CAVALIERS DEFEAT WARRIORS

C1

GEORGE MICHAEL DEAD AT AGE 53 B4

Star Beacon
MONDAY, DECEMBER 26, 2016

FITCHET LOOKS
TO FINISH
STRONG C1

Ashtabula, Ohio | www.starbeacon.com 

$1.00

Railroad today

Countys economy
relies on rails

BY MARK TODD
mtodd@starbeacon.com

WARREN DILLAWAY | STAR BEACON

A Norfolk Southern Railroad train forms in the Conneaut rail yard.

Not everyone has

Christmas off
BY WARREN DILLAWAY
warren@starbeacon.com

The intense crowds

that have mobbed
Walmart during the
last six weeks were
non-existent on Sunday morning as the
store was closed for
business to celebrate
Christmas.
Many area establishments were not
open for business on
Sunday, but many
people were not as
lucky as policeman,
firefighters, convenience store workers

GOT A
NEWS TIP?
CALL US!
440-994-3243

NOW

M AJOR
NE EDS TO
FF%
20
4LO0S%E O

and many others

reported for work as
normal.
Im always working on Christmas. Its
a day like any other,
said Devon Coe, a
cashier at Perrys
Park News on Main
Avenue in Ashtabula.
She said her children
are almost grown so
it doesnt bother her
after years of working on Christmas at
area gas stations.
Ashtabula County
Sheriffs Department
SEE CHRISTMAS, A3

The Star Beacon office

will be closed Dec. 26
and will reopen
Dec. 27 in observance
of the holiday.
Customer service lines
will be available at
440-994-3242
on Sat. 6 a.m.-noon
and Sun. & Mon.
7 a.m.-9:30 a.m.

Long before semitrucks crisscrossed

Ohio on interstate
highways, trains hauled
the material that kept
Ohios businesses buzzing.
Railroads continue
to play a key role in
the states commerce,
including Ashtabula
County, experts say.
The county is home to
significant sections
(of railroads) with very
busy lines, said Julianne Kaercher, spokesperson for the Ohio Rail
Development Commission.

THE MAJOR PLAYERS

According to the Ohio
Statewide Rail Plan,
assembled in 2010, the
two biggest players in
Ohio are Norfolk Southern Corporation and
CSX Corporation.
Both have lines that
pass through the county.
Commerce regularly
rumbles on the rails,
Kaercher said.
There are major
freight haulers on both
lines, she said. They
carry hundreds of trains
each day.
CSX track is also used
by Amtrak, the nations
passenger service.
The NS and CSX
companies are Class I
railroads, defined by
the Federal Surface
Transportation Board
as carriers with operating revenues of $250

EDITORS NOTE: Dec. 29

makes the 140th anniversary
of the 1876 Ashtabula Train
Disaster. In recognition of
the event, this week the Star
Beacon is looking at the past
and present of the railroad in
Ashtabula County.

million or more. A third

Class I railroad operates in Ohio, Canadian
National, but its presence is limited to just a
few miles of line in the
northwest Ohio, near
Toledo, and Conneaut,
according to the Rail
Study.
Smaller lines also
can be found locally,
including the Bessemer
and Lake Erie Railroad
and the countys own
Ashtabula Carson and
Jefferson Railroad.
In total, 104 miles of
rail line can be found
in the county, Kaercher
said.
Both of the smaller
lines see plenty of activity, Kaercher said.
(The ACJ) does a lot
of business up there,
she said. They move
400 rail carloads yearly.
Many businesses rely
on railroads to move
material and goods.
Rail definitely remains vital to the economy, Kaercher said.
Both NS and CSX
operate and maintain
thousands of miles of
line in Ohio.

NORFOLK SOUTHERN
NS has 2,150 miles of
SEE RAILROAD, A6

Christians celebrate birth of Christ

BY WARREN DILLAWAY
warren@starbeacon.com

Christmas on Sunday
was unique for area
churches as service
times were shuffled and
Christmas Eve celebrations were highlighted
as Christians celebrated
the birth of Jesus Christ
more than 2,000 years
ago.
The celebration of
Christmas on Sunday,
due to the calendar, occurs on a rotating pattern of five, six, 11 and
six years; after which
the cycle starts again.
Rev. David McMinn,
pastor of Eagleville Bible
Church, said he loves

PAG E A5

Everything must go
because everything
will go.

Scholars
team up
to dispel
400year-old
fake
news
about
U.S.

Christmas on Sunday
because it highlights the
reason Christmas exists.
To me it is excellent...
It is the birth of Jesus
so it is a win-win, he
said while preparing for
the service on Sunday
morning.
The church had three
different Christmas Eve
services with 1,400 people attending so they
decided to go with one
service on Christmas
morning at 10:30 a.m.
I think it is important
to have the church open
(on a Sunday Christmas). One man told me
he was so thankful that
SEE CELEBRATE, A3

WARREN DILLAWAY | STAR BEACON

Ethan Simpkins, 7, of Kinsman, participates in a candle

lighting ceremony on Christmas Eve at First Covenant
Church in Saybrook Township.

DEATHS

I NS I DE

OUTS I DE

MILLER, Matthew D.

RAY-FASANO, LuAnn
ROCCO, Ruth E.
For obituaries
call
(440) 998-0727

40% Off
Entire
Inventory!

Cloudy
High 60 | Low 38
A2
Sunrise 7:48 a.m. Sunset 4:56 p.m.

AROUND HERE 
B1
CLASSIFIEDS  C4
COMICS 
B2, B3
ENTERTAINMENT 
B4
HOROSCOPES  B2
OBITUARIES  A5
SPORTS 
C1

OUTDOOR
ARMY
STORE

4420 Main Avenue in Ashtabula

992-8791