ROSWELL, Georgia — Historian, author, and award-winning journalist Todd DeFeo will discuss one of the most consequential railroads in Georgia history and how it almost connected to the mill town of Roswell.
“People and Places of the Western & Atlantic Railroad, and How Roswell Almost Connected” is scheduled for 2 p.m. on Wednesday, July 15, at Vickery Rose in Roswell, Georgia.
The state-owned Western & Atlantic helped create Atlanta, connected Georgia with Chattanooga and shaped communities across North Georgia. DeFeo’s talk will explore the people, places and lasting influence of the Western & Atlantic while highlighting one of Roswell’s most intriguing railroad “what ifs.”
In the 1850s and 1860s, Roswell leaders explored plans for a railroad connection to Atlanta or Marietta, with later plans envisioning a link to the Western & Atlantic. The effort ultimately evolved into the Roswell Railroad, a narrow-gauge branch tied to the Air-Line system rather than the direct Western & Atlantic connection first imagined.
The presentation will examine Roswell’s history as a Chattahoochee River mill town, early enthusiasm for rail access, the 1863 Atlanta & Roswell Railroad charter, the later shift toward the Air-Line system and the eventual completion of the Roswell Railroad in 1881.
DeFeo, a highly regarded speaker, is the founder of The DeFeo Groupe and the publisher of Railfanning.org. He has written extensively about railroad history, transportation and historic places, including three books about the Western & Atlantic.
If You Go
Who: Railfanning.org Publisher and Editor Todd DeFeo
What: “People and Places of the Western & Atlantic Railroad, and How Roswell Almost Connected”
When: 2 p.m. on Wednesday, July 15
Where: Vickery Rose, 295 E. Crossville Road, Roswell, GA 30075
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