Louisville, Harrods Creek and Westport Railroad

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The Louisville, Harrods Creek and Westport Railroad was a 19th-century railway company in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was formed from the failed Louisville, Harrods Creek and Westport Railway in 1879, gave up its predecessor's hope of reaching Westport or beyond, and simply continued service along the existing 3 ft (914 mm) [1] narrow gauge railway line between Fulton Street and Harrods Creek until the company's 1881 purchase by the Louisville and Nashville Railroad.

A railway company or railroad company is an entity that operates a railroad track or trains. Such a company can either be private or public. Some railway companies operate both the trains and the track, while particularly in European Union (EU), ownership of track and train operation is separated in different companies.

U.S. state constituent political entity of the United States

In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are currently 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory and shares its sovereignty with the federal government. Due to this shared sovereignty, Americans are citizens both of the federal republic and of the state in which they reside. State citizenship and residency are flexible, and no government approval is required to move between states, except for persons restricted by certain types of court orders. Four states use the term commonwealth rather than state in their full official names.

Kentucky State of the United States of America

Kentucky, officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state located in the east south-central region of the United States. Although styled as the "State of Kentucky" in the law creating it, (because in Kentucky's first constitution, the name state was used) Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth. Originally a part of Virginia, in 1792 Kentucky became the 15th state to join the Union. Kentucky is the 37th most extensive and the 26th most populous of the 50 United States.

The L&N continued the LHC&W's separate existence, but converted it to 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge . Under the L&N, it offered passenger service on four daily round trips and principally serviced commuters living along River Road (the old Louisville–Westport Turnpike). At night, the line was employed for freight service by a lime kiln, bourbon distillery, two quarries, and nearby farms. [2]

In 1904, the L&N sold the 8 miles (13 km) between Zorn Avenue and Prospect to the Louisville Railway Company, which electrified the rail and ran hourly commuter shuttles. [2]

Prospect, Kentucky City in Kentucky, United States

Prospect is a home rule-class city in Jefferson and Oldham counties in the U.S. state of Kentucky. The Jefferson County portion is a part of the Louisville Metro government. The population was 4,698 at the time 2010 census. It is one of the wealthiest communities in Kentucky.

All service on both stretches were abandoned during the Great Depression in 1935. The LHC&W's rights-of-way continued to be employed by the L&N for freight service, however, and presently make up part of the class-I CSX Transportation system. [2]

CSX Transportation railway system in the United States of America

CSX Transportation is a Class I railroad operating in the eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles (34,000 km) of track. The company operates as a subsidiary of CSX Corporation, a Fortune 500 company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida.

See also

The Louisville, Harrods Creek and Westport Railway was a 19th-century railway company in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Its first president was James Callahan. It was organized by Louisvillian businessmen in 1870, began construction and operation of the 3 ft narrow gauge railway in 1872, and failed in 1879 owing the era's Long Depression. The line then gave up hope of connecting to Westport or beyond and reincorporated as the more modest Louisville, Harrods Creek and Westport Railroad, which simply continued service along the existing track.

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Louisville and Nashville Railroad defunct American Class I railway

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Cincinnati, Lebanon and Northern Railway

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Atlanta and West Point Railroad

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The Memphis, Clarksville and Louisville Railroad (MC&L) was a railway in the southern United States. It was chartered in Tennessee in 1852, and opened in 1859. The MC&L entered receivership after the American Civil War, and financial troubles led to an 11-day strike in 1868 that ended when Louisville and Nashville Railroad (L&N) leased the line. L&N finally purchased the MC&L in 1871 and operated it as its Memphis Branch. L&N was merged into CSX, and CSX sold the former MC&L line to R.J. Corman Railroad Group in 1987, becoming that company's Memphis Line.

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Kentucky & Indiana Terminal Bridge bridge in United States of America

The Kentucky & Indiana Bridge is one of the first multi modal bridges to cross the Ohio River. It is for both railway and common roadway purposes together. By federal, state, and local law railway and streetcar, wagon-way, and pedestrian modes of travel were intended by the City of New Albany, City of Louisville, State of Kentucky, State of Indiana, the United States Congress, and the bridge owners. The K & I Bridge connects Louisville, Kentucky to New Albany, Indiana. Constructed from 1881 to 1885 by the Kentucky and Indiana Bridge Company, the original K&I Bridge opened in 1886. It included a single standard gauge track and two wagon ways, allowing wagons and other animal powered vehicles to cross the Ohio River by a method other than ferry for the first time. At the time motorized vehicles were virtually nonexistent. The K&I Bridge company also owned a ferry boat operation during both the 1st and 2nd bridge; eventually that operation was sold as the bridge's success largely outmoded boat usage.

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The Flamingo was a passenger night train operated by the Louisville and Nashville Railroad.

References

  1. ↑ The Louisville & Nashville Railroad, 1850-1963
  2. 1 2 3 Castner, Charles. The Encyclopedia of Louisville, p. 251. "Louisville, Harrods Creek, & Westport Railway". University Press of Kentucky (Lexington), 2001. Accessed 15 October 2013.


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