Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad

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Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad
Overview
LocaleOhio
Dates of operation1835–1892
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 10 in (1,473 mm)

The Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad was the second

Toledo during the Toledo War in 1836). It was also the first railroad company chartered west of the Allegheny Mountains.[citation needed
]

History

The railroad first broke ground in Sandusky, for construction on September 17, 1835 at the site which is currently Battery Park Marina.

On November 17, 1837, the MR&LE took delivery of its first steam locomotive, Sandusky, built by Rogers, Ketchum and Grosvenor of Paterson, New Jersey.[1] Sandusky was also the first locomotive built by Rogers, Ketchum and Grosvenor,[2] and the first to include features such as cast iron driving wheels and counterweights.[citation needed] The locomotive's transportation from New Jersey was overseen by Thomas Hogg. He was engineer for the locomotive for many years, and later became the railroad's chief mechanical engineer.[1]

The MR&LE used a

rail gauge of 4 ft 10 in (1,473 mm), a gauge that soon became known as "Ohio gauge".[1]

At the time of the Sandusky's arrival, no track had been laid by the railroad. The locomotive was used to aid construction, and the first trains (passenger cars only) began running on the line on April 11, 1838, between Sandusky and Bellevue, Ohio.[1]

Construction continued on the MR&LE, reaching

Indiana and Ohio Central Railroad.[3]

Although most of the MR&LE lines that once ran through downtown Sandusky have been removed, tracks serving the

Norfolk Southern
coal docks located west of downtown still use a small portion of the original MR&LE right-of-way.

References

  1. ^ a b c d Hudson 1876, p. 9.
  2. ^ Hudson 1876, p. 6.
  3. ^ "The road of the Century in 2007". Trains. March 2007.(a map of today's remaining New York Central trackage).

Bibliography

External links