At a length of 4 miles (6.4 km), it was the shortest operating common carrier railroad in the state.
An initial attempt, which aimed east of Lawton, resulted in the partial creation of a grade but no track was laid.
The so-called "calico grade" was later developed, briefly, by the Kalamazoo, Lake Shore & Chicago.
[5] In 1898 the South Haven & Eastern (successor to the T&SH) converted the T&SH's lines, including the Paw Paw–Lawton segment, back to 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge.
In 1903 it passed along with the SH&E to the Pere Marquette Railway, which finally abandoned the line in 1941.