Little Miami Railroad
Encyclopedia
The Little Miami Railroad, now defunct, was a railway of southwestern Ohio
, running from the eastern side of Cincinnati to Springfield, Ohio
. By merging with the Columbus and Xenia Railroad
it created the first through rail route from the important manufacturing city of Cincinnati to the state capital, Columbus
.
The Little Miami was incorporated on March 11, 1836, and its first president, who served without pay, was Jeremiah Morrow
, governor of Ohio. It was the second railroad incorporated in the state of Ohio. The first meeting to sell stock was held at Linton's Hotel, Waynesville
, May 13, 1836; the second on June 2, 1836 in Xenia. The railroad was originally intended to run from Cincinnati to Springfield
where it was expected meet the Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad
, which was building south to Springfield from Sandusky
on Lake Erie
. At the time of incorporation, the National Road
had not yet reached Columbus
, and other than trails, the main shipping route for the Great Lakes
region to the rest of the nation to the east of the Allegheny Mountains
suitable for trade was via the rivers leading to the Great Lakes and from there, on to points east along the Erie Canal
. Winter rendered passage over the Alleghenies impracticable for large shipments, and the Erie Canal froze. The only alternative winter shipping route to points east was a lengthy circuitous southern route by riverboat down the Ohio
and Mississippi
rivers to New Orleans for transhipment east, but the entire regions adjacent to the Great Lakes lacked a means of communication with the Ohio River for shipment of their products - Ohio had a rather extensive network of canals under construction by this time, but they too froze in winter like the Erie Canal. The Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad was projected to run from Sandusky on Lake Erie south to a proposed interchange at Springfield, where trains could be handed over to the Little Miami to proceed to Cincinnati -- thus providing the Great Lakes region and its products with year-round access to the rest of the nation, as access to any of the ships then sailing on the Great Lakes meant access to the proposed railroad link to the Ohio River. As such, the proposal of the two railroads working in close cooperation was projected to be one of the major trade routes of the era, and of particular importance during winter months.
–14 miles (22.5 km)–along the Little Miami River
, and preparations had been made to lay rails north along the river to Fosters
. The first train ran December 14, 1841 from Cincinnati to Milford, making the journey in about ninety minutes. An additional 28 miles (45.1 km) was opened to Loveland the next year.
The road's surveyors ran a route along the Little Miami River past what would become the Peters Cartridge Company
at Kings Mills
to South Lebanon
and thence up Turtle Creek to Lebanon, Ohio
and thence Waynesville. However, at a grade of 33 feet (10.1 m) to the mile, it was too steep for locomotives then available. The city of Lebanon pleaded for the company to reconsider, but the route was instead laid along the river to what would become the towns of Morrow
, Fort Ancient
(where the gorge is 300 feet (91.4 m) deep and where the Jeremiah Morrow Bridge
today stands), Mathers Mills, Oregonia
, and to Waynesville (which was on the opposite shore). This country even today is sparsely populated. Had the directors waited just a few years, more powerful locomotives that could climb the grades would be available.
. By this time, the National Road had also reached Springfield, but the Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad
had encountered difficulties in raising capital, and construction and would be delayed for three years in reaching Springfield and closing the gap in the plan to link the Great Lakes with the Ohio River. With the importance of the railroad's terminus at Springfield of only modest local value without the M.R. & L.E. R.R., the company's attention quite naturally turned to the state capital, roughly 40 miles (64.4 km) east of Springfield. Surveys were favorable for building a line to Columbus diverging from the Little Miami mainline at Xenia
, and management was quite active in the formation of a railroad styled the Columbus and Xenia Railroad
. From Xenia, a connection was built to link to the Columbus and Xenia Railroad
, its partner. The two companies combined their operations, but did not formally merge, on November 30, 1853. By 1856, the Little Miami had 116.25 miles (187.1 km) of track, and the C&X had 63.25 miles (101.8 km). The two lines were always on cordial and cooperative terms, as they formed the only rail link between Cincinnati and the state capital at the time.
