View source for Seaboard–All Florida Railway

{{Short description|Railway system in Florida}}
{{use mdy dates|date=October 2022}}
{{Infobox rail | gauge={{Track gauge|ussg|allk=on}}
|railroad_name=Seaboard–All Florida Railway
|logo_filename=
|logo_size=
|system_map=
|map_size=
|map_caption=
|marks=
|image=SAL Florida 1936.jpg
|image_size=
|image_caption=Seaboard Air Line 1936 map showing extensions built by the Seaboard–All Florida Railway on both coasts
|locale=East and West Coasts of Florida
|start_year=
|end_year=
|length=
|predecessor_line=
|successor_line=Seaboard Air Line Railroad
|hq_city=
|electrification=
|website=
|map=
|map_name=
}}
The '''Seaboard–All Florida Railway''' was a subsidiary of the [[Seaboard Air Line Railroad]] that oversaw two major extensions of the system in the early 1920s to southern Florida on each coast during the [[Florida land boom of the 1920s|land boom]]. One line extended the Seaboard's tracks on the east coast from [[West Palm Beach, Florida|West Palm Beach]] down to [[Fort Lauderdale, Florida|Fort Lauderdale]] and [[Miami]] (and later, [[Homestead, Florida|Homestead]]), while the other extension on the west coast extended the tracks from [[Fort Ogden, Florida|Fort Ogden]] south to [[Fort Myers, Florida|Fort Myers]] and [[Naples, Florida|Naples]], with branches from Fort Myers to [[LaBelle, Florida|LaBelle]] and [[Punta Rassa, Florida|Punta Rassa]]. These two extensions were heavily championed by Seaboard president [[S. Davies Warfield]] (who died months after its completion), and were constructed by Foley Brothers railroad contractors. Both extensions also allowed the Seaboard to better compete with the [[Florida East Coast Railway]] and the [[Atlantic Coast Line Railroad]], who already served the lower east and west coasts of Florida respectively.
Today, only the east coast route survives and is now the state-owned South Florida Rail Corridor (which notably hosts [[Tri-Rail]] and [[Amtrak]] service for South Florida) and the Homestead Subdivision, which is still owned by [[CSX Transportation]]. The west coast route was removed in 1952.
==Grand opening celebration==
[[File:Orange Blossom Special Miami.jpg|thumb|left|Inaugural Orange Blossom Special in Miami on January 8, 1927]]
The Seaboard–All Florida Railway's west coast route commenced operation on January 7, 1927, and the east coast route began service the following day. On each opening day, President S. Davies Warfield rode aboard a special section of the Seaboard's [[Orange Blossom Special (train)|Orange Blossom Special]] with a number of special guests and dignitaries including Florida Governor [[John W. Martin]]. [[Dorothy Walker Bush]], mother of U.S. President [[George H. W. Bush]] was also aboard the first train to Miami.<ref>{{cite web |title=Seaboard Railroad |url=http://flashbackmiami.com/2015/06/03/seaboard-railroad/ |website=Flashback Miami |publisher=Miami Herald |access-date=May 23, 2019}}</ref> The train stopped at points along the lines for public ovation with nearly 20,000 people attending. The two-day celebration is considered to be one of the largest public relations events in the history of American railroads.<ref name=Cottrill>{{cite news|last=Cottrill|first=Cathy|title=Remember: Details sought about the Seaboard Air Line Railroad in Bonita Springs|url=http://archive.naplesnews.com/community/remember-details-sought-about-the-seaboard-air-line-railroad-in-bonita-springs-ep-313209047-331331401.html/|access-date=May 17, 2014|newspaper=The Banner|date=December 31, 2013}}</ref><ref name=Celebration>{{cite book|last=Turner|first=Gregg M.|title=A Milestone Celebration: The Seaboard Railway to Naples and Miami|year=2004|publisher=AuthorHouse|isbn=9781468517378}}</ref>
==East Coast==
{{Maplink|frame=yes|text=Map of East Coast Line as it appeared in 1927 (click to enlarge)|frame-width=250|frame-height=380|from=Seaboard-All Florida Railway.map}}
===Route and history===
The Seaboard Air Line Railroad began serving West Palm Beach in January 1925.  Seaboard's line to West Palm Beach, which originated at their [[Main Line (Seaboard Air Line Railroad)|main line]] in [[Coleman, Florida|Coleman]] (just south of [[Wildwood, Florida|Wildwood]]), was built by the [[Florida Western and Northern Railroad]], another Seaboard Air Line subsidiary.  The Seaboard-All Florida Railway was organized to extend this line south from West Palm Beach to Miami.  When service on the line began, the Seaboard–All Florida Railway from West Palm Beach to Miami (along with track north of West Palm Beach to Coleman) was designated as the Seaboard Air Line Railroad's '''Miami Subdivision''' on employee timetables and the extension to Homestead was designated as the '''Homestead Subdivision'''.<ref name="SALN">Seaboard Air Line Railroad North Florida Division Timetable (1949)</ref>
Upon its completion in January 1927, track ran from West Palm Beach south along a route largely paralleling the [[Florida East Coast Railway]] (FEC), which existed a few miles closer to the coast.  The Seaboard line ran just to the west of the central areas of [[Boynton Beach, Florida|Boynton]], [[Delray Beach, Florida|Delray]], [[Boca Raton, Florida|Boca Raton]], [[Deerfield Beach, Florida|Deerfield]], [[Fort Lauderdale, Florida|Fort Lauderdale]], and [[Hollywood, Florida|Hollywood]].
