Sandersville Railroad When the Sandersville & Tennille Railroad declined offers by the Central of Georgia to acquire trackage rights on its 4-mile line in the early 1890s, the Central decided to build its own line between Tennille and Sandersville. The result was the Sandersville Railroad, chartered in November 1893, and completed soon afterwards. Poor’s 1917 Manual reported that the Sandersville had two locomotives and two cars operating over four miles of track. In 1957, the line was extended another five miles to a kaolin mine near Sandersville. It is currently operating as a 9-mile line from Tennille north to the mines and processing plants. The railroad's nickname is The Kaolin Road. Sandersville RR nos. 1300 and 1400 at Tennille, ca. 2004. Maps: 1897 map (127K) 2000 map (13K) More information: Sandersville Railroad website. Information and photos at hawkinsrails.net. From Official Guide of the Railways, 1896. From Official Guide of the Railways, 1906. From Official Guide of the Railways, 1940. Sandersville Railroad nos. 1500 and 1300 at Tennille, ca. 2004. Switching railcars with Norfolk Southern, ca. 2004.   Sandersville cars roll onto Norfolk Southern tracks near Tennille's old water tower. Kaolin drying sheds, 1907. (From: Georgia: The Empire State of the South. Agricultural Department, State of Georgia. Online at Internet Archive here.)   RailGa.com. Georgia's Railroad History & Heritage. © Steve Storey Railroad History | The Depot List | Locomotives On Display | Odds & Ends | Sources & References | Home