In 1890, the South Atlantic & Ohio Railroad completed the line running from Bristol to Gate City and to Big Stone Gap through Duffield. Transporting coal was the main reason the railroad was built in our area. The most famous passenger train was the Lonesome Pine Special, running from Bristol to Appalachia and on to St. Charles. People used the passenger train to travel through this area also. Boarding the train in Duffield, the passengers could reach Bristol in one-day. They could be as far away as Louisville, Kentucky, the next morning without having to change cars.