The line had been built with an eye to cost containment, and this proved to be wise in view of the failure of the Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad to reach Springfield. Nevertheless, revenues from local agricultural shipments were promising enough to enable the line to upgrade to heavier rails and make other improvements during the 1850s. By this time, the line gained the reputation for being one of the best-run lines in the nation. However, by 1853, the first of the three railway systems from the Eastern Seaboard that were to succeed in crossing the Alleghenies and reaching Ohio (the lines that would form the New York Central Railroad
, the Pennsylvania Railroad
, and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
were the three systems that were the first to reach Ohio from the East) had linked up with the growing railway network already in place in Ohio, such that it was possible to travel by rail from Ohio in the west to points east. The Hillsboro and Cincinnati Railroad was chartered in 1846 to run a line between Hillsboro
and O'Bannon Creek in Loveland
on the Little Miami's route. By 1850, the H&C had completed the 37 miles (59.5 km) to Hillsboro. The H&C would lease its line in perpetuity to the Marietta and Cincinnati Railroad
and ultimately became the mainline of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
. This upended the established trade routes in Ohio, which were generally along a north-south axis to get goods or passengers either to Lake Erie or the Ohio River. The Lake Erie and Mad River Railroad had reached Springfield in 1849, but the intended synergies expected from Great Lakes traffic dissipated within a few years as trans-Allegheny railroads reached into Ohio. With the opening of those railroads' lines into Ohio, the most important traffic pattern irrevocably shifted to an east-west oriented axis. As the Little Miami Railroad ran northeasterly-southwesterly, its importance as one of the first potential links in a national trunk line was considerably diminished, and the mainline beyond Xenia to Springfield was reduced in importance to that of a mere branch. Henceforth, the Little Miami would guard its Columbus route, but looked to the West when projecting for the future.
The Little Miami Railroad leased in perpetuity all assets of the C&X
on March 18, 1869, while the C&X continued to exist as a separate corporation. At that time, the LMRR had 123.49 miles (198.7 km) of track and the C&X 75.33 miles (121.2 km). It would later acquire 42 miles (67.6 km) of Dayton and Western Railroad track by lease in 1864 and 16.5 miles (26.6 km) from the Dayton and Xenia Railroad.
The Little Miami joined the Cincinnati and Indiana Railroad in 1862 in building track along the riverfront in Cincinnati to link their two depots. The LMRR and the C&X then bought the Dayton, Xenia and Belpre Railroad in January 1865.
, and the Pennsy co-signed the lease, guaranteeing the payments and other conditions. At the time of the lease, the LMRR system consisted of 195.65 miles (314.9 km) of track. The system had cost $3,995,165 in track, right-of-way, and facilities, plus $1,065,968 in rolling stock, machinery, and a boat on the Ohio River
. On August 28, 1890, the PC&St.L. merged with several other railroads to emerge as the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway.
On the Little Miami River between Kings Mills, Ohio
and South Lebanon was Middletown Junction
, where the Middletown and Cincinnati Railroad
track met the LMRR.
Ironically, the Lake Erie and Mad River Railroad, which initially was seen as being a natural ally and company with which the Little Miami expected to have a close cooperative business relationship was itself absorbed into the competing New York Central system. The Little Miami's most serious competitor, the Cincinnati, Hamilton and Dayton Railway (1895–1917), would become part of the Baltimore and Ohio system.
The rails were subsequently lifted and the right-of-way turned into the Little Miami Bike Trail
.
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, running from the eastern side of Cincinnati to Springfield, Ohio
Springfield, Ohio
Springfield is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Clark County. The municipality is located in southwestern Ohio and is situated on the Mad River, Buck Creek and Beaver Creek, approximately west of Columbus and northeast of Dayton. Springfield is home to Wittenberg...
. By merging with the Columbus and Xenia Railroad
Columbus and Xenia Railroad
The Columbus and Xenia Railroad was the first railroad to operate in Columbus, Ohio. By merging with the Little Miami Railroad it created the first through rail route from the important manufacturing city of Cincinnati to the state capital, Columbus....
it created the first through rail route from the important manufacturing city of Cincinnati to the state capital, Columbus
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
.
History
Jeremiah Morrow
Jeremiah Morrow was a Democratic-Republican Party politician from Ohio. He served as the ninth Governor of Ohio, and the last Democratic-Republican to do so....
, governor of Ohio. It was the second railroad incorporated in the state of Ohio. The first meeting to sell stock was held at Linton's Hotel, Waynesville
Waynesville, Ohio
Waynesville is a village in Wayne Township, Warren County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 2,558, up from 1,949 in 1990. It is named for General "Mad" Anthony Wayne. The village, located at the crossroads of U.S. Route 42 and State Route 73, is known for its...
, May 13, 1836; the second on June 2, 1836 in Xenia. The railroad was originally intended to run from Cincinnati to Springfield
Springfield, Ohio
Springfield is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Clark County. The municipality is located in southwestern Ohio and is situated on the Mad River, Buck Creek and Beaver Creek, approximately west of Columbus and northeast of Dayton. Springfield is home to Wittenberg...
where it was expected meet the Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad
Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad
The Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad was the second railroad to be built and operated in the U.S. state of Ohio...