At Port Everglades Junction just south of Fort Lauderdale, the Port Everglades Belt Line Railroad connected the Seaboard line with [[Port Everglades]], which opened in 1928.  The Port Everglades Belt Line ran east to the port along the current route of [[Interstate 595 (Florida)|Interstate 595]].<ref name="1962 map">{{cite web |title=Fort Lauderdale South map (1962) |url=https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/img4/ht_icons/overlay/FL/FL_Fort%20Lauderdale%20South_346263_1962_24000_geo.jpg |publisher=United States Geological Survey |access-date=March 21, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The Ports of Miami, Port Everglades, and Palm Beach, Fla |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XPwvAQAAMAAJ&dq=%22PORT+EVERGLADES+BELT%22+RAILROAD+SEABOARD&pg=PA86 |publisher=U.S. Army Corps of Engineers |year=1972|access-date=March 8, 2022}}</ref>
South of Hollywood, the line turned southwest through [[Opa-locka, Florida|Opa-locka]] before turning back south through [[Hialeah, Florida|Hialeah]].  It crossed the [[Florida East Coast Railway]]'s Little River Branch in Hialeah at a junction that would be named Iris Interlocking.<ref name="CSX">[http://www.multimodalways.org/docs/railroads/companies/CSX/CSX%20ETTs/CSX%20Jacksonville%20Div%20ETT%20%234%201-1-2005.pdf CSX Jacksonville Division Timetable]</ref> South of Hialeah, the line turned southeast along the [[Miami Canal]] toward downtown Miami.  A passenger depot serving [[Miami]] was built at 2206 NW 7th Ave in the [[Allapattah]] neighborhood.<ref name="flashbackmiami">{{cite web|url=http://flashbackmiami.com/2015/06/03/seaboard-railroad/ |title=Seaboard Railroad |website=Flashback Miami|access-date=November 16, 2016}}</ref><ref name="rrpicturearchives">{{cite web|url=http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=2016239|website=rrpicturearchives.net|title=1977 - Old Seaboard Air Line station - Miami Florida|access-date=November 16, 2016}}</ref><ref name="chicagorailfan">{{cite web|url=http://www.chicagorailfan.com/stbcmia.html|website=chicagorailfan.com|title=The Great Union Stations |access-date=November 16, 2016}}</ref>  Track would continue beyond the passenger depot south and east into downtown.  It crossed the FEC's main line near NW 11th Street and connected with the Miami Municipal Railway, which continued the line a short distance to the city docks at Miami's original port (located at the site of [[Museum Park (Miami)|Museum Park]]).<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bramson |first1=Seth H. |title=A Special Moment In Time: The Five Terrible Events Of 1926 |url=https://ringsidereport.com/?p=77896 |website=Ring Side Report |access-date=March 22, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Miami map (1950) |url=https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/img4/ht_icons/overlay/FL/FL_Miami_347458_1950_24000_geo.jpg |publisher=United States Geological Survey |access-date=March 21, 2022}}</ref><ref name="Bramson">{{cite web |last1=Bramson |first1=Seth |title=The Long, Vital History Of David Beckham's Stadium Site, The First Port Of Miami |url=https://miami.curbed.com/2014/6/5/10092542/history-of-the-fec-slip |website=Curbed Miami |date=June 5, 2014 |access-date=December 1, 2021}}</ref>
The Seaboard Air Line ran a number of intercity passenger services to Miami on the line including the ''[[Orange Blossom Special (train)|Orange Blossom Special]]'', ''[[Silver Meteor]]'', ''[[Silver Star (Amtrak train)|Silver Star]]'', the ''Sunland'', the ''Palmland'', and the ''Cross State Limited''.<ref name="SALN"/>
At Hialeah Junction (located less than a mile south of the [[Hialeah station (Seaboard Air Line Railway)|Hialeah station]]), a branch track was also built south over the [[Miami Canal]], where Seaboard built a freight yard and maintenance shops.  The branch crossed the canal on a bascule drawbridge and then turned west at a [[Wye (railroad)|wye]] where it entered the yard.<ref name="Turner2">{{cite book|last1=Turner|first1=Gregg|title=A Short History of Florida Railroads|date=2003|publisher=Arcadia Publishing|isbn=978-0-7385-2421-4}}</ref>  By the end of 1927, the line was extended one last time from the yard southwest to [[Homestead, Florida|Homestead]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Turner|first=Gregg M.|title=Florida Railroads in the 1920s|year=2005|publisher=Arcadia Publishing}}</ref>  Passenger service ran on the Homestead Subdivision up until 1929, when it was downgraded to a freight-only line.<ref>{{cite web |title=Where Does Hidden Trail Along Abandoned Railroad Lead to ? | date=November 24, 2021 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vzGl-qwHsw |via=YouTube |access-date=December 2, 2021}}</ref>
The original Hialeah yard and the Homestead Subdivision from the yard to Oleander originally ran though the middle of what is now [[Miami International Airport]].  The yard was located at the east end of the current Runway 8R/26L at the time.<ref>{{cite web |title=Hialeah map (1950) |url=https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/img4/ht_icons/overlay/FL/FL_Hialeah_346599_1950_24000_geo.jpg |publisher=United States Geological Survey |access-date=March 22, 2022}}</ref><ref name="Golldiecat">{{cite web |title=History of Miami International Airport |url=https://golldiecat.tripod.com/history.html |website=Golldiecat's Airport-Page |access-date=November 18, 2021}}</ref>  Prior to 1949, the airport was actually two separate air fields on either side of the tracks, with [[Miami Army Airfield]] to the south and Pan American Field (later known as the 36th Street Airport) to the north.  In 1949, the Dade County Port Authority merged the two air fields and was officially named Miami International Airport.  The railroad still ran through the middle of the airport after the fields were merged.  The tracks even crossed a runway and taxiway at grade and trains needed clearance from [[air traffic control]] to cross them.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Miami Terminal Being Shifted Four Miles |journal=Railway Age |date=7 October 1950 |volume=129 |issue=15 |pages=23–24 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nO4lAAAAMAAJ&dq=MIAMI+AIRPORT+%22SEABOARD%22+RAILROAD+TAXIWAY&pg=RA8-PA48-IA15 |access-date=5 September 2023}}</ref>  In 1951, the Dade County Port Authority paid $3 million to relocate Seaboard's Hialeah yard to its current location north of Iris Interlocking and reroute the Homestead Subdivision to its current alignment between [[Florida State Road 953|LeJeune Road]] and Oleander Junction along the [[Tamiami Canal]] and the south side of the airport.<ref name="Golldiecat"/><ref name="Turner"/>
