Middletown and Cincinnati Railroad

Middletown and Cincinnati Railroad
Company type	Railroad
Industry	Rail transport
Predecessor	Middletown and Cincinnati Railway Company
Founded	February 28, 1890; 136 years ago
Founder	Paul Sorg
Defunct	June 3, 1902
Fate	Acquired by Pennsylvania Railroad
Headquarters	Middletown, Ohio, United States
Area served	Southwestern Ohio
Products	Rail freight and passenger service

The Middletown and Cincinnati Railroad was a notable rail line that operated in the southwestern region of Ohio.

This railroad stretched 14 miles, linking Middletown in Butler County to Middletown Junction located in Warren County.

Its origin traces back to the Middletown and Cincinnati Railway Company, which was established on February 28, 1890, by industrialist Paul Sorg from Middletown along with other stakeholders who were dissatisfied with the services provided by the Cincinnati, Hamilton and Dayton Railroad and the Cincinnati and Springfield Railroad. The new railway intended to enhance connectivity to Cincinnati.

Completed by December 1892, the route commenced at a station on Clinton Street in Middletown and extended southeast through Lemon Township, crossing into Warren County near Monroe. It continued through Turtlecreek Township and Union Township. At approximately twelve miles southeast of Middletown, at Hagemans Crossing, it intersected with the narrow gauge Cincinnati, Lebanon and Northern Railway. The alignment roughly followed the path of the former Warren County Canal, then proceeded two miles further southeast over the Little Miami River via a 365-foot truss bridge into Hamilton Township, where it terminated on the Little Miami Railroad at Middletown Junction situated between Kings Mills and South Lebanon. The line maintained a gentle maximum grade of just 0.46 percent.

Primarily funded through loans, the railroad entered into receivership in 1894. On October 20 of that year, it was auctioned off and repurchased by its original financiers. Subsequently, it was reestablished on December 24, 1894 as the Middletown and Cincinnati Railroad Company. After the Pennsylvania Railroad acquired the Cincinnati, Lebanon and Northern Railway in 1896, it went on to acquire the M&C for $400,000 on June 3, 1902, integrating it into the CL&N network.

Following the collapse of Pennsy’s successor entity, Penn Central, in 1976 the line was absorbed into Conrail. Conrail eventually divested the segment from Middletown to Hagemans Crossing to the Indiana and Ohio Railroad, which continues to provide freight service to destinations including Lebanon and Mason using this track. Additionally, this operator formerly conducted excursion trips from Mason to Monroe. The portion of track southeast of U.S. Route 42 at Hagemans Crossing was abandoned; rails were dismantled and the corridor was sold to the City of Lebanon.

Rail trail

The southeastern stretch running from Columbia Road to Middletown Junction has been transformed into the Lebanon Countryside Trail by the City of Lebanon, with its opening in autumn 2005. The existing bridge now serves as a connection between this trail and the Little Miami Bike Trail.

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