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The next choice was Mansfield, but the citizens there had
recently financed a road to Newark and were not interested in
funding a railroad. The next choice was Leesville, but the residents there
were afraid the railroad would take business from many of the citizens
there who made livings hauling stone for the Leesville Stone Quarry. This
left the railroad with no choice but to run the line through open country.
Since there was no town
between Shelby and Galion, it was decided that a station should be placed
halfway for passenger convenience. The station was constructed where the
line crossed the Leesville road.
This station soon
developed into a town, with a general store, post office, and a few homes.
Early settlers in the village believed that the town was the watershed of
the state, where streams to the north emptied into Lake Erie and those to
the south emptied into the Ohio River, thus the name Crest Line. The town
was not on the watershed line, but the name stuck and eventually became one
word.
Crestline was visited
by a journalist named J.A. Crever. Crever said that he "found many
large and small houses where a few months ago it was all woods and
cultivated fields." At the time, Crestline had two stores, five
groceries, two steam sawmills, several boot and shoe shops, numerous
mechanic shops, and a tavern. Crever reported that building timber was seen
strewn on every land.
Crestline, originally a
railroad community, now thrives from the various businesses and industries
located there. Crestline, however, is still considered a railroad
community. The two crossing railroads that caused the beginning of the
village still remain active there. Crestline really is "the hub of
Ohio".
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