View Fayetteville Railroads in a larger map
The map above shows the approximate routes of the various railroads that have had ties to Fayetteville.
- Red — The current Arkansas & Missouri Railroad. This mainline through Northwest Arkansas was built by the St. Louis & San Francisco Railway in the early 1880s.
- Orange — The Ozark & Cherokee Central, which ran west from Fayetteville to Okmulgee, Oklahoma.
- Burgundy — The Fayetteville & Little Rock Railroad, better known as the “St. Paul Branch,” ran as far east as Pettigrew.
- Umber — The Black Mountain & Eastern was a short line that went up over the Boston Mountains from Combs and back down into the valley of the Mulberry River to Cass.
- Blue — The Kansas City and Memphis Railroad became known as the “Fruit Basket Line” because it ran through so many apple, pear and peach orchards west of Fayetteville.
- Green — The Pacific & Greater Eastern Railway ran from Fayetteville west as far as Wyman on the White River and was also known as the “Wyman Road.”
More About Each Railroad
- Arkansas and Missouri Railroad
- Burlington Northern Railroad
- Fairgrounds Dinky
- Fayetteville and Little Rock Railroad (St. Paul Branch)
- Kansas City and Memphis (Fruit Basket Line)
- Ozark and Cherokee Central Railroad
- Pacific and Great Eastern Railway
- St. Louis and San Francisco Railway
The orange line is shown going to Okmulgee, not Bartlesville
Thanks for that correction. The description of the map should be updated.
The Wyman Road (Pacific & Greater Eastern Railway) served the Wyman community and was dismantled, I believe, sometime in the 1920s. As I understand it, the RR terminated across the road from Wyman School (about one mile east of White River). There was a store located there during this time. The old RR roadbed was clearly visible during the time I was growing up. The RR bisected my parent’s property (running North and South) which was located on the SW corner of Wyman Road and Harvey Dowell Road. I would be interested in information about the RR or Wyman community history in general. I attended Wyman School as a first and second grader in 1947-49.
John Meredith
Colorado Springs
Just yesterday I was walking on the old railroad bed on the NW corner of Wyman road and Harvey Dowell rd. I was wondering where the rest of the road bed lay. It’s not very visible today. To John Meredith: I can give you a lot of information on your family history from East of Fayetteville. JLHudler@aol.com
Also, the green line on map for Pacific & Great Eastern Railway went East as for as Wyman.
Thanks James, we’ve extended the green line east to Summer Rain Road intersects Wyman Road. If that’s too far or not far enough, let us know. Thanks for that clarification about the line. We’re still trying to determine whether the railbed went through the gap that Wyman Road follows going toward Fayetteville or if it hugged the West Fork and looped around the hill.
I grew up in Wyman Community and attended Wyman School in 1947-49. I would be interested in hearing from anyone who has information on history of Wyman. For example, how did Wyman get its name? John Meredith john4meredith@yahoo.com
The Pacific & Great Eastern went out of business about 1893. It ended at Wyman on the White River although the original fundraising envisaged going to Madison County. A 1988 National Railway Historical Society excursion found what appears to be the tiny Wyman depot on a farm. There are also locations where the right of way is still visible through the trees after more than a century. Shiloh Museum of Ozark History has the photographic record of the 1988 event.