of the Florida Greenways and Trail Council’s (FGTC) project description for the core door as presented at its December 14 meeting.
The FGTC is a subcommittee of the Florida Department of the Environmental Protection and as such is primarily concerned about preserving biological life, yet it states in its subsection on the corridor’s historical and cultural resources that, “although not identified as historic by the State Division of Historical Resources, there are remnants of a railroad roundhouse and supporting rail yard located in the vicinity of High Springs.”
The former passenger depot located nearby at 20 NW Railroad Ave., however, is a marked Florida Heritage site designating “Railroading in High Springs.”
The depot was moved from its original location adjacent to the former yards in 1994.
Railroading is thus recognized by the State as part of Florida Heritage, but a property has to be submitted to the State for consideration of historic status, so just what exactly remains of the rail yard, and is it worth preserving?
“Henry Plant made High Springs the division headquarters of his rail system in 1895,” said Bob Watson, Director of the High Springs Historical Society Museum.
“There was a huge roundhouse, machine shops, two large water towers, a two-story hospital: it was a major railroad hub,” he said.
The High Springs Museum is in the midst of a long term project of constructing a to-scale model of the rail yards based on 1917 blue prints.
The entire complex covered more than 50 acres of land, approximately half the size of Disney’s Magic Kingdom as a point of comparison.
The population of High Springs exploded to almost 2,000 by 1900, making it the second largest city in the county and half the size of Gainesville.
As of 1925, nearly 400 people were employed directly by the railroad, with several more working in ancillary roles.
When asked if anything remained of the extensive operations, Watson said quite a bit was still extant.
“All of the foundations for the buildings are still there, including the roundhouse and the shops,” he said. “When they built things back then, they built them to last.”
Watson said CSX had actually approached the City and Historical Society about the possibility of turning the land into a park.
“We’re all supposed to get together sometime at the beginning of the year to discuss things further,” he said.
Watson noted that preliminary ideas for a park would include clearing out the underbrush that covers the entire area and making several paths with signage in front of the historical remains which tell the story of the buildings and industry that once stood there.
Alachua County Today – Thursday, December 31, 2015
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