ILLINOIS RAILROADS IN 1901
(including Chicago-based)
Source: "HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS" © 1901
©Transcribed by Kim Torp
Besides being the chief port on the great lakes, Chicago ranks second to no other American city as a railway center.
The old "Galena & Chicago Union," its first railroad, was operated in 1849, and within three years
a substantial advance had been scored in the way of steam transportation. Since then the multiplication of railroad
lines focusing in or passing through Chicago has been rapid and steady. In 1895 not less than thirty-eight distinct
lines enter the city, although these are operated by only twenty-two companies. Some 2,600 miles of railroad track
are laid within the city limits. The number of trains daily arriving and departing (suburban and freight included)
is about 2,000. Intramural transportation is afforded by electric, steam, cable and horse-car lines. Four tunnels
under the Chicago River and its branches, and numerous bridges connect the various divisions of the city.
CENTRAILIA & ALTAMONT RAILROAD (See Centralia
& Chester Railroad)
CENTRALIA & CHESTER RAILORD - a railway line wholly
within the State, extending from Salem, in Marion County, to Chester, on the Mississippi River (91.6) miles), with
a lateral branch from Sparta to Roxborough (5 miles) and trackage facilities over the Illinois Central from the
branch junction to Centralia (2.9 miles) - total 99.5 miles. The original line was chartered as the Centralia &
Chester Railroad, in December, 1887, completed from Sparta to Coulterville in 1889, and consolidated the same year
with the Sparta & Evansville and the Centralia & Altamont Railroads (projected); line completed from Centralia
to Evansville early in 1894. The branch from Sparta to Rosborough was built in 1895, the section of the main line
from Centralia to Salem (14.9 miles) in 1896, and that from Evansville to Chester (17.6 miles) in 1897-98. The
road was placed in the hands of a receiver, June 7, 1897, and the expenditures for extension and equipment made
under authority granted by the United Sstates Court for the issue of Receiver's certificates. The total capitalization
is $2,374,841, of which $978,000 is in stocks and $948,000 in bonds.
CENTRAL MILITARY TRACT RAILROAD - (See Chicago, Burlington
& Quincy Railroad)
CHAMPAIGN, HAVANA & WESTERN RAILROAD (See Illinois Central Railroad)
CHICAGO, BURLINGTON & NORTHERN RAILROAD. (See Chicago, Burlington Quincy Railroad.)
CHICAGO BURLINGTON & QUINCY RAILROAD (known as
the "Burlington Route") is the parent organization of an extensive system which operates railroads in
eleven Western and Northwestern States, furnishing connections from Chicago with Omaha, Denver, St. Paul and Minneapolis,
St. Louis and Kansas City, Cheyenne (Wyo.), Billings (Mont.), Deadwood (So. Dak,), and intermediate points, and
having connections by affiliated roads with the Pacific Coast. The main line extends from Chicago to Denver (Colo.),
1,025.41 miles. The mileage of the various branches and leased proprietary lines (1898) aggregates 4,627.06 miles.
The Company uses 207.23 miles in conjunction with other roads, besides subsidiary standard-gauge lines controlled
through the ownership of securities amounting to 1,440 miles more. In addition to these the Chicago, Burlington
& Quincy controls 179 miles of narrow-gauge read. The whole number of miles of standard-gauge road operated
by the Burlington system, and known as the Burlington Route, on June 30, 1899, is estimated at 7,419, of which
1,509 is in Illinois, all but 47 miles being owned by the Company. The system in Illinois connects many important
commercial points, including Chicago; Aurora, Galesburg, Quincy, Peoria, Streator, Sterling, Mendota, Fulton, Lewistown,
Rushville, Geneva, Keithsburg, Rock Island, Beardstown, Alton, etc. The entire capitalization of the line (including
stock, bonds and floating debt) amounted, in 1898, to $234,884, 600, which was equivalent to about $33,000 per
mile. The total earnings of the road in Illinois, during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1898, amounted to $8,724,997,
and the total disbursements of the Company within the State, during the same period, to $7,469,456. Taxes paid
in 1898, $377,968.
(HISTORY). The first section of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad was constructed under a charter granted, in 1849, to the Aurora Branch Railroad Company, the name
being changed in 1852 to the Chicago & Aurora Railroad Company. The line was completed in 1853, from the junction
with the old Galena & Chicago Union Railroad, 30 miles west of Chicago, to Aurora, later being extended to
Mendota. In 1855 the name of the Company was changed by act of the Legislature to the Chicago, Burlington &
Quincy. The section between Mendota and Galesburg (80 miles) was built under a charter granted in 1851 to the Central
Military Tract Railroad Company, and completed in 1854. July 9, 1856, the two companies were consolidated under
the name of the former. Previous to this consolidation the Company had extended aid to the Peoria & Oquawka
Railroad (from Peoria to the Mississippi River, nearly opposite Burlington, Iowa), and to the Northern Cross Railroad
from Quincy to Galesburg, both of which were completed in 1855 and operated by the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy.
In 1857 the name of the Northern Cross was changed to the Quincy & Chicago Railroad. In 1860 the latter was
sold under foreclosure to the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, and, in 1863, the Peoria & Oquawka was acquired
in the same way-the former constituting the Quincy branch of the main line and the latter giving it its Burlington
connection. Up to 1863, the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy used the track of the Galena & Chicago Union railroad
to enter the city of Chicago, but that year began the construction of its line from Aurora to Chicago, which was
completed in 1864. In 1872 it acquired control, by perpetual lease, of the Burlington & Missouri River Road
in Iowa, and, in 1880, extended this line into Nebraska, now reaching Billings, Mont., with a lateral branch to
Deadwood, So. Dak. Other branches in Illinois, built or acquired by this corporation, include the Peoria &
Hannibal; Carthage & BurIington; Quincy & Warsaw; Ottawa, Chicago & Fox River Valley; Quincy, Alton
& St. Louis, and the St. Louis, Rock Island & Chicago. The Chicago, Burlington & Northern-known as
the Northern Division of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy-is an important part of the system, furnishing a
connection between St. Louis on the south and St. Paul and Minneapolis on the north, of which more than half of
the distance of 583 miles between terminal points, is in Illinois. The latter division was originally chartered,
Oct. 21, 1885, and constructed from Oregon, Ill., to St. Paul, Minn. (319 miles), and from Fulton to Savanna, Ill.
(16.72 miles), and opened, Nov. 1, 1886. It was formally incorporated into the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy
line in 1899. In June of the same year the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy also acquired by purchase the Keokuk
& Western Railroad from Keokuk to Van Wert, Iowa (143 miles), and the Des Moines & Kansas City Railway,
from Des Moines, Iowa, to Cainesville, Mo. (112 miles).
CHICAGO DANVILLE & VINCENNES RAILROAD. (See Chicago & Eastern Illinois railroad.)
CHICAGO GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY. The total mileage of
this line, June 30, 1898, was 1,008 miles, of which 152.52 miles are operated and owned in Illinois. The line in
this State extends west from Chicago to East Dubuque, the extreme terminal points being Chicago and Minneapolis
in the Northwest, and Kansas City in the Southwest. It has several branches in Illinois, Iowa and Minnesota, and
trackage arrangements with several lines, the most important being with the St. Paul & Northern Pacific (10.58
miles), completing the connection between St. Paul and Minneapolis; with the Illinois Central from East Dubuque
to Portage (12.23 miles), and with the Chicago & Northern Pacific from Forest Home to the Grand Central Station
in Chicago. The company's own track is single, of standard gauge, laid with sixty and seventy-five-pound steel
rails. Grades and curvature are light, and the equipment well maintained. The outstanding capital stock (1898)
was $52,019,054; total capitalization, including stock, bonds and miscellaneous indebtedness, $57,144,245. (HISTORY).
The road was chartered, Jan. 5, 1892, under the laws of Illinois, for the purpose of reorganization of the Chicago,
St. Paul & Kansas City Railway Company on a stock basis. During 1895, the De Kalb & Great Western Railroad
(5.81 miles) was built from De Kalb to Sycamore as a feeder for this line.
CHICAGO, MADISON & NORTHERN RAILROAD, a line of
railway 231.3 miles in length, 140 miles of which lie within Illinois. It is operated by the Illinois Central Railroad
Company, and is known as its "Freeport Division." The par value of the capital stock outstanding is $50,000
and of bonds $2,500,000, while the floating debt is $3,620,698, making a total capitalization of $6,170,698, or
$26,698 per mile. (See also Illinois Central Railroad.) This road was opened from Chicago to Freeport in 1888.
