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10, 1953 at the end of the season. At this time diesels were pulling the trains, and had been so for five years.
The end of the season for the 0 & W was fast approaching. Despite last minute moves to save her, the road was abandoned March 29, 1957 (although the last train didn't "tie up" until the early morning of the 30th). At the time, this was the largest (544 miles) railroad to be abandoned. The rails were pulled up, and, looking at photos of the Middletown yards, it's hard to imagine such a thing was really here.
My favorite epitaph for the 0 & W was written by William F. Helmer in his 1959 book on the road:
"Ravaged by the scrap dealers, the weed-covered old right-of-way is an ugly scar on the land. May it ever remind us of the days of glory when Smoke plumes rose over rattling Coaches, when iron men piloted panting steamers over the mountains, when the railroad depot was the business center of town, when the lined face of an engineer could bring joy into the life of a small child, when the far-off whistle made dreamers of us all."