Draft:Louisville and Eastern Railroad Shelbyville Line

• Comment: Not nearly enough sourcing, and needs to be rewritten in an encyclopedic style. Trainsandotherthings (talk) 23:27, 26 November 2024 (UTC)

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Beginnings Of The Shelbyville Line

"April 1901 saw the Louisville, Anchorage, and Pewee Valley Electric Railway Company (LA&PV) announce its intentions to build a line to Shelbyville via Simpsonville. The company proposed to start the line from a point on the Louisville to LaGrange line near Middletown."^[1]

Then in June of 1902, the company announced that the line would start at Lakeland. By 1903, a number of reorganizations of the various interurban companies that had stated they were going to build a line to Shelbyville had taken place. "LA&PV was now under the control of the Louisville & Eastern Railway Company (L&E). On may 18, 1902, L&E announced that construction of the rail extension from the Louisville to LaGrange line to Shelbyville would begin from Lakeland on June 1, 1903."^[2]

Shelbyville's Objections To The Line

The L&E hoped that the Louisville to LaGrange and Louisville to Shelbyville line was to be operating in October of 1907. The LaGrange line was open and operating by that date but the Shelbyville line was not due to several reasons. One of the reasons is raising the capital, and the protests of residents of Shelbyville. Some of the residents in favor of the interurban suggested that "the most prosperous streets in Lexington and Louisville were the streets with the most streetcar and interurban traffic"^[1]

But those opposing it said that the train would have to go through 10 blocks of residential area before reaching the city hall. That would also bring along with it the loud sounds of the trolley e.g. the ringing of the bell, and blowing of the horn. They were also concerned about the speed which the trains would come through at. And that they did not want the L&E to run freight cars through Shelbyville which is contrary to what the L&E's charter said. "L&E, in response, said it had no plans to haul freight cars down Main Street."^[1]

In an attempt to ease the minds of the residents of Shelbyville, they also stated they would build the railroad at a 5-foot gauge instead of the 4'8.5-foot gauge that steam railroads used thus making them incompatible. They would also say that all of the interurban cars would stop at all street crossings and only use the bells in town at street crossings. But the residents didn't believe them and kept on their attacks of the interurban. Many people who were for the L&E thought that Main Street having a bricked street that they only had to pay 50% of would improve the city's image. Before this Main Street was a dirt road and they couldn't lay track there when it was like this.

L&E's Legal Issues With Shelby County

In May of 1906 Shelbyville and the L&E finally came to a agreement that said the Louisville and Eastern had to finish the tracks through Shelbyville by August 1st of 1907. Later in June of 1907, Shelbyville's Main Street had been torn up for the construction of the tracks. The work was slow at a stop-and-go pace, "it soon became apparent to L&E that the line's track, within the city of Shelbyville, would not be complete as called for by its franchise"resulting in the NIMBY groups filing several lawsuits against the L&E. "The Not In My Backyard groups (NIMBY) organized to gain control of the Shelbyville city council and hired lawyers to file lawsuits against the L&E. The NIMBY coalition stormed the city council and fought to have the sitting council declare the existing L&E franchise to operate in Shelbyville null and void due to the company's failure to meet certain deadlines." At the end of the life span of the line in 1934 the L&E and the city of Shelbyville reignited the rivalry for the last few times. Including arguments about the right of ways of the tracks just before the Shelby Co. fairgrounds, And to figure out if the L&E had paid off what they had agreed on years before.

Plans To Extend The Line

The idea was during this time that after the line had reached Shelbyville the plan was to continue on towards Frankfort. Then once they reached Frankfort, they would build a branch line to Bedford and Milton. Then taking a ferry to cross the Ohio River to Madison, Indiana. The two major Interurbans in the area the Louisville and interurban railroad and the Kentucky traction and terminal company that was based in Lexington, Kentucky. The continued squabbles between the two on differences in the gauge width and who would build it would continue for over one and a half decades but by the time they were finally almost ready to start construction (1920) the age of the automobile had already taken hold in the post world war 1 America.

Removal of track from the L&E

In Shelbyville the tracks were removed in 1942-3 for scrap for the war effort. And in Middletown the tracks were promptly torn up on June 11th 1934. The question of when the bridge over Floyd's Fork was taken down is a tougher one to answer. But it was sometime between 1934-1949.

Remaining structures and components

Eastern foundation of L&E bridge in 2024

On the eastern and western bank of Floyd's Fork near US 60 there are 2 large concrete foundations from the L&E bridge there. The one on the eastern bank is about 30 feet tall and is partially submerged in Floyd's Fork. Once you leave the east bank of Floyd's Fork you can find multiple concrete footers from the 1250-foot-long trestle that once spanned the valley. On both the east and west sides of the valley you can seethe remnants of two road cuts. The one on the western side is more visible and in good condition the same cannot be said for the eastern side. It is hard to view the road cut or at least what's left of it.

On Conner station road you can find both the Long Run depot/station from the L&E and just down the road from that you'll find a remaining abutments also from the L&E bridge over Long Run creek.

Other Information About The Line

Cars Used By The L&E

Louisville and Eastern cars 111-115 were built at the American Car & Foundry in Jeffersonville, Indiana. They were completed in 1908 but due to the financial problems of the L&E during that time and the incompletion of the Shelbyville line they were put on hold until 1910 when they finally finished and opened the line.

Louisville and Eastern express cars 203-205 were built at the American Car & Foundry in Jeffersonville, Indiana. Like cars 111-115 they were also completed in 1908 but had to wait for the line to open to enter service in 1910. These cars operated in the morning and evening to transport cargo into town from LaGrange and Shelbyville on their respective routes.

List Of Stations On The Line

Name then distance from terminus in Louisville in miles

• Beechwood Junction - 7.6mi
• Oxmoor - 8.0
• Massie - 8.5
• Hurstborne - 8.8
• Hurstbourne farm - 9.4
• Tarascon - 10.0
• Dorsey - 10.6
• Rosedale - 11.0
• Douglas - 11.3
• Brookside - 11.7
• Middletown - 12.0
• Bellevue - 12.6
• Odessa - 12.6
• Acton - 13.3
• English - 13.9
• Judson - 14.2
• Corilla - 14.9
• Hegan - 15.3
• Valley View - 15.7
• Idlewild - 16.6
• Auvergne - 16.8
• Eastwood - 17.2
• Sunny Side - 17.5
• Waverly - 18.0
• Long Run - 18.7
• Boundary - 19.5
• Clifford - 20.0
• Conner - 20.7
• Hedgeway - 21.4
• Lincoln Ridge - 21.7
• Bonita - 22.3
• Simpsonville - 22.8
• Roswell - 23.4
• Montclair - 24.0
• Record - 24.5
• Rodman - 25.0
• Woodruff - 25.3
• Logan - 25.5
• Gordan - 26.2
• Scott - 26.7
• Helmetta - 27.0
• Ardmore - 27.4
• Glendive - 27.9
• Poplar Grove - 28.3
• Fredonia - 28.7
• Shelby County Fair Grounds - 29.2
• Shelbyville - 30.8

Concrete footer from trestle

Photos

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  Louisville and Eastern Share plaque
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  Long Run Louisville and Eastern Depot
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  Floyd's Fork L&E bridge circa 1934
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  Louisville and Eastern bridge over Floyd's Fork circa 1909
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  Different angle of the eastern foundation
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  Louisville and Eastern car 111 in 1908