Main Line (Columbus to Chicago)

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The Columbus to Chicago Main Line was a rail line owned and operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad in the U.S. states of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. The line ran from Columbus, Ohio northwest via Logansport, Indiana to Chicago, Illinois. [1] Junctions included the Columbus to Indianapolis Main Line via Bradford, which split at Bradford to reach the Pittsburgh to St. Louis Main Line at New Paris, Ohio; the Fort Wayne Branch at Ridgeville, Indiana; the Richmond Branch (from Cincinnati) at Anoka, Indiana; and the South Bend Branch and I&F Branch at Logansport.

Pennsylvania Railroad Former American Class I railroad

The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was so named because it was established in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

U.S. state constituent political entity of the United States

In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are currently 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory and shares its sovereignty with the federal government. Due to this shared sovereignty, Americans are citizens both of the federal republic and of the state in which they reside. State citizenship and residency are flexible, and no government approval is required to move between states, except for persons restricted by certain types of court orders.

Ohio U.S. state in the United States

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the Great Lakes region of the United States. Of the fifty states, it is the 34th largest by area, the seventh most populous, and the tenth most densely populated. The state's capital and largest city is Columbus. Ohio is bordered by Pennsylvania to the east, Michigan to the northwest, Lake Erie to the north, Indiana to the west, Kentucky on the south, and West Virginia on the southeast.

The line has largely been abandoned. The Norfolk Southern Railway operates the portion from Redkey, Indiana west to Sweetser as the Red Key Secondary, and a short piece from Schererville, Indiana, to Hartsdale, Indiana, as the Logansport Secondary. The portion from Anoka to Logansport is part of the Winamac Southern Railway.[ citation needed ]

Norfolk Southern Railway American Class I railway

The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States. With headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, the company operates 19,420 miles (31,250 km) route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia, and has rights in Canada over the Albany to Montréal route of the Canadian Pacific Railway, and previously on CN from Buffalo to St. Thomas. NS is responsible for maintaining 28,400 miles (45,700 km), with the remainder being operated under trackage rights from other parties responsible for maintenance. The most common commodity hauled on the railway is coal from mines in Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. The railway also offers the largest intermodal network in eastern North America.

Redkey, Indiana Town in Indiana, United States

Redkey is a town in Richland Township, Jay County, Indiana, United States. The population was 1,353 at the 2010 census.

Sweetser, Indiana Town in Indiana, United States

Sweetser is a town in Franklin, Pleasant and Richland townships, Grant County, Indiana, United States. The population was 1229 at the 2010 census.

History

The oldest piece of the line is the part closest to Columbus; the Columbus, Piqua and Indiana Railroad opened from Columbus to Union City, Indiana (on the state line) in 1853 [2] and 1854 to Piqua [3] and 1859 to Union City. [4] Closer to Chicago, the Cincinnati and Chicago Railroad opened the short piece between Anoka and Logansport in 1857 as part of a longer line between Richmond and Logansport. [5] The Chicago and Cincinnati Railroad opened the line from Logansport to La Crosse and beyond to Valparaiso in 1861; a bridge over the Wabash River at Logansport, connecting to the existing line, was opened the same year by the Cincinnati and Chicago Air-Line Railroad. [6] [7] The Chicago and Great Eastern Railway opened the line from La Crosse to Chicago (and abandoned the old line to Valparaiso) in 1865, and absorbed the Chicago and Cincinnati Railroad and Cincinnati and Chicago Air-Line Railroad later that year. [8] The piece from Union City to Marion was opened in 1867 from by the Columbus and Indiana Central Railway, the successor to the Columbus, Piqua and Indiana Railroad, [9] and, in 1868, the Columbus and Indiana Central Railway and Chicago and Great Eastern Railway merged to form the Columbus, Chicago and Indiana Central Railway and completed the line from Marion to Anoka; the CC&IC owned the entire line from Columbus to Chicago. [10]

Union City, Indiana City in Indiana, United States

Union City is a city in Wayne Township, Randolph County, Indiana. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 3,584.

Anoka, Indiana Unincorporated community in Indiana, United States

Anoka is an unincorporated community in Washington Township, Cass County, Indiana.

Wabash River tributary of the Ohio River in the United States of America

The Wabash River is a 503-mile-long (810 km) river in Ohio and Indiana, United States, that flows from the headwaters near the middle of Ohio's western border northwest then southwest across northern Indiana turning south along the Illinois border where the southern portion forms the Indiana-Illinois border before flowing into the Ohio River. It is the largest northern tributary of the Ohio River. From the dam near Huntington, Indiana, to its terminus at the Ohio River, the Wabash flows freely for 411 miles (661 km). Its watershed drains most of Indiana. The Tippecanoe River, White River, Embarras River and Little Wabash River are major tributaries. The river's name comes from an Illini Indian word meaning "water over white stones".

The Pittsburg, Cincinnati and St. Louis Railway leased the CC&IC on February 1, 1869, placing it under Pennsylvania Railroad control and giving the PRR a second route to Chicago (it already owned the Fort Wayne Line [ citation needed ]). [11] The PC&StL and its successors, the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway and Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad, operated the line until January 1, 1921, when the PRR began operating it under lease. [12] The line passed to Penn Central Transportation in 1968 and Conrail in 1976; Conrail slowly abandoned almost all of it.[ citation needed ] The route was abandoned in 1982 between Schererville and Winamac, the rest of the line was removed by 1986 with the exception of the track between Winamac and Logansport, which was removed in 2005.