, which was building south to Springfield from Sandusky
Sandusky, Ohio
Sandusky is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Erie County. It is located in northern Ohio and is situated on the shores of Lake Erie, almost exactly half-way between Toledo to the west and Cleveland to the east....
on Lake Erie
Lake Erie
Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...
. At the time of incorporation, the National Road
National Road
The National Road or Cumberland Road was the first major improved highway in the United States to be built by the federal government. Construction began heading west in 1811 at Cumberland, Maryland, on the Potomac River. It crossed the Allegheny Mountains and southwestern Pennsylvania, reaching...
had not yet reached Columbus
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
, and other than trails, the main shipping route for the Great Lakes
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
region to the rest of the nation to the east of the Allegheny Mountains
Allegheny Mountains
The Allegheny Mountain Range , also spelled Alleghany, Allegany and, informally, the Alleghenies, is part of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range of the eastern United States and Canada...
suitable for trade was via the rivers leading to the Great Lakes and from there, on to points east along the Erie Canal
Erie Canal
The Erie Canal is a waterway in New York that runs about from Albany, New York, on the Hudson River to Buffalo, New York, at Lake Erie, completing a navigable water route from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. The canal contains 36 locks and encompasses a total elevation differential of...
. Winter rendered passage over the Alleghenies impracticable for large shipments, and the Erie Canal froze. The only alternative winter shipping route to points east was a lengthy circuitous southern route by riverboat down the Ohio
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
and Mississippi
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
rivers to New Orleans for transhipment east, but the entire regions adjacent to the Great Lakes lacked a means of communication with the Ohio River for shipment of their products - Ohio had a rather extensive network of canals under construction by this time, but they too froze in winter like the Erie Canal. The Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad was projected to run from Sandusky on Lake Erie south to a proposed interchange at Springfield, where trains could be handed over to the Little Miami to proceed to Cincinnati -- thus providing the Great Lakes region and its products with year-round access to the rest of the nation, as access to any of the ships then sailing on the Great Lakes meant access to the proposed railroad link to the Ohio River. As such, the proposal of the two railroads working in close cooperation was projected to be one of the major trade routes of the era, and of particular importance during winter months.
Cincinnati to Milford and Loveland constructed
By the end of 1841, the road was open from Cincinnati to MilfordMilford, Ohio
Milford is a city in Clermont and Hamilton counties in the U.S. state of Ohio, along the Little Miami River in the southwestern part of the state. It is a part of Greater Cincinnati. Milford, an abbreviated form of mill ford, was so named because it was the first safe ford across the Little Miami...
–14 miles (22.5 km)–along the Little Miami River
Little Miami River
The Little Miami River is a Class I tributary of the Ohio River that flows through five counties in southwestern Ohio in the United States. The Little Miami joins the Ohio River east of Cincinnati. It forms parts of the borders between Hamilton and Clermont counties and between Hamilton and Warren...
, and preparations had been made to lay rails north along the river to Fosters
Fosters, Ohio
Fosters is an unincorporated community in southern Warren County, Ohio, United States. It straddles the Little Miami River in Deerfield and Hamilton Townships. It is located about two miles southwest of Hopkinsville, two miles west of Maineville, and two miles northeast of Twenty Mile Stand just...
. The first train ran December 14, 1841 from Cincinnati to Milford, making the journey in about ninety minutes. An additional 28 miles (45.1 km) was opened to Loveland the next year.
Opened to Waynesville
Peters Cartridge Company
The Peters Cartridge Company was a company in Kings Mills, Ohio that specialized in gunpowder and ammunition production. Its historic buildings, built in 1916 at 1915 Grandin Road, were added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 10, 1985....
at Kings Mills
Kings Mills, Ohio
Kings Mills is an unincorporated community in the northeastern corner of Deerfield Township, Warren County, Ohio, United States, on the western shore of the Little Miami River...
to South Lebanon
South Lebanon, Ohio
South Lebanon is a village located in Union and Hamilton Townships in central Warren County in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 2,538, down from 2,696 in 1990...
and thence up Turtle Creek to Lebanon, Ohio
Lebanon, Ohio
The population at the 2010 census was 20,033. As of the census of 2000, there were 16,962 people residing in the city. The population density was 1,440.6 people per square mile . There were 6,218 housing units at an average density of 528.1 per square mile...
and thence Waynesville. However, at a grade of 33 feet (10.1 m) to the mile, it was too steep for locomotives then available. The city of Lebanon pleaded for the company to reconsider, but the route was instead laid along the river to what would become the towns of Morrow
Morrow, Ohio
Morrow is a village in Salem Township, Warren County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 1,286, up from 1,206 in 1990...
