Atlantic and Birmingham Railway Co. - Specimen Stock Certificate

Specimen Stock printed by International Banknote Co., N.Y.

The Atlantic and Birmingham Railway Company, a short-lived but significant railroad enterprise in the Southeastern United States, operated between 1903 and 1905. It began as the Waycross Air Line Railroad in 1887 and later became the Atlantic and Birmingham Railroad in 1901 after modifying its charter to establish a connection between the Georgia coast and Alabama’s industrial centers. By 1903, the company adopted the “Railway� designation after strategically acquiring the Tifton and Northeastern Railroad and the Tifton, Thomasville, and Gulf Railway. These mergers, coupled with the 1904 purchase of the Brunswick and Birmingham Railroad, resulted in a 340-mile system that finally provided the railroad with a direct link to the major deep-water port in Brunswick, Georgia.

However, the company’s independent existence came to an end in 1905 when it was acquired by the newly formed Atlanta, Birmingham, and Atlantic (AB&A) Railroad. Under this new parentage, the line achieved its namesake goal by extending into Birmingham, Alabama, in 1908. Nevertheless, the substantial capital expenditures for construction and the establishment of a marine terminal in Brunswick ultimately led to financial instability. After undergoing multiple reorganizations and receiverships, the assets were reorganized as the Atlanta, Birmingham, and Coast (AB&C) Railroad in 1926 under the control of the Atlantic Coast Line (ACL). Despite its tumultuous corporate history, the original routes remained crucial infrastructure. By 2026, a significant portion of the historic Atlantic and Birmingham trackage continues to serve as a high-traffic freight corridor for CSX Transportation, particularly the “Fitzgerald Subdivision.