In 1958, two large cement plants were built just west of Miami and the Seaboard built spurs from the Homestead Subdivision to serve both plants.  One spur was built from Oleander Junction west through [[Doral, Florida|Doral]] and [[Sweetwater, Miami-Dade County, Florida|Sweetwater]] to serve the plant built by the Lehigh Portland Cement Company.  The other spur ran from Sterling to the plant built by the General Portland Cement Company (GPC) located at [[Florida State Road 997|Krome Avenue]] and [[Kendall Drive]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=United States. National Railroad Adjustment Board |title=Railroad First Division National Adjustment Board |publisher=Keenan Printing Company |location=Chicago, Illinois |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bs8gAQAAIAAJ&dq=LEHIGH+SPUR+HIALEAH+%221958%22&pg=RA51-PA6 |access-date=March 22, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Fortman |first1=Phil |title=Plants Near Glades Victory |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-miami-herald-plants-near-glades-vict/157680541/ |access-date=23 October 2024 |agency=The Miami Herald |date=3 November 1957 |page=10B |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>
By 1964, Miami's original port was largely replaced by [[PortMiami]] on [[Dodge Island]].  Tracks east of the station to the original port would eventually be removed.<ref name="Bramson"/>
In 1963, the line began hosting the [[Atlantic Coast Line Railroad]]'s Miami-bound passenger trains.  The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was the Seaboard Air Line's main competitor in Central Florida and the West Coast of the state.  This arrangement was quickly made due to the abrupt discontinuation of passenger service on the Florida East Coast Railway, who previously handled the Atlantic Coast Line's Miami trains.  By then, merger talks were underway between the Atlantic Coast Line and the Seaboard Air Line.  The merger would be complete by 1967 and the new combined company would be named the [[Seaboard Coast Line Railroad]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Cox|first1=Jim|title=Rails Across Dixie: A History of Passenger Trains in the American South|date=2011|publisher=MacFarland & Company, Inc. Publishers|location=Jefferson, North Carolina|isbn=978-0-7864-4528-8|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gY4FgCKdb7UC&dq=did+the+atlantic+coast+line+ever+try+to+take+over+the+fec&pg=PA38|accessdate=November 13, 2017}}</ref>
In 1971, all of the Seaboard Coast Line's intercity passenger service was taken over by [[Amtrak]] who still operate to Miami on the line today.<ref name="Turner2"/>  In the 1970s, [[Interstate 95 in Florida|Interstate 95]] was built through South Florida, which was mostly built beside the Seaboard tracks between West Palm Beach and [[Golden Glades, Florida|Golden Glades]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Interstate 95 |url=https://www.aaroads.com/guides/i-095-fl/ |website=AA Road |access-date=December 1, 2021}}</ref>  [[Interstate 595 (Florida)|Interstate 595]] was completed in 1991 and the line was realigned slightly at the former Port Everglades Junction to accommodate the [[Rainbow Interchange|interchange between I-95 and I-595]].<ref name="1962 map"/><ref>{{cite web |title=Fort Lauderdale South map (1994) |url=https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/img4/ht_icons/overlay/FL/FL_Fort%20Lauderdale%20South_346258_1994_24000_geo.jpg |publisher=United States Geological Survey |access-date=March 22, 2022}}</ref>
In 1980, the Seaboard Coast Line's parent company merged with the [[Chessie System]], creating the [[CSX Corporation]].  The CSX Corporation initially operated the Chessie and Seaboard Systems separately until 1986, when they were merged into [[CSX Transportation]].<ref name="Turner2"/>
In 1983, the [[Florida Department of Transportation]] (FDOT) was looking to start temporary commuter rail service between West Palm Beach and Miami while construction crews widened [[Interstate 95 in Florida|Interstate 95]] and [[Florida's Turnpike]].<ref>3,000 a day ride Tri-Rail trains ''[[Railway Age]]'' February 1989 page 24</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.getcruising.com/rails/_trirail.html |title=TRI-RAIL South Florida's Commuter Rail System |website=GetCruising.com |access-date=2011-11-10}}</ref>  The state's original plan was to use the more urban Florida East Coast Railway for the service, but FEC declined to grant access to its line as they wanted freight to be their top priority.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2010-09-16/news/fl-fec-passenger-rail-20100915_1_tri-rail-passenger-train-rapid-transit-bus|title=Officials seek public input on new transit option along FEC tracks|newspaper=Sun-Sentinel|date=September 16, 2010|access-date=2011-11-14|archive-date=September 21, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100921115430/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2010-09-16/news/fl-fec-passenger-rail-20100915_1_tri-rail-passenger-train-rapid-transit-bus|url-status=dead}}</ref>  CSX on the other hand was going through a corporate restructuring in 1985 and was seeking to sell or abandon some of its lines.<ref name="Turner"/>  CSX sold the line from West Palm Beach to Miami Airport in May 1988 to FDOT for $264 million.<ref name="Turner2"/>  Since the sale to FDOT, the line has been officially known as the South Florida Rail Corridor.