The Fort Wayne Line and Fort Wayne Secondary is a rail line owned and operated by the Norfolk Southern Railway (NS), Chicago, Fort Wayne and Eastern Railroad (CFE), and CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana. The line runs from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania west via Fort Wayne, Indiana to Gary, Indiana along what was once the Pennsylvania Railroad's Pittsburgh to Chicago Main Line.

Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad

The Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad, commonly called the Pan Handle Route, was a railroad that was part of the Pennsylvania Railroad system. Its common name came from its main line, which began at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, crossed the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia, and continued west to Bradford, Ohio, where it split into a northern line to Chicago and a southern one through Indianapolis, Indiana, to East St. Louis, Illinois.

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Junction Railroad (Philadelphia)

The Junction Railroad was a railroad created in 1860 to connect lines west of downtown Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and allow north-south traffic through the metropolitan area for the first time. The railroad consisted of 3.56 miles of double track and 5.3 miles of sidings. It owned no locomotives or rolling stock. The line connected the Philadelphia and Reading Rail Road line at the west end of the Columbia Bridge over the Schuylkill River, crossed the Pennsylvania Railroad line, ran parallel to Market Street, and turned south to connect with the Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad at Gray's Ferry.

The Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne and Chicago Railway was a major part of the Pennsylvania Railroad system, extending the PRR west from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, via Fort Wayne, Indiana, to Chicago, Illinois. It included the current Norfolk Southern-owned Fort Wayne Line east of Crestline, Ohio, to Pittsburgh, and the Fort Wayne Secondary, owned by CSX, from Crestline west to Tolleston in Gary, Indiana. CSX leased its entire portion in 2004 to the Chicago, Fort Wayne and Eastern Railroad (CFE). The remaining portion of the line from Tolleston into Chicago is now part of the Norfolk Southern's Chicago District, with a small portion of the original PFW&C trackage abandoned in favor of the parallel lines of former competitors which are now part of the modern NS system.

The Cincinnati and Richmond Railroad was part of the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway system.

Pennsylvania Company

The Pennsylvania Company, later known publicly as the Pennsylvania Lines was a major holding company. It included the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne and Chicago Railway, the PRR's main route to Chicago. It also owned but did not operate the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad, another line to Chicago. It merged back into the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1918.

The Southern Tier Line is a railroad line owned and operated by the Norfolk Southern Railway in the U.S. states of New York and Pennsylvania. The line runs from Suffern, New York northwest to Buffalo, New York, mostly along a former Erie Railroad line. From its east end, NS has trackage rights south on the New Jersey Transit Main and Bergen County Lines to Conrail's North Jersey Shared Assets Area. From Suffern to Port Jervis along which passenger service still runs, the line is leased to and maintained by Metro-North Railroad for its Port Jervis Line service. From Port Jervis to Binghamton, the line is leased to and maintained by the Central New York Railroad, part of the Delaware Otsego Corporation. It junctions with the Lake Erie District at its west end. Along the way it meets the Corning Secondary at Corning, New York.

Buffalo Line rail line in New York and Pennsylvania

The Buffalo Line is a railroad line owned by the Norfolk Southern Railway in the U.S. states of New York and Pennsylvania. The line runs from Buffalo, New York southeast to Rockville, Pennsylvania near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania along a former Pennsylvania Railroad line. Its north end is at Seneca Yard in Buffalo, with no direct access to the Lake Erie district, and its south end is at the Pittsburgh Line at Rockville. The line is operated by the Buffalo and Pittsburgh Railroad between Buffalo and Machias, New York, the Western New York and Pennsylvania Railroad between Machias and Driftwood, Pennsylvania, and the Norfolk Southern Railway between Driftwood and Rockville.

The Sandusky District is a railroad line owned and operated by the Norfolk Southern Railway in the U.S. state of Ohio. The line runs from Columbus north to Sandusky along a former Pennsylvania Railroad line. At its south end, it junctions or comes close to the Columbus District, Dayton District, and West Virginia Secondary. On the way to the Chicago Line at Sandusky, it meets the Chicago Fort Wayne and Eastern Railroad at Bucyrus and the Fostoria District and Cleveland District at Bellevue.

The New Castle District is a railroad line owned and operated by the Norfolk Southern Railway in the U.S. states of Ohio and Indiana. The line runs from Cincinnati, Ohio northwest and north to Fort Wayne, Indiana along former Pennsylvania Railroad and New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad lines. Its south end is at Evendale, where it meets the Dayton District and Indiana and Ohio Railway's Oasis Subdivision. It runs along a piece of CSX Transportation's Toledo Subdivision from Hamilton north to New Miami, Ohio using trackage rights. The New Castle District junctions the Frankfort District at Muncie, Indiana. In Fort Wayne, it crosses the Huntington District and ends at the Chicago District.

The Dayton District is a railroad line owned and operated by the Norfolk Southern Railway in the U.S. state of Ohio. The line runs from Columbus southwest to Cincinnati along former Pennsylvania Railroad and New York Central Railroad lines. Its east end is at or near the Columbus District, Sandusky District, and West Virginia Secondary; its south end is near Bond Hill, where it meets CSX Transportation's Cincinnati Terminal Subdivision and the Indiana and Ohio Railway's Midland Subdivision. Along the way, it junctions the New Castle District at Evendale.

The Conemaugh Line is a rail line owned and operated by the Norfolk Southern Railway in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The line runs from Conpit Junction northwest and southwest to Pittsburgh, following the Conemaugh, Kiskiminetas, and Allegheny rivers, on the former main line of the Conemaugh Branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR). At its east end, it merges with the Pittsburgh Line; its west end is where it merges with the Fort Wayne Line at the northwestern tip of Allegheny Commons Park. The