CHICAGO, MILWAUKEE & ST. PAUL RAILWAY, one of
the great trunk lines of the North west, having a total mileage (1898) of 6,153.83 miles, of which 317.94 are in
Illinois. The main line extends from Chicago to Minneapolis, 420 miles, although it has connections with Kansas
City, Omaha, Sioux City and various points in Wisconsin, Iowa and the Dakotas. The Chicago, Milwaukee & St.
Paul Railroad Company enjoys the distinction of being the owner of all the lines operated by it, though it operates
245 miles of second tracks owned jointly with other lines. The greater part of its track is laid with 60, 75 and
85-lb. steel rails. The total capital invested (1898) is $220,005,901, distributed as follows: capital stock, $77,845,000;
bonded debt, $135,285,500; other forms of indebtedness, $5,572,401, Its total earnings in Illinois for 1898 were
$5,205,244, and the total expenditures, $3,320,248. The total number of employees in Illinois for 1898 was 2,293,
receiving $1, 746,827.70 in aggregate compensation. Taxes paid for the same year amounted to $151,285.- (HISTORY).
The Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway was organized in 1863 under the name of the Milwaukee & St. Paul
Railway. The Illinois portion of the main line was built under a charter granted to the Chicago, Milwaukee &
St. Paul Railway Company, and the Wisconsin portion under charter to the Wisconsin Union railroad Company; the
whole built and opened in 1872 and purchased by the Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Company. It subsequently acquired
by purchase several lines in Wisconsin, the whole receiving the present name of the line by act of the Wisconsin
Legislature, passed, Feb. 14, 1874. The Chicago & Evanston Railroad was chartered, Feb. 16, 1861, built from
Chicago to Calvary (10.8 miles), and opened, May 1, 1885; was consolidated with the Chicago & Lake Superior
Railroad, under the title of the Chicago, Evanston & Lake Superior Railroad Company, Dec. 22, 1885, opened
to Evanston, August 1, 1886, and purchased, in June, 1887, by the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Company.
The Road, as now organized, is made up of twenty-two divisions located in Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota,
North and South Dakota, Missouri and Michigan.
CHICAGO PADUCAH & MEMPHIS RAILROAD (Projected), a road chartered, Dec. 19, 1893, to run between Altamont and Metropolis, Ill., 152
miles, with a branch from Johnston City to Carbondale, 20 miles-total length, 172 miles. The gauge is standard,
and the track laid with sixty-pound steel rails. By Feb. 1, 1895, the road from Altamont to Marion (100 miles)
was completed, and work on the remainder of the line has been in progress. It is intended to connect with the Wabash
and the St. Louis Southern systems. Capital stock authorized and subscribed, $2, 500,-000; bonds issued, $1,575,000.
Funded debt, authorized, $15,000 per mile in five per cent first mortgage gold bonds. Cost of road up to Feb. 1,
1895, $20,000 per mile; estimated cost of the entire line, $2,000,000. In December, 1896, this road passed into
the hands of the Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad Company, and is now operated to Marion, in Williamson
County (See Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad.)
CHICAGO, PEKIN & SOUTHWESTERN RAILROAD, a division
of the Chicago & Alton Railroad, chartered as the Chicago & Plainfield Railroad, in 1859; opened from Pekin
to Streator in 1878, and to Mazon Bridge in 1876; sold under foreclosure in 1879, and now constitutes a part of
the Chicago & Alton system.
CHICAGO, PEORIA & ST. LOUIS RAILROAD COMPANY NY
(of Illinois), a corporation operating two lines of railroad, one extending from Peoria to Jacksonville, and the
other from Peoria to Springfield, with a connection from the latter place (in 1895), over a leased line, with St.
Louis. The total mileage, as officially reported in 1895, was 208.66 miles, of which 166 were owned by the corporation.
(1) The original of the Jacksonville Division of this line was the Illinois River Railroad, opened from Pekin to
Virginia in 1859. In October, 1863, it was sold under foreclosure, and, early in 1864, was transferred by the purchasers
to a new corporation called the Peoria, Pekin & Jacksonville Railroad Company, by whom it was extended the
same year to Peoria, and, in 1869, to Jacksonville. Another fore closure, in 1879, resulted in its sale to the
creditors, followed by consolidation, in 1881, with the Wabash, St. Louis & Pacific Railway. (2) The Springfield
Division was incorporated in 1869 as the Springfield & Northwestern Railway; construction was begun in 1872,
and road opened from Springfield to Havana (45.20 miles) in December, 1874, and from Havana to Pekin and Peoria
over the track of the Peoria, Pekin & Jacksonville line. The same year the road was leased to the Indianapolis,
Bloomington & Western Railroad Company, but the lease was forfeited, in 1875, and the road placed in the hands
of a receiver. In 1881, together with the Jacksonville Division, it was transferred to the Wabash, St. Louis &
Pacific Railway, and by that company operated as the Peoria & Springfield Railroad. The Wabash, St. Louis &
Pacific having defaulted and gone into the hands of a receiver, both the Jacksonville and the Springfield Divisions
were reorganized in February, 1887, under the name of the Chicago, Peoria & St. Louis Railroad, and placed
under control of the Jacksonville Southeastern Railroad. A reorganization of the latter took place, in 1890, under
the name of the Jacksonville, Louisville & St. Louis Railway, and, in 1893, it passed into the hands of receivers,
and was severed from its allied lines. The Chicago, Peoria & St. Louis Railroad remained under the management
of a separate receiver until January, 1896, when a reorganization was effected under its present name - "The
Chicago, Peoria & St. Louis Railroad of Illinois." The lease of the Springfield & St. Louis Division
having expired in December, 1895, it has also been reorganized as an independent corporation under the name of
the St. Louis, Peoria & Northern Railway (which see).
CHICAGO, ROCK ISLAND & PACIFIC RAILWAY, formed
by the consolidation of various lines in 1880. The parent corporation (The Chicago & Rock Island Railroad)
was chartered in Illinois in 1851, and the road opened from Chicago to the Mississippi River at Rock Island (181
miles), July 10, 1854. In 1852 a company was chartered under the name of the Mississippi Missouri Railroad for
the extension of the road from the Mississippi to the Missouri River. The two roads were consolidated in 1866 as
the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad, and the extension to the Missouri River and a junction with the
Union Pacific completed in 1869. The Peoria & Bureau Valley Railroad (an important feeder from Peoria to Bureau
Junction 46.7 miles) was incorporated in 1853, and completed and leased in perpetuity to the Chicago & Rock
Island Railroad, in 1854. The St. Joseph & Iowa Railroad was purchased in 1889, and the Kansas City & Topeka
Railway in 1891. The Company has financial and traffic agreements with the Chicago, Rock Island & Texas Railway,
extending from Terral Station. Indian Territory, to Fort Worth, Texas. The road also has connections from Chicago
with Peoria; St. Paul and Minneapolis; Omaha and Lincoln (Neb.); Denver. Colorado Springs and Pueblo (Colo.), besides
various points in South Dakota, Iowa and Southwestern Kansas. The extent of the lines owned and operated by the
Company ("Poor's Manual," 1898), is 3,568.15 miles, of which 236.51 miles are in Illinois, 189.52 miles
being owned by the corporation. All of the Company's owned and leased lines are laid with steel rails. The total
capitalization reported for the same year was $116,748,211, of which $50,000,000 was in stock and $58,830,000 in
bonds. The total earnings and income of the line in Illinois, for the year ending June 30, 1898, was $5,851,875,
and the total expenses $3,401,165, of which $233,129 was in the form of taxes. The Company has received under Congressional
grants 550,194 acres of land, exclusive of State grants, of which there had been sold, up to March 31, 1894,548,609
acres.
CHICAGO, ST. PAUL & FOND DU LAO RAILROAD. (See
Chicago & Northwestern Railway.)
CHICAGO, ST. PAUL & KANSAS CITY railway. (See
Chicago Great Western Railway.)
