Rail next to US 23 in Marion, OH

[saxman]

There is a rail line next to US 23 in Marion, OH that comes off the NS main near the old coal dock just east of the US 23 overpass. I noticed that there is a milepost numbered 45 on this line. Given that the now NS line through Marion was the Pennsy line to Sandusky, OH, what is this lines heritage? The milepost 45 leads me to believe there is more to this track then just being a spur given that Marion and Columbus are about 46 miles about.

[ns8401]

There is a rail line next to US 23 in Marion, OH that comes off the NS main near the old coal dock just east of the US 23 overpass. I noticed that there is a milepost numbered 45 on this line. Given that the now NS line through Marion was the Pennsy line to Sandusky, OH, what is this lines heritage? The milepost 45 leads me to believe there is more to this track then just being a spur given that Marion and Columbus are about 46 miles about.

I think it's just a spur now, I forget which road originally but it's NS owned now.

[MSchwiebert]

That line was built to give the PRR access to the Scioto Ordnance Plant & Marion Engineering Depot which were built by the Military during WW2.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scioto_Ordnance_Plant

http://www.remarkableohio.org/Historica ... rkerId=788

[saxman]

Thanks for the information and link.

[looshi]

That is good information, thank you. My questions are now:

1. What are the mileposts in reference to if it was originally not part of a longer line?
2. Why does NS maintain the spur today? I remember a few years ago they put down new ties and new ballast. That seems like a lot of money to maintain a spur simply for car storage.

[cbehr91]

They store cars on it.

[Notch 8]

Often I see cars that are Defective.. Like auto racks missing doors or cars that have been rolled over.. I have seen Do Not Load/Home Shop Repair on several of the cars sitting at this location and I have wondered why and as to where it went... Now we know.

[bdconrail29]

That is good information, thank you. My questions are now:

1. What are the mileposts in reference to if it was originally not part of a longer line?
2. Why does NS maintain the spur today? I remember a few years ago they put down new ties and new ballast. That seems like a lot of money to maintain a spur simply for car storage.

MP is numbered just like the main line, from Columbus.

[strugglin]

If there are bad ordered cars stored on that spur, they are most likely keeping them there for the car repair company in Bucyrus, NS always drops off bad order cars in Marion Yard.

[ELOpr]

In later years, like during the 70s, this line was used to interchange ore trains from the EL to the N&W. I also recall the N&W backing trains around this connection to detour west over the EL when they wreck somewhere between Marion and Ft Wayne.