The southern part of the line was built by the
Little Miami Railroad, the second railroad chartered in Ohio, from 1837 to 1848. In 1870, it came under the control of the
Pennsylvania Railroad. The northern part was built by the
Cincinnati and Richmond Railroad in 1888, and came under the control of the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1928. After Pennsylvania Railroad successor
Penn Central Transportation went bankrupt, both sections became part of
Conrail in 1976, In 1994, the land and tracks were purchased by the
Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority (SORTA), with the Indiana and Ohio Railway acquiring usage rights for freight traffic. It was the first of several rail rights-of-way acquired by SORTA to preserve future
commuter rail options. In 2021, an agreement was reached to convert the northerly of two tracks on southern portion of the line into a
rail trail, filling a gap in the
Ohio River Trail. The agreement involved the Indiana and Ohio Railway giving up its easement on the northern track to SORTA, and the installation of a fence between the southern track and the trail. The rail trail agreement was seen as an impediment to potential commuter rail use. == References ==