Established in 1880, the New York, Ontario & Western Railway ran from Oswego, N.Y. on Lake Ontario to Weehawken, New Jersey, across the Hudson River from New York City. Traveling south, the O&W linked upstate towns and villages previously accessible only by horse and wagon and, more significantly, opened the scenic beauty of the Catskills, particularly Sullivan County, to people living in New York City, helping develop a resort industry that still thrives. To attract tourists, the O&W stocked Catskill streams with trout and offered free transportation of construction materials for anyone who would build a vacation cabin or resort hotel along the railroad route. These inducements worked so well that many trains per day had to be added during summer months to accommodate visitors to the Catskills. At the turn of the last century, the O&W was also a major shipper of milk from Catskill farms and coal from Pennsylvania fields to New York City markets, competing with the canal. The growth of the automobile and highway system, and the development of new heating fuels such as gas and oil, greatly reduced the railroad's importance, and in 1957 the O&W ceased operations, becoming the first major American railroad to do so. Summitville Depot remained an active train station until 1957, and the development of local rail lines, especially the O&W, made Sullivan County a resort destination in the late 1890's by bringing vacationers from New York City, transporting goods from upstate farms and businesses, and connecting local communities. This busy rail hub was called "Grand Central Station," needed more than one track to handle passing traffic, and added a Y-turn to let trains from upstate continue on the main tracks to New York City or switch to the valley line toward Ellenville and Kingston, while also serving Mountaindale, Fallsburgh, Hurleyville, Ferndale, Liberty, Livingston Manor, and Roscoe.