B&O Action in Kent in the 1960s

Here are the first of a series of black and white images from Northeast Ohio taken during the late 1960s to early 1970s. Often ex-Akron Railroad Club member Mike Ondecker was with me when these images were taken.

In the top image, Chesapeake & Ohio No. 4011 is stopping at the Kent B&O passenger station in the late 1960s.

She is pulling the westbound Diplomat more than likely around Christmas because of the three E-units needed to power the train. After leaving Kent, her next stop is B&O’s Akron Union Station.

In the second image, eastbound B&O 6411 heads toward Kent on a winter day. This was taken from east of the B&O passenger station.

Article and Photographs by Robert Farkas

Kent Depot Still Standing . . . For Now

The forlorn looking B&O passenger station in Kent still stands, but is boarded up. Note the hole in the roof near the chimney that firefighters cut to douse a blaze on the morning of April 19. A faulty heating unit was blamed for the fire.

Obvious fire damage can be seen on the exterior of the Kent station in the back.

The former Baltimore & Ohio Railroad passenger station in Kent still stands, but who knows for how much longer. The structure on Summit Street was damaged by fire on April 19.

A visit to the depot on Sunday found that it has been boarded up and there was no sign of activity. Of course, the depot seldom had the look of much activity even before the fire.

CSX reportedly used it for storage and offices, but it seems unlikely that it will be used for those purposes now.

Built in 1905, the Kent station last saw passenger service on April 30, 1971. Kent was a flag stop for B&O Nos. 7 and 8, the Shenandoah, which ran on a daytime schedule between Akron and Washington, D.C. The Chicago-Washington Capitol Limited passed by but did not stop.

All of these trains were discontinued on May 1, 1971, with the coming of Amtrak.

Amtrak’s Broadway Limited and Three Rivers would pass through Kent in the 1990s and early 2000s, but never stopped to board passengers.

Chances are the Kent B&O station will eventually be demolished.

Article and Photographs by Craig Sanders

Fire Damages ex-B&O Station in Kent

A faulty heating unit was blamed for triggering a fire that severely damaged the former Baltimore & Ohio passenger station in Kent last Friday morning.

The fire was reported about 9 a.m. and brought under control within 20 minutes once firefighters gained access to the ceiling area. There were no injuries reported in the incident.

The depot was built in 1905 and was last used for passenger service in 1971. CSX, which owns the building had been using it for storage and offices.

In 2010, CSX demolished the ex-B&O freight station, which sat across the street from the passenger station. The freight station had been in a state of disrepair for years.