Webster Station in Dayton in Montgomery County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
The Arrival of the Railroad
Patterson Boulevard Canal Parkway
Photographed by Craig Doda, May 4, 2024
1. The Arrival of the Railroad Marker
The Miami Erie Canal was significant in promoting trade and commerce for Dayton by providing an effective way to ship goods. Yet, by the time it was completed in 1845, it was already facing competition from a faster and more efficient means of transportation - the railroad. The first railroad track to be laid in Ohio was between Toledo and Adrian, Michigan, in 1836, nine years before the canal reached Lake Erie at Toledo. The first railroad in Dayton, connecting it to Springfield, opened in 1851. Dayton's first railroad station was a small, two story building at the intersection of Sixth and Jefferson Streets. The Cincinnati, Hamilton, and Dayton Line was the second railroad to be operational that year, with other railroad companies rapidly laying their tracks in Dayton in the coming years.
[Caption:]
Left image: First train station in Dayton, constructed in 1851 at the intersection of Sixth and Jefferson streets, when the Springfield Branch of the Miami River and the Lake Erie Railroad was completed. Right image: A replica model of the first locomotive engine that arrived from Cincinnati to Dayton, 1851
Erected 2017.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce
this page online
Location. 39° 45.61′ N, 84° 11.206′ W. Marker is in Dayton, Ohio, in Montgomery County. It is in Webster Station. It is at the intersection of South Patterson Boulevard and East 3rd Street, on the right when traveling north on South Patterson Boulevard. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 324 E 3rd St, Dayton OH 45402, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Ohio’s Miami Valley. It is also in the American Midwest and in the Corn Belt. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, and the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Early Streetcars (here, next to this marker); Interurban Railroads in Dayton (here, next to this marker); "What Shall We Do With The Canal?" (here, next to this marker); The Canal and the Railroad (here, next to this marker); Constructing Patterson Boulevard (here, next to this marker); Canal Buildings of the Past (here, next to this marker); Miami Erie Canal between Third and Fifth Streets (here, next to this marker); The Canal after the Flood (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Dayton.
Photographed by Craig Doda, May 4, 2024
2. The Arrival of the Railroad Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on May 16, 2024. It was originally submitted on May 16, 2024, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. This page has been viewed 143 times since then and 11 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 16, 2024, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.