CHICAGO, ST. LOUIS & PADUCAH RAILWAY, a short
road, of standard gauge, laid with steel rails, extending from Marion to Brooklyn, Ill., 53.64 miles. It was chartered,
Feb. 7, 1887, and opened for traffic, Jan. 1, 1889. The St. Louis, Alton & Terre Haute Railroad Company is
the lessee, having guaranteed principal and interest on its first mortgage bonds. Its capital stock is $1,000,000,
and its bonded debt $2,000,000, making the total capitalization about $56,000 per mile. The cost of the road was
$2,950,000; total incumbrance (1895), $3,016,715.
CHICAGO TERMINAL TRANSFER RAILROAD, the successor
to the Chicago & Northern Pacific Railroad. The latter was organized in November, 1889, to acquire and lease
facilities to other roads and transact a local business. The Road under its new name was chartered, June 4, 1897,
to purchase at foreclosure sale the property of the Chicago & Northern Pacific, soon after acquiring the property
of the Chicago & Calumet Terminal Railway also. The combination gives it the control of 84.53 miles of road,
of which 70.76 miles are in Illinois. The line is used for both passenger and freight terminal purposes, and also
a belt line just outside the city limits. Its principal tenants are the Chicago Great Western, the Baltimore &
Ohio, the Wisconsin Central Lines, and the Chicago, Hammond & Western Railroad. The Company also has control
of the ground on which the Grand Central Depot is located. Its total capitalization (1898) was $44,-553,044, of
which $30,000,000 was capital stock and $13,394,000 in the form of bonds.
CHICAGO & ALTON RAILROAD, an important railway
running in a southwesterly direction from Chicago to St. Louis, with numerous branches, extending into Missouri,
Kansas and Colorado. The Chicago & Alton Railroad proper was constructed under two charters - the first granted
to the Alton & Sangamon Railroad Company, in 1847, and the second to the Chicago & Mississippi Railroad
Company, in 1852. Construction of the former was begun in 1852, and the line opened from Alton to Springfield in
1853. Under the second corporation, the line was opened from Springfield to Bloomington in 1854, -and to Joliet
in 1856. In 1855 a line was constructed from Chicago to Joliet under the name of the Joliet & Chicago Railroad,
and leased in perpetuity to the present Company, which was reorganized in 1857 under the name of the St. Louis,
Alton & Chicago Railroad Company. For some time connection was had between Alton and St. Louis by steam-packet
boats running in connection with the railroad; but later over the line of the Indianapolis & St. Louis Railroad-
the first railway line connecting the two cities- and, finally, by the Company's own line, which was constructed
in 1864, and formally opened Jan. 1, 1865. In 1861, a company with the present name (Chicago & Alton Railroad
Company) was organized, which, in 1862, purchased the St. Louis, Alton & Chicago Road at foreclosure sale.
Several branch lines have since been acquired by purchase or lease, the most important in the State being the line
from Bloomington to St. Louis by way of Jacksonville. This was chartered in 1851 under the name of the St. Louis,
Jacksonville & Chicago Railroad, was opened for business in January, 1868, and having been diverted from the
route upon which it was originally projected, was completed to Blooming ton and leased to the Chicago & Alton
in 1868. In 1884 this branch was absorbed by the main line. Other important branches are the Kansas City Branch
from Roodhouse, crossing the Mississippi at Louisiana, Mo.; the Washington Branch from Dwight to Washington and
Lacon, and the Chicago & Peoria, by which entrance is obtained into the city of Peoria over the tracks of the
Toledo, Peoria & Western. The whole number of miles operated (1898) is 843.54, of which 580.73 lie in Illinois.
Including double tracks and sidings, the Company has a total trackage of 1,186 miles. The total capitalization,
in 1898, was $32,793,972, of which $22,230,600 was in stock, and $6,694,850 in bonds. The total earnings and income
for the year. in Illinois, were $5,022,315, and the operating and other expenses, $4,272,207. This road, under
its management as it existed up to 1898, has been one of the most uniformly successful in the country. Dividends
have been paid semiannually from 1863 to 1884, and quarterly from 1884 to 1896. For a number of years previous
to 1897, the dividends had amounted to eight per cent per annum on both preferred and common stock, but later had
been reduced to seven per cent on account of short crops along the line. The taxes paid in 1898 were $341,040.
The surplus, June 30, 1895, exceeded two and three-quarter million dollars. The Chicago & Alton was the first
line in the world to put into service sleeping and dining cars of the Pullman model, which have since been so widely
adopted, as well as the first to run free reclining chair-cars for the convenience and comfort of its passengers.
At the time the matter embraced in this volume is undergoing final revision (1899), negotiations are in progress
for the purchase of this historic line by a syndicate representing the Baltimore & Ohio, the Missouri Pacific,
the Union Pacific, and the Missouri, Kansas & Texas systems, in whose interest it will hereafter be operated.
CHICAGO & AURORA RAILROAD. (See Chicago, Burlington
& Quincy Railroad.)
CHICAGO & EASTERN ILLINOIS RAILROAD. This company
operates a line 516.3 miles in length, of which 278 miles are within Illinois. The main line in this State extends
southerly from Dolton Junction (17 miles south of Chicago) to Danville. Entrance to the Polk Street Depot in Chicago
is secured over the tracks of the Western Indiana Railroad. The company owns several important branch lines, as
follows: From Momence Junction to the Indiana State Line; from Cissna Junction to Cissna Park; from Danville Junction
to Shelbyville, and from Sidell to Rossville. The system in Illinois is of standard gauge, about 108 miles being
double track. The right of way is 100 feet wide and well fenced. The grades are light, and the construction (including
rails, ties, ballast and bridges), is generally excellent. The capital stock outstanding (1893) is $13,594,400;
funded debt, $18,018,000; floating debt, $916,381; total capital invested, $32,570,781; total earnings in Illinois,
$2,592,072; expenditures in the State, $2,595,631. The company paid the same year a dividend of six per cent on
its common stock ($286,914), and reported a surplus of $1,484,762. The Chicago & Eastern Illinois was originally
chartered in 1865 as the Chicago, Danville & Vincennes Railroad, its main line being completed in 1872. In
1873, it defaulted on interest, was sold under foreclosure in 1877, and reorganized as the Chicago & Nashville,
but later in same year took its present name. In 1894 it was consolidated with the Chicago & Indiana Coal Railway.
Two spurs (5.27 miles in length) were added to the line in 1895. Early in 1897 this line obtained control of the
Chicago, Paducah & Memphis Railroad, which is now operated to Marion, in Williamson County. (See Chicago, Paducah
& Memphis Railroad.)
CHICAGO & GRAND TRUNK RAILWAY. Of the 335.27 miles
of the Chicago & Grand Trunk Railroad, only 30.65 are in Illinois, and of the latter 9.7 miles are operated
under lease. That portion of the line within the State extends from Chicago easterly to the Indiana State line.
The Company is also lessee of the Grand Junction Railroad, four miles in length. The Road is capitalized at $6,600,000,
has a bonded debt of $12,000,000 and a floating debt (1895) of $2,271,425, making the total capital invested, $20,871,425.
The total earnings in Illinois for 1895 amounted to $660,393; disbursements within the State for the same period,
$345, 233. The Chicago & Grand Trunk Railway, as now constituted, is a consolidation of various lines between
Port Huron, Mich., and Chicago, operated in the interest of the Grand Trunk Railway of Canada. The Illinois section
was built under a charter granted in 1878 to the Chicago & State Line Railway Company, to form a connection
with Valparaiso, Ind. This corporation acquired the Chicago & Southern Railroad (from Chicago to Dolton), and
the Chicago & State Line Extension in Indiana, being consolidated under the name of the Northwestern Grand
Trunk Railroad. In 1880, a final consolidation of these lines with the eastward connections took place under the
present name- the Chicago & Grand Trunk Railway.
CHICAGO & GREAT EASTERN RAILWAY. (See Pittsburg,
Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway.)
CHICAGO & GREAT SOUTHERN RAILROAD. (See Peoria,
Decatur & Evansville Railway.)
CHICAGO & ILLINOIS SOUTHERN RAILWAY. (See Peoria,
Decatur & Evansville Railway.)
CHICAGO & MISSISSIPPI RAILROAD. (See Chicago &
Alton Railroad.)
CHICAGO & NASHVILLE RAILROAD. (See Chicago &
Eastern Illinois Railroad.)
CHICAGO & NORTHERN PACIFIC RAILROAD. (See Chicago
Terminal Transfer Railroad.)
