Image of the C&O for Progress monogram A graphic image of the words C&O Piedmont Subdivision

Bumpass

C&O Milepost 129.4


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Station Number: 129
Code Number: 0193

Bumpass was originally known as Bumpass Turnout. A siding was built by the Louisa Railroad near the Bumpass home as a courtesy to the family. The Post Office in Bumpass opened June 20, 1860 with John T. Bumpass as Post Master. During the Civil War, Union troops under Dahlgren destroyed the tracks in Bumpass. The town, 44 miles west of Richmond, once boasted a chicken coop factory (operated by C. I. Bumpass, who was the C&O agent at Buckner), a barrel stave mill, and an ice cream spoon factory run by the Grasberger family. The 1937 Side Track Record listed a house track here, though it is unclear to me whether it was 1086' long or only 936'. Bumpass was still an agency station in 1948. The next year it was converted to a non-agency station. In 1956, the C&O stopped handling LCL freight in Bumpass and discontinued handling any freight here in 1961. Bumpass still had a passenger station and siding as of 1963.

Photos


Walter & Harry Southworth Walter F. Southworth (on right) was Section Foreman on Section 24. He’s at the tool house 150 yards west of the Bumpass Depot. He is holding a level board. On the left is his brother Harry, a section hand, holding a tamping bar. They helped maintain Section 24, which included Beaver Dam, Tyler, Bumpass, Buckner, and Fredericks Hall. Walter was known for having the smoothest riding track on the Division and never had a rough track report.(1930’s photo, courtesy Charles Southworth, used with permission).
Section 24 Crew Section crew for Section 24. The date of the photo is unknown and most of the men are, at the moment, unidentified. In the fall of 2006, however, I was contacted by William Cuff, Jr. who identified two of the men in the photo. Number 1 is William’s grandfather James William “Bill” Dickerson. Number 2 is Bill Dickerson’s brother-in-law Andrew Jones. One of the others is undoubtedly a relative of Charles Southworth. (Photo courtesy Charles Southworth, used with permission)
Floorplan of Bumpass Depot This floorplan of Bumpass Depot was prepared from a drawing done by Mr. Charles Southworth.

Wreck of the Sportsman?


The photos below, provided by Mr. Charles Southworth, show the wreck of a train on the Piedmont Sub. The train is, according to Charlie’s family, Train 47, the west-bound Sportsman, just east of Bumpass. According to Charlie, the accident occurred in about 1934 and his family was waiting to board at Bumpass. If anyone can provide more information about this incident, please contact me at the email address below.

Wreck of Train 47 circa 1934 Wreck of Train 47 circa 1934 Wreck of Train 47 circa 1934 Wreck of Train 47 circa 1934

Maps


This map was prepared from 1963 C&O track charts and U.S.G.S. maps of the area.

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