Driving Trip - November 14, 2020

This is the latest installment in the series of driving trips of myself and my former coworker John. For those familiar with these trips, we hope you enjoy our latest adventure. For those unfamiliar, we hope you'll tolerate my ramblings about nothing in particular. A SPV Rail Atlas of Ohio will come in handy for following along.

Due to a litany of reasons, it had been over four years since our last trip around the great state of Ohio. However our worlds had finally settled down to allow us to spend a day canvassing the rail scene. After reviewing several trip options, we selected a route that follows the primarily NS (ex-PRR) Ft. Wayne Line from Bucyrus to Alliance, then we would evaluate our options from there. We had followed this route a couple times in the past, however news of NS taking two sections of track out of service, and that the last of the PRR signals in Ohio were on borrowed time, made this our route of choice. So the goal was to take photos of the old PRR signals and examine the sections of rail taken out of service. This route doesn't have many trains (thus the reason for taking track out of service), so our expectations were low for us to see anything moving on this line.

Looking south, the T&OC main is in the center where the reddish colored hopper cars are parked. The CLSX cars being scrapped are on the left beyond the boxcars on the ground. The track in the foreground is a transfer between the Ft. Wayne Line and the Sandusky District.

Bucyrus, OH T&OC station
January 11, 1998

Bucyrus, OH T&OC station
November 14, 2020

Google Maps image of the area with text info.

We began our trip eastward following the Ft. Wayne Line east. We got all of 0.1 miles east before we made our first stop to take a photo of the overpass with the Conrail can opener logo stamped in the concrete. Not too many bridges have something like this in them.

Note the Conrail logo stamped in the concrete above the steel beams of the bridge.

The line continues to be double track for about a mile before ending at the control point EAST COLSAN. PRR signals still stand, however the eastbound signals are mounted on newer masts instead of the three track wide signal bridge that still stands over the tracks (the historic aerials photos confirm this as being three tracks here). The section of track from Bucyrus to Crestline was under CSX ownership from the 1999 merger, and the track condition has always been less than the NS owned portion east of Crestline. CF&E timetable lists the maximum authorized speed at 40 mph. The track here is 132 lb. welded rail. On one side of the nearby roadcrossing the date stamped on the rail is 1939, on the other side it shows 1977.

Looking east at EAST COLSAN. The old signal bridge illustrates that this used to be triple track territory.

The next town east is North Robinson which has a set of PRR intermediate signals still governing movements. We pulled up to the road crossing and saw the westbound signal was showing a Clear indication. We turn around and see the westbound is right on top of us! It's too bad we didn't get the train symbol as this train had a wide variety of rolling stock, from intermodal to DODX cars.

The westbound signal at North Robinson, OH displays a Clear indication.

This westbound train snuck up due to us not having the radio frequency for this line.

I find the eastbound signal indication of Restricted Proceed to be interesting. It takes six lights to display an indication which its replacement will display with one light.

Restricted Proceed is displayed on the eastbound signal at North Robinson, OH

Further east we encounter the massive signal bridge at the west end of Crestline yard (CP WEST YARD). The bridge has to be at least six tracks wide and has NYC style signals governing. A large grain elevator occupies much of what used to be the TripleCrown Roadrailer terminal on the western part of the yard property. There's very little left of the old PRR yard which at one time was a very busy division point complete with shop buildings and a 30 stall roundhouse. At the east end of the yard is another signal bridge, probably good for four tracks to pass under, also with NYC signals. When we crossed the road crossing at the east end we noticed two Crestline police cars and a couple cops chatting. Looking into the yard we saw a dimmed headlight of a NS heritage unit and tuscan red coaches behind it. An Office Car Special! OK... this is definitely not something we expected to see! Without the right radio frequency we were without the aid of hearing movements on the radio. We briefly chatted with a railfan who was waiting for the train to depart who informed us it was heading back to Pittsburgh.

In Crestline, the PRR line transfers ownership from CF&E to NS and crosses the CSX Mt. Victory Subdivision (ex-Conrail, NYC). An interlocking tower, CREST Tower, used to sit just east of the diamonds parallel to the PRR main. Transfer tracks exist in the southeast and northwest quadrants. Two trains, Q364 eastbound and Q217 westbound, were both stopped on CSX so we figured the OCS train had the lineup. After circling the area for a little bit, we decided to head east and take our chances. Before leaving, we took photos of the PRR signals which govern the interlocking at EAST CREST.

