New Archival Materials Reveal Toll of Black Workers Building WNC Railroads

UNCA archivist uncovers harrowing history of convict labor used to construct Western North Carolina Railroad in post-Civil War era.

Published on Feb. 25, 2026

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Recent archival discoveries have shed new light on the brutal history of the Western North Carolina Railroad's construction, which was carried out primarily by African American incarcerated laborers forced into a convict leasing system during the turbulent post-Civil War period. Two critical collections - newly unsealed state prison records and donated Southern Railway archives - have allowed researchers to uncover the names, sentences, and lives of the convicts who were leased out to build the railroad through the treacherous Appalachian terrain under grueling, near-impossible conditions.

Why it matters

The story of the WNC Railroad has long been told as an engineering triumph, obscuring the harsh realities of who actually built it. These new archival materials promise to reshape the historical narrative, acknowledging the brutal foundation upon which this celebrated achievement was built and the exploitation of Black labor that enabled it.

The details

The WNC Railroad was constructed in the decades after the Civil War, primarily by African American incarcerated laborers who were unjustly swept into a brutal convict leasing system. The newly available state prison records and Southern Railway archives document the grueling, near-impossible conditions these men were forced to endure, as well as the economic and political powers that shaped the railroad's construction.

  • In 2024, state prison records were unsealed at the North Carolina State Archives in Raleigh.
  • Around the same time, the Norfolk Southern Corp. donated its extensive Southern Railway records to the Atlanta History Center.

The players

Ashley Whittle

UNCA archivist and Head of Special Collections who is presenting research on the new archival discoveries.

Western North Carolina Railroad

The railroad constructed in the decades after the Civil War, primarily by African American incarcerated laborers forced into a brutal convict leasing system.

North Carolina State Archives

The archives in Raleigh that recently unsealed state prison records related to the construction of the WNC Railroad.

Norfolk Southern Corp.

The company that donated its extensive Southern Railway records to the Atlanta History Center, providing another critical archival source for researchers.

Atlanta History Center

The institution that received and processed the donated Southern Railway records from Norfolk Southern Corp.

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What they’re saying

“How incorrect the original numbers were as to how many people were sent from the penal system to work on the railroad, and how many died. Both numbers have been grossly underinflated.”

— Ashley Whittle, UNCA Archivist and Head of Special Collections

“Appalachian environmental history is defined by a 'debt-labor regime' where extractive capitalism linked the destruction of the landscape to the systematic exploitation of labor.”

— Ashley Whittle, Professor of Environmental History of Appalachia

What’s next

Whittle is presenting her research, 'The Light at the End of the Tunnel: New Archival Discoveries of the African American Incarcerated Laborers Who Built the Western North Carolina Railroad,' on Feb. 26, 12-1 p.m., in Whitesides Hall Room 016.

The takeaway

These new archival discoveries promise to fundamentally reshape the historical narrative around the construction of the Western North Carolina Railroad, acknowledging the brutal exploitation of Black labor that enabled this celebrated engineering achievement and the lasting impacts of that history.