Not many people ride the rails anymore. It’s a shame as they miss the soothing sway and hypnotic clickety clack as the cars roll along the track.
The Lebanon Mason Monroe Railroad, in Lebanon, OH, gives you that old-time taste of train travel, as you can ride on four coaches built in 1930 as inter-urban commuter cars by the Pullman Company in Chicago. You quickly get that old-time sense as train cars have no air conditioning or heat. Temperature is adjusted by opening or closing the window.
During weekday trips, it’s an hour ride and you don’t get off the train. In about 30 minutes each way, you travel 4.4 miles at the blazing speed of 10 m.p.h. The speed is more a safety issue than engine power when riding on a rail bed laid down more than 100 years ago. Though trains traveled faster during the heyday of railroads and when the road bed was newer, the road never carried much train traffic despite linking Cincinnati and Dayton. Always in perilous financial condition, the road went through multiple bankruptcies and scheduled service ended in the 1930s.
Weekend rides have a destination in addition to the train ride, which makes it a two-hour trip. You travel 4.4 miles north to the railroad’s picnic grove along the tracks behind the Southwest Golf Ranch. There you can use picnic tables, a swing set and a bounce castle for the kids plus there’s a concession stand. For the hour spent at the picnic grove, you can bring a cooler with food and drink and take an engine tour. Weekends have a theme such as puppets, tea parties or magic.
During both train trips, the conductor talks about the railroad’s history.
For train buffs, the LM&M’s 1500 horsepower locomotive is one of the oldest GP7 diesel-electric locomotives still operating. Built in 1950, it was designed as a freight and passenger locomotive. For the 30-some sixth-graders onboard from the Dixie Middle School in New Lebanon, OH, the appeal was the chance to sit in the outdoor gondola car once the train started moving.
On our noontime trip, we didn’t see the red tail fox or cattle our conductor said can be spotted during trips. But there were times it seemed as if you were back in the 1800s, seeing only fields and woods. The ride has its share of civilization as we passed by parking lots, industrial areas and businesses.
Once we traveled the planned 4.4 miles, the train stopped completely. Since there is no room to turn around for the return trip, the train travels in reverse back to the train station.
For a few six-graders the novelty of a train ride faded fast. Half-way through the ride, several girls came back into the commuter car because it was “too hot” in the open air car, called a gondola. Rather than take in the passing scenery, the girls listened to their I-Pods.
The girls were definitely the minority and the slower pace seemed passé for this generation. One comment card, handed in at the end of the trip suggested the train “go faster.”
Despite this need for speed, many students said they enjoyed the train ride and their visit to the Warren County Museum prior to their train ride. Around the corner from the train station, the museum has one of the larger Shake collections in the country, despite its small-town location.
The Lebanon Mason Monroe Railroad operates March through December. SEIU District 1199 members receive a discount on weekday or weekend trips. To get the SEIU discount, clip the coupons below. Be sure to arrive at the ticket office at least 30 minutes before departure time.
Tickets can be purchased online (incurs a $3 surcharge), by phone or at the train station.
For more information, contact the The Lebanon Mason Monroe Railroad, 198 S. Broadway, Lebanon, OH 45036, 513-933-8022 or email info@LebanonRR.com.
