March 24, 1828 The Philadelphia & Columbia Railway (later PRR), the first to be owned by a state, is authorized.
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March 24, 1849 The Pittsburg & Steubenville Railroad (later PCC&StL) is chartered in Pennsylvania.
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March 24, 1852 Ohio passes a law permitting railroads to change gauge from 4'-10" (the former Ohio Standard gauge) in order to make roads of uniform gauge from end to end.
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March 24, 1870 The Pennsylvania Railroad signs a 999-year lease of the Erie & Pittsburgh Railroad.
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March 24, 1897 Construction begins on the Sierra Railway (later Railroad) between Oakdale and Jamestown CA.
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March 24, 1900 The Mayor of New York, Robert A. Van Wyck turns the first shovel of dirt in groundbreaking ceremonies for the first New York subway.
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March 24, 1904 The Delray Connecting Railroad (MI) is incorporated. Owned by US Steel (later Transtar) the line operates on Zug Island in the Detroit River.
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March 24, 1925 Papers are filed by the Grand Rapids & Indiana to abandon its Jennings (MI) branch. The former flooring mill at Jennings shut down two years earlier and the population of the town has fallen to 75.
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March 24, 1932 For the first time, a radio broadcast is made from a moving train in the U.S. as New York’s WABC broadcasts from a Baltimore & Ohio train operating in Maryland.
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March 24, 1935 Pennsylvania Station in Newark NJ opens.
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March 24, 1941 "Sun Valley Serenade" begins production. This movie, starring Sonja Henie and Milton Berle, will receive an Oscar nomination in 1942 for Best Song, thanks to the debut of "Chattanooga Choo Choo" by Glenn Miller.
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March 24, 1959 Last sailing of the Weehawken ferry, connecting New York Central's West Shore line with Manhattan. The ferry will arrive just after midnight on the 25th. [note corrected date]
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March 24, 1970 The last California Zephyr operated by the Western Pacific arrives in Oakland CA.
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March 24, 1976 Penn Central makes it last official run along the former Lake Shore & Michigan Southern from Otsego through Allegan and Hopkins to Dorr MI. This ends rail service to Allegan.
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March 24, 1980 The Cotton Belt begins operations over former Rock Island trackage between Tucumcari and St. Louis. Cotton Belt agreed to buy the line two years ago.
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March 24, 2007 The last Southern Pacific semaphore signals in service are retired. The Central Oregon & Pacific, operating the ex-SP Siskiyou line, bags the now inoperative Union Switch & Signal Style B semaphores.
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Mark Tomlonson