Looking east at EAST CREST. The main track is on the left, and a connection to the CSX Mt. Victory Sub. is on the right. Both signals appear to be on the RofWs where additional tracks used to exist.

Looking west at EAST CREST. The track on the right is the main NS has reportedly taken out of service, though it still seems pretty shiny.

This is looking toward the diamond with the Mt. Victory Sub. and is where CREST Tower used to stand, as well as the Crestline train station. The line to the left connects with the Mt. Victory Sub.

Is the main track on the left really out of service? Yes, it isn't as shiny as the main on the right, but definitely looks like it has been recently used.

The intermediate signals on this part of the line are all far away from road crossings so we didn't get any photos of those. While jumping from crossing to crossing, we missed seeing the head end of an eastbound loaded coal train (again no scanner chatter to help us!). That's probably why the OCS train hadn't moved. We also missed crossing the PRR Toledo Division line which branched off to the northwest at an inacessible location a few miles west of Mansfield. This part of the line was abandoned in the 1950s so it is long gone.

Further east we made a quick stop at the Leppo Road crossing where the PRR and the Ashland Railway (ex-CSX, B&O Lake Erie Sub.) parallel each other for a bit. It's a very scenic location which both lines are on an eastward downhill incline into Mansfield.

Looking west at the Leppo Road crossing. The PRR is on the left and the B&O on the right. The grade up hill is very clearly defined here.

The B&O line curves its way down the hill into Mansfield at the Leppo Road crossing.

We then headed into Mansfield which at one time must have been a crazy busy place for trains with the PRR line being crossed by the aforementioned B&O as well as the Erie mainline from New York to Chicago (now operated by Ashland Railway). There used to be three sets of diamonds in place (PRR/B&O, PRR/Erie, B&O/Erie) at three separate locations. Today the PRR/Erie diamonds are gone, but the other two still exist. This is another very complicated interlocking that's probably best served with a visual. Check out this link to get a bird's eye view. The PRR line is the double track main from top left to bottom right, the Erie line flows from top right to bottom left (no longer crosses the PRR), and the B&O crosses the PRR at the top middle and parallels Main St. before turning west. Don't miss the B&O/Erie diamond on the far bottom right as well as the small B&O station.

The small B&O passenger station still stands near the junction of the Erie and B&O diamonds. Note the B&O logo on the door.

View looking east on the B&O line toward the diamond with the Erie. The B&O station is the building in the center.

The B&O line dies a 1/8 mile or so west of the station (the section of this line from Mansfield to Fredericktown was abandoned in the mid-1980s), and the Erie line west of the PRR continues for a few miles to Ontario where an auto parts plant once stood. Today the line appears to be dormant though the satellite photos show several potential customers. Apparently NS, hasn't been able to drum up any business on this line. Also surprised this hasn't been transferred to the Ashland Railway for them to try and get some new business going. The B&O trackage is welded 115 lb. 1960 vintage rail.

Another look to the southwest on the B&O at the Erie diamond. The milepost marker is for the Erie line.

Erie view looking west at the B&O diamond. The RofW is much wider illustrating that this used to be double track when it was a mainline from New York to Chicago.

In spite obviously not in use, the signals are still lit for the diamond.

Looking southeast on the PRR. These are the signals at CP MANS. The Erie diamonds used to be in the foreground on this side of the rails laying by the right main. The signal on the right governs the transfer track to the Erie main.

Here is a blurry view looking northwest on the PRR. The signals govern CP MANS which is where the B&O line crosses. The eastbound signals are NYC style.

The NS yard in Mansfield is on the east side of town. Other than one train tied down at the yard office, the yard was mostly empty. An older looking PRR signal bridge with PRR signals still stands toward the east end but it's a long drive/hike to get to it. Instead we continued to follow the line east and stopped at CP LUCAS. This is the westward point of the other section of track taken out of service (Lucas to Loudonville). As we saw on the Crestline to Mansfield section, the track supposedly taken out of service also appeared to have had some recent use, and no signals were covered, track cut, switches spiked, etc. A road crossing is between the two sets of PRR signals still standing at this point so all we got were photos of the back sides of both signals.

