The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1877-04-12
HiIIsboro and Her Railroad
interests,

HillsbOro, becoming alarmed at the numerous
railroads which are being built all around her anC
which threaten TO sap her life blood by taking
away a great portion of her trade, is now abOrinG
TO COunteraCt this evil by the only means in hel
pOwer-that is by getting q railroad of her own
To this end her citizens are labOring TO secure
connection with the Jackson Cnal-felds hy means
Of o narrow gauge road over ruute which has moi
yet been selected. Here is where they are IN
danger of committing great mistake. While
narrow guage road would no doubt he of gTea
benefit TO them, they ought not to be blind to the
fact that they now have the opportunity TO make
their city point on great through line from Eas
10 West, the shortest route from Cincinnati to the
Atlantic. Bnt how can this he accomplished
By simply building broad gauge from their city
TO PlketOn, connecting here with the SCiOtO VALLEY
Railroad, which will be completed to Portsmouth
by the let Of October. As soon as active opera.
tiOus are begun on the SciOto Valley Road, the
connecting link between Huntington and Ports
mouth will be pushed forward, and if the portion
OF the road between here and HillshOrO is built oil
the standard guage, and the road then extended L
Cincinnati, it cannot help but become the mos
important route from the West TO the seabOard
The citizens of HisbOrO can never expect to build
mp their trade by narrow gauge connection witt
the s. J. & p. R. R., at Bainbridge.
If the citizens Of HillsbOrO fail 10 svail them
selves of the opportunity presented above, they
have one other chance LEFT. The cincinnati ant
Eastern Narrow Gange are pushing forward to
wards the Jackson COal-fClds, their road running
Immediately south Of them, and being the shortest
most direct route, viii seriously endanger thei
their town and then built over the old HillsbOrC
and Parkersburg rOad-bed to jackson, or TO a con.
necti,n with the J. & P R. r. three miles eas
of PiketOn. We have presented the only projects
10 cur mind, from which HilisbOrO can expect tC
derive any material benefits, and hope they viii
consider them carefully before committing them
sel7es to the Bainbridge project.
We clip the above from the Pike,
ton Courier of late date. We car
assure our contemporary that the citi
zens of HiIlsboro are by no means
blind to the advantages of a broad
gauge connection with the Chesa
peake & Ohio R. R., via the old road
bed from Hillsboro to Piketon, the
Scioto Valley R. R. to Portsmouth
and the road almost certain to be built
in the near future from Portsmouth
to Huntington. If Mr.. Chapman
finishes the Scioto Valley. road tc
Portsmouth this year, as now seems
! probable, he is too shrewd a railroad
man not to, perceive the great ad
vantages to his road of a direct lin,
to Cincinnati through HiHs5oro
over the old road bed between here
and Piketon. It would pay the
SciOtO Valley R. R. to render libera
aid to the people along the line il
building this short line to Cincinnati
if for nothing else than the vast Goa
traffic from the jackson coal fields
that would be developed if the roaC
were built. Add to this the large
traffic in building stone, lumber
lime and other valuable products
with which the country abounds, t.
say nothing of the prospective busi
ness to be derived from tbe Chesa
peake & Ohio R. R., whenever tht
connection is made with that roaC
at Huntington, and the commanding
importance Of the proposed line t0n
the Scioto Valley R. R. to Cincinnati
via Hillsboro, must be apparent to all
We regard it as sure to be built at nt
distant Jay, as soon as the fnancia
condition of the country will admi
of It, for it is the cheapest and bes
line by which the Chesapeake & Obi
R. r. can reach Cincinnati, being
nearly as short as a direct line dow
the Ohio river, while there would b
much less road to build on the Hills
boro route, with the additional ad
vantage of over half million of dol
lars saved in work already done.
But while our citizens are wei
aware of all these facts, they ais
know that the interests of Hillsbor
imperatively demand a connection
with the system Of narrOa0 gaHg
roads now in progress of construc
ton on the north, cast, south an,
west of us, and which threaten t
draw eff a large portion of our trade
unless such a connection is speedil
made. While we are still anxiou
for the construction of a standar
gauge road to the East, which wi
/ give us the long-desired connection
with the Chesapeake & Ohio R. R
we see clearly that it is still in th
future, and that we must not neg
lect the important advantages to b
derived from a connection with tn
narrow gauge roads now being rapiC
lily developed all around US. This
at present the alLengrossing quer
ton for the consideration of the pee
pie of our town and county.
charter fora narrow gauge road frO1
jackson to Cincinnati, via Hillsborc
has been obtained, and the book
III - B. -,-L-,--s,,Lso,,r, ,