===Current operations===
====South Florida Rail Corridor====
{{see also|Tri-Rail}}
[[Image:Tri-Rail Hyundai Rotem cab car.jpg|right|thumb|Tri-Rail train on the former Seaboard-All Florida Railway in 2011]]
Tri-Rail service began on the South Florida Rail Corridor in January 1989.  While initially intended to be temporary, it eventually became a permanent service.  CSX continued to maintain and provide dispatching for the line up until 2015, when FDOT took over those responsibilities.<ref>{{cite web|title=South Florida transportation authority to take over rail corridor operation from CSXT|url=http://www.progressiverailroading.com/csx_transportation/news/South-Florida-transportation-authority-to-take-over-rail-corridor-operation-from-CSXT--34995|work=Progressive Railroading|access-date=October 13, 2013}}</ref><ref name="CSX" />  Tri-Rail extended service south to a new station at Miami Airport located at the end of the wye south of the Miami Canal in 1998.  This was the first passenger service south of the Miami Canal since passenger service was discontinued on the Homestead Subdivision in 1929.  FDOT completed double-tracking the line from West Palm Beach to Hialeah in 2006.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tri-Rail History for South Florida's Commuter Rail System |url=https://gettraveling.com/trirail.htm |website=GetTravelling.com |access-date=December 3, 2021}}</ref>  [[Amtrak]] continues to operate the [[Silver Meteor]] and [[Silver Star (Amtrak train)|Silver Star]] service from [[New York City]] to Miami over the line, both of which are former Seaboard passenger services.  Today, the original 1920s Seaboard stations are used by Amtrak and Tri-Rail for service at [[West Palm Beach Seaboard Coastline Railroad Passenger Station|West Palm Beach]], [[Deerfield Beach Seaboard Air Line Railway Station|Deerfield Beach]], [[Fort Lauderdale (Tri-Rail station)|Fort Lauderdale]] and [[Hollywood Seaboard Air Line|Hollywood]]. Though no longer in use, the Seaboard stations at [[Delray Beach Seaboard Air Line Railway Station|Delray Beach]], [[Opa-locka Seaboard Air Line Railway Station|Opa-locka]], and [[Hialeah Seaboard Air Line Railway Station|Hialeah]] are still standing.
Hialeah yard is still used by CSX, and it also contains a car maintenance facility and locomotive shop for both Amtrak and Tri-Rail. Amtrak's current [[Miami station (Amtrak)|Miami station]], which replaced the original Seaboard Miami depot in Allapattah in 1978, is located at the south end of the yard.<ref>{{cite web |title=U.S., Amtrak and Brightline South Florida History: Two Railroads, Two Very Different Results for Stations |url=http://corridorrail.com/u-s-amtrak-and-brightline-south-florida-history-two-railroads-two-very-different-results-for-stations/ |website=Corridor Rail |date=February 15, 2021 |access-date=November 18, 2021}}</ref>
CSX continues to have freight trackage rights on the South Florida Rail Corridor. The original southern end of the line from Hialeah Junction to Downtown Miami is still used by CSX and is now the Downtown Lead.
====Homestead Subdivision====
[[File:CSX train on the Homestead Subdivision.jpg|alt=A CSX train on the Homestead Subdivision at the Bird Road grade crossing.|thumb|left|A CSX train on the Homestead Subdivision at the [[Bird Road]] [[grade crossing]].]]
{{Homestead Subdivision}}
CSX still owns the Homestead Subdivision, which is the southernmost trackage of the entire CSX network.<ref name="CSX" />
The northern half of the Homestead Subdivision parallels the [[Don Shula Expressway]] today.  The Lehigh Spur and GPC Spur are also still in service.  The GPC Spur still serves the [[Cemex]] facility (GPC's former facility) in western [[Miami-Dade County]] as well as a Conrad Yelvington plant.<ref>[https://miamidadetpo.org/library/studies/csx-corridor-evaluation-study-final-2009-08.pdf Miami-Dade County CSX Corridor Evaluation Study]</ref>
The southern half of the line only sees sporadic freight service, and the southernmost 12 miles of the line (south of the [[Gold Coast Railroad Museum]]) has been out of service since March 2019.<ref name="FRA">{{cite web |title=CSX Transportation, Inc.-Discontinuance of Service Exemption-in Miami-Dade County, Fla. |url=https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2019/03/25/2019-05653/csx-transportation-inc-discontinuance-of-service-exemption-in-miami-dade-county-fla |website=Surface Transportation Board |date=March 25, 2019 |accessdate=27 June 2019}}</ref> The Seaboard's [[Homestead Seaboard Air Line Railway Station|Homestead]] depot is still standing.