Looking west on the PRR at CP LUCAS. The track on the right is the beginning of the second section of track NS reportedly took out of service.

Looking east on the PRR at CP Lucas. The left track is reportedly out of service, but close inspection revealed otherwise. The actual town of Lucas is about a mile east of here.

We also crossed the tracks in Perrysville where NS has at least one customer (Step 2) which brings in plastics traffic. Mansfield Plumbing also has a production facility in town. A spur exists to the property but we did not see anything spotted at the business.

The line goes to single track at CP MOHICAN. A large signal bridge with PRR signals exists but requires driving on private property to access. An abandoned PRR branch also breaks off at this point and heads south paralleling State Route 39 into Loudonville. A grain elevator parallel to the road gives an indication of where this long gone branch existed. Further south a recreational trail more or less follows the former RofW. On the other side of the existing mainline at the CP exists a now closed grain elevator. A rather long spur, still connected to the main, is needed to access the facility. Another small town elevator bites the dust! The mainline curves through town which would make for great photos of westbound trains in the afternoon.

We crossed the tracks again in Lakeveille and Big Prairie. There is an intermediate signal at Big Prairie however it has been replaced with a newer style signal. John noted that somewhere around here the SPV map shows a branch abandoned by the Lorain Ashland & Southern breaking off at a point called Custaloga and heading northwest to Ashland. Not even the satellite photos give an indication of where this line once was. Further east in Shreve the remanents of a team track or some other spur are the only signs of any potential online business in this quaint town.

Continuing northwest, the road and the line get fairly far apart with few road crossings on this stretch of line which has swampy terrain on either side of it. Hindsight is 20/20, and I should have turned down one of these roads to check out the line which also would have allowed us to see how a long abandoned B&O branch, stretching from Lodi south to Millersburg, came in and joined the PRR in Wooster. The satellite photos show the line coming in from the southeast, then at some point it then shows on the west side of the PRR. They also show a third railroad bridge over a small creek on the west side of the PRR just east of CP BIG RUN so I'm guessing the line crossed at some point in between. Online sources show this part of the B&O abandoned in 1928 so photographic evidence of the junction likely doesn't exist.

A little further north we crossed what's left of the southern end of the old B&O line which is currently operated by RJ Corman as part of their Cleveland Line (however it's not directly connected to any other RJ Corman branch). RJ Corman accesses this trackage via trackage rights over NS from Wooster to Massillon where it meets up with the rest of the RJ Corman Cleveland Line. The switch from NS to this branch is just south of the small industrial area that appears to have at least one customer loading cars of scrap metal on a spur that used to be the main track. We parked and took a brief look at this area. The track just before the bridge over a small creek is jointed 85 lb. rail with a date of 1900!

A segment of track from the B&O branch mentioned above. Maybe an original piece of track? This is stamped 85 lb. 1900!

B&O branch in Wooster looking north. It's evident a spur used to branch off to the right over the creek. The line continues for about a mile to serve several businesses.

B&O branch in Wooster looking south. The main continues straight about 1/8 mile, and the line to the left is the connection to the Ft. Wayne Line.

There is much more activity on the B&O line further north in town but that will have to wait for another trip. We continued our tour of the PRR line noting the PRR keystone logos set in many of the railroad bridges around here. Where the train station used to stand on the northeast side of town is a spur which begins an ascent to serve a couple customers. We watched a trackmobile spot a couple 60' boxcars at one of the customers. The first time John and I drive by here years ago, they were taking in 86' boxcars. At the Palmer Street overpass over the PRR main, a nice signal bridge exists still with PRR signals governing the movements.

Looking east, intermediate signals just east of downtown Wooster. The track on the left probably used to be a 3rd main track, but today is used to access a couple industrial spurs.

Just east of here is Gojo Industries which has a couple spurs into its plant (not visibile from public property). Given that this company makes sanitizer, I'm sure they have been taking in lots of cars recently!

