Chessie
In 1962, the Chesapeake & Ohio (C&O) Railroad acquired stock ownership of the B&O, leading to the creation of the Chessie System. The B&O completed full control of the WM in the 1970s. The C&O and the B&O unified the operations of the WM into the Chessie System on January 15, 1973. The operations of the various lines were consolidated, and engines were repainted into a new corporate look, but with the initials of the predecessor roads in small letters painted under the windows.
Chessie engines still roam the rails in the late 1990's. They can frequently be seen in Cumberland at the South Cumberland shops. Chessie engines hauled the coal trains along the old B&O and WM lines. Parallel trackage was abandoned in favor of the better of two routes. The WM line at Cherry Run, near Hancock, was deemed redundant, and abandoned. It is now a hiking trail, paralleling the canal.
References
Dixon, Jr., Thomas W. The Chessie Era, 1990, Lynchburg, VA:TLC Publishing, ISBN 0-9622003-2-8.
Nuckles, Douglas B. and Dixon, Jr., Thomas W. Diesel Locomotives of CSXT and Predecessors in Color, 1993, Lynchburg, VA: TLC Publishing Inc.
Tom Biery's Chessie System Cumberland Action