The Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad Bridge spans the Licking River between Newport and Covington, Kentucky, and is currently used by CSX Railroad.
History
The Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad Bridge spans the Licking River between Newport and Covington, Kentucky, and is currently used by CSX Railroad.
The Maysville & Big Sandy River Railroad (M&BS) was established on December 18, 1850, 5 with the objective of building a railway from Maysville to the Big Sandy River’s mouth. 4 Construction started in 1853, but the company went bankrupt in 1854. 5 The project was then taken over by the Kentucky Great Eastern Railway Company in 1873, but they also defaulted in 1874. 4 5 The railway was only able to complete a stretch from Maysville to the local fairgrounds and a stone viaduct at Garrison before funds were depleted. 3 A U.S. Supreme Court decision eventually reverted seven miles of completed and partially finished railway back to the M&BS. 4 In 1882, the M&BS was acquired by Collis P. Huntington’s Chesapeake & Ohio Railway (C&O). 3
The Licking River bridge and 0.63 miles of track extending westward to KC Junction in Covington were built between 1886 and 1888 by the Covington Short Route Transfer Railway (CSRT), established on May 15, 1886, to be operated by the C&O. 3
The line from Ashland to KC Junction in Covington, spanning 142.4 miles, was finished on December 7, 1888, but it wasn’t operational until December 24. 3 7 Starting January 1, 1889, the M&BS was operated by the C&O as its Ohio River Division. 5 7 The M&BS and the CSRT were both merged into the C&O on July 1, 1904. 4 5
In the 1920s, the C&O line underwent reconstruction to accommodate heavier locomotives, specifically the T-1 2-10-4, and to increase traffic capacity. 2 The Licking River bridge was rebuilt in 1921-22, 1 2 and the deck truss viaduct approach in Newport was reconstructed in 1928, 1 in anticipation of a new Ohio River bridge and the construction of a new passenger terminal in Cincinnati. 2
Gallery
Information
- State: Kentucky
- Route: CSX
- Type: Warren Through Truss
- Status: Active - Railroad
Sources
- McChord, Wendell H. “The Chesapeake & Ohio at Newport, Ky. – Milepost 661.0.” C&O Magazine, Winter 2015, p. 15.
- McChord, Wendell. “The C&O in Cincinnati.” The Chesapeake & Ohio Historical Magazine, Spring 2011, p. 29.
- McChord, Wendell H. “Chessie and the Queen City.” The Chesapeake & Ohio Historical Newsletter, Jan. 1976, p. 10.
- “Chesapeake and Ohio Railway.” Labelle Models.
- Underwood, Jr., Thomas L. “Chronology of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railay Company and Predecessor Lines.” The Chesapeake & Ohio Historical Newsletter, Jan. 1975, p. 12.
- McChord, Wendell H. “Maysville, Kentucky.” The Chesapeake & Ohio Historical Newsletter, Mar. 1978, p. 12.