| 1836 | City Point Railroad chartered by Virginia State Legislature. |
| 1838 | City Point Railroad begins operations on September 7 between Petersburg and City Point on the James River. |
| 1853 | Norfolk & Petersburg Railroad organized; construction started same year, but track construction not completed for an additional five years. |
| 1854 | South Side Railroad completed from City Point, VA through Petersburg to Lynchburg. |
| 1856 | Virginia & Tennessee Railroad completed October 1, extending 204 miles from Lynchburg, VA to Bristol at the Tennessee state line. |
| 1858 | Norfolk & Petersburg Railroad begins operations between its namesake cities on September 1. |
| 1870 | Shenandoah Valley Railroad organized as a subsidiary of the Pennsylvania Railroad. |
| 1870 | Atlantic, Mississippi & Ohio Railroad formed on November 12 from the consolidation of the City Point Railroad, Norfolk & Petersburg Railroad, and Virginia & Tennessee Railroad; included mainline trackage of 408 miles stretching from Norfolk, VA to Bristol at Tennessee state line. |
| 1876 | Cincinnati & Eastern Railway organized to operate railroad from Cincinnati to Portsmouth, OH. |
| 1878 | Construction of the Scioto Valley Railway completed. |
| 1879 | Construction of the Shenandoah Valley Railroad begins. |
| 1880 | Cincinnati & Eastern Railway leases Columbus & Maysville Railroad and Hillsboro Short Line. |
| 1881 | Shenandoah Valley Railroad construction completed from Hagerstown, MD to Basic City (Waynesboro), VA. |
| 1881 | Atlantic, Mississippi & Ohio Railroad sold under foreclosure on February 9 to E. W. Clark & Co., and renamed Norfolk & Western Railroad. |
| 1882 | Shenandoah Valley Railroad completes track from Basic City to Roanoke, VA and connects with Norfolk & Western Railroad. |
| 1883 | Norfolk & Western Railroad completes New River Division to Bluefield, WV and on May 21 begins operation of regular traffic on this extension. |
| 1883 | On March 12 the first car of Pocahontas coal is loaded at Pocahontas, VA. |
| 1884 | On August 25, Cincinnati & Eastern Railway reaches Portsmouth, OH. |
| 1885 | Shenandoah Valley Railroad forced into receivership. |
| 1885 | Norfolk & Western Railroad organizes the Pocahontas Coal Company to act as General Agent for coal mine operators. |
| 1885 | Coal Pier No. 1 opened at Lambert's Point, VA on March 12 for loading coal into ships. |
| 1886 | On June 1, Norfolk & Western Railroad converted track gauge from 5 foot gauge to the standard gauge of 4 feet, 8-1/2 inches. |
| 1887 | Construction on the Clinch Valley Extension to reach from Bluefield to Norton, VA is begun; completed in 1890. |
| 1887 | Construction of Lynchburg & Durham Railroad begun at Lynchburg. On January 5, Cincinnati & Eastern sold under foreclosure to become Ohio & Northwestern Railroad. |
| 1887 | Abingdon Coal & Iron Railroad begins construction between Abingdon, VA and Damascus, VA; eventually line will reach into North Carolina. |
| 1888 | Construction of the Roanoke & Southern Railway is begun at Winston-Salem, NC. |
| 1888 | Ohio & Northwestern goes into receivership. |
| 1889 | Roanoke & Southern Railway begins operations. |
| 1890 | Construction of the Ohio Extension is begun, to reach from Elkhorn, WV to Kenova, WV. |
| 1890 | Construction of Lynchburg & Durham Railroad completed to Durham, NC. |
| 1890 | In September, Shenandoah Valley Railroad sold under foreclosure and reorganized as the Shenandoah Valley Railway; in December, Shenandoah Valley Railway is acquired and absorbed by Norfolk & Western Railroad. |
| 1890 | Scioto Valley Railway reorganized as Scioto Valley & New England Railroad; sold to Norfolk & Western Railroad to become its Scioto Division. |
| 1891 | Ohio & Northwestern reorganized as Cincinnati, Portsmouth & Virginia Railroad. |
| 1892 | Ohio Extension is completed on September 25. |
| 1892 | Big Stony Railway organized to operate from connection with N&W at Potts Valley Junction, VA to Interior, VA. |
| 1892 | Norfolk & Western Railroad leases Roanoke & Southern Railway, which operates from Roanoke, VA to Winston-Salem, NC, and operated as the Winston-Salem Division of the N&W; leases Lynchburg & Durham Railroad and operated as the Durham Division of the N&W. |
| 1892 | Roanoke & Southern Railway completes construction to Roanoke. |
| 1894 | Virginia Western Coal & Iron Railroad Company takes over Abingdon Coal & Iron Railroad. |
