The Railroads

The Railroads (HMK1D)

Location: Columbus, OH 43215 Franklin County
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Country: United States of America
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N 39° 57.939', W 83° 0.671'

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Inscription
Columbus entered the railroad era on February 20, 1850 when owners William Neil and Alfred Kelley brought the first trains on the Columbus and Xenia Railroad, spanning the Scioto River with a wooden trestle. The line provided service from Columbus to Xenia with connections to Cincinnati.

That year, with great pride, the owners invited the legislature to take a trip between Columbus and Cincinnati. The Ohio State Journal reported that it would be "...a novel sight to see the government of the great State of Ohio going off at the rate of 25 miles per hour."

Within a year, rail lines were being bought, sold, and merged. Soon travelers could get from the Ohio River to Lake Erie without changing trains. Coal, iron, and natural resources moved from southern Ohio to river and lake ports, causing Columbus['s] and Ohio's economies to boom. Ohio's farms began providing food across the nation. Rail provided the foundation for a growth in population and the economy, and set the stage for the city to play a significant role in the Civil War.

By the late 1860s, railroad builders began to connect the city to major east/west rail systems, and by the 1870s Columbus had links to Baltimore, Philadelphia, Washington, Chicago and St. Louis, enabling Ohio to become a major industrial power. Ultimately, more than 15 rail lines crisscrossed the city.

The current day intersection of High Street and Nationwide Boulevard became the hub of rail activity, stockyards, and slaughterhouses, all joined together at the Union Station depot. Three separate depots bore the name Union Station at that location. All that remains today is a single arch from the Arcade that fronted High Street, permanently located in McFerson Common across from Nationwide Arena.

An iron bridge eventually replaced the original wooden bridge, and its steel successor exists today on the original rail bed. Used daily, the bridge demarks the eastern edge of North Bank Park.
Details
HM NumberHMK1D
Tags
Placed ByCity of Columbus
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Sunday, October 19th, 2014 at 8:05pm PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)17S E 328233 N 4425881
Decimal Degrees39.96565000, -83.01118333
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 39° 57.939', W 83° 0.671'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds39° 57' 56.34" N, 83° 0' 40.26" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)614, 513
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 312-352 W Long St, Columbus OH 43215, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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