CH&D, and it came as the United States entered the Great Depression, which lasted ten years to 1939. The requirement to make the large interest payments on these bonds when added to the railway's normal operating expenses caused the line to operate at a paper loss every year except 1936. When in bankruptcy court mandated "Receivership," the C&LE had the cash to continue to operate due to the suspension of bond payments. } }The C&LE totaled in length and consisted of three operating divisions. Company offices and the train dispatching center were located in Dayton, Ohio. The Toledo Division ran from Toledo south to Springfield. The Columbus Division ran west alongside U.S. Route 40 and met the Toledo Division at Springfield, Ohio, and turned south to Dayton. The Cincinnati Division ran south from Dayton through Hamilton to Cincinnati. It followed the old towpath of the Miami and Erie Canal for part of its route. The Toledo Division, formerly the Lima-Toledo, ran parallel to the route of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. Connecting interurbans were essential At Toledo, the C&LE interchanged with the Lake Shore Electric Railway (LSE) from Cleveland and the Eastern Michigan Railway from Detroit. At Dayton, it interchanged with the Dayton and Western Traction Company from Indianapolis. All of these neighboring interurban lines provided important freight business for the C&LE, but all were hurting financially. The Eastern Michigan abandoned operations in 1932 and the C&LE lost its connection to Detroit. The Dayton and Western was so weak that the C&LE, in conjunction with the Indianapolis interurban Indiana Railroad, provided the financial support to keep it operating, but it ultimately failed in 1937. The absolutely essential Cleveland connection ended in 1938 when the Lake Shore Electric abandoned after an unwise freight agent strike. The loss of these connections with the related loss of the interchange freight business, particularly that of the LSE, eventually proved fatal to the C&LE. New rolling stock Part of Conway's effort to rejuvenate the C&LE involved improving both passenger and freight business. For passenger service, this meant providing new passenger equipment running on faster schedules. To that end, the C&LE ordered twenty lightweight "Red Devil" cars from the Cincinnati Car Company and participated in the design. They were lighter due to the use of aluminum and sat lower due to the use of smaller wheels and traction motors. These cars featured Art deco styling and