| 1895 | State of West Virginia enacts law prohibiting any railroad corporation from engaging in business of buying/selling coal or coke; E. W. Clarke & Co. forms Flat Top Coal Land Association. |
| 1896 | Norfolk & Western Railroad sold under foreclosure and reorganized as Norfolk & Western Railway. |
| 1896 | Roanoke & Southern Railway purchased outright by Norfolk & Western Railway at time of reorganization. |
| 1896 | Lynchburg & Durham Railroad absorbed into Norfolk & Western Railway. |
| 1898 | Virginia Western Coal & Iron Railroad changes name to Virginia-Carolina Railway. |
| 1899 | Iaeger & Southern Railway constructed from Iaeger to Ritter, WV. |
| 1901 | New River, Holston & Western Railroad operated from a connection with N&W at Narrows, VA and eventually extended to Suiter, VA. |
| 1901 | Lands held by Flat Top Coal Land Association acquired by Norfolk & Western Railway and vested in its subsidiary, the Pocahontas Coal & Coke Company. |
| 1901 | Cincinnati, Portsmouth & Virginia Railroad absorbed into Norfolk & Western Railway. |
| 1902 | Iaeger & Southern Railway purchased by Norfolk & Western Railway; eventually N&W extends line to connect with Clinch Valley Extension at Cedar Bluff, VA. |
| 1902 | Construction begins of the Virginia Anthracite Coal & Railway Company between Christiansburg and Blacksburg, VA. |
| 1903 | Big Sandy & Cumberland Railroad begins operations; line would eventually operate from its connection with N&W at Devon, WV to Grundy, WV. |
| 1903 | Big Sandy, East Lynn & Guyan Railroad completed and opened for service. |
| 1904 | Virginia Anthracite Coal & Railway Company opens for service on September 24. |
| 1905 | Big Stony Railway acquired by Norfolk & Western Railway and line is extended and operated as its Potts Valley Branch. |
| 1906 | Catawba Valley Railway & Mining Company constructed from Salem, VA to Sandburg, VA. |
| 1908 | Big Sandy, East Lynn & Guyan Railroad absorbed by Norfolk & Western Railway. |
| 1909 | Catawba Valley Railway & Mining Company taken over by Norfolk & Western Railway and operated as its Catawba Branch. |
| 1911 | Winston-Salem South Bound Railway constructed as joint enterprise of Norfolk & Western Railway and the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad; line connects N&W at Winston-Salem with ACL at Wadesboro, NC. |
| 1912 | Virginia Anthracite Coal & Railway Company is taken over by Norfolk & Western Railway and operated as its Blacksburg Branch. |
| 1914 | Norfolk & Western Railway gains control of Virginia-Carolina Railway. |
| 1919 | Norfolk & Western Railway absorbs New River, Holston & Western Railroad and operates it as its Narrows Branch. |
| 1919 | Virginia-Carolina Railway merged into N&W and operated as its Abingdon Branch. |
| 1923 | Norfolk & Western Railway purchases Big Sandy & Cumberland Railroad. |
| 1928 | Former line of Big Sandy & Cumberland rebuilt by Norfolk & Western Railway and operated as its Buchanan Branch. |
| 1939 | Pocahontas Coal & Coke Company renamed Pocahontas Land Company. |
| 1954 | Norfolk & Western Railway acquires the Chesapeake Western Railway which is operated as a subsidiary of the N&W; the Chesapeake Western operated from its connection with N&W at Elkton, VA through Harrisonburg to Staunton, VA. |
| 1959 | Virginian Railway absorbed by Norfolk & Western on December 1. |
| 1962 | Atlantic & Danville Railway taken over by Norfolk & Western Railway; operated separately and renamed Norfolk, Franklin & Danville Railway. |
| 1964 | Norfolk & Western Railway absorbed New York, Chicago & St. Louis Railroad (Nickel Plate Road) and assumed that road's lease of the Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway; leased the Pittsburgh & West Virginia Railway and the Wabash Railroad; also acquired the Sandusky Line and Sandusky Coal Docks of the Pennsylvania Railroad; acquired the Akron, Canton and Youngstown Railroad. |
| 1968 | Norfolk & Western Railway, through its subsidiary, Dereco, Inc., acquired control of the Delaware & Hudson Railway and the Erie-Lackawanna Railway. |
| 1976 | Norfolk & Western Railway relinquishes control of Erie Lackawanna Railway when EL became part of Conrail. |
| 1981 | Norfolk & Western Railway acquires the Illinois Terminal Railroad. |
| 1982 | Norfolk & Western Railway is consolidated with the Southern Railway to form Norfolk Southern Corporation. |