A little further east we crossed the main at Eby Road and noted a small fertilizer company which had a handful of cement or sand hoppers spotted by a silo. Perhaps they are doing some aggregates business on the side? The PRR main here is wide enough for three tracks.

Further east we began to approach Orrville. We were a little north of the PRR line so we actually crossed the Wheeling & Lake Erie line first which extends from Creston (and beyond to the north) down to their yard in Brewster. The single track main is made up of welded rail and still has a few pole lines which dot the landscape. After crossing the line a few times we then crossed the PRR main which is less than a quarter mile away. In the distance I could see PRR intermediate signals so we doubled back and cross the tracks on Back Orrville Road. As we approached the crossing we saw several vehicles at the crossing and a group of guys standing at the crossing. Oh yeah... we haven't seen the OCS train yet! This again added a sense of urgency to our trip as we again needed to stay close to the track since we weren't hearing anything on the radio. I ask one of the guys what the frequency was and he responded with the frequency I've had dialed in so we're still in the dark. Since there was so much traffic at the crossing I didn't bother taking photos of the signals.

With people at the crossing we figured the train must be getting close so we needed a place to see it. The first road crossing was good but we would now have to double back to get to it. We went into Orrville but quickly realized that most photos in town would be on the wrong side of the tracks due to where the sun was in relation to the tracks. We parked for a few minutes mulling our location and decided to drive to the junction of the PRR and what used to be another PRR route which ran from Hudson to Columbus. This line is commonly referred to as the CA&C (Cleveland, Akron & Columbus). Diamonds used to exist at the junction but today a set of switches is how NS accesses this line. The train station and interlocking tower both still stand. The W&LE line mentioned earlier crosses over both PRR lines on a truss bridge about a half mile from the junction. There's other W&LE trackage in town, but again that's for another trip.

We saw some people standing around near the station but as before there appeared to be no sense of urgency that the OCS was close so we made a brief reconassance of the CA&C line to the north. Over the years the CA&C has largely been abandoned with the biggest blow to the line occuring in Penn Central days when major flooding took out a portion of the line in 1969. The line was never repaired, and since then the line has continued to be paired back with only a few short sections still in service. In Orrville, about a mile of trackage exists to the south of the junction to serve a Scotts fertilizer plant, and about two miles exists to the north to serve a Smucker plant and a small grain elevator.

The westbound signal at CP ORR in Orrville, OH is the furthest east PRR signal still standing on the Ft. Wayne Line.

We decided to continue east figuring that as the train got closer, we would see more people dot the line. We also crossed it more often to be on the lookout for lit signals. Two observations about the line east of Orrville. First, the line itself is farily straight and flat lending itself to fast running. The few curves out here are also pretty broad. Second, all of the intermediate signals east of Orrville have been recently replaced with new "NS style" hooded signals. Last year the signals out here were all PRR vintage. We can now confirm how far west NS has gotten with replacing the balance of these relics.

We crossed the line at Earl Road and again saw people at the crossing. We asked where the train was and one of the photographers said about four miles away so we decided to make this our spot. A few minutes later the train coasted by at 40-45 mph with the lead unit barely sounding like it was under any load as it headed toward Massillon.

Finally we see the eastbound NS OCS train round the curve just west of Massillon.

It appears the lead unit has been cleaned up for the assignment.

Nobody on board the heavyweight theater car brining up the markers.

With the train by us, we declared that we could finally return to our originally scheduled plan! However, little did we know that we would see this train two more times before the end of the day.

Massillon, other than being known for Chris Spielman and its high school football, is also known for the large truss bridge over the Tuscarawas River. Featured on the cover of a recent NS calendar, it is an impressive looking structure, and of particular note is the sharp angle of the trusses on the ends due to the curve of the line. From the side the bridge looks like it is curved, however the satellite photos reveal that the three bridge sections look like rhombuses. I found this site which has lots of photos of the details of the bridge. There are also more rail lines in town (W&LE and RJ Corman ex-B&O), however these will have to wait for their own trip report.

On the other side of the river, the line straightens for a short bit. The PRR Massillon train station still stands along the tracks and has been converted to an event center. Check out Dan West's Ohio Train Station page which has some nice photos of it, including a PRR valuation photo from 1919. Note in that photo the holes in the ties which suggest the line may have had some narrow gauge activity at one time.

