Mount Adams Incline

Mount Adams Incline
The incline in operation c. 1905
Overview
HeadquartersCincinnati, OH
LocaleCincinnati, OH
Dates of operation1876–1948
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Site of the former Mount Adams Incline, with crumbling piers still visible in center of photo

The Mount Adams Incline was a funicular, or inclined railway, located in the Cincinnati neighborhood of Mount Adams. It was the third of the city's five inclines to open, beginning operations in 1876, and the last to close down in 1948.[1] It has since been demolished.[2]

The incline was 945 feet (288 m) long and carried streetcars and automobiles.[3] It began carrying horsecars in 1877, and it was later strengthened for use by electric streetcars, which were much heavier.[4]

History

Planning for the incline was underway by 1873.[5] The brick carhouse at the top of the hill was constructed by July 1874.[6] The incline was officially opened as Cincinnati's third inclined railway on March 8, 1876.[7][8]

The incline was closed for six months beginning in November 1879 for renovations to support electric streetcars instead of horse-drawn cars.[7]

The incline underwent repairs in 1906 and was closed beginning on May 14.[9]

In April 1948, the Cincinnati Street Railway Co. closed the incline for repairs. The following month, they announced that the repairs would take at least a year. With the announcement, they also detailed how the incline operated at a major loss; they said that in 1947, the incline earned $8,407.05 in fares and cost $68,617.49 to operate.[10] The announcement led many locals to believe the incline would close permanently, and sparked cries to save the incline.[11] Proposals included having the city take it over from the railway company, establishing a non-profit to operate it as a tourist attraction, or converting the carhouse atop the hill into a restaurant.[12][13][14] These proposals ultimately did not come to fruition, and demolition of the structure began in February 1952.[15]

See also

References

  1. ^ Schrage, Robert (Jul 1, 2006). Along the Ohio River: Cincinnati to Louisville. Arcadia Publishing. p. 16. ISBN 9780738543086. Retrieved 2013-05-27.
  2. ^ Cooper, Catherine (Apr 1984). "So Inclined: Scaling the Heights In Style". Cincinnati Magazine. p. 96. Retrieved 2013-05-05.
  3. ^ Federal Writers' Project (1943). Cincinnati, a Guide to the Queen City and Its Neighbors. Best Books on. p. 257. ISBN 9781623760519. Retrieved 2013-05-04.
  4. ^ Middleton, William D. (1967). The Time of the Trolley, pp. 15–16, 221. Milwaukee: Kalmbach Publishing. ISBN 0-89024-013-2.
  5. ^ "The scheme for an Inclined Plane Railway..." The Cincinnati Enquirer. 27 June 1873. p. 4.
  6. ^ "Mt. Adams Incline Railway". The Cincinnati Enquirer. 6 July 1874. p. 8.
  7. ^ a b Welch, Kevin; Williams, Sara (4 September 2024). "Cincinnati's Inclined Plane Railroads". CHPL Genealogy & Local History Department. Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library.
  8. ^ "A Mountain Subjugated: The Mt. Adams Incline Plane Railway Operating". The Cincinnati Enquirer. 9 March 1876. p. 8.
  9. ^ "Notice!". The Cincinnati Enquirer. 14 May 1906. p. 10.
  10. ^ "Historic Mt. Adams Incline Closed For Repairs---For An Entire Year!". The Cincinnati Enquirer. 19 May 1948. p. 1.
  11. ^ "Save The Mt. Adams Incline!". The Cincinnati Enquirer. 20 May 1948. p. 4.
  12. ^ Sands, Gilbert (29 July 1950). "Mt. Adams Incline May Be Saved By Cincinnatian As Civic Enterprise". The Cincinnati Enquirer. p. 1.
  13. ^ "Statement Of Facts Is Issued Regarding Mt. Adams Incline". The Cincinnati Enquirer. 7 October 1949. p. 26.
  14. ^ "Save Mt. Adams Incline!". The Cincinnati Enquirer. 5 December 1948. sec. 3 p. 1.
  15. ^ "Decline Of Last Incline". The Cincinnati Enquirer. 21 February 1952. p. 1.

39°06′23.7″N 84°29′58.6″W / 39.106583°N 84.499611°W / 39.106583; -84.499611