Franklin Canal Company

Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway
Industry	Railroad
Predecessor	Michigan Southern and Northern Indiana Railroad, Lake Shore Railway, Buffalo and Erie Railroad
Founded	1869
Defunct	1914
Fate	Merged with New York Central and Hudson River Railroad to form New York Central Railroad
Successor	New York Central Railroad
Headquarters	United States
Area served	Buffalo, New York to Chicago, Illinois, via southern Lake Erie shoreline through New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and northern Indiana
Key people	Cornelius Vanderbilt (controlling interest circa 1877)
Products	Rail transport services (passenger and freight)
Number of employees	Over 3,500 (circa early 1900s: ~1,500 in Elkhart repair facility, ~2,000 in Collinwood repair facility) (Early 20th century)

Adapted from the English Wikipedia article Franklin Canal Company, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 23 July 2025

The Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway, established in 1833, played a crucial role within the New York Central Railroad's Water Level Route, linking Buffalo, New York with Chicago, Illinois. Its track primarily traced the southern shoreline of Lake Erie, passing through New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and northern Indiana. The railway's infrastructure continues to serve an essential function today by facilitating both Amtrak passenger trains and freight transport. Since 1998, ownership has been split at Cleveland, Ohio, with CSX Transportation controlling the eastern portion and Norfolk Southern Railway managing the western segment.

Toledo to Chicago

The Erie and Kalamazoo Railroad was chartered on April 22, 1833, within the Michigan Territory to connect Port Lawrence (present-day Toledo) with Adrian, Michigan. Following border adjustments resulting from the Toledo War, approximately one-third of its route fell under Ohio’s jurisdiction. Operations began with horse-drawn trains in 1836 and transitioned to steam locomotives by 1837.

Chartered in Indiana in 1835 as the Buffalo and Mississippi Railroad, this line aimed to extend from Buffalo to the Mississippi River but was renamed the Northern Indiana Railroad in 1837 with intentions to reach Michigan City on Lake Michigan. Although some grading was completed, financial difficulties stalled further progress.

Concurrently, Michigan started building the Southern Railroad from Monroe on Lake Erie westward toward New Buffalo on Lake Michigan. Sections of this line opened between 1839 and 1843 before being sold in 1846 to the Michigan Southern Rail Road, which redirected its western terminus to Chicago by utilizing the Northern Indiana Railroad’s charter. In 1849, the Michigan Southern leased the Erie and Kalamazoo Railroad, obtaining a branch line into Toledo and connections heading east.

The presence of the Michigan Central Railroad limited Michigan Southern’s operations near the Indiana border east of Constantine. To navigate this restriction, Judge Stanfield of South Bend leased right-of-way property along this boundary until legal amendments permitted ownership.

The Northern Indiana and Chicago Railroad was chartered in 1850; by 1852 it had constructed a line from the Michigan Southern at the state line through Elkhart to Chicago. Subsequent consolidations merged Ohio and Indiana companies: in 1853 Ohio’s Northern Indiana combined with its Indiana counterpart; in 1855 these entities merged with Northern Indiana and Chicago Railroad forming the Northern Indiana Railroad. That same year it merged with Michigan Southern Rail Road creating the Michigan Southern and Northern Indiana Railroad. By 1858, a new alignment called the Northern Indiana Air Line connected Elkhart eastward to Toledo’s Air Line Junction. This system included main routes from Chicago to Toledo with alternate paths through southern Michigan as well as branches such as the Detroit, Monroe and Toledo Railroad leased since 1856.

Erie to Cleveland

The Franklin Canal Company, established on May 21, 1844, constructed a rail line extending southwest from Erie, Pennsylvania, to the Ohio state boundary. Meanwhile, the Cleveland, Painesville and Ashtabula Railroad, formed on February 18, 1848, built a track northeastward from Cleveland to connect with the Franklin Canal Company's railroad at the state border. The segment between Cleveland and Painesville commenced service on November 20, 1851; trains reached Ashtabula by June 16, 1852; and the link to Erie was finalized by November 23, 1852. The Cleveland, Painesville and Ashtabula Railroad acquired the Franklin Canal Company on June 20, 1854.

