Eastern Oregon is the eastern part of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is not an officially recognized geographic entity; thus, the boundaries of the region vary according to context. It is sometimes understood to include only the eight easternmost counties in the state; in other contexts, it includes the entire area east of the Cascade Range. Cities in the basic 8-county definition include Baker City, Burns, Hermiston, Pendleton, John Day, La Grande, and Ontario. Umatilla County is home to the largest population base in Eastern Oregon; accounting for 74% of the region's population in 2016. Hermiston, located in Umatilla County, is the largest city in the region. Major industries include transportation/warehousing, timber, agriculture and tourism. The main transportation corridors are I-84, U.S. Route 395, U.S. Route 97, U.S. Route 26, U.S. Route 30, and U.S. Route 20.
The Richmond, Fredericksburg, and Potomac Railroad was a railroad connecting Richmond, Virginia, to Washington, D.C. The track is now the RF&P Subdivision of the CSX Transportation system; the original corporation is no longer a railroad company.
The Aliquippa and Ohio River Railroad is a six-mile short line railroad in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, United States, controlled by Genesee & Wyoming Inc. through its ownership of the Ohio Central Railroad System. It lies between CSX Transportation's ex-Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad line and the Ohio River, extending south from CSX's yard in northern Aliquippa to near the Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge. Formerly known as the Aliquippa and Southern Railroad, its owner and primary customer was LTV Steel, which mostly closed its Aliquippa plant in 1985 and sold the line to the Ohio Central in 2002. The AOR now connects the Aliquippa Industrial Park, which occupies the LTV site, with CSX.
The Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company (OR&N) was a railroad that operated a rail network of 1,143 miles (1,839 km) of track running east from Portland, Oregon, United States to northeastern Oregon, northeastern Washington, and northern Idaho. The railroad operated from 1896 as a consolidation of several smaller railroads.
The Ilwaco Railway and Navigation Company operated a 3 ft narrow gauge railroad that ran for over forty years from the bar of the Columbia River up the Long Beach Peninsula to Nahcotta, Washington, on Willapa Bay. The line ran entirely in Pacific County, Washington, and had no connection to any outside rail line. The railroad had a number of nicknames, including the "Clamshell Railroad" and the "Irregular, Rambling and Never-Get-There Railroad."
Kinzua is a ghost town or former town site in Wheeler County, Oregon, United States. It existed as company town from 1927 to 1978. Kinzua lies directly east of Fossil and uses a Fossil mailing address.
The Youngstown and Southeastern Railroad is a short-line railroad subsidiary of the Indiana Boxcar Corporation that operates freight trains between Youngstown, Ohio and Darlington, Pennsylvania, United States. The line is owned by the Columbiana County Port Authority, leased to the Eastern States Railroad, which is owned by the line's primary shipper, and contracted out to the YSRR. Freight is interchanged with CSX Transportation and the Norfolk Southern Railway at the Youngstown end.
The Washington and Idaho Railway was a shortline railroad that operated in the area south of Spokane, Washington, connecting the BNSF Railway at Marshall to Palouse, Washington, Harvard, Idaho, and Moscow, Idaho. It began operations in 2006 on ex-Northern Pacific Railway and Washington, Idaho and Montana Railway trackage formerly operated by the Palouse River and Coulee City Railroad, which had acquired it from the Burlington Northern Railroad in 1996. The railroad ceased operations in 2019 as a new operator gained control of the line.
The following is a brief history of the North American rail system, mainly through major changes to Class I railroads, the largest class by operating revenue.
The Umatilla Central Railroad built a 14.21-mile (22.87 km) branch line of railroad in Umatilla County, Oregon, U.S., connecting the main line of the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company (OR&N) at Rieth to Pilot Rock. The company was incorporated on May 24, 1906, and was operated under lease by the OR&N from opening date, December 16, 1907, until December 23, 1910, when the properties of both were sold to new Union Pacific Railroad (UP) subsidiary Oregon–Washington Railroad and Navigation Company. The line has survived as UP's Pilot Rock Industrial Lead.
The Snake River Valley Railroad built a rail line on the left (southeast) bank of the Snake River between Wallula and Grange City, Washington, United States, a distance of 65.85 miles (105.98 km). The company was incorporated in Oregon on March 3, 1898, and opened its line, operated by the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company (OR&N), on December 1, 1899. It connected to the OR&N at both ends, providing a better route to Spokane than the existing line via Walla Walla. The properties of both companies were conveyed to new Union Pacific Railroad (UP) subsidiary Oregon–Washington Railroad and Navigation Company on December 23, 1910.
