Record #:

13056

Author(s):

Pleasant, Paul

Abstract:

Tweetsie was the nickname given the East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railway, which ran between Boone and Johnson City until 1940. The Tweetsie negotiated 66 miles of track carrying almost anything from chestnuts to iron ore. In 1946 the rail was taken up for scrap during the war, but some of her legacy remains as Gene Autry added the last engine to his collection and at least two box cars serve as refreshment stands and diners.

Source:

The State (NoCar F 251 S77), Vol. 23 Issue 2, June 1955, p12-13, f

Subject(s):

Tweetsie Railroad (Blowing Rock)

Record #:

24621

Author(s):

Corey, John

Abstract:

There is much speculation concerning the origination of the colloquial name ‘Tweetsie,’ the narrow 16-gauge train that runs on a three-mile track between Boone and Blowing Rock. Some historians believe the name came from mountaineers whose homes flanked the tracks; the train whistle was much shriller than other trains of the day.

Source:

The State (NoCar F 251 S77), Vol. 31 Issue 6, August 1963, p11-12, il, por

Subject(s):

Tweetsie Railroad (Blowing Rock); Railroad travel--North Carolina, Western; Railroads--North Carolina, Western--History

Record #:

10320

Author(s):

Norris, Jeannie Faris

Abstract:

In the 19th- and 20th-centuries a railroad linked Eastern Tennessee with Western North Carolina. The most famous engine on the line was called “Tweetsie” because of its distinctive whistle. The engine was returned to the state in 1956 and now is located in Watauga County. The engine has been completely reconditioned and now pulls cars that give tourists a feel of what early train travel was like.

Source:

We the People of North Carolina (NoCar F 251 W4), Vol. 15 Issue 4, Sept 1957, p9, 21, il

Subject(s):

Tweetsie Railroad (Blowing Rock)