Old Silver Springs, Ocala, & Gulf RR

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I am trying of find out when passenger service on the ACL line between Ocala, FL and Dunnellon, FL was stopped. I have two old ACL time tables one dated Sumer 1940 and Winter 1937 and it only list Dunnellon and Homosassa with trains #479 and #480 between the two towns. As this was the old Silver Springs, Ocala, & Gulf RR, then the Plant System and findly ACL I thought there was daily service between Ocala, Dunnellon, and Homosassa. Any help with early time tables listing the service and when it was stopped will be very appreciated. Allen L. Wiener, Ocala, FL

-- Allen L. Wiener (SouRwy@aol.com), August 20, 2001

Answers

The Silver Spring, Ocala & Gulf RR was chartered in 1877 and opened about 1888. It was merged into the Plant System July 1, 1901, thus becoming part of the ACL. The distance from Ocala to Homosassa was 49 miles.

Going back to October 1927, there was one roundtrip daily from Ocala to Homosassa, plus a roundtrip mixed from Ocala to Dunnellon. This schedule seems to hold until circa 1932 when the Ocala-Homosassa train becomes mixed, running except Sunday, and the second train was dropped. Then sometime between January 1934 and January 1937 Ocala-Dunnellon becomes freight only, but Dunnellon-Homosassa keeps its one roundtrip, except Sunday, mixed. Sometime between June and December 1941 the Dunnellon-Hommosassa mixed is dropped, the entire line now being freight only, and the Homosassa end is cut back to Cutlers, Florida.

Ocalla-Dunnellon tracks were abandoned in 1965.

-- Tom Underwood (tlunder@attglobal.net), August 20, 2001.


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