Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway Company

The Wheeling and Lake Erie Railroad was founded in 1871 and it was originally designed to span the distance from the Ohio River through the coal fields of southeastern Ohio to the ports on Lake Erie. By 1877, only 13.5 miles of track had been laid, and the railroad tycoon was jokingly called the "Wailing and Leg Weary." After several early financial embarrassments, including a complete shut down in 1879, Jay Gould began buying large amounts of Wheeling's stock the following year. With the fresh influx of financing, construction resumed.

The Cleveland, Canton and Southern Railroad (CC&S) originated as the Youngstown and Connotton Valley Railway. It was organized August 29, 1877 to construct a line from Bowerston (south of Canton, Ohio) to Youngstown. The Youngstown and Connotton Valley purchased the bankrupt Ohio and Toledo Railroad in 1878, which ran from Carrollton to Oneida, and shortened its name to Connotton Valley Railroad Co. The Connotton Valley Railroad Co. continued to expand its line, and by 1885 the Connotton Valley road had a total of 160.59 miles of narrow gauge (three foot wide) track in operation from Cleveland to Coshocton. In Cleveland, the Connotton Valley's tracks extended along Canal Street to the corner of Cleveland, and the Connotton Valley's tracks extended along Canal Street to the corner of Ontario and Huron Avenues, where a new passenger depot was opened in 1883. Most of the road's freight was coal and the Union Rolling Mill companies. Sold under foreclosure to bondholders on May 9, 1885, the railroad renamed as the Cleveland and Canton Railway. Tracks were converted to standard-gauge over the next three years and merges with three smaller railroads in May 1892 expanded the line to Zanesville. The Cleveland and Canton added Southern to its name to better describe the 209.59 miles of track it now operated.

The Cleveland, Belt and Terminal Railroad (CB&T) was chartered on May 13, 1891 to speed up the movement of freight through the Cleveland area. When the Cleveland, Belt and Terminal opened for traffic in 1893, its tracks ran from the Cleveland, Canton and Southern in the Flats westward to the Big 4 (Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad) tracks near Denison Avenue.

Both the CC&S and CB&T railroads deteriorated until their purchase by the Wheeling and Lake Erie in 1899. In 1900 the Wheeling and Lake Erie had 435.7 miles of track in operation, with the majority of its earning coming from freight, particularly coal, coke, iron ore, stone and sand. At its height, the Wheeling and Lake Erie ran from the Pittsburgh region to Lake Erie at Huron and Toledo, and from Cleveland to Zanesville. These two sections of the line crossed at Harmon, Ohio which was just east of Brewster. With two busy main stems crossing on the map of Ohio, the road's nickname for many years was "The Iron Cross." The Wheeling and Lake Erie had reached Martin's Ferry in 1891 and Wheeling by 1892. It would continue to expand its territory through the acquisition the Cleveland Canton and Southern, and the Cleveland Belt and Terminal. Ironically though, the mainline of the Wheeling and Lake Erie never actually reached Wheeling, West Virginia.

As it had expanded its territory through mergers and transfers, the Wheeling and Lake Erie found itself leased by the Nickel Plate Road (NKP) in 1949 for a duration to last fifteen years. In 1964, the Nickel Plate Road merged with Norfolk and Western Railway. Later the Norfolk and Western merged with the Southern Railway in 1982, forming the Norfolk Southern Railway (NS). On June 1, 1990, Norfolk Southern Railway sold portions of their lines in Ohio and Pennsylvania, including most of the original lines of the historical Wheeling and Lake Erie to a new regional railroad which reclaimed the name of the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway that still operates today. The only portions of the original Wheeling not own by the current are the Norfolk Southern line west of Bellevue, the former Cleveland Division line south of Harmon (Brewster) and the Huron, Ohio docks.

From the guide to the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railroad Company photograph collection, 1863-1962, (Cleveland State University)