Audio
Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad Audio Tour – Northbound Narration #1 – Leaving Akron Northside Station
Transcript
Narrator 1: Welcome aboard Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. Today, we’ll ride along the Ohio & Erie Canalway and into Cuyahoga Valley National Park. But we’re not just traveling north. We’re going to travel back and forth through time to hear stories of the Cuyahoga Valley and its river. The trip will take you through forests, past historic towns, and across reclaimed lands. We’re going to share stories about the way human choices have shaped this valley – for better and for worse. And for better again. Once in a while, we’ll point out something on the east or west side of the train. You climbed on board on the west side. So sometimes we will talk about things out the west windows and sometimes we’ll ask you to look out the east windows. We’ll be talking a lot about the Cuyahoga River. We’ll also be talking about the Ohio & Erie Canal and the railroad that followed. These two transportation systems ran along the river, so we will see evidence of them from the window of the train. They are a big part of the story and the way human choices shaped the valley. Back in the days before railroads, the canal was a technological wonder. It was a 300-mile waterway that connected Akron, Cleveland, and the Cuyahoga Valley to the rest of the United States. Kind of like the superhighway of the 1800s. The path that horses and mules walked to pull canal boats is now the popular Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail.
Narrator 2: Ohio highballed, railroad slang for bolted, into the modern age with the arrival of the railway. The Valley Railway first chugged through here in 1880. It was built to bring coal from central Ohio to the cities of Canton, Akron, and Cleveland. But passengers used it too. The Valley Railway changed hands many times, and the line is now used by Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. Those early trains were powered by steam, but the one we’re riding on today is being pulled by a diesel locomotive. Watch for the train to pass over a high bridge over a larger roadway, Memorial Parkway, to begin our next narration.
Description
This narration is part of an audio tour for riders on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. Northbound Narration #1 is intended for the ride between Akron Northside Station and Memorial Parkway.
Credit
NPS
Copyright and Usage Info