Pearl River Valley Railroad

The Pearl River Valley Railroad

James Christopher - January 2001

The Pearl River Valley (PRV) today is a 4-mile shortline running between its Norfolk Southern interchange at Nicholson and Goodyear (Picayune), Mississippi, and the International Paper Company plant. The line, however, is now only a fraction of its former self which once served the lumber industry in this region of Southern Mississippi. The line is barely a railroad; it is more like a nature trail with rails and, unless one is aware that the PRV is there, most folks — including railfans -- pass the Nicholson/Picayune area without ever seeing it. The right-of-way resembles one of those old interurban or streetcar lines of yesteryear which is barely holding on and suffering from neglect. You may not find the PRV on many railroad maps, and some maps that do show it misidentify it with the Norfolk Southern's little-used NASA Stennis Space Center branch. The Pearl River Valley Railroad could be classified as "old, rare, and obscure."

Nonetheless, the Pearl River Valley's little orange GE 65-tonner is cranked up once or twice a week, and the crew works its way down from Arizona Chemical, an International Paper Corporation plant (99.9% of PRV's business), to the NS interchange at Nicholson. The train moves at a snail's pace, cutting fresh flangeways in the crossings and weeds as it goes. There is no run-around track or turning facility at either end of the line, so the 65-tonner pulls its usual consist of one tank car about 10 mph, with the crew flagging the few "quiet" grade crossings on down to Nicholson. At Nicholson, the train pulls across the main road — no signals or crossbucks here — to clear the points of the interchange track connection. Reversing, the engine shoves its charge into the small Norfolk Southern yard. If there is a tank car to be picked up at Nicholson, the crew sorts it out in the yard with much grunting of the little 65-tonner. Then the whole process is reversed, this time with the locomotive shoving the car the length of the line back to Arizona Chemical. On a rare, rare occasion, the 65-tonner has shoved a gondola up to a customer about a half-mile or so before Arizona Chemical, and possibly also a covered hopper from time to time. Most of the time, though, the little GE sleeps away in its spur inside the Arizona Chemical fence.

In times past, the Pearl River Valley was a more substantial railroad which was built to harvest timber from Pearl River County. Much logging took place in the area northwest of Poplarville, Mississippi, and feeder lines reached these timber stands. The line was originally incorporated to construct its own right-of-way from Nicholson to Columbia in 1917, a distance of about 50 miles. But the PRV only ended up being about 34 miles in length, with several of these miles being trackage rights over logging lines of the parent companies — including the Crosby & Rowlands company and Goodyear Yellow Pine, The Cybur Lumber Company, which was acquired by the larger companies, also operated a common carrier, the Cybur, Gulf & Northwestern Railroad, which became part of the PRV. Built for logging and tapline purposes, the Pearl River Valley Railroad was abandoned in segments as the timbered areas were cut out. The segment north of Goodyear was removed in 1938. Today, the PRV's only remaining segment is the 4-mile line from Nicholson (Jct.) to Goodyear. It is amazing that this shortline has PRV 14 ex-New Orleans & Northeastern mogul survived ... but only barely ... into the 21st century.

Even though the Pearl River Valley Railroad never reached its chartered goal of Columbia, Mississippi, it did at one time or another reach such locales as Emory (about 10 miles from Nicholson), Dolton (about 15 miles), Anderson (17.3 miles and the site of a major logging camp), and Easley and Crosby (about 25 miles from Nicholson). Through trackage rights on the Goodyear Yellow Pine Company's logging railroad, the PRV reached Rowlands, location of a major log camp, about 9 miles north of Crosby. When this area was cut out, Goodyear Yellow Pine in 1938 constructed another line northeast from Picayune 22.5 miles to New Camp Rowlands. The PRV obtained trackage rights over this line and provided common carrier service over this new line until this area also was finally logged out. There are still a few trace visible of these routes in the form of cuts and fills which the practiced eye can easily identify.

In its history, the Pearl River Valley roster included only two steam locomotives of its own. The two-truck Shay locomotive on display in Picayune today was property of one of the parent companies of the PRV. The little GE diesel was purchased new and has been the sole motive power of the line ever since. The 65-tonner has always worn an orange with black or white trim paint scheme. Many other locomotives, both Shays and rod engines, at one time operated over PRV rails on business of the parent lumber companies.

For many years the Pearl River Valley has continued to operate in a state of repair bespeaking near abandonment. But it continues to serve its purpose efficiently and well ... if very, very slowly. But, what is speed when the distance to be traveled is only four miles? If you like little railroads, buy yourself a Barq's root beer and a Moon Pie, and make your visit to the Pearl River Valley Railroad.