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The base was adjacent to two mainline railroads, the Big Four and Erie, and the oldest parts of the bases were designed around railroad supply. Yet the more unusual transit connection is with interurban railroads.
The interurban line serving the base went under different names: Dayton, Springfield & Urbana, Ohio Electric, and Cincinnati & Lake Erie. This was the line used by the Wright Brothers to reach their flying field off the old Springfield Pike.
WWI era Patterson Field (at that time Wilbur Wright Field) and Fairfield Air Depot was served by Ohio Electric, which provided freight as well as passenger service to the base, actually coming on base via a branch line. Since the base was a flying school, presumably there was a lot of passenger traffic into Dayton when the student flyers had weekend leave.
The line was relocated along with Springfield Pike and the mainline steam railroads as part of the Conservancy district work on Huffman Dam, but remained in service up to 1940.
originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus
a reply to: JediMindTrek
I just checked on historicaerials.com and even back to the 1930's it does not appear there was a rail spur at that location.
originally posted by: JediMindTrek
originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus
a reply to: AllSourceIntel
It is still not a spur (which means it is connected to the national network) and I do not think that this is a piece of ROW.
originally posted by: AllSourceIntel
Yes, it is connected to nothing, but at one point, it most likely was part of the national network and parts were used by the Wright Brothers ... see my first post, the section where this is located is the oldest part of the base.
originally posted by: AllSourceIntel
I don't even know what ROW is other than right of way (enlighten me please), but I see what you are talking about... and it leads directly to that big transformer that could have been slid in