Louisville & Nashville Railroad   Chartered in Kentucky in 1850, the L&N was one of the South’s first railroads and one of only a very few to grow into a major system without a name change. Its 185-mile main line between Louisville, Ky. and Nashville, Tenn. opened in 1859. Some Important events in L & N History In 1880 L&N acquired 55% of the stock of the Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway, which had opened a line from Nashville to Chattanooga in early 1854. In 1881, the L&N and the Central of Georgia jointly leased the Georgia Railroad. In 1890 NC&St.L leased the Western & Atlantic from the State of Georgia, giving it, and the L&N, a major presence in the Peach State. Atlantic Coast Line gained control of L&N in 1902 by purchasing all of the L&N stock owned by financier J.P. Morgan, who had managed to acquire a majority interest in the company. L&N continued to operate independently, however, with no significant change in management. L&N acquired the Atlanta, Knoxville and Northern Railway in 1902. This route between Marietta, Georgia and Etowah, Tennessee was often called the "Hook and Eye Line" because of a pair of unusual engineering features along the route. The "Hook" was a tight double reverse curve at Tate Mountain, Georgia between Whitestone and Talking Rock. The "Eye" is an 8000-foot loop that climbs Bald Mountain near Farner, Tennessee, encircling it almost twice before crossing back over itself and turning south towards Georgia. It was built in 1898 to replace a set of switchbacks. L&N constructed the line between Cartersville, Ga. and Etowah, Tenn. in 1906, primarily to bypass the mountainous Hook & Eye Line. The latter became known as the Etowah Old Line. NC&St.L was merged into L&N in 1957. In 1967, L&N’s parent Atlantic Coast Line merged with Seaboard Air Line Railroad to form Seaboard Coast Line Railroad. L&N meanwhile continued its separate existence. From 1972 until the early 1980s, the railroad also used the marketing name Family Lines System jointly with SCL, Georgia Railroad, Clinchfield Railroad, Atlanta & West Point Rail Road, and Western Railway of Alabama (the last two also operating under the nickname West Point Route). This confusing arrangement ended when SCL and Chessie System merged in 1980 to form CSX Corporation. LOUISVILLE AND NASHVILLE RR CO. BOND PROOF 1881, KY. $1000 Bond bearing 6% interest. Black. Pensacola and Selma Division. Large top center engraved vignette of Lady Agriculture. Accompanied by pages of coupon sheet proofs, a proof sheet of the back of the bond and a partly-printed American Bank Note Company production sheet detailing the bond’s production information. Also included is the original document with text information for the body of the bond. Excellent. $225 LOUISVILLE AND NASHVILLE RR CO. BOND PROOF 1882. KY Gray. $1000 Bond bearing 6% interest. Trust Bond. Black. Small engraved train vignette at bottom center. Accompanied by two pages of coupon proof sheets and another proof sheet of the back of the bond. A few small punch holes at the signature lines. Excellent. $175 LOUISVILLE AND NASHVILLE RR CO. BOND PROOF 1881, KY. $1000 Bond bearing 6% interest. New Orleans and Mobile Division. Black. Engraved vignette at top center of a train. Accompanied by a proof page of the back of the bond along with a partly-printed American Bank Note company production sheet with bond details. A couple of contemporaneous ink spots at right center, another at the top margin. Very fine. $195 LOUISVILLE AND NASHVILLE RR CO. BOND PROOF 1880, KY. $1000 Bond bearing 6% interest. $2000,000 Six per cent Sinking Fund Loan secured by deposit in Trust of Second Mortgage bonds of The South and North Alabama RW Co. Black. Engraved vignette at top left corner of a traveling train, and sailing ships at right corner. A small hole just below the title at right. Excellent but for the small hole. $175 LOUISVILLE AND NASHVILLE RR CO. BOND PROOF 1882, KY. $1000 Bond bearing 6% interest. Trust Bond. Black. Small engraved train vignette at bottom center. Accompanied by coupon sheet page proofs and the partly-printed American Bank Note Company production sheets with bond details. Excellent. $175   LOUISVILLE AND NASHVILLE RR CO. BOND PROOF 1880, KY. $1000 Bond bearing 6% interest. General Mortgage Bond. Black. Top center engraved vignette of a small eagle with train below. Cherubs flank top of bond, allegorical females flank the bottom of the bond. Accompanied by six pages of coupon sheet proofs, two proof sheets of the bond’s back and a partly-printed American Bank Note Company production sheet detailing the bond’s production information. A nice, ornate unusual design. Folds and c couple of tears, small fold intersection hole at center. Fine. $245 LOUISVILLE AND NASHVILLE RR CO. BOND PROOF 1880, KY. $1000 Bond bearing 6% interest. Purchase Money Trust. Black. Engraved vignette at top center of a train station with ships in the harbor. Accompanied by a damaged proof of the $100 variety of this bond along with the original document detailing the text information for the body of the bond. Excellent. $245 LOUISVILLE AND NASHVILLE RR CO. BOND PROOF 1880, KY. $1000 Bond bearing 6% interest. General Mortgage Bond. Black. Top center engraved vignette of a small eagle with train below. Cherubs flank top of bond, allegorical females flank the bottom of the bond. Accompanied by an earlier progress proof, three pages of coupon sheet proofs, a proof of the back of the bond and a partly-printed American Bank Note Company production sheet detailing the bond’s production information. Excellent. $245 LOUISVILLE AND NASHVILLE RR CO. BOND PROOF 1881, KY $1000 Bond bearing 6% interest. Black. St. Louis Division. Top center engraved vignette of a seated Lady Commerce. Accompanied by the original documents detailing the text to be used in the body of the bond. A few small punch holes at the president’s signature line. Excellent. $225 LOUISVILLE AND NASHVILLE RR CO. BOND PROOF 1881, KY. $1000 Bond bearing 6% interest. Pensacola and Selma Division. Black. Engraved vignette at top center of Lady Agriculture. Accompaniedpages by pages of coupon proof sheets and proof sheets of the back of the bond. A nice package. A few punch holes at signature lines. Excellent. $225 LOUSVILLE AND NASHVILLE RR CO. BOND PROOF 1881, KY $1000 Bond bearing interest at 6%. Lebanon-Knoxville Branch Mortgage Bond. Black. Engraved top center vignette of Lady Commerce surrounded by machinery. Vignette at bottom center of a coupon. Small fold. Excellent. $245 LOUISVILLE AND NASHVILLE RR CO. BOND PROOF 1880, KY. $1000 Bond bearing 6% interest. New Orleans and Mobile Division. Black. Engraved vignette at top center of a train. Accompanied by the original papers detailing the text to be used for the bond along with six pages of coupon proofs and the back proof of the bond. Additionally the partly-printed engraving order of the American Bank Note Company indicates all bond details. There is a ¾" x 1 ¼" loss of paper at the lower right margin of the bond not affecting any printed area. A choice package detailing the development and production of a railroad bond from this important American railroad system. Excellent. $245  OUR JANUARY 2006 CATALOG WILL BE IN THE MAIL SOON Please check out our latest Winter 2006 Pricelist by clicking on the the link below. Click here to begin viewing our latest Winter 2006 Pricelist   All Items Are Unconditionally Guaranteed To Be Authentic. Auctioneer License -  N.H. #4002 - MA. #2692