Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials. Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction . Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication . Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Norfolk and Western Railroad Accounting Ledgers, Ms2010-075, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The Norfolk and Western Accounting Ledgers comprised part of a larger railroad-related collection purchased by Special Collections in 2009. The remainder of the acquisition of which these ledgers were a part was divided among the Chapman J. French Papers (Ms2009-034), the Norfolk & Western Railway and Associated Companies Collection (Ms2009-037), the Norfolk and Western Railway Company Mortgage Bond Book (Ms2010-077), and the Wayne Perkins Collection (Ms2010-078).

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement, and description of the Norfolk and Western Railroad Accounting Ledgers commenced and was completed in October 2010.

Historical Note

The Norfolk and Western Railroad originated with the 1838 chartering of the City Point Railroad, a line between Petersburg and City Point, Virginia. The line was purchased by the South Side Railroad in 1854, which, in turn, merged with the Virginia & Tennessee Railroad and the Norfolk & Petersburg Railroad, forming the Atlantic, Mississippi & Ohio Railroad in 1870. The AM&O fell into bankruptcy and was purchased in 1881, the new owners incorporating under the name Norfolk and Western Railroad, with a line extending from Virginia's coast to Southwest Virginia. The N&W went into receivership in 1895 and was reorganized as the Norfolk & Western Railway the following year.

Scope and Content

This collection contains a set of accounting ledgers for the Norfolk and Western Railroad. The ledgers record the expenses of each of the company's several divisions (i.e., Clinch Valley, Durham, Kenova, Lynchburg, Norfolk, North Carolina, Pocahontas, Pulaski, Radford, Roanoke, Scioto Valley, Shenandoah and Winston-Salem). Included in each ledger are statements titled "accounts charged from vouchers" (changed to "detail of operating expenses for the month" in later volumes) for the individual divisions, followed by a sheet providing the system-wide totals. Also included are monthly summaries of accounts charged from vouchers payable, listing transactions by voucher number, with a breakdown of expenditures under various headings (general expenses, Commercial Department, maintenance of way, maintenance of engines, maintenance of cars, conducting transportation). A third set of sheets in each ledger appears to consist of the original account entries, listing individual voucher numbers and associated expenditures, again listed under the several different categories of expenses. Affixed to the inside covers of the ledgers are monthly statements titled "Amounts Charged Under 100 Year Mortgage from Vouchers," "Earnings and Expenses," "Percentages for Expenses Based on Car Mileage," and "Analysis of Earnings and Expenses for the Month." At the end of the ledger set is a single volume, dated February 1895 and stamped "new acct." and bearing the names of the receivers, F. J. Kimball and Henry Fink.

Also included in the collection are a set of ledgers specifically relating to the company's Scioto Valley Division, its records apparently having been kept separate from the remaining divisions from February 1895 forward. These ledgers contain the same type of accounting entries as those described above.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged by ledger coverage area, then chronologically.

Related Material

The Norfolk and Western Railroad Accounting Ledgers comprised part of a larger railroad-related collection purchased by Special Collections in 2009. The remainder of the acquisition of which this volume was a part was divided among the following collections:

Chapman J. French Papers, Ms2009-034

Norfolk & Western Railway and Associated Companies Collection, Ms2009-037

Norfolk and Western Railway Company Mortgage Bond Book, Ms2010-077

Wayne Perkins Collection, Ms2010-078

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Railroad

Rights Statement for Archival Description

The guide to the Norfolk and Western Railroad Accounting Ledgers by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 ( https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/ ).