CHICAGO & NORTHWESTERN RAILWAY,one of the great
trunk lines of the country, penetrating the States of Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa, Minnesota and North
and South Dakota. The total length of its main line, branches, proprietary and operated lines, on May 1, 1899,
was 5,076.89 miles, of which 594 miles are operated in Illinois, all owned by the company. Second and side tracks
increase the mileage to a total of 7,217.91 miles. The Chicago & Northwestern Railway (proper) is operated
in nine separate divisions, as follows: The Wisconsin, Galena, Iowa, Northern Iowa, Madison, Peninsula, Winona
and St. Peter, Dakota and Ashland Divisions The principal or main lines of the "Northwestern System,"
in its entirety, are those which have Chicago, Omaha, St. Paul and Minneapolis for their termini, though their
branches reach numerous important points within the States already named, from the shore of Lake Michigan on the
east to Wyoming on the west, and from Kansas on the south to Lake Superior on the north.
(HISTORY.) The Chicago & Northwestern Railway Company
was organized in 1859 under charters granted by the Legislatures of Illinois and Wisconsin during that year, under
which the new company came into possession of the rights and franchises of the Chicago, St. Paul & Fond du
Lac Railroad Company. The latter road was the outgrowth of various railway enterprises which had been projected,
chartered and partly constructed in Wisconsin and Illinois, between 1848 and 1855, including, the Madison &
Beloit Railroad, the Rock River Valley Union Railroad, and the Illinois & Wisconsin Railroad-the last named
company being chartered by the Illinois Legislature in 1851, and authorized to build a railroad from Chicago to
the Wisconsin line. The Wisconsin Legislature of 1855 authorized the consolidation of the Rock River Valley Union
Railroad with the Illinois enterprise, and, in March, 1855, the consolidation of these lines was perfected under
the name of the Chicago, St. Paul & Fond du Lao Railroad. During the first four years of its existence this
company built 176 miles of the road, of which seventy miles were between Chicago and the Wisconsin State line,
with the sections constructed in Wisconsin completing the connection between Chicago and Fond du Lac. As the result
of the financial revulsion of 1857, the corporation became financially embarrassed, and the sale of its property
and franchises under the foreclosure of 1859, already alluded to, followed. This marked the beginning of the present
corporation, and, in the next few years, by the construction of new lines and the purchase of others in Wisconsin
and Northern Illinois, it added largely to the extent of its lines, both constructed and projected. The most important
of these was the union effected with the Galena & Chicago Union Railroad, which was formally consolidated with
the Chicago & Northwestern in 1864. The history of the Galena & Chicago Union is interesting in view of
the fact that it was one of the earliest railroads incorporated in Illinois, having been chartered by special act
of the Legislature during the "internal improvement" excitement of 1836. Besides, its charter was the
only one of that period under which an organization was effected, and although construction was not begun under
it until 1847 (eleven years afterward), it was the second railroad constructed in the State and the first leading
from the city of Chicago. In the forty years of its history the growth of the Chicago & Northwestern has been
steady, and its success almost phenomenal. In that time it has not only added largely to its mileage by the construction
of new lines, but has absorbed more lines than almost any other road in the country, until it now reaches almost
every important city in the Northwest. Among the lines in Northern Illinois now constituting a part of it, were
several which had become a part of the Galena & Chicago Union before the consolidation. These included a line
from Belvidere to Beloit, Wis.; the Fox River Valley Railroad, and the St. Charles & Mississippi Air Line Railroad-all
Illinois enterprises, and more or less closely connected with the development of the State. The total capitalization
of the line, on June 30, 1898, was $200,968,108, of which $66,408,821 was capital stock and $101,603,000 in the
form of bonds. The earnings in the State of Illinois, for the same period, aggregated $4,374,923, and the expenditures
$3,712,593. At the present time (1899) the Chicago & Northwestern is building eight or ten branch lines in
Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota and South Dakota. The Northwestern System, as such, comprises nearly 3,000 miles of
road not included in the preceding statements of mileage and financial condition. Although owned by the Chicago
& Northwestern Company, they are managed by different officers and under other names. The mileage of the whole
system covers nearly 8,000 miles of main line.
CHICAGO & SPRINGFIELD RAILROAD. (See Illinois
Central Railroad.)
CHICAGO & TEXAS RAILROAD, a line seventy-three
miles in length, extending from Johnston City by way of Carbondale westerly to the Mississippi, thence southerly
to Cape Girardeau. The line was originally operated by two companies, under the names of the Grand Tower &
Carbondale and the Grand Tower & Cape Girardeau Railroad Companies. The former was chartered in 1882, and the
road built in 1885; the latter, chartered in 1889 and the line opened the same year. They were consolidated in
1893, and operated under the name of the Chicago & Texas Railroad Company. In October, 1897, the last named
line was transferred, under a twenty-five year lease, to the Illinois Central Railroad Company, by whom it is operated
as its St. Louis & Cape Girardeau division.
CHICAGO & WESTERN INDIANA RAILROAD. The main line
of this road extends from Chicago to Dolton, Ill. (17 miles), and affords terminal facilities for all lines entering
the Polk St. Depot at Chicago. It has branches to Hammond, Ind. (10.28 miles); to Cragin (15.9 miles), and to South
Chicago (5.41 miles); making the direct mileage of its branches 48.59 miles. In addition, its second, third and
fourth tracks and sidings increase the mileage to 204.79 miles. The company was organized June 9, 1879; the road
opened in 1880, and, on Jan. 26, 1882, consolidated with the South Chicago & Western Indiana Railroad Company,
and the Chicago & Western Indiana Belt Railway. It also owns some 850 acres in fee in Chicago, including wharf
property on the Chicago River, right of way, switch and transfer yards, depots, the Indiana grain elevator, etc.
he elevator and the Belt Division are leased to the Belt Railway Company of Chicago, and the rest of the property
is leased conjointly by the Chicago & Eastern Illinois, the Chicago & Grand Trunk, the Chicago & Erie,
the Louisville, New Albany & Chicago, and the Wabash Railways of which owns $1,000,000 of the capital oak),
and by the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe. These companies pay the expense of operation and maintenance on a mileage
basis.
CHICAGO & WISCONSIN RAILROAD. (See Wisconsin Central
Lines.)
DANVILLE, OLNEY & OHIO RIVER RAILROAD (See Chicago
& Ohio River Railroad)
DANVILLE, URBANA, BLOOMINGTON & PEKIN RAILROAD
(See Peoria & Eastern Railroad)
DECATUR, MATTOON & SOUTHERN RAILROAD (See Peoria,
Decatur & Evansville Railway)
DECATUR, SULLIVAN & MATTOON RAILROAD (See Peoria,
Decatur & Evansville Railway)
DEKALB & GREAT WESTERN RAILROAD - (See Chicago
Great Western Railway)
ELGIN, JOLIET & EASTERN RAILWAY - The main line
of this road extends west from Dyer on the Indiana State line to Joliet, thence northeast to Waukegan. The total
length of the line (1898) is 192.72 miles, of which 159.93 miles are in Illinois. The entire capital of the company,
including stock and indebtedness, amounted (1898) to $13,799,630 - more than $71,000 per mile. Its total earnings
in Illinois for the same year were $1,212,026, and its entire expenditure in the State $1,156,146. The company
paid in taxes, the same year, $48,876. Branch lines extend southerly from Walker Junction to Coster, where connection
is made with the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railroad, and northwesterly from Normantown, on
the main line, to Aurora.
(HISTORY) The Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway was chartered in1887 and absorbed the Joliet, Aurora & Northern
Railway, from Joliet to Aurora (21 miles), which had been commenced in 1886 and was completed in 1888, with extensions
from Joliet to Spaulding, Ill., and from Joliet to McCool, Ind. In January, 1891, the company purchased all the
properties and franchises of the Gardner, Coal City & Normantown and the Waukegan & Southwestern Railway
Companies (formerly operated under lease). The former of these two raods was chartered in 1889 and opened in 1890.
The system forms a belt line around Chicago, intersecting all railroads entering that city from every direction.
Its traffic is chiefly in the transcportation of freight.
FULTON COUNTY NARROW-GAUGE RAILROAD - a line extending
from the west bank of the Illinois River, opposite Havana, to Galesburg, 61 miles. It is a single-track, narrow-gauge
(3-foot) road, although the excavations and embankments are being widened to accommodate a track of standard gauge.