Buffalo to Erie

Incorporated on October 13, 1849, the Buffalo and State Line Railroad began operations on January 1, 1852, running westward from Dunkirk into Pennsylvania; its extension reaching Buffalo opened shortly after on February 17, 1852. The Erie and North East Railroad, chartered April 12, 1842, constructed the section westward from the state line to Erie, which opened January 19, 1852. Initially, both railroads operated using broad gauge tracks; however, in November 1853 they agreed to convert their lines to match the Franklin Canal Company's gauge to enable uninterrupted through service at Erie without changing trains. This gauge conversion was completed by February 1, 1854. Subsequently, on May 15, 1867, these two companies merged into the Buffalo and Erie Railroad.

Cleveland to Toledo

The Junction Railroad, chartered March 2, 1846, developed a rail connection from Cleveland heading west toward Toledo. The Toledo, Norwalk and Cleveland Railroad, chartered March 7, 1850, built eastward from Toledo to Grafton, where it linked with the Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati Railroad. This route became operational on December 20, 1852, completing a continuous line between Buffalo and Chicago. On September 1 of that year, both railroads consolidated as the Cleveland and Toledo Railroad, designating the Junction Railroad as its Northern Division and the Toledo, Norwalk and Cleveland as its Southern Division. The Northern Division opened service between Cleveland and Sandusky on October 24, 1853; it extended to Toledo by April 24, 1855. Due to limited traffic beyond Sandusky toward Toledo initially, that portion was abandoned but later reconstructed in 1872 to connect with the Southern Division at Millbury, near Toledo. In 1866, operations east of Oberlin on the Southern Division were discontinued in favor of a new line leading to Elyria on the Northern Division—optimizing efficiency and eliminating reliance on the Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati Railroad for this corridor.

Consolidations

In October 1867, the Cleveland, Painesville and Ashtabula Railroad entered into a lease agreement for the Cleveland and Toledo Railroad. The CP&A rebranded as the Lake Shore Railway on March 31, 1868, subsequently absorbing the Cleveland and Toledo Railroad in February 1869. Following this consolidation, on April 6, 1869, a merger between the Michigan Southern and Northern Indiana Railroad and Lake Shore resulted in the formation of the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway (LS&MS). Shortly thereafter in June of that year, LS&MS incorporated the Buffalo and Erie Railroad as well—establishing unified control over rail service from Buffalo all the way to Chicago. The LS&MS main line traversed critical urban centers such as Erie, Cleveland, Toledo, and South Bend. Complementary routes like Ohio’s Sandusky Division and Indiana-Michigan’s Air Line Division provided alternative pathways enhancing network versatility. Additionally, branches including the Monroe Branch connected strategically to leased lines like the Detroit, Monroe and Toledo Railroad.

The company made significant investments in its infrastructure to support expanding operations. Its initial major repair facility opened in Elkhart, Indiana in 1851 and grew over time to employ around 1,500 workers. A second repair shop was established in Collinwood near Cleveland in 1874; by 1901 an investment of $2 million funded a larger maintenance center there which employed over 2,000 personnel by the following decades. In Ashtabula in 1913 a freight car repair yard was added specifically servicing ore and coal cars at the port terminal. By mid-century—1952—as part of a modernization initiative transitioning from steam locomotives to diesel powerplants—repair activities were centralized at Collinwood for greater efficiency.

Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway: 1869–1914

By approximately 1877, prominent industrialist Cornelius Vanderbilt, the founder of the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad, had gained controlling interest in LS&MS. This acquisition enhanced Vanderbilt’s strategic position by extending his New York Central main line from Buffalo westward all the way to Chicago. The system was further integrated with affiliated railroads such as the Canada Southern Railway and Michigan Central Railroad, facilitating expanded operations throughout southern Ontario and the U.S. Midwest.

