Xenia Station

Xenia Station, located at 150 Miami Avenue in Xenia, Ohio, in the United States, is a replica of Xenia's 1880s brick railroad station.

Built in 1998 by the city of Xenia, Xenia Station houses a local history museum, a classroom/meeting space and an observation tower called the Hub Lookout.

Xenia Station is the hub for 5 regional rail trails, two of which are segments of the unfinished Ohio to Erie Trail, which will run from Cincinnati to Cleveland.[1][2]

Facilities

The replica building in 2009

Xenia Station was custom built in 1998 for the city of Xenia by a local contractor[3] and is located on a 9-acre (36,000 m2) city park of the same name, which has play equipment, picnic tables, a picnic shelter, nature areas, a caboose and off-street parking. The site is the former B&O freight yards. The building's first floor houses a local history museum which includes railroad memorabilia while the second floor has a classroom/meeting space. Xenia Station is also the hub for 5 regional rail trails, two of which are segments of the unfinished Ohio to Erie Trail, which will run from Cincinnati to Cleveland. In addition to the museum and classroom/meeting space, the building also has restrooms, vending machines and water for the bicyclists, hikers and others who use the park. It also has a large map of the rail trails and the Hub Lookout, which is a tower accessible by spiral staircase that provides a panoramic view of the rail trails.[1][2]

Railroad history

As late as 1960, Xenia had 3 railroads running through it, as follows:

All 3 railroads saw diminished usage by the late 1970s or early 1980s, and each was eventually taken out of service, abandoned and removed. The Pennsylvania Railroad's Pittsburgh to St. Louis mainline, owned by Conrail after 1976, remained intact until the late 1980s.

Rail trails

The crossing of these 3 railroad rights-of-way created 6 spokes on a wheel with Xenia Station in the center. Of these 6 spokes, 5 have been or are being converted to rail trails. The one exception was the B&O line west to Dayton which did not become a trail because it closely paralleled the Pennsylvania mainline to Dayton.[1]

Clockwise from the north, the 5 rails trails are:[1]

North

The northern branch of the Little Miami Scenic Trail runs from Xenia to Yellow Springs and on to Springfield.

Northeast

The Prairie Grass Trail (a part of the Ohio to Erie Trail) runs from Xenia to Cedarville and to London and beyond.

East

The Xenia-Jamestown Connector will run from Xenia to Jamestown and beyond, but there is now a short gap from Xenia Station to Jasper Road.

South

The southern branch of the Little Miami Scenic Trail is a part of the Ohio to Erie Trail and runs from Xenia to Milford and beyond.

West

The Creekside Trail, known as the Creekside Recreation Trail in Montgomery County, runs from Xenia to Dayton.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Miami Valley Bike Trails - Xenia Station Archived April 18, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
  2. 1 2 City of Xenia site for Xenia Station
  3. ↑ David Metthews

Coordinates: 39°40′49″N 83°55′53″W / 39.680270°N 83.931345°W / 39.680270; -83.931345

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