The grades are few, and, as a rule, are light, although, in one instance, the gradient is 84 feet to the mile.
There are more than 19 miles of curves, the maximum being 16 degrees. The rails are of iron, 35 pounds to the yard,
road not ballasted. Capital stock outstanding (1895), $636,794; bonded debt, $484,000; miscellaneous obligations,
$462,362; total capitalization $1,583,156. The line from Havana to Fairview (31 miles) was chartered in 1878 and
opened in 1880 and the extension from Fairview to Galesburg chartered in 1881 and opened in 1882.
GALENA & CHICAGO UNION RAILROAD ( See Chicago
& Northwestern Railway)
GILMAN, CLINTON & SPRINGFIELD RAILROAD - (See
Illinois Central Railroad)
GRAND TOWER & CAPE GIRARDEAU RAILROAD - (See Chicago
& Texas Railroad)
GRAND TOWER & CARBONDALE RAILROAD - (See Chicago
& Texas Railroad)
GRAYVILLE & MATTOON RAILROAD - (See Peoria, Decatur
& Evansville Railway)
GREAT WESTERN RAILROAD (of 1843 and '49 - See Illinois Central Railroad)
HAVANA, RANTOUL & EASTERN RAILROAD (See Illinois
Central Railroad)
ILLINOIS CENTRAL RAILROAD, a corporation controlling
the principal line of railroad extending through the entire length of the State from north to south, besides numerous
side branches acquired by lease during the past few years. The main lines are made up of three general divisions,
extending from Chicago to Cairo, Ill. (364.73 miles); from Centralia to Dubuque, Iowa, (340.77 miles), and from
Cairo to New Orleans, La. (547.79 miles)-making a total of 1,253.29 miles of main line, of which 705.5 miles are
in Illinois. Besides this the company controls, through lease and stock ownership, a large number of lateral branches
which are operated by the company, making the total mileage officially reported up to June 30, 1898, 3,130.21 miles.
(HISTORY.) The Illinois Central Railroad is not only
one of the lines earliest projected in the history of the state, but has been most intimately connected with its
development. The project of a road starting from the mouth of the Ohio and extending northward through the State
is said to have been suggested by Lieut. -Gov. Alexander M. Jenkins as early as 1832; was advocated by the late
Judge Sidney Breese and others in 1835 under the name of the Wabash & Mississippi Railroad, and took the form
of a charter granted by the Legislature in January, 1836, to the first "Illinois Central Railroad Company,"
to construct a road from Cairo to a point near the southern terminus of the Illinois & Michigan Canal. Nothing
was done under this act, although an organization was effected, with Governor Jenkins as President of the Company.
The Company surrendered its charter the next year and the work was undertaken by the State, under the internal
improvement act of 1837, and considerable money expended without completing any portion of the line. The State
having abandoned the enterprise, the Legislature, in 1843, incorporated the "Great Western Railway Company"
under what came to be known as the "Holbrook charter," to be organized under the auspices of the Cairo
City & Canal Company, the line to connect the termini named in the charter of 1836, via Vandalia, Shelbyville,
Decatur and Bloomington. Considerable money was expended under this charter, but the scheme again failed of completion,
and the act was repealed in 1845. A charter under the same name, with some modification as to organization, was
renewed in 1849.-In January, 1850, Senator Douglas introduced a bill in the United States Senate making a grant
to the State of Illinois of .alternate sections of land along the line of a proposed road extending from Cairo
to Duluth in the northwest corner of the State, with a branch to Chicago, which bill passed the Senate in May of
the same year and the House in September, and became the basis of the Illinois Central Rail road Company as it
exists to-day. Previous to the passage of this act, however, the Cairo City & Canal Company had been induced
to execute a full surrender to the State of its rights and privileges under the "Holbrook charter." This
was followed in February, 1851, by the act of the Legislature incorporating the Illinois Central Railroad Company,
and assigning thereto (under specified conditions) the grant of lands received from the General Government. This
grant covered alternate sections within six miles of the line, or the equivalent thereof (when such lands were
not vacant), to be placed on lands within fifteen miles of the line. The number of acres thus assigned to the Company
was 2,595,000, (about 3,840 acres per mile), which were conveyed to Trustees as security for the performance of
the work. An engineering party, organized at Chicago, May 21, 1851, began the preliminary survey of the Chicago
branch, and before the end of the year the whole line was surveyed and staked out The first contract for grading
was let on March 15, 1852, being for that portion between Chicago and Kensington (then known as Calumet), 14 miles.
This was opened for traffic, May 24, 1852, and over it the Michigan Central, which had been in course of construction
from the east, obtained trackage rights to enter Chicago. Later, contracts were let for other sections, some of
them in June, and the last on Oct. 14, 1852. In May, 1853, the section from La Salle to Bloomington (61 miles)
was completed and opened for business, a temporary bridge being constructed over the Illinois near La Salle, and
cars hauled to the top of the bluff with chains and cable by means of a stationary engine. In July, 1854, the Chicago
Division was put in operation to Urbana, 128 miles; the main line from Cairo to La Salle (301 miles), completed
Jan. 8, 1855, and the line from La Salle to Duluth (now East Dubuque), 146.73 miles, on June 12, 1855-the entire
road (705.5 miles) being completed, Sept. 27, 1856.
(FINANCIAL STATEMENT.) The share capital of the road was originally fixed at $17,000,000, but previous to 1869
it had been increased to $25,500,000, and during 1873-74 to $29, 000,000. The present capitalization (1898) is
$163,352,593, of which $59,500,000 is in stock, $52,680,925 in bonds, and $51,367,000 in miscellaneous obligations.
The total cost of the road in Illinois, as shown by a report made in 1889, was $35,110,609. By the terms of its
charter the corporation is exempt from taxation, but in lieu thereof is required to pay into the State treasury,
semi-annually, seven per cent upon the gross earnings of the line in Illinois. The sum thus paid into the State
treasury from Oct. 31, 1855, when the first payment of $29,751.59 was made, up to and including Oct. 31, 1898,
aggregated $17,315,193.24. The last payment (October, 1898), amounted to $334,527.01. The largest payment in the
history of the road was that of October, 1893, amounting, for the preceding six months, to $450,176.34. The net
income of the main line in Illinois, for the year ending June 30, 1898, was $12,299,021, and the total expenditures
within the State $12,831,161.-
(LEASED LINES.) The first addition to the Illinois Central System was made in 1867 in the acquisition, by lease, of the Dubuque & Sioux City Railroad, extending
from Dubuque to Sioux Falls, Iowa. Since then it has extended its Iowa connections, by the construction of new
lines and the acquisition or extension of others. The most important addition to the line outside of the State
of Illinois was an arrangement effected, in 1872, with the New Orleans, Jackson Great Northern, and the Mississippi
Central Rail roads-with which it previously had traffic connections-giving it control of a line from Jackson, Tenn.,
to New Orleans, La. At first, connection was had between the Illinois Central at Cairo and the Southern Divisions
of the system, by means of transfer steamers, but subsequently the gap was filled in and the through line opened
to traffic in December, 1873. In 1874 the New Orleans, Jackson & Great Northern and the Mississippi Central
roads were consolidated under the title of the New Orleans, St. Louis &Chicago Railroad, but the new corporation
defaulted on its interest in 1876. The Illinois Central, which was the owner of a majority of the bonds of the
constituent lines which went to make up the New Orleans, St. Louis & Chicago Railroad, then acquired ownership
of the whole line by foreclosure proceedings in 1877, and it was reorganized, on Jan. 1, 1878, under the name of
the Chicago, St. Louis & New Orleans Railroad, and placed in charge of one of the Vice-Presidents of the Illinois
Central Company.
