Railfanning in Ohio

Among the extensive archives within the “Abandoned” collection, my photographs of disused rail lines traversing the Midwest region constitute a substantial portion. The recent “Railfanning in Ohio” update delves into the histories of the Marietta and Cincinnati Railroad, Little Miami Railroad, and the Cincinnati & Muskingum Valley.

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Among the extensive archives within the “Abandoned” collection, my photographs of disused rail lines traversing the Midwest region constitute a substantial portion. The recent “Railfanning in Ohio” update delves into the histories of the Marietta and Cincinnati Railroad, Little Miami Railroad, and the Cincinnati & Muskingum Valley.

The Marietta and Cincinnati Railroad (M&C), a defunct railroad connecting Cincinnati, Ohio, to Parkersburg, West Virginia, is a focal point. Through a series of acquisitions during the 19th century, the M&C amassed a network spanning over 270 miles, stretching from Cincinnati to Marietta and southward to Portsmouth and Hillsboro. Eventually, the line was absorbed into the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern, and portions of its route have since been dismantled.

Chartered on March 8, 1845, as the Belpre and Cincinnati Railroad (B&C), the M&C was initially conceived to establish a connection between Parkersburgh, Virginia, or Harmer, Ohio, in Washington County. The proposed western route would traverse the Hocking Valley via Athens or Chillicothe, ultimately reaching a point on the Little Miami Railroad between Plainville in Hamilton County and the mouth of Obanon Creek in Clermont County, near Cincinnati.

Construction commenced in the spring of 1851, and by 1857, the 173-mile line had been completed, spanning from Harmar to the Little Miami Railroad at Loveland. Through acquisitions, the M&C/B&O SW absorbed several other railroads, including the Hillsboro and Cincinnati, the Ohio and Mississippi, the Union Railroad, the Columbus and Cincinnati Midland, and the Scioto and Hocking Valley.

By 1900, the M&C had formally merged with the B&O Southwest (SW), which later became the Chessie System in 1973 and ultimately CSX in 1986.

In 1985, the last through train operated between Greenfield and Parkersburg. Shortly thereafter, the tracks were removed between Greenfield and Athens. While the tracks through Athens and eastward to Parkersburg remained intact due to anticipated coal train traffic along the Ohio River, the expected increase in traffic never materialized, leading to the dismantling of the line from Athens east in November 1991. Currently, CSX traffic is routed either northward at Willard or southward through Huntington, West Virginia.

Complementing these updates are several photographs of the Little Miami Railroad, spanning from the Pendleton Yards to Loveland.

The Cincinnati & Muskingum Valley, another subject of this update, connected the cities of Morrow, Wilmington, Washington Court House, Circleville, Zanesville, and Trinway in Ohio. Incorporated in 1851, the C&MV was completed from Morrow to Zanesville by 1856. However, it fell into foreclosure merely seven years later and reorganized as the Cincinnati & Zanesville. In 1870, the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) gained control over the C&MV and extended the railroad to Trinway. In 1911, the C&MV consolidated into the Cleveland, Akron & Cincinnati Railroad (CA&C), and in 1924, the Zanesville Division was absorbed by the PRR Cincinnati Division, which subsequently merged into the Pittsburgh, Ohio & Detroit Railroad a year later.

By 1968, the line had become known as the Morrow Branch, Zanesville Branch, and Twinway Branch of the Pennsylvania Central Columbus Division.

The section west of Wilmington was dismantled in 1976 when the connecting line, the Little Miami, part of the Pennsylvania’s Cincinnati & Xenia Branch, Cincinnati Division, was abandoned.

Through this comprehensive update, we embark on a journey through the remnants of these once-thriving rail networks, preserving their histories and exploring the enduring traces they have left upon the landscape.

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