South Carolina - Best Friend

Charleston, SC - Built at the West Point foundry in 1830, the Best Friend was the first train built in America. Although this train blew up in 1831, its real legacy was the 136-mile rail line completed in 1833 upon which it ran. Stretching from Charleston to Hamburg (located across the Savannah River from Augusta, Ga.), this was the longest rail line in the world during the 1830s. This railroad was designed to enable Charleston to compete with Savannah for more trade with the state’s interior.

Visitors can board a car of the Best Friend as well as learn about railroad history. For example, the 136-mile ride took a grueling 14 hours in the 1830s but still was faster than the week-long wagon or horseback journey. Two separate HO-scale dioramas depict railroad scenes of both the 1870s and 1920s when the railroad was the king of transportation.

Site URL: http://www.museum.state.sc.us/technology/BestFriend.html
Date resource added: 05-Oct-1998
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