On July 16, 1869, the Cincinnati Southern Railroad - the first municipal railway in the country - was organized under an act of the Ohio General Assembly.

Completed in 1880, it provided the first direct passenger train service from the North to Chattanooga, Tenn., a hub for rail lines serving the South. When the service was inaugurated, a newspaper reporter dubbed the first small wood-burning locomotive "the Chattanooga Choo-Choo." That phrase was immortalized in the 1941 Glen Miller song, celebrating a nonstop train ride to Tennessee.

Cincinnati made history when its voters approved a $10 million bond issue to construct the 350-mile railroad in 1869.

Another $10 million bond was required before it could be completed in 1880.

While the rest of the country criticized the move as folly, the city - which still owns the railroad - has recouped its original investment many times over. Today the railroad is leased to Norfolk Southern.

Rebecca Goodman

E-mail roodman@enquirer.com or call (513) 768-8361.