The Oregon, Washington and Idaho Railroad built a 72.03-mile (115.92 km) rail line along the right (north) bank of the Snake River between Riparia, Washington and Lewiston, Idaho. The company was incorporated in Oregon on August 8, 1903, and began operating its completed line on July 7, 1908 as an operating subsidiary of the Union Pacific Railroad, which also controlled the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company (OR&N) through Riparia. A portion of the preliminary work had been done by the Snake River Valley Railroad, which built a completed line along the Snake River below Riparia. Beginning on December 3, 1909, the Camas Prairie Railroad, a joint subsidiary of the OR&N and Northern Pacific Railway (NP), began operating the Oregon, Washington and Idaho Railroad as part of a line between Riparia and Grangeville, Idaho, including segments owned by the NP and subsidiary Clearwater Short Line Railway. On December 23, 1910, the property of the Oregon, Washington and Idaho was conveyed to new Union Pacific subsidiary Oregon–Washington Railroad and Navigation Company, successor to the OR&N, but the Camas Prairie Railroad continued to operate it as agent.
The Oregon Eastern Railroad (OERR) is a railroad going from Ontario to Celetom Oregon. The railroad is all that is left of the Wyoming Colorado Railroad started out as the Malheur Valley Railway. The railroad promotes itself as a "safe, reliable and economical method of transportation" and is proud of the fuel efficiency of railroads.
The Columbia Southern Railway built a rail line extending 69.46 miles (111.79 km) from Biggs south to Shaniko, Oregon, U.S. The company was incorporated on March 5, 1897, and intended to continue beyond Shaniko to Prineville, with a branch to Canyon City. Operations began October 6, 1897, on 8.5 miles (13.7 km) from Biggs to Wasco, and the line was extended to Moro on January 13, 1899, Grass Valley on March 27, 1900, and Shaniko on May 13, 1900. The Union Pacific Railroad (UP), owner of the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company (OR&N), which followed the Columbia River through Biggs, gained control of the Columbia Southern in 1905, and leased it to the OR&N on June 30, 1906. The properties of the OR&N and Columbia Southern Railway were conveyed to new UP subsidiary Oregon–Washington Railroad and Navigation Company on December 23, 1910.
The Lake Creek and Coeur d'Alene Railroad built a 14.18-mile (22.82 km) rail line between Manito, Washington and Amwaco, Idaho. It was incorporated on July 26, 1906, in Oregon, and completed the line on June 12, 1910. From opening, the company's line, and a steamboat it had acquired, were leased to the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company (OR&N). The OR&N was already operating a line through Manito to Spokane, and at Amwaco it used the steamboat to cross Lake Coeur d'Alene to Harrison, which was located on another ex-Washington and Idaho Railroad line to Wallace. The combined railroad and steamboat line thus formed a shorter route between Spokane and Wallace than the all-rail route via Tekoa, and helped the OR&N successfully compete with the electric interurban Coeur d'Alene and Spokane Railway and its steamboat connection.
The Idaho Northern Railroad built a branch line of the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company (OR&N) in northern Idaho, U.S., connecting the main line at Enaville with Paragon, a distance of 32.83 miles (52.83 km). The company was incorporated on January 10, 1906, and opened on August 1, 1909 as an operating subsidiary of the Union Pacific Railroad (UP), owner of the OR&N. On December 23, 1910, the property of the OR&N and Idaho Northern Railroad were conveyed to new UP subsidiary Oregon–Washington Railroad and Navigation Company.
The Oregon Eastern Railway was a predecessor of the Southern Pacific Company that acquired or built most of the Natron Cutoff in northern California and southern Oregon, United States. It also made surveys and acquired right-of-way in eastern Oregon, which were subsequently sold to Union Pacific Railroad subsidiary Oregon–Washington Railroad and Navigation Company.
The Puget Sound Shore Railroad and successor Northern Pacific and Puget Sound Shore Railroad built a branch line of the Northern Pacific Railroad between Puyallup and Seattle, Washington, U.S., and partially constructed a line around the east side of Lake Washington to Woodinville.
The Calumet River Railway built a 4-mile (6.4 km) rail line in Chicago, serving industries on the east side of the Calumet River. The company was incorporated on March 5, 1883, and completed the line on September 16, 1895. From opening, it was operated by the Pennsylvania Company, which also operated the lines to which it connected - the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne and Chicago Railway near 100th Street in South Chicago and the South Chicago and Southern Railroad near 132nd Street in Hegewisch. On February 5, 1901, the Calumet River Railway was merged into the South Chicago and Southern Railroad. The lease was transferred from the Pennsylvania Company to parent Pennsylvania Railroad on January 1, 1918, and to the Penn Central Transportation Company in 1968. In 1954 the South Chicago and Southern Railroad was merged into the Penndel Company, and in 1976 ownership and operation of the line was acquired by the Consolidated Rail Corporation (Conrail).
The Chicago Junction Railway operated a switching and terminal railroad in Chicago, connecting the Union Stock Yards with most other railroads in the city. It also briefly operated an outer belt, which became the Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad in 1907. The New York Central Railroad acquired control of the company in 1922 and leased it to subsidiary Chicago River and Indiana Railroad. The line is now owned and operated by the Norfolk Southern Railway.
