Today, Georgia has around 5000 miles of railroads. Every week, almost 6 millions tons of freight is transported in Georgia. 18% of Georgia's gross state product is from transporting freight. Two main railroads are the Norfolk Southern and CSX railroads. Rail was Georgia's main economic transportation in the 1800s. The first railroads in Georgia were created in the 1830s. A major rail center was Terminus, which is now Atlanta. Terminus means "end of the line". Georgia's railroads helped the Confederates in the Civil War, and some sections were turned into Sherman's neckties. Railroads decreased in popularity in the 1920s because of the increasing amount of cars. A majority of today's trains are used for long-distance freight, but there are still some passenger trains.
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