(ILLINOIS BRANCHES.) The more important branches of the Illinois Central within the State include: (1) The Springfield Division from Chicago to Springfield (111.47 miles),
chartered in 1867, and opened in 1871 as the Gilman, Clinton & Springfield Railroad; passed into the hands
of a receiver in 1873, sold under foreclosure in 1876, and leased, in 1878, for fifty years, to the Illinois Central
Railroad: (2) The Rantoul Division from Leroy to the Indiana State line (66.21 miles in Illinois), chartered in
1876 as the Havana, Rantoul & Eastern Railroad, built as a narrow-gauge line and operated in 1881; afterwards
changed to standard-gauge, and controlled by the Wabash, St. Louis & Pacific until May, 1884, when it passed
into the hands of a receiver; in December of the same year taken in charge by the bondholders; in 1885 again placed
in the hands of a receiver, and, in October, 1886, sold to the Illinois Central: (3) The Chicago, Havana &
Western Railroad, from Havana to Champaign, with a branch from White-heath to Decatur (total, 131.62 miles), constructed
as the western extension of the Indianapolis, Bloomington & Western, and opened in 1873; sold under foreclosure
in 1879 and organized as the Champaign, Havana & Western; in 1880 purchased by the Wabash, St. Louis &
Pacific; in 1884 taken possession of by the mortgage trustees and, in September, 1886, sold under foreclosure to
the Illinois Central Railroad: (4) The Freeport Division, from Chicago by way of Freeport to Madison, Wis. (140
miles in Illinois), constructed under a charter granted to the Chicago, Madison & Northern Railroad (which
see), opened for traffic in 1888, and transferred to the Illinois Central Railroad Company in January, 1889: (5)
The Kankakee & Southwestern (131.26 miles), constructed from Kankakee to Bloomington under the charters of
the Kankakee & Western and the Kankakee & Southwestern Railroads; acquired by the Illinois Central in 1878,
begun in 1880, and extended to Bloomington in 1883: and (6) The St. Louis, Alton & Terre Haute (which see under
its old name). Other Illinois branch lines of less importance embrace the Blue Island; the Chicago & Texas;
the Mound City; the South Chicago; the St. Louis, Belleville & Southern, and the St. Charles Air-Line, which
furnishes an entrance to the City of Chicago over an elevated track. The total length of these Illinois branches
in 1898 was 919.72 miles, with the main lines making the total mileage of the company within the State 1,624.22
miles. For several years up to 1895 the Illinois Central had a connection with St. Louis over the line of the Terre
Haute & Indianapolis from Effingham, but this is now secured by way of the Springfield Division and the main
line to Pana, whence its trains pass over the old Indianapolis & St. Louis-now the Cleve land, Cincinnati,
Chicago & St. Louis Railway. Between June 30, 1897 and April 30, 1898, branch lines in the Southern States
(chiefly in Kentucky and Tennessee), to the extent of 670 miles, were added to the Illinois Central System. The
Cairo Bridge, constructed across the Ohio River near its mouth, at a cost of $3,000,000, for the purpose of connecting
the Northern and Southern Divisions of the Illinois Central System, and one of the most stupendous structures of
its kind in the world, belongs wholly to the Illinois Central Railroad Company.
PEORIA, ATLANTA & DECATUR RAILROAD. (See Terre
Haute & Peoria Railroad.)
PEORIA, DECATUR & EVANSVILLE RAILWAY. The total
length of this line, extending from Peoria, Ill., to EvansviIle Ind., is 330.87 miles, all owned by the company,
of which 273 miles are in Illinois. It extends from Pekin, southeast to Grayville, on the Wabash River - is single
track, unballasted, and of standard gauge. Between Pekin and Peoria the company uses the tracks of the Peoria &
Pekin Union Railway, of which it is one-fourth owner. Between Hervey City and Midland Junction it has trackage
privileges over the line owned jointly by the Peoria, Decatur & Evansville and the Terre Haute & Peoria
Companies (7.5 miles). Between Midland Junction and Decatur (2.4 miles) the tracks of the Illinois Central are
used, the two lines having terminal facilities at Decatur in common. The rails are of fifty-two and sixty-pound
steel.-
((HISTORY.) The main line of the Peoria, Decatur & Evansville Railway is the result of the consolidation of
several lines built under separate charters. (1) The Pekin, Lincoln & Decatur Railroad, chartered in 1867,
built in 1869-71, and operated the latter year, was leased to the Toledo, Wabash & Western Railway, but sold
to representatives Of the bond-holders, on account of default on interest, in 1876, and reorganized as the Pekin,
Lincoln & Decatur Railway. (2) The Decatur, Sullivan & Mattoon Railroad, (projected from Decatur to Mattoon),
was incorporated in 1871, completed from Mattoon to Hervey City, in 1872, and, the same year, consolidated with
the Chicago & Great Southern; in January, 1874, the Decatur line passed into the hands of a receiver, and,
in 1877, having been sold under foreclosure, was reorganized as the Decatur, Mattoon & Southern Railroad. In
1879 it was placed in the hands of trustees, but the Pekin, Lincoln & Decatur Railway having acquired a controlling
interest during the same year, the two lines were consolidated under the name of the Peoria, Decatur & Evansville
Railway Company. (3) The Grayville & Mattoon Railroad, chartered in 1857, was consolidated in 1872 with the
Mount Vernon & Grayville Railroad (projected), the new corporation taking the name of the Chicago & Illinois
Southern (already mentioned). In 1872 the latter corporation was consolidated with the Decatur, Sullivan &
Mattoon Railroad, under the name of the Chicago & Illinois Southern Railway. Both consolidations, however,
were set aside by decree of the United States District Court, in 1876, and the partially graded road and franchises
of the Grayville & Mattoon lines sold, under foreclosure, to the contractors for the construction; 20 miles
of the line from Olney to Newton, were completed during the month of September of that year, and the entire line,
from Grayville to Mattoon, in 1878. In 1880 this line was sold, under decree of foreclosure, to the Peoria, Decatur
& Evansville Railway Company, which had already acquired the Decatur & Mattoon Division - thus placing
the entire line, from Peoria to Grayville, in the hands of one corporation. A line under the name of the Evansville
& Peoria Railroad, chartered in Indiana in 1880, was consolidated, the same year, with the Illinois corporation
under the name of the latter, and completed from Grayville to Evansville in 1882. (4) The Chicago & Ohio River
Railroad - chartered, in 1869, as the Danville, Olney & Ohio River Railroad - was constructed, as a narrow-gauge
line, from Kansas to West Liberty, in 1878-81; in the latter year was changed to standard gauge and completed in
1883, from Sidell to Olney (86 miles). The same year it went into the hands of a receiver, was sold under foreclosure,
in February, 1886, and reorganized, in May following, as the Chicago & Ohio River Railroad; was consolidated
with the Peoria, Decatur & Evansville Railway, in 1893, and used as the Chicago Division of that line. The
property and franchises of the entire line passed into the hands of receivers in 1894, and are still (1898) under
their management.
PEORIA, PEKIN & JACKSONVILLE RAILROAD. (See Chicago,
Peoria & St. Louis Rail road of Illinois.)
PEORIA & BUREAU VALLEY RAILROAD, a short line,
46.7 miles in length, operated by the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railway Company, extending from Peoria
to Bureau Junction, Ill. It was incorporated, Feb. 12, 1853, completed the following year, and leased to the Rock
Island in perpetuity, April 14, 1854, the annual rental being $125,000. The par value of the capital stock is $1,
500,000. Annual dividends of 8 per cent are guaranteed, payable semi-annually. (See Chicago,
Rock Island & Pacific Railway)
PEORIA & EASTERN RAILROAD. Of this line the Cleveland,
Cincinnati. Chicago & St. Louis Railroad Company is the lessee. Its total length is 350 1/2 miles, 132 of which
lie in Illinois -123 being owned by the Company. That portion within this State extends east from Pekin to the
Indiana State line, in addition to which the Company has trackage facilities over the line of the Peoria &
Pekin Union Railway (9 miles) to Peoria. The gauge is standard. The track is single, laid with sixty and sixty-seven-pound
steel rails and ballasted almost wholly with gravel. The capital stock is $10,000,000. In 1895 it had a bonded
debt of $13,603,000 and a floating, debt of $1,261,130, making a total capitalization of $24,864,130.
(HISTORY.) The original of this corporation was the Danville, Urbana, Bloomington & Pekin Railroad, which was
consolidated in July 1869, with the Indianapolis Crawfordsville & Danville Railroad - the new corporation taking
the name of the Indianapolis, Bloomington & Western -- and was opened to Pekin the same year. In 1874 it passed
into the hands of a receiver, was sold under foreclosure in 1879, and reorganized as the Indiana, Bloomington &
Western Railway Company. The next change occurred in 1881, when it was consolidated with an Ohio corporation (the
Ohio, Indiana & Pacific Railroad), again undergoing a slight change of name in its reorganization as the Indiana,
Bloomington & Western Railroad Company. In 1886 it again got into financial straits, was placed in charge of
a receiver and sold to a reorganization committee, and, in January, 1887, took the name of the Ohio, Indiana &
Western Railway Company. The final reorganization, under its present name, took place in February, 1890, when it
was leased to the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway, by which it is operated.
