Miamisburg (Cincinnati Pike) Railroad Bridge

The Miamisburg (Cincinnati Pike) Railroad Bridge carries Norfolk Southern Railroad over Cincinnati Pike in Miamisburg, Ohio.

The Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati & Indianapolis Railway (CCC&I) was created in May 1868 through the merger of the Cleveland, Columbus & Cincinnati Railroad (CC&C) and the Bellefontaine Railway. ¹ The main objective of CCC&I was to establish a connection to Cincinnati, which the CC&C had previously attempted but only managed to run trains between Cleveland and Columbus. In 1871, CCC&I entered into agreements to lease and operate the Cincinnati & Springfield Railroad. This new railroad was under construction between the Marietta & Cincinnati Railroad at Ivorydale Junction in St. Bernard and Dayton, following the Great Miami River and Mill Creek. CCC&I also leased the Cincinnati, Sandusky & Cleveland Railroad, which connected Dayton and Springfield, providing a continuous route from Cleveland to Cincinnati via Columbus.

In July 1882, CCC&I acquired the Indianapolis & St. Louis and the St. Louis, Alton & Terre Haute railroads. ¹ In July 1889, the lines in Indiana and Illinois were merged to form the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway (CCC&StL; commonly known as the Big Four). In 1906, the New York Central Railroad acquired the Big Four but operated it as a separate entity. The section of the Big Four’s route between Dayton and Ivorydale Junction became known as the Cincinnati Division Main Line.

In 1913, a major flood along the Great Miami River caused significant damage to much of the Big Four’s infrastructure. ¹ While many bridges were rebuilt, the railroad took the opportunity to realign its tracks between Miamisburg and North Middletown, choosing higher ground and bypassing Franklin completely. The relocation project began in 1914 and involved constructing two bridges over the Great Miami River at Miamisburg and North Middletown, as well as a skewed Pratt through truss and viaduct over the Cincinnati Pike and Miami & Erie Canal in Miamisburg. The old mainline through Franklin became known as the Cincinnati Division Old Line and was eventually abandoned.

In 1968, with the merger of the New York Central and Pennsylvania railroads, the Big Four’s lines became part of the Penn Central system. However, Penn Central faced bankruptcy in 1970, and in 1976, many of the Big Four’s lines were incorporated into Conrail. After Conrail was privatized in 1987, the lines were jointly acquired by CSX and Norfolk Southern Railway (NS). The Cincinnati Division, including the Dayton District, was acquired by NS, which continues to operate the line to this day.