We moved further east and occasionally crossed the tracks to see if anything was coming (still haven't figured out the NS road frequency). At the Perry Drive road crossing, we crossed the tracks and saw the OCS train stopped. Whoa! What's that doing here? We figured it would have been long gone by now, so we had this in the back of our heads again that we might see it pass again. At this road crossing, we also noted that there were two lumber companies and another company further west all with rail spurs. Nice to see a few active small carload customers along the line.

I mentioned to John that last year I stopped somewhere around here and took a photo of a train passing under a modern signal bridge that had PRR signals mounted on it (of course I can't find the memory card with the photos!). Right around here is also where a spur splits to the south to serve an oil refinery and Timken Steel. We diverted onto Navarre Road which parallels the track and... no signal bridge. Apparently when NS replaced the intermediate signals, they also placed them at different locations than before.

With nothing to see here, we kept driving east and arrived in Canton. The SPV map shows a W&LE (ex-B&O) line going straight north-south through town (I never realized B&O had so many branch lines in NE Ohio until this trip) and crossing the PRR at a location called MCKINLEY, and a second line also crossing the PRR at WANDLE and curving through town. We find the first line but discover that it doesn't cross the PRR, and based on the satellite photos, hasn't crossed the PRR for a while. The tracks were somewhat rusty but the flangeways at the road crossings were clear. The SPV shows the track in place to AULTMAN where a plastics company takes cars, then abandoned for a few miles then intact again, however the satellite maps show the line completely together. We'll follow this line another day. The track here is jointed 115 lb. 1950 rail.

W&LE (ex-B&O) line in Canton looking north. The track was a little rusty but the flangeways were clear.

W&LE (ex-B&O) line looking south. The line connects with the Ft. Wayne Line.

We made a brief reconaissance of the PRR line through town. The spartan passenger station and platform still exists west of the existing diamonds. At WANDLE (which is likely referencing Wheeling AND Lake Erie), very shiny new signals govern the interlocking. With nothing imminent we continue eastward where we passed by a very quiet Republic Steel plant, though it did look like there was some activity at the plant. As we headed over the bridge over the east end of the plant trackage, John commented he thought he saw the OCS train coming. We doubled back over the bridge and sure enough saw the train coming. Nice catch, John! We found an elevated landing where I grabbed a couple photos of the train, as well as two plant switchers active in the yard.

Just east of the massive Republic Steel complex, this switcher was shoving cars into the yard. The OCS train is in the background.

Closeup of the switch engine shoving cars at the plant.

Also working the yard was this red and white switcher looking like it's of CN or CP origin.

The entire OCS train can been seen in this photo. The crew of the steel train is too busy to take notice of it.

We then pretty much just paralled the line as best as we could to preserve time and the remaining daylight. As we got closer to Alliance, we started to hear chatter on the radio so we were back in business! The NS dispatcher was calling train 943 which we guessed was the OCS train. Apparently it had stopped again so we once again had overtaken it. By now I'm sure the crew was getting a little bit upset considering they had no work between Crestline and Pittsburgh, a fast running train, and yet they kept having to stop. WE made better time than the train and we criss-crossed the line multiple times, made several stops and also got lunch!

In Alliance the PRR Ft. Wayne Line crosses the NS (ex-CR, PRR/NYC) Cleveland Line. Though the Ft. Wayne Line is double track, only one track crosses at the diamond with the second track curving to the south. The Cleveland Line does the same thing with only one of its two mains crossing at the diamond. A third branch, abandoned by NYC, used to cross a little north of the existing diamond. A small remanent of the NYC line exists to the northeast. Most traffic in Alliance moves north to Cleveland or east toward Pittsburgh, however the tracks heading south from Alliance also were shiny. Amtrak has a station by the diamonds which is also the local railfan hangout. NS maintains a small yard just east of the diamonds to serve the local customer base. The Cleveland Line north of Alliance and the Ft. Wayne Line east of Alliance is cab signaled so there are no signals except for at the control points.

