The War Ends, Repairs, Back In Service

The General was badly damaged during this conflagration, and she was carried as "captured property" by the US Military Railroad Service as they took over operation of the W&ARR. She was also reported as "Captured in Atlanta" in the Annual Report of the W&ARR for the year ending September 30, 1864. On October 21, 1865, after the War had ended, and the W&ARR had been returned to its owner, the State of Georgia, for operation, John H. Flynn, master mechanic of the W&ARR, reported to Colonel Robert Baugh, Superintendent of the W&ARR, that the General was "Needing General Repairs."

There is some question as to whether the USMRRS repaired the General and put her back in service during the short period they operated the W&ARR in 1864 and 1865. It is believed that the USMRRS did nothing to repair the General and put her back in service. Master mechanic Flynn's report supports this contention. In 1866, Colonel DC McCallum, General Manager of the USMRRS, rendered a report to the Secretary of War concerning the overall operation of the USMRRS during the War. He included in this report lists of the locomotives used by the USMRRS and certain data concerning each. He listed the General as "Captured and Returned." Such an entry suggests that the General was not repaired. The USMRRS had more than 200 good locomotives, most of them purchased new, to support General Sherman in his Atlanta Campaign, and they did not need to repair damaged engines such as the General. There were several instances when locomotives were wrecked and just left rather than expend the effort to repair them. Finally, the locomotive repair shops for the USMRRS, in support of the Atlanta Campaign were located in Nashville, Tennessee, and there is no evidence to indicate that the General was moved to Nashville for repair at this time.

The Annual Report of the W&ARR for the year ending September 30, 1866, indicates that the General had been repaired, at a cost of $2,887.45 and was then in "Good Order" and was assigned to freight service. The General was reported to have run 2,560 miles that year which indicates that repairs were not completed until the latter part of the year. It is believed that these repairs were the first made to put the General back in service after the damage suffered on September 1, 1864.

The Annual Report of the W&ARR for September 30, 1867 indicated the General to be in "Good Order" having run 22,300 that year with repairs costing $759.38. This mileage is equivalent to over 80 round trips between Atlanta and Chattanooga. The engine had pulled 1,312 loaded cars and 1,400 empties for an average of 33.3 miles run per cord of wood consumed. The General's record was much the same for the year ending September 30, 1868, when she ran 19,389 miles with repairs costing $497.75. She had pulled 1,343 loaded cars and 1,076 empties running 32.3 miles per cord of wood consumed. During the year ending September 30, 1896, more repairs were reported at a cost of $2,260.70, and the General ran 13,222 miles with an average of 39 miles per cord of wood consumed, pulling 727 loaded cars and 313 empties.

It is not known for certain when the practice of numbering locomotives began. The USMRRS had their locomotives numbered, and it may be that the practice began among southern railroads at the close of the Civil War. Such was the case with the W&ARR. Their locomotives were assigned numbers in 1866 according to the date placed in service on the road, and the number was painted on the locomotive as was the name assigned to the locomotive. The General had the honor of being the 39th locomotive to be placed in the service on the W&ARR, and that number was assigned to the engine. She also continued to carry the name, and until sometime after the restoration of 1892, the name General was painted in gold on the panel under the cab window. In 1880, the numbers were changed. Many of the early locomotives had been retired, sold or scrapped, and the change in numbering was apparently done to eliminate the gaps in numbers. Again, the numbers were assigned according to date placed in service of the oldest locomotive remaining on the roster. At this time, the General was the third oldest locomotive remaining in service, and she was assigned the Number 3, which she still carries.

The W&ARR began, from an operating standpoint, on May 9, 1850, when the track laying in the tunnel through the Chetoogeta Mountain was completed. From the beginning and through the Civil War, except for a period in 1864-65 when the Road was operated by the USMRRS, operation of the W&ARR was accomplished by the State of Georgia through a superintendent appointed by the governor, and who reported to the governor. During the period of reconstruction following the Civil War, it became apparent that this was not the best way to run a railroad. Politics and graft were taking a heavy toll, and the railroad was not being operated in an efficient manner. Accordingly, on December 27, 1870, the Road was leased to the Western & Atlantic Railroad Company for a period of 20 years. This company was formed for the purpose by Joseph E. Brown, wartime governor of Georgia, and twenty-two associates who agreed to operate the Road and to pay as rental the sum of $25,000 per month to the State of Georgia. The W&ARR Company took over the complete railroad to include locomotives and rolling stock. The General was included, and was then valued at $2,000 and in running order.

Existing records of the W&ARR for the period operated by the State of Georgia prior to 1870 are not complete. Annual Reports for the years 1863 and 1865 are not known to be available. Taking this fact into consideration and the fact that the General was not operable in 1864, the total mileage reported for this historic old engine during the period of State operation was 127,886 miles. The best year was 1867 when she ran 22, 300 miles - all on a railroad only 138 miles in length.