The Wrightsville and Tennille Railroad (W&T) was chartered in 1883 with the purpose of building a connection with the Central of Georgia Railroad at Tennille, GA to Wrightsville, GA. The line started construction, and by March 1884, 1.5 miles had been completed, however grading work was delayed at that time by heavy rains. In April 1884, they acknowledged the use of convict lease labor for the construction of the rail line, citing that there were 43 men that were working on the line. By June of 1884, 2.5 miles had been completed, and an additional 3.5 miles had been graded, the average cost was cited as $1,200-$1,500 a mile. Later that same year, in a push to build the line faster, 80 additional men who were part of the convict lease labor force at the farm of Honorable J M Smith of Oglethorpe were sent to work on the line for 40 days. The line was completed in March1885, and in May 1885 there were over 1,700 ticketed passengers on the line. Prices had been posted in February 1885 which cited each passenger's cost at 4 cents per mile.