There have been proposals in the past to extend [[Tri-Rail]] commuter service down the line to Homestead but the idea has yet to make it past the proposal stage.<ref>{{cite news |last1=McCaughan |first1=Sean |title=What if Tri-Rail Extended All the Way to Homestead? |url=https://miami.curbed.com/2015/8/6/9933036/tri-rail-expansion-homestead-csx |accessdate=27 June 2019 |agency=Curbed Miami}}</ref>  As of 2023, efforts are once again underway to extend Tri-Rail to Homestead.<ref>{{cite news |title=Tri-Rail offered to lead new Miami-Dade rail plans |url=https://www.miamitodaynews.com/2023/04/25/tri-rail-offered-to-lead-new-miami-dade-rail-plans/ |access-date=2 August 2023 |agency=Miami Today |date=25 April 2023}}</ref>
===Historic stations===
{| class="wikitable"
!Milepost<ref name="SCL 1977">[http://www.multimodalways.org/docs/railroads/companies/SCL/SCL%20ETTs/SCL%20Jville%20%26%20Tampa%20Divs%20ETT%20%238%2010-30-1977.pdf Seaboard Coast Line Railroad Jacksonville Division and Tampa Division Timetable (1977)]</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Bramson |first1=Seth |title=The Railroad Stations in Dade County |url=http://digitalcollections.fiu.edu/tequesta/files/1985/85_1_04.pdf |publisher=Florida International University |access-date=May 20, 2020 |archive-date=July 15, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200715053520/http://digitalcollections.fiu.edu/tequesta/files/1985/85_1_04.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>
!City
!Station<ref name="SALN" />
!Image
!Connections and notes
|-
!colspan=5|
'''East Coast Main Line<br />(Miami Subdivision)'''
|-
|SX 969.9
|[[West Palm Beach, Florida|West Palm Beach]]
|[[West Palm Beach station|West Palm Beach]]
|[[File:West Palm Beach SAL 002.jpg|100px]]
|continues from [[Florida Western and Northern Railroad]] ([[Seaboard Air Line Railroad|SAL]])
|-
|SX 976.5
|[[Lake Worth Beach, Florida|Lake Worth Beach]]
|Lake Worth
|
|
|-
|SX 980.8
|
|Hypoluxo
|
|
|-
|SX 983.0
|[[Boynton Beach, Florida|Boynton Beach]]
|Boynton
|
|
|-
|SX 987.5
|[[Delray Beach, Florida|Delray Beach]]
|[[Delray Beach Seaboard Air Line Railway Station|Delray]]
|[[File:Delray SAL Station 001.jpg|100px]]
|
|-
|SX 991.1
|[[Boca Raton, Florida|Boca Raton]]
|Yamato
|
|
|-
|SX 998.3
|[[Deerfield Beach, Florida|Deerfield Beach]]
|[[Deerfield Beach station|Deerfield]]
|[[File:Deerfield-station-2.jpg|100px]]
|
|-
|SX 1004.0
|[[Pompano Beach, Florida|Pompano Beach]]
|Pompano
|
|
|-
|SX 1011.1
|
|Carmen
|
|
|-
|SX 1012.3
|[[Fort Lauderdale, Florida|Fort Lauderdale]]
|[[Fort Lauderdale station|Fort Lauderdale]]
|[[File:Fort Lauderdale SAL station NW.jpg|100px]]
|
|-
|SX 1015.3
|
|Port Everglades Junction
|
|junction with [[Port Everglades]] Belt Line Railroad
|-
|SX 1016.4
|[[Dania Beach, Florida|Dania Beach]]
|Dania
|
|
|-
|SX 1019.7
|[[Hollywood, Florida|Hollywood]]
|[[Hollywood station (Florida)|Hollywood]]
|[[File:Hollywood SAL Station West.jpg|100px]]
|
|-
|SX 1021.1
|[[Hallandale Beach, Florida|Hallandale Beach]]
|Hallandale
|
|
|-
|SX 1025.7
|
|Uleta
|
|also known as Miami Plantation
|-
|SX 1030.0
|[[Opa-Locka, Florida|Opa-Locka]]
|[[Opa-locka station|Opa-Locka]]
|[[File:Opa Locka FL old RR station01.jpg|100px]]
|
|-
|SX 1034.2
|! rowspan="3" |[[Hialeah, Florida|Hialeah]]
|Iris
|
|junction with [[Florida East Coast Railway]] Little River Branch
|-
|SX 1036.3
|[[Hialeah station (Seaboard Air Line Railway)|Hialeah]]
|[[File:Hialeah FL SAL RR Station01.jpg|100px]]
|
|-
|SX 1036.5
|Hialeah Junction
|
|junction with Homestead Subdivision
|-
|SXD 1040.0
|[[Miami]]
|[[Miami station (Seaboard Air Line Railroad)|Miami]]
|[[File:Amtrak train at Miami, November 1972.jpg|100px]]
|replaced by current [[Miami station (Amtrak)|Miami station]] in 1977
|-
!colspan=5|
'''Homestead Subdivision'''
|-
|SX 1037.2
|
|Hialeah Junction
|
|junction with Miami Subdivision
|-
|SXH 1041.1
|
|Oleander
|
|junction with [[Florida East Coast Railway]] Little River Branch
|-
|SXH 1043.3