, Fort Ancient
Fort Ancient, Ohio
Fort Ancient is a collection of Native American earthworks located in Washington Township, Warren County, Ohio, along the eastern shore of the Little Miami River about seven miles southeast of Lebanon on State Route 350...
(where the gorge is 300 feet (91.4 m) deep and where the Jeremiah Morrow Bridge
Jeremiah Morrow Bridge
The Jeremiah Morrow Bridge is a pair of parallel continuous truss bridges which span the Little Miami River gorge between Fort Ancient and Oregonia, Ohio. The bridges are named for Governor Jeremiah Morrow....
today stands), Mathers Mills, Oregonia
Oregonia, Ohio
Oregonia is an unincorporated community in northwestern Washington Township, Warren County, Ohio, United States, on the east shore of the Little Miami River about five miles northeast of Lebanon and six miles south of Waynesville....
, and to Waynesville (which was on the opposite shore). This country even today is sparsely populated. Had the directors waited just a few years, more powerful locomotives that could climb the grades would be available.
Completion to Springfield
The road was completed to Springfield and inaugurated on August 10, 1846, bringing the total route-miles of its main line to 84 miles (135.2 km), giving Springfield railway service even before the state capital ColumbusColumbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
. By this time, the National Road had also reached Springfield, but the Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad
Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad
The Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad was the second railroad to be built and operated in the U.S. state of Ohio...
had encountered difficulties in raising capital, and construction and would be delayed for three years in reaching Springfield and closing the gap in the plan to link the Great Lakes with the Ohio River. With the importance of the railroad's terminus at Springfield of only modest local value without the M.R. & L.E. R.R., the company's attention quite naturally turned to the state capital, roughly 40 miles (64.4 km) east of Springfield. Surveys were favorable for building a line to Columbus diverging from the Little Miami mainline at Xenia
Xenia, Ohio
Xenia is a city in and the county seat of Greene County, Ohio, United States. The municipality is located in southwestern Ohio 21 miles from Dayton and is part of the Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area...
, and management was quite active in the formation of a railroad styled the Columbus and Xenia Railroad
Columbus and Xenia Railroad
The Columbus and Xenia Railroad was the first railroad to operate in Columbus, Ohio. By merging with the Little Miami Railroad it created the first through rail route from the important manufacturing city of Cincinnati to the state capital, Columbus....
. From Xenia, a connection was built to link to the Columbus and Xenia Railroad
Columbus and Xenia Railroad
The Columbus and Xenia Railroad was the first railroad to operate in Columbus, Ohio. By merging with the Little Miami Railroad it created the first through rail route from the important manufacturing city of Cincinnati to the state capital, Columbus....
, its partner. The two companies combined their operations, but did not formally merge, on November 30, 1853. By 1856, the Little Miami had 116.25 miles (187.1 km) of track, and the C&X had 63.25 miles (101.8 km). The two lines were always on cordial and cooperative terms, as they formed the only rail link between Cincinnati and the state capital at the time.
Upgrading in the 1850s and Shift in Transportation Patterns
New York Central Railroad
The New York Central Railroad , known simply as the New York Central in its publicity, was a railroad operating in the Northeastern United States...
, the Pennsylvania Railroad
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
, and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...
were the three systems that were the first to reach Ohio from the East) had linked up with the growing railway network already in place in Ohio, such that it was possible to travel by rail from Ohio in the west to points east. The Hillsboro and Cincinnati Railroad was chartered in 1846 to run a line between Hillsboro
Hillsboro, Ohio
Hillsboro is a city in and the county seat of Highland County, Ohio, United States. The population was 6,605 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Hillsboro is located at ....
and O'Bannon Creek in Loveland
Loveland, Ohio
Loveland is a city in Hamilton, Clermont, and Warren counties in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. Considered part of the Greater Cincinnati area, Loveland is located near exit 52 off Interstate 275, about northeast of the Cincinnati city limits. It borders Symmes, Miami and...
on the Little Miami's route. By 1850, the H&C had completed the 37 miles (59.5 km) to Hillsboro. The H&C would lease its line in perpetuity to the Marietta and Cincinnati Railroad
Marietta and Cincinnati Railroad
The Marietta and Cincinnati Railroad is a defunct railroad of southern Ohio that was later absorbed by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad ....
and ultimately became the mainline of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...
