The following is a review I posted on Amazon. In part two I’ll discuss some of the more local-centric aspects of this book.
In Narrow Gauge In Ohio: The Cincinnati, Lebanon, and Northern Railway John W. Hauck tells the fascinating story of a small railroad in Southwestern Ohio.
The railroad was founded in 1888 as a local narrow gauge railroad built to supply rail service to the highlands in between the Little Miami and Great Miami river. It never becomes overly profitable, it never has a huge amount of traffic or becomes a part of a huge rail corridor, and it eventually is broken up and abandoned. It is this plain, mundane atmosphere that makes the story so interesting. This is not just the story of one road but can represent the story of hundreds of little railroads all over the country.
Hauck tells this story against the backdrop of the wider Midwest narrow gauge movement. He claims as a thesis the inefficiency of this concept. Cheaper construction costs for the narrow track did not make up for the shortcomings of the gauge. He spends the first half of the book discussing the CL&N’s narrow gauge operations as well as its integration in the Toledo, Delphos, and Burlington system. This is one of the few books that does discuss the TD&B or the “Little Giant” and its narrow gauge empire.
Along the way the author gives the reader unprecedented detail. The CL&N was near a century old at the time of publication and for a railroad that old the amount of information presented is outstanding. Documents, maps, and even pictures of old roadbeds all point to a well-researched manuscript. Hauck also goes one step farther, interviewing older residents who road on the passenger trains in the 20′s and 30′s. These interviews manifest themselves as interesting antidotes and side stories that would be missed otherwise. They bring out more of the human side of rail travel and just how different these railroads were than the ones of today.
If there is one flaw with this work it is the omission of any footnotes or bibliography. Hauck claims it would be too difficult to record every interview and document he researched as a source, but even a partial list would have been helpful. Anyone wishing to do further research on this railroad will be limited to this dead-end secondary source.
Never-the-less, the usefulness of this book for any researcher, historian, or model railroader can not be underestimated. In addition to a complete map of the system and major stations there is also a well-research locomotive roster as an appendix. All 24 CL&N locomotives are accounted for with numbers, models, and years of service.
Rounding out the material is an index and a large number of black and white photos. Overall, Narrow Gauge in Ohio fulfills dual roles. It tells the story of the Midwest narrow gauge movement as well as the story of a specific railroad in time. While the information could have been more extensive the publisher was clearly looking at small run and thus limited in pages. Every page in this book is crammed full of useful and interesting information.
Narrow Gauge in Ohio is out of print. However, if ever seen in a used bookstore or on the Internet I heartily recommend it. For those interested in Eastern narrow gauge railroads, the Cincinnati or Lebanon area, or just railroads in general, this book is worth every penny.