|[[Coral Gables, Florida|Coral Gables]]
|Coral Gables
|
|
|-
|SXH 1047.0
|[[South Miami, Florida|South Miami]]
|South Miami
|
|
|-
|SXH 1053.0
|
|Sterling
|
|
|-
|SXH 1055.5
|[[Richmond West, Florida|Richmond West]]
|Richmond
|
|
|-
|SXH 1058.7
|
|[[Aladdin City, Florida|Aladdin City]]
|
|
|-
|SXH 1062.8
|
|[[Redland, Florida|Redland]]
|
|
|-
|SXH 1066.4
|[[Homestead, Florida|Homestead]]
|[[Homestead Seaboard Air Line Railway Station|Homestead]]
|[[File:Homestead SAL station.jpg|100px]]
|
|-
|}
==West Coast==
{{Maplink|frame=yes|text=Map of West Coast Line as it appeared in 1927 (click to enlarge)|frame-width=250|frame-height=380|from=Seaboard-All Florida Railway West.map}}
===Route and history===
The Seaboard All-Florida Railway's west coast route began at Hull (just northeast of Fort Ogden).  It branched off of the [[Charlotte Harbor and Northern Railway]] which Seaboard acquired in 1926. From Hull, it ran directly south in a nearly straight trajectory to Fort Myers. It crossed the Atlantic Coast Line's [[Lakeland—Fort Myers Line]] twice en route to Fort Myers: once in Fort Ogden and once at Gilchrist (just northeast of North Fort Myers).  The line connected with a logging railroad operated by the Dowling and Camp Lumber Company near Slater.<ref>{{cite web |title=Lumber Co. List |url=https://www.flarr.com/lumbercos.htm |website=The Florida Railroad History Website - Fernandina & Cedar Key |access-date=June 9, 2020 |archive-date=January 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200129174641/http://www.flarr.com/lumbercos.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> As the line approached Fort Myers, it crossed the [[Caloosahatchee River]] on a long drawbridge just downstream of the original [[Tamiami Trail]] Bridge. The pier at Riverside Park in East Fort Myers is located where the bridge crossed the river.
In Fort Myers, the passenger depot was located just south of the river at the intersection of [[Florida State Road 80|Palm Beach Boulevard]] and East Riverside Drive. [[Henry Ford]], a seasonal Fort Myers resident, used the station to reach his winter home (the [[Edison and Ford Winter Estates]]) on [[McGregor Boulevard]].<ref name="Dorsey">{{cite news |last1=Dorsey |first1=David |title=In the Know: Fort Myers train depot from 1920s to be demolished, surgery center sells |url=https://www.news-press.com/story/news/in-the-know/2020/08/04/fort-myers-train-depot-1920-s-demolished-wednesday/5571956002/ |access-date=October 19, 2020 |work=The News-Press |date=August 4, 2020}}</ref> Just south of the passenger depot, a separate freight depot was built along Michigan Avenue.  From there, the line continued south out of the city along Palm Avenue and the west side of the Ten Mile Canal, closely paralleling the [[Atlantic Coast Line Railroad]] (which is operated today by [[Seminole Gulf Railway]]) on the other side of the canal.
At Mullock Creek, another subsidiary, the '''Naples, Seaboard, and Gulf Railway''', continued the line the rest of the way to Naples. From the creek, it headed southeast through [[Estero, Florida|Estero]] (just west of the [[Koreshan State Historic Site|Koreshan Unity Settlement]]) to Bonita Springs.<ref name="atlas">{{cite web|title=Estero Bay State Park Preserve|url=http://www.mpatlas.org/mpa/sites/7992/|website=MPAtlas|access-date=November 15, 2014}}</ref> In Bonita Springs, it turned south again before crossing the [[Imperial River (Florida)|Imperial River]]. A passenger depot existed on the south side of [[Florida State Road 865|Bonita Beach Road]] (near the site of First Presbyterian Church).<ref name=Cottrill/> The line then joined the current route of [[List of county roads in Collier County, Florida#County Road 851|Goodlette-Frank Road]] near [[Vanderbilt Beach]] and headed into downtown Naples, terminating at the [[Naples Seaboard Air Line Railway Station|Naples passenger depot]] on Fifth Avenue South. President Warfield had hoped to build a deep-water port in Naples, which was never built.
