Trains of Nashville, Tennessee and Railfanning at Nashville Union Station.

Howdy y'all, and welcome to today's video from Good Ol' Southern Hospitality in Nashville, Tennessee. Nashville is widely regarded as the Music Capital of America and the Home of Country Music, but did you also know that Nashville is a hotspot? Yes my friends for those of you who may not have heard, Nashville is indeed a hotspot and an important railroad town along the CSX system. When it comes to southern railfanning, many think of cities such as Atlanta, Birmingham, and Memphis, but Nashville is yet another busy spot in this region, and a growing one too.

Historically, Nashville was the main hub for the Louisville and Nashville Railroad and the Nashville, Chattanooga, and St. Louis Railroad. From here, trains on the L&N could go north to Louisville, west to Memphis, or south to Birmingham and New Orleans. on the NC&STL, trains could go east to Chattanooga and Atlanta, or west to Memphis. Despite being the only two major railroads in the region, Nashville proved since the 1850s to be a principle railroad town in the region.

Today, almost all railroad operations in the city (with the exception of the passenger service Music City Star) are handled by CSX, which is the only Class I railroad in the middle part of the state. The station is probably the best place to railfan, seeing about 40-45 trains per day. The tracks by the station are the merging point of the CSX Henderson Subdivision and the CSX Mainline Subdivision. Heading north, trains can enter onto either subdivision. On the Henderson Sub, trains head up to Evansville and Chicago, and this line sees approximately 25-30 trains per day. On the Mainline Sub, trains head up to Louisville and Cincinnati, and this line sees about 15 trains per day. One can expect to see 2-3 trains an hour while railfanning at the Nashville Union Station at the railfanning platform and such.

I spent an overnight trip to Nashville and did some railfanning from the Mid-Afternoon to Evening and then some more from Early to Mid-Morning. I saw a pretty decent amount of trains, though I was a bit surprised I saw more coal than manifest trains given that there is a hump yard south of the city. Still, it was a pretty decent time railfanning and I hope to return to Nashville someday and do some more railfanning, and hopefully I can stay longer as well.

If you plan to go down to Nashville and railfan, it is worth the trip if you're looking for an adventure and want to try something new. Thanks for watching, and hope you enjoy the video!

-N&W475