LEBANON — Striped conductors' hats dotted the historic downtown here Saturday as shopkeepers, politicians and 4-year-olds alike wore their support of 19th-century transportation on their heads.

        The occasion: the return of the Turtle Creek & Lebanon Railway.

        “Back on Track” weekend — which also includes sidewalk sales, model railway exhibits and vintage baseball — continues today.

IF YOU GO

What: Turtle Creek & Lebanon Railway's opening.     When: 1 and 3 p.m. today.     Cost: $5 adults, $4.50 seniors and $3 kids 3-12.     Information: 398-8584.

        “We're back home again,” conductor Dick Krewson said Saturday as the train carried its first load of customers into the Warren County countryside.

        The verdict: “It's good,” said Mimi Castanias, 6, of Lebanon, who took the inaugural trip with dad Chris, brother Michael, 2, and friend Alicia Bachtel, 6.

        The breeze on the open gondola car and through the windows of the three coaches took the edge off the mostly sunny day, which chalked up a high of 83.

        The train had been a Lebanon staple as the Turtle Creek Valley Railway from 1986 until 2000, when 4 miles of city-owned track were declared unsafe for passengers. It ran from Mason last summer, which hurt business for the train and for Lebanon merchants.

        About 15 months and $380,000 worth of repairs later, the train is back with a new name, and newly appreciative shopkeepers hope it helps them survive the lackluster economy. Some stores, which sell antiques, crafts and such, are reporting a 20 percent downturn in business this year.

        It's not just the economy, Oh Suzannah owner Joan Townsend theorized. Lebanon also faces competition from other towns that are turning to heritage tourism.

        They hope the train will give Lebanon an edge: The railway has drawn as many as 35,000 visitors in past years.

        The early prognosis is good. The Turtle Creek & Lebanon sold out all four one-hour trips Saturday for a total of 957 passengers, General Manager Guy Marino said.

        Restaurants saw the most immediate impact, with Best Cafe seeing a full house for lunch and Village Ice Cream Parlor doing brisk business. Sales were less invigorating at antiques and furnishings shops such as the Knickerbocker Gallery, but they still expect to get a long-term boost.

        “Just being in town, they see what we have,” Knickerbocker owner Greg Downes said. “More awareness is really the best advertising we can get.”

Talk radio: Voice of the combative man
Judge vs. host
Study links 'ecstasy,' learning disabilities
Ballpark costs on fast track
Clergy walk, listen in OTR
NAACP requests traffic stop data
Reform-wary teachers turn to a new union leader
BRONSON: War games
CROWLEY: These folks don't lack trouble
PULFER: Saving kids
Anything goes at party on infield
Celebrities turn out to promote latest projects before the big race
When it comes to hats, Derby fans shameless
CFT union gained ground by taking aggressive stances
Davis to decide about race
Fouled creek concerns residents
Historic train returns to service
Increase in arrests tempers OSU party crowds
Mammoth bones to be returned
Owensboro angers civil-rights leaders
Police staffing up to voters
Porn stars sign autographs as police raid premises
Road name recalls pioneer's ordeal
The Diva of Starbucks
Tristate A.M. Report