The Decline

In the years following World War II, railroads across the nation were in transition as mechanization reduced the number of workers needed and the expansion of long-haul trucking hurt the railroad business. In Ludlow, the yards began to shrink, some old repair shops were leased to other businesses, and the roundhouse that had dominated Davies Street between Oak and Linden Streets was demolished. A major symbol of the railroad’s decline in Ludlow was the announced 1968 demolition of the Ludlow Depot, ending the long-standing local option of catching southbound trains. The railroad had once employed more than 500 workers in Ludlow, but by the 1980s that number had fallen to a tiny fraction. Even after much of the city’s railroad infrastructure was lost, the bridge, extensively rebuilt in 1922, several old shop buildings, and the foundation of the roundhouse remained, while passing trains and occasional whistles continued to remind residents of what had once fueled the city and of the glory days of the Cincinnati Southern in Ludlow.

Ludlow, Kentucky · United States