. This upended the established trade routes in Ohio, which were generally along a north-south axis to get goods or passengers either to Lake Erie or the Ohio River. The Lake Erie and Mad River Railroad had reached Springfield in 1849, but the intended synergies expected from Great Lakes traffic dissipated within a few years as trans-Allegheny railroads reached into Ohio. With the opening of those railroads' lines into Ohio, the most important traffic pattern irrevocably shifted to an east-west oriented axis. As the Little Miami Railroad ran northeasterly-southwesterly, its importance as one of the first potential links in a national trunk line was considerably diminished, and the mainline beyond Xenia to Springfield was reduced in importance to that of a mere branch. Henceforth, the Little Miami would guard its Columbus route, but looked to the West when projecting for the future.
Growth through mergers
Columbus and Xenia Railroad
The Columbus and Xenia Railroad was the first railroad to operate in Columbus, Ohio. By merging with the Little Miami Railroad it created the first through rail route from the important manufacturing city of Cincinnati to the state capital, Columbus....
on March 18, 1869, while the C&X continued to exist as a separate corporation. At that time, the LMRR had 123.49 miles (198.7 km) of track and the C&X 75.33 miles (121.2 km). It would later acquire 42 miles (67.6 km) of Dayton and Western Railroad track by lease in 1864 and 16.5 miles (26.6 km) from the Dayton and Xenia Railroad.
The Little Miami joined the Cincinnati and Indiana Railroad in 1862 in building track along the riverfront in Cincinnati to link their two depots. The LMRR and the C&X then bought the Dayton, Xenia and Belpre Railroad in January 1865.
Absorbed into the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and St. Louis RR
On February 23, 1870, the Little Miami Railroad leased in perpetuity, renewable forever, all of its assets, including the DX&P, the D&W, and the C&X, to the Pittsburg, Cincinnati and St. Louis Railway, retroactive to December 1, 1869. The rent was $480,000 per year. The PC&St.L was part of the Pennsylvania RailroadPennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
, and the Pennsy co-signed the lease, guaranteeing the payments and other conditions. At the time of the lease, the LMRR system consisted of 195.65 miles (314.9 km) of track. The system had cost $3,995,165 in track, right-of-way, and facilities, plus $1,065,968 in rolling stock, machinery, and a boat on the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
. On August 28, 1890, the PC&St.L. merged with several other railroads to emerge as the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway.
On the Little Miami River between Kings Mills, Ohio
Kings Mills, Ohio
Kings Mills is an unincorporated community in the northeastern corner of Deerfield Township, Warren County, Ohio, United States, on the western shore of the Little Miami River...
and South Lebanon was Middletown Junction
Middletown Junction, Ohio
Middletown Junction was the point in northwestern Hamilton Township, Warren County, Ohio, United States, on the eastern bank of the Little Miami River where the Middletown and Cincinnati Railroad joined with the Little Miami Railroad about midway between Kings Mills and South Lebanon...
, where the Middletown and Cincinnati Railroad
Middletown and Cincinnati Railroad
The Middletown and Cincinnati Railroad is a historic railroad that operated in the southwest portion of the U.S. state of Ohio.It connected Middletown, Butler County with Middletown Junction, Warren County, a distance of 14 miles....
track met the LMRR.
Ironically, the Lake Erie and Mad River Railroad, which initially was seen as being a natural ally and company with which the Little Miami expected to have a close cooperative business relationship was itself absorbed into the competing New York Central system. The Little Miami's most serious competitor, the Cincinnati, Hamilton and Dayton Railway (1895–1917), would become part of the Baltimore and Ohio system.
From PRR to Conrail
The LMRR continued to exist as a separate corporation even though much of the stock was owned by the Pennsy. When the Pennsy's successor, the Penn Central company, collapsed into bankruptcy in 1970, the LMRR was still active. It would become part of Conrail and merged out of existence December 23, 1981.The rails were subsequently lifted and the right-of-way turned into the Little Miami Bike Trail
Little Miami Bike Trail
The Little Miami Scenic Trail, also known as the Little Miami Scenic River Trail and Little Miami Bike Trail, is a rail trail that runs though five southwestern counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. The multi-use trail sees frequent use by hikers and bicyclists, as well as the occasional horseback...
.
Further reading
- Robert L. Black, The Little Miami Railroad (Cincinnati, 1940).
- Landfall Press, Cincinnati, Columbus, Cleveland & Erie Railroad Guide (Dayton, 1986) (reprint of the long out of print edition that was published in 1854 by the Ohio State Journal Company, Columbus).