PEORIA & HANNIBAL RAILROAD. (See Chicago, Burlington
& Quincy Railroad.)
PEORIA & OQUAWKA RAILROAD. (See Chicago, Burlington
& Quincy Railroad.)
PEORIA & PEKIN UNION RAILWAY. A line connecting
the cities of Peoria and Pekin, which are only 8 miles apart. It was chartered in 1880, and acquired, by purchase,
the tracks of the Peoria, Pekin & Jacksonville and the Peoria & Springfield Railroads, between the two
cities named in its title, giving it control of two lines, which are used by nearly all the railroads entering
both cities from the east side of the Illinois River. The mileage, including both divisions, is 18.14 miles,second
tracks and sidings increasing the total to nearly 60 miles. The track is of standard gauge about two-thirds being
laid with steel rails. The total cost of construction was $4,350,987. Its total capitalization (1898) was $4,177,763,
including $1,000,000 in stock, and a funded debt of $2,904,000. The capital stock is held in equal amounts (each
2,500 shares) by the Wabash, the Peoria, Decatur & Evansville, the Chicago, Peoria & St. Louis and the
Peoria & Eastern companies, with 1,000 shares by the Lake Erie &Western. Terminal charges and annual rentals
are also paid by the Terre Haute & Peoria and the Iowa Central Railways.
PEORIA & SPRINGFIELD RAILROAD. (See Chicago, Peoria
& St. Louis Railroad of Illinois.)
PITTSBURG, CINCINNATI, CHICAGO & ST. LOUIS RAILROAD,
one of the Pennsylvania Company's lines, operating 1,403 miles of road, of which 1,090 miles are owned and the
remainder leased -- length of line in Illinois, 28 miles. The Company is the outgrowth of a consolidation, in 1890,
of the Pittsburg, Cincinnati & St. Louis Railway with the Chicago, St. Louis & Pittsburg, the Cincinnati
& Richmond and the Jeffersonville, Madison & Indianapolis Railroads. The Pennsylvania Railroad Company
controls the entire line through ownership of stock. Capital stock outstanding, in 1898, $47,791,601; funded debt,
$48,433,000; floating debt., $2,214,703 -total capital $98,500,584.
(HISTORY.) The Chicago, St. Louis & Pittsburg Railroad, embracing the Illinois division of this line, was made
up of various corporations organized under the laws of Illinois and Indiana. One of its component parts was the
Chicago & Great Eastern Railway, organized, in 1865, by consolidation of the Galena & Illinois River Railroad
(chartered in 1857), the Chicago & Great Eastern Railway of Indiana, the Cincinnati & Chicago Air-Line
(organized 1860), and the Cincinnati, Logans port & Chicago Railway. In 1869, the consolidated line was leased
to the Pittsburg, Cincinnati & St. Louis Railway Company, and operated under the name of the Columbus, Chicago
& Indiana Central between Bradford, Ohio, and Chicago, from 1869 until its consolidation, under the present
name, in 1890.
PITTSBURG, FORT WAYNE & CHICAGO RAILROAD. (See
Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railway.)
PITTSBURG, FORT WAYNE & CHICAGO RAILWAY. The total
length of this line is nearly 470 miles, but only a little over 16 miles are within Illinois. It was operated by
the Pennsylvania Railroad Company as lessee. The entire capitalization in 1898 was $52,549,990; and the earnings
in Illinois, $472,228.-(HISTORY.) The Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railway is the result of the consolidation,
August 1, 1856, of the Ohio & Pennsylvania, the Ohio & Indiana and the Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad
Companies, under the name of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad. The road was opened through its
entire length, Jan. 1, 1859; was sold under foreclosure in 1861; reorganized under its present title, in 1862,
and leased to the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, for 999 years, from July 1, 1869. (See Pennsylvania Railroad.)
WISCONSIN CENTRAL LINES. The Wisconsin Central Company
was organized, June 17, 1887, and subsequently acquired the Minnesota, St. Croix & Wisconsin, the Wisconsin
& Minnesota, the Chippewa Falls & Western, the St. Paul & St. Croix Falls, the Wisconsin Central, the
Penokee, and the Packwaukee & Montebello Rail roads, and assumed the leases of the Milwaukee & Lake Winnebago
and the Wisconsin & Minnesota Roads. On July 1, 1888, the company began to operate the entire Wisconsin Central
system, with the exception of the Wisconsin Central Railroad and the leased Milwaukee & Lake Winnebago, which
remained in charge of the Wisconsin Central Railroad mortgage trustees until Nov. 1, 1889, when these, too, passed
under the control of the Wisconsin Central Company. The Wisconsin Central Railroad Company is a reorganization
(Oct. 1, 1879) of a company formed Jan. 1, 1871. The Wisconsin Central and the Wisconsin Central Railroad Companies,
though differing in name, are a financial unit; the former holding most of the first mortgage bonds of the latter,
and substantially all its notes, stocks and income bonds, but, for legal reasons (such as the protection of land
titles), it is necessary that separate corporations be maintained. On April 1, 1890, the Wisconsin Central Company
executed a lease to the Northern Pacific Railroad, but this was set aside by the courts, on Sept. 27, 1893, for
non-payment of rent, and was finally canceled. On the same day receivers were appointed to insure the protection
of all interests. The total mileage is 415.46 miles, of which .the Company owns 258.90-only .10 of a mile in Illinois.
A line, 58.10 miles in length, with 8.44 miles of side-track (total, 66.54 miles), lying wholly within the State
of Illinois, is operated by the Chicago & Wisconsin and furnishes the allied line an en trance into Chicago.
ST. LOUIS, ALTON & CHICAGO RAILROAD. (See Chicago
& Alton Railroad.)
ST. LOUIS, ALTON & SPRINGFIELD RAILROAD. (See
St. Louis, Chicago & St. Paul Railroad.)
ST. LOUIS, ALTON & TERRE HAUTE RAILROAD, a corporation formerly operating an extensive system of railroads
in Illinois. The Terre Haute & Alton Railroad Company (the original corporation) was chartered in January,
1851, work begun in 1852, and the main line from Terre Haute to Alton (172.5 miles) completed, March 1, 1856. The
Belleville & Illinoistown branch (from Belleville to East St. Louis) was chartered in 1852, and completed between
the points named in the title, in the fall of 1854. This corporation secured authority to construct an extension
from Illinoistown (now East St. Louis) to Alton, which was completed in October, 1856, giving the first railroad
connection between Alton & St. Louis. Simultaneously with this, these two roads (the Terre Haute & Alton
and the Belleville & Illinoistown) were consolidated under a single charter by special act of the Legislature
in February, 1854, the consolidated line taking the name of the Terre Haute, Alton & St. Louis Railroad. Subsequently
the road became financially embarrassed, was sold under foreclosure and reorganized, in 1862, under the name of
the St. Louis, Alton & Terre Haute Railroad. June 1, 1867, the main line (from Terre Haute to St. Louis) was
leased for ninety-nine years to the Indianapolis & St. Louis Railway Company (an Indiana corporation) guaranteed
by certain other lines, but the lease was subsequently broken by the insolvency of the lessee and some of the guarantors.
The Indianapolis & St. Louis went into the hands of a receiver in 1882, and was sold under foreclosure, in
July of the same year, its interest being absorbed by the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway,
by which the main line is now operated. The properties officially reported as remaining in the hands of the St.
Louis, Alton & Terre Haute Railroad, June 30, 1895, beside the Belleville Branch (14.40 miles), included the
following leased and subsidiary lines: Belleville & Southern Illinois-' 'Cairo Short Line" (56.40 miles);
Belleville & Eldorado, (50.20 miles); Belleville & Carondelet (17.30 miles); St. Louis Southern and branches
(47.27 miles), and Chicago, St. Louis & Paducah Rail way (53.50 miles). All these have been leased, since the
close of the fiscal year 1895, to the Illinois Central. (For sketches of these several roads see headings of each.)