The radio came to life again reminding us that the OCS was upon us. After considering our options for photos, we decided to stop at the Amtrak station and watch the train go by one more time.

One more time, we see the OCS train as it approaches the Amtrak passenger station in Alliance, OH.

A small group of railfans congregated in the station parking lot to see the OCS train go by.

At this point we had to decide our next move. After much deliberation, we decided to head a little east and follow the NS (ex-PRR) Lordstown Secondary which breaks off the Ft. Wayne Line to the northeast at ALLIANCE JCT. toward Lordstown. We arrived at the closest road crossing to where it breaks off and immediately it was apparent that this line hasn't been used in a while. It wa quite rusty, but the flangeways seemed clear and there was no vegetation, weeds, etc. blocking the track. The next road crossing had "Exempt" signs so we knew this line was probably railbanked. In researching the line for this write up, the NS timetable shows the line out of service from MILT (mp 20.9) to milepost 35.9. We cris-crossed the line a few times and noted a warehouse with a switch around milepost 35.9 as the only potential customer on this end of the line.

Two road crossings to the northeast the line bisects an intersection at a 45 degree angle. This appears to be the station name SNODES on the SPV map and is where the line becomes completely overgrown. It's obvious this line hasn't seen a train in 20+ years. Some road crossings northeast of here are paved over, others are not. The odd thing is that some of the road crossings have flashing lights and gates which don't look too old.

NS Lordstown Secondary looking southwest at SNODES. Despite no traffic in many years, the line is amazingly clear of any vegetation.

NS Lordstown Secondary looking northeast at SNODES. The line becomes heavily overgrown past this point. Interesting that this dormant line has modern crossing signal protection.

At what apparently is listed as MILT in the timetable the line clears out and a set of switches on either side of the main exist for a lumber company (which had a couple cars) and a warehouse. These two businesses are on the southern edge of North Jackson.

A little further northeast we crossed the line and see remanents of the pole line still intact here. The line is also welded rail, suggesting a significanly higher amount of traffic on this section of track.

Looking northeast, the pole line is still intact, and the line is welded rail.

Just beyond here is a spur which leads to the former General Motors assembly plant in town (listed as SOAP on the SPV). Continuing northeast is a trio of railroad bridges, the third of which is a small but beautiful stone arch bridge. From south to north, the first bridge is the double track CSX (ex-B&O) New Castle Sub., the second bridge is the NS Lordstown Secondary we have been following, and the stone arch bridge appears to be what's left of a transfer track between the two lines. On the SPV map, this location is listed as NILES JCT. on the B&O and ANNA on the PRR line. The transfer track bridge is loaded with vegetation so this line is obviously not in use (the satellite maps show no switches in place connecting the transfer to the two mains).

We then entered the town of Niles and its very convoluted trackage. Like many other towns in this part of Ohio, this must have been a busy place for the railroads when all of the steel mills were active in this area. Lines for B&O, PRR, NYC and Erie all went through here, as well as an interurban line. Today, the only active lines appear to be the previously noted CSX (ex-B&O) line skirting the far south end of town, and the Lordstown Secondary, which splits at a large wye listed as DETOUR. At the wye, the Lordstown Secondary takes a right turn to the east toward Youngstown, and if we take a left at the wye we head on the NS Niles Secondary which is a combination of PRR and Erie trackage which lead to Latimer. It looked like the west leg of the wye was overgrown when we drove under the bridge so heading northeast might require a backup move. My old SPV map (published 2005 which is the most recent edition) shows other trackage active, but we find that only a small spur to a steel company off the Lordstown Secondary at DETOUR still active. Everything else, including joint B&O / Erie mains are all overgrown. The pole line with its seven cross arms per pole is impressive. Part of the Erie line has been converted to a recreational trail.

Looking southeast on what's left of the overgrown RoW of the joint B&O/Erie mains. Amazing this is all still in place.

Looking northwest of the joint B&O/Erie mains. Yard offices and a wye used to stand just ahead on the left. An additional RofW exists to the right of the pole line on the right.

With no light left and a two hour drive ahead of us just to get back home, we called it a night and discussed the future of the rail industry as we drove home. From pickup to drop off, another 409.2 miles on the car.