Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad

The Valley Railroad Company incorporates on August 21 1871, but construction stalls after the Panic of 1873 until new capital in 1878 restarts work; the line runs its first passenger train on January 28 1880 between Cleveland and Canton and begins regular service five days later on February 2 1880. In the fall of 1889 New‑York brokers acquire a controlling interest and turn the line over to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, which later reorganizes the Cleveland‑Akron segment as the Cleveland, Terminal and Valley Railway and operates the Cleveland Night Express until its discontinuation in the 1960s. The Midwest Railway Historical Foundation pursues tourist use in the early 1970s, leading to the formation of the Cuyahoga Valley Preservation and Scenic Railway Association in 1972 and the inaugural Cuyahoga Valley Line excursion on June 28 1975; after CSX receives permission to abandon the right‑of‑way in 1985, the National Park Service purchases the Cleveland‑Akron line for $2.5 million in 1987 and the line resumes excursion service in 1988. The operation reorganizes as the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad in 1994, completes a new maintenance shop in June 1999, and launches a capital campaign that by June 2024 has raised $1.5 million toward a $3 million goal. In January 2023 the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency approves a plan to extend the railroad to Cleveland, the CVSR adds two Alco locomotives in late June 2024, and on January 13 2026 it announces a partnership with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency to convert two FPA‑4 units to battery‑electric power.