ST. LOUIS, CHICAGO & ST. PAUL RAILROAD, (Bluff
Line),a line running from Spring field to Granite City, Ill., (opposite St. Louis), 102.1 miles, with branch from
Lock Haven to Grafton, III., 8.4 miles-total length of line in Illinois, 110.5 miles. The track is of standard
gauge, laid with 56 to 70-pound steel rails.-
(HISTORY.) The road was originally incorporated under the name of the St. Louis, Jerseyville & Springfield
Railroad, built from Bates to Grafton in 1882, and absorbed by the Wabash, St. Louis & Pacific Railway Company;
was surrendered by the receivers of the latter in 1886, and passed under the control of the bond-holders, by whom
it was transferred to a corporation known as the St. Louis & Central Illinois Railroad Company. In June, 1887,
the St. Louis, Alton & Springfield Railroad Company was organized, with power to build extensions from Newbern
to Alton, and from Bates to Springfield, which was done. In October, 1890, a receiver was appointed, followed by
a reorganization under the present name (St. Louis, Chicago & St. Paul). Default was made on the interest and,
in June following, it was again placed in the hands of receivers, by whom it was operated until 1898. The total
earnings and income for the fiscal year 1897-98 were $318,815, operating expenses, $373,270; total capitalization,
$4, 853,526, of which, $1,500,000 was in the form of stock and $1,235 000 in income bonds.
ST. LOUIS, INDIANAPOLIS & EASTERN RAILROAD, a
railroad line 90 miles in length, extending from Switz City, Ind., to Effingham, Ill.-56 miles being within the
State of Illinois. It is of standard gauge and the track laid chiefly with iron rails.-(HISTORY.) The original
corporation was chartered in 1869 as the Springfield, Effingham & Quincy Railway Company. It was built as a
narrow-gauge line by the Cincinnati, Effingham & Quincy Construction Company which went into the hands of a
receiver in 1878. The road was completed by the receiver in 1880, and, in 1885, restored to the Construction Company
by the discharge of the receiver. For a short time it was operated in connection with the Bloomfield Railroad of
Indiana, but was reorganized in 1886 as the Indiana & Illinois Southern Railroad, and the gauge changed to
standard in 1887. Having made default in the payment of interest, it was sold under foreclosure in 1890 and purchased
in the interest of the bond holders, by whom it was conveyed to the St. Louis, Indianapolis & Eastern Railroad
Company, in whose name the line is operated. Its business is limited, and chiefly local. The total earnings in
1898 were $65,583 and the expenditures $69,112. Its capital stock was $740,900; bonded debt, $978,000, other indebtedness
increasing the total capital investment to $1,816,736.
ST. LOUIS, JACKSONVILLE & CHICAGO RAILROAD. (See
Chicago & Alton Railroad.)
ST. LOUIS, JERSEYVILLE & SPRINGFIELD RAILROAD.
(See St. Louis, Chicago & St. Paul Railroad.)
ST. LOUIS, PEORIA & NORTHERN RAILWAY, known as
"Peoria Short Line," a corporation organized, Feb. 29, 1896, to take over and unite the properties of
the St. Louis & Eastern, the St. Louis & Peoria and the North and South Railways, and to extend the same
due north from Springfield to Peoria (60 miles), and thence to Fulton or East Clinton, Ill., on the Upper Mississippi.
The line extends from Springfield to Glen Carbon (84.46 miles), with trackage facilities over the Chicago, Peoria
& St. Louis Railroad and the Merchants' Terminal Bridge (18 miles) to St. Louis.
(HISTORY.) This road has been made up of three sections or divisions. (1) The initial section of the line was constructed
under the name of the St. Louis & Chicago Railroad of Illinois, incorporated in 1885, and opened from Mount
Olive to Alhambra in 1887. It passed into the hands of a receiver, was sold under fore closure in 1889, and reorganized,
in 1890, as the St. Louis & Peoria Railroad. The St. Louis & Eastern, chartered in 1889, built the line
from Glen Carbon to Marine, which was opened in 1893; the following year, bought the St. Louis & Peoria line,
and, in 1895, constructed the link (8 miles) between Alhambra and Marine. (3) The North & South Railroad Company
of Illinois, organized in 1890, as successor to the St. Louis & Chicago Railway Company, proceeded in the construction
of the line (50.46 miles) from Mt. Olive to Spring field, which was subsequently leased to the Chicago, Peoria
& St. Louis, then under the management of the Jacksonville, Louisville & St. Louis Railway. The latter
corporation having defaulted, the property passed into the hands of a receiver. By expiration of the lease in December,
1896, the property reverted to the proprietary Company, which took possession, Jan. 1, 1896. The St. Louis &
Southeastern then bought the line outright, and it was incorporated as a part of the new organization under the
name of the St. Louis, Peoria & Northern Railway, the North & South Railroad going out of existence. In
May, 1899, the St. Louis, Peoria & Northern was sold to the reorganized Chicago & Alton Railroad Company,
to be operated as a short line between Peoria & St. Louis.
ST. LOUIS, ROCK ISLAND & CHICAGO RAILROAD. (See
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad.)
ST. LOUIS SOUTHERN RAILROAD, a line running from Pinckneyville,
Ill., via Murphysboro, to Carbondale. The company is also the lessee of the Carbondale & Shawneetown Rail road,
extending from Carbondale to Marion, 17.5 miles-total, 50.5 miles. The track is of standard gauge and laid with
56 and 60-pound steel rails. The company was organized in August, 1886, to succeed to the property of the St. Louis
Coal Rail road (organized in 1879) and the St. Louis Central Railway; and was leased for 980 years from Dec. 1,
1886, to. the St. Louis, Alton & Terre Haute Railroad Company, at an annual rental equal to thirty per cent
of the gross earnings, with a mini mum guarantee of $32,000, which is sufficient to pay the interest on the first
mortgage bonds. During the year 1896 this line passed under lease from the St. Louis, Alton & Terre Haute Rail
road Company, into the hands of the Illinois Central Railroad Company.
ST. LOUIS, SPRINGFIELD & VINCENNES RAILROAD COMPANY,
a corporation organized in July, 1899, to take over the property of the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern Railway
in the State of Illinois, known as the Ohio & Mississippi and the Springfield & Illinois Southeastern Railways
the former extending from Vincennes, Ind., to East St. Louis, and the latter from Beardstown to Shawneetown. The
property was sold under foreclosure, at Cincinnati, July 10, 1899, and transferred, for purposes of reorganization,
into the hands of the new corporation, July 28, 1899. (For history of the several lines see Baltimore & Ohio
Southwestern Railway.)
ST. LOUIS, VANDALIA & TERRE HAUTE RAILROAD. This
line extends from East Louis eastward across the State, to the Indiana State line, a distance of 158.3 miles. The
Haute & Indianapolis Railroad Company is lessee. The track is single, of standard and laid with steel rails.
The outstanding capital stock, in 1898, was $3,924,058, the bonded $4,496,000, and the floating debt, $218,480.
(HISTORY ) The St. Louis, Vandalia & Terre Haute Railroad was chartered in 1865, opened in and leased to the
Terre Haute & Indiana Railroad, for itself and the Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railroad.
ST. LOUIS & CAIRO RAILROAD, extends from East
St. Louis to Cairo, Ill., 151.6 miles, with a branch from Millstadt Junction to High Prairie, 9 miles. The track
is of standard gauge and laid mainly with steel rails. -(HISTORY.) The original charter was granted to the Cairo
& St. Louis Railroad Company, Feb. 16, 1865, and the road opened, March 1, 1875. Subsequently it passed into
the hands of a receiver, was sold under fore closure, July 14, 1881, and was taken charge of by a new company under
its present name, Feb. 1, 1882. On Feb. 1, 1886, it was leased to the Mobile & Ohio Railroad Company for forty-five
years, and now constitutes the Illinois Division of that line, giving it a connection with St. Louis.
ST. LOUIS & CENTRAL ILLINOIS RAIL ROAD. (See St.
Louis, Chicago & St. Paul Railroad.)
ST. LOUIS & CHICAGO RAILROAD (of Illinois). (See
St. Louis, Peoria & Northern Railway.)
ST. LOUIS & EASTERN RAILROAD. (See St. Louis,
Peoria & Northern Railway.)
ST. LOUIS & PEORIA RAILWAY. (See St. Louis, Peoria
& Northern Railway.)