In addition to the main route, two branches existed from Fort Myers to LaBelle and Punta Rassa. The thirty-mile LaBelle branch began just south of the Fort Myers freight depot and ran just south of Michigan Avenue before turning northeast and continuing just south of and parallel to [[Florida State Road 80|State Road 80]]. It terminated in downtown LaBelle at a depot at Main Street and Seminole Avenue.<ref>{{cite web|title=National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation Form|url={{NRHP url|id=64500828}}|publisher=National Park Service, United States Department of the Interior|access-date=November 4, 2015}}</ref> In the 1940s, a seven-mile spur was built from the LaBelle branch southeast to [[Buckingham Army Airfield]].<ref>{{cite web|title=MOS 580 — Remote Control Turret Mechanic-Gunner: SGT Floyd Richard McCormick|url=http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~ny330bg/PDF/McCormick.pdf|website=Ancestry.com|access-date=October 11, 2014}}</ref> The 8-mile Punta Rassa branch departed the main line just south of Fort Myers near the Six Mile Cypress Slough. Despite its name, the branch never fully reached Punta Rassa, where President Warfield had also hoped to establish a deep-water port. It actually terminated in Truckland near [[Iona, Florida|Iona]], just two miles short of Punta Rassa. The branch ran from the main route west along the current route of [[Florida State Road 865|Six Mile Cypress Parkway]], through the center of today's [[Lakes Regional Park|Lakes Park]] (south of and parallel to the park's scenic boardwalk), then southwest along the current routes of [[Summerlin Road]] and Pine Ridge Road before turning back north slightly to its terminus at [[Florida State Road 867|McGregor Boulevard]] in Truckland. The Punta Rassa branch ended up mostly serving agricultural land and gladiolus fields near Biggar.<ref>{{cite web|title=Seaboard served Ft. Myers from 1926 to 1952|url=http://www.railroadmuseumswfl.com/interactive/|publisher=Railroad Museum SWFL|access-date=November 4, 2015}}</ref> Power [[Electric power transmission|transmission line]] easements run on some of the former right of way of both the Labelle and Punta Rassa Branches.<ref>{{cite web|title=History at Hickey's Creek Mitigation Park|url=http://www.leeparks.org/pdf/History_at_HCMP.pdf|publisher=Lee County Parks and Recreation|access-date=November 15, 2014}}</ref>
When the line and branches were complete, the Seaboard Air Line designated them as the '''Fort Myers Subdivision''', '''LaBelle Subdivision''', and '''Punta Rassa Subdivision'''.<ref name="SAL">Seaboard Air Line Railroad South Florida Division Timetable (1940)</ref>  After opening, the Seaboard's [[Orange Blossom Special (train)|Orange Blossom Special]] and West Coast Limited provided daily passenger service down the west coast.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Williams |first1=Cynthia A. |title=Fort Myers railway station is turnstile to history |url=https://www.news-press.com/story/entertainment/2016/11/22/fort-myers-railway-station-acl-atlantic-coast-history-museum-williams/94035710/ |access-date=July 14, 2020 |agency=News-Press |date=November 22, 2016}}</ref> Mixed train service (both passenger cars and freight combined) was offered from Fort Myers to LaBelle.
===Decline and abandonment===
[[File:SAL bridge pilings.jpg|thumb|left|Remaining wooden pilings for the Seaboard Air Line's bridge over the Caloosahatchee River in Fort Myers, Florida]]
Unlike the east coast route, the west coast route was not as successful and would exist for less than thirty years. The Seaboard Air Line went bankrupt in 1930 after the collapse of the land boom and in 1931, service to Fort Myers and Naples was reduced to a mixed train that operated three days a week. In 1933, only six years after the line opened, passenger service was discontinued entirely on the West Coast. By 1942, the line was abandoned south of Punta Rassa Junction (located at present-day [[Florida State Road 865|Six Mile Cypress Parkway]]'s crossing of the Ten Mile Canal in South Fort Myers). The southernmost seven miles of the right of way from [[Vanderbilt Beach, Florida|Vanderbilt]] to downtown Naples and the Naples depot ended up being sold to the [[Atlantic Coast Line Railroad]]. The Atlantic Coast Line subsequently abandoned their [[Lakeland—Fort Myers Line|branch to Marco Island]] south of Vanderbilt and extended the remaining line down the former Seaboard right of way to the passenger depot. This segment would remain in freight service until 1979.<ref name="Turner">{{cite book |last=Turner |first=Gregg M. |title=Railroads of Southwest Florida |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |series=Images of America |date=December 1, 1999}}</ref>
[[File:Seaboard Grade.jpg|thumb|right|Former right of way of the West Coast route within the Fred C. Babcock/Cecil M. Webb Wildlife Management Area in southern Charlotte County. It is now a dirt trail named "Seaboard Grade". The concrete footings to the right are remnants of a water tower for steam locomotives.]]
The rest of the west coast SAL route was abandoned and removed by 1952.  The Atlantic Coast Line later reconstructed the first mile and a half of the Punta Rassa branch from their main line in the 1960s to briefly serve a rock mine just east of the [[Tamiami Trail]] ([[US 41 (FL)|US 41]]) (site of Lakes Park).