A pivotal incident that affected LS&MS’s standing was the tragic collapse of a bridge in Ashtabula, Ohio, on December 29, 1876, when the Pacific Express train fell through, resulting in 92 deaths and 64 injuries. Although this disaster highlighted significant safety challenges within the rail industry at that time, it did not halt LS&MS’s business expansion under Vanderbilt’s effective management.

New York Central Railroad: 1914–1968

On December 22, 1914, the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway merged with the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad to establish the New York Central Railroad. The northern route, designated as the Sandusky Division, ultimately replaced the original southern track between Toledo and Elyria as the primary main line.

Post-NYC: 1968–present

In 1968, New York Central joined with Pennsylvania Railroad and New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad to create Penn Central Transportation Company. After declaring bankruptcy two years later, Penn Central was absorbed into Conrail in 1976. That same year saw abandonment of the Southern Division segment from Elyria to Millbury; sections of this corridor have since been repurposed as part of the North Coast Inland Trail. Under Conrail’s management, the Lake Shore main line became a crucial segment of the New York City–Chicago Chicago Line.

Following Conrail’s division in 1998 between CSX and Norfolk Southern, CSX took ownership of the Chicago Line east of Cleveland, subdividing it into Lake Shore, Erie West, and Cleveland Terminal Subdivisions. Norfolk Southern operates the western portion from Cleveland to Chicago. Amtrak’s Lake Shore Limited service traverses this entire stretch from Buffalo westward, while the Floridian formerly connected in Cleveland on its route from Washington, D.C., to Chicago. Passenger trains currently terminate at Chicago’s Union Station after switching from former Pennsylvania Railroad tracks at Whiting, Indiana.

Branches

An important branch line extended from Northeastern Ohio into coal and oil regions near Brookville in northwestern Pennsylvania. Initially reaching oil processing facilities in Franklin and Oil City, Pennsylvania, it was later extended westward to Rose, Pennsylvania. This branch included numerous engineering feats such as large trestles, bridges, tunnels, and a distinctive bridge-tunnel structure close to Piney.

The New York Central secured trackage rights over Pennsylvania Railroad and Baltimore & Ohio Railroad lines to link Rose with Clearfield, Pennsylvania. This route serviced multiple mining operations near Brookville and connected with other regional railroads including the Lake Erie, Franklin and Clarion at Sutton.

Due to a decline in coal shipments during the late 1990s, service on this branch was cut back to Piney mine. Several major trestles were dismantled in the late 2000s following directives from the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission; however, as of 2015, the Clarion River bridge remained preserved.

Station listing - Main Line

... (remaining stations from Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois with key Amtrak stops highlighted) ...

State	Station	City	Closed	Connections and notes
New York	Buffalo	Buffalo		Served by Amtrak Empire Service and Maple Leaf; home to the Lake Shore Railway Museum
	Lackawanna	Lackawanna	1920s
	West Seneca
	Blasdell	Blasdell	1920s
	Bay View		1940s
	Athol Springs	Athol Springs	1940s
	Wanakah		1920s
	Lake View	Lake View	1940s
	North Evans
	Derby	Derby	1940s
	Angola	Angola	1950s
	Farnham	Farnham	1940s
	Irving	Irving	1940s
	Silver Creek	Silver Creek	1950s
	Waites Crossing		1920s
	Dunkirk	Dunkirk	1971

References

Corporate History of North American Railroads
History of the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway Company
Excerpts from "History of St. Joseph County, Indiana" (1880)
Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railway System and Representative Employees Biographical Publishing Company, 1900
J. David Ingles, IC may get new Chicago entrance, Trains June 1999
Mileposts from CSX Transportation Timetables
The Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway, Published: 1989