the virginia general assembly, in 1878, gave the james river and kanawha company the right to contract with the buchanan and clifton forge railroad for convict labor. however both the canal and the buchanan and clifton forge railway were sold to the richmond and allegheny railroad company, which built tracks along the towpaths. that railroad was sold to the c&o, establishing clifton forge as the division point of the large east-to-west system that resulted when the pioneer railroads were combined under the chesapeake and ohio.