Some of the former right of way is now an unpaved trail called "Seaboard Grade" through the Fred C. Babcock/Cecil M. Webb Wildlife Management Area in southeastern Charlotte County.  The foundation of one of the railroad's water towers still stands along Seaboard Grade just north of Tucker's Grade.<ref>{{cite web |title=Babcock/Webb - History |url=https://myfwc.com/recreation/lead/babcockwebb/history/ |publisher=Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission |access-date=May 10, 2022}}</ref>  In Fort Myers, Seaboard Street and Palm Avenue run along the former right of way. The [[John Yarbrough Linear Park]] runs close to the line's former right of way next to the Ten Mile Canal south of Fort Myers.  A [[Florida Power and Light|FPL]] [[Electric power transmission|transmission line]] runs on most of the former route from Mullock Creek to Vanderbilt Beach, and Goodlette-Frank Road still run the rest of the right of way from there to downtown Naples.<ref name="atlas"/><ref>{{cite web |title=1953 Lee County FL Aerial Imagery |url=https://www.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=f31caed5865a471eb53fdc05ff912ce2&fbclid=IwAR2GSyktPmch_M15LGLKpLImPO6FCn64-nndBN2j8FW4yIXt9uSrczj2DfU |access-date=May 17, 2021}}</ref>
Today, the Naples passenger depot on Fifth Avenue South is still standing and it is now the [[Naples Seaboard Air Line Railway Station|Naples Depot Museum]]. The Fort Myers passenger depot most recently housed the Reilly Brothers Construction company but the building was demolished in August 2020.<ref name="Dorsey"/> The Fort Myers freight depot and yard on Michigan Avenue most recently housed Gully's Discount Store Fixtures but it was demolished in early 2023.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Rizzo |first1=Tiffany |title=Demolition of old Fort Myers freight station begins |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P84qVuWrfGg |access-date=12 April 2023 |agency=WINK News |date=20 February 2023}}</ref>   An apartment complex named "Seaboard Waterside Apartments" is planned to be built on the site of the former freight yard.<ref>{{cite web |title=Seaboard Waterside Apartments |url=http://seaboardapartments.com/ |access-date=12 April 2023 |archive-date=April 12, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230412232752/http://seaboardapartments.com/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>  Along the former Punta Rassa Branch, the former San Carlos freight building (on Pine Ridge Road near [[Florida State Road 865|San Carlos Boulevard]]) is now an antique shop.  The Biggar freight depot, which was located on the southeast corner of [[Summerlin Road]] and [[Florida State Road 865|Gladiolus Drive]] in later years, operated as a produce stand named Nancy's Produce until 2006.  It was subsequently demolished to make room for the construction of overpasses at that intersection.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Williams |first1=Amy Bennett |title=Orange Blossom Special |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/news-press-orange-blossom-special-page/157680682/ |access-date=23 October 2024 |agency=The News-Press |date=31 December 2006 |pages=16, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/news-press-orange-blossom-special-page/157680699/ 17], [https://www.newspapers.com/article/news-press-orange-blossom-special-page/157680716/ 18] |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>
===Historic Stations===
[[File:Fort Myers SAL depot.png|thumb|Former SAL passenger depot in Fort Myers as seen before its demolition in 2020]]
[[File:SAL freight depot Fort Myers.jpg|thumb|Former SAL freight depot in Fort Myers as seen before its demolition in 2023]]
[[File:Naples FL SCL depot01.jpg|thumb|Former Naples depot, which is nearly identical to the Hialeah depot]]
{| class="wikitable"
!Milepost<ref name="SAL"/>
!City/Location
!Station
!Connections and notes
|-
!colspan=4|
'''West Coast Main Line<br>(Fort Myers Subdivision)'''
|-
|VC 893.4
|
|Hull
|junction with [[Seaboard Air Line Railroad]] [[Charlotte Harbor and Northern Railway|Boca Grande Subdivision]]
|-
|VC 894.7
|
|[[Fort Ogden, Florida|Fort Ogden]]
|junction with [[Atlantic Coast Line Railroad]] [[Lakeland—Fort Myers Line]]
|-
|VC 904.8
|
|Saline
|
|-
|VC 911.0
|
|Tuckers
|
|-
|VC 916.7
|
|Gilchrist
|junction with [[Atlantic Coast Line Railroad]] [[Lakeland—Fort Myers Line]]
|-
|VC 919.7
|
|Tamiami
|
|-
|VC 923.2
|
|[[North Fort Myers, Florida|Salvista]]
|
|-
|VC 925.6
|[[Fort Myers, Florida|Fort Myers]]
|Fort Myers
|Freight depot located half-mile south of passenger depot<br>junction with:<br>{{bulleted list|LaBelle Subdivision|[[Atlantic Coast Line Railroad]] [[Lakeland—Fort Myers Line]]}}
|-
|VC 934.3
|
|Punta Rassa Junction
|junction with Punta Rassa Subdivision
|-
|VC 940.7
|
|Estero
|
|-
|VC 948.8
|[[Bonita Springs, Florida|Bonita Springs]]
|Bonita Springs
|
|-
|VC 953.7
|
|[[Vanderbilt Beach, Florida|Vanderbilt]]
|
|-
|VC 961.7
|[[Naples, Florida|Naples]]
|[[Naples Seaboard Air Line Railway Station|Naples]]
|
|-
!colspan=4|
'''LaBelle Subdivision'''
|-
|VO 925.6
|[[Fort Myers, Florida|Fort Myers]]
|Fort Myers
|junction with Fort Myers Subdivision
|-
|VO 936.2
|
|[[Buckingham, Florida|Buckingham]]
|
|-
|VO 943.3
|
|[[Alva, Florida|Alva]]
|
|-
|VO 945.5
|
|Floweree
|
|-
|VO 955.1
|[[LaBelle, Florida|LaBelle]]
|LaBelle
|
|-
!colspan=4|
'''Punta Rassa Subdivision'''
|-
|VN 934.3
|
|Punta Rassa Junction
|junction with Fort Myers Subdivision
|-
|VN 936.7
|
|Biggar
|
|-
|VN 940.8
|
|San Carlos
|building is now an antique shop
|-
|VN 942.7
|
|Truckland
|
|-
|}
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Seaboard-All Florida Railway}}
[[Category:CSX Transportation lines]]
[[Category:Defunct Florida railroads]]
[[Category:Predecessors of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad]]
[[Category:1927 establishments in Florida]]
[[Category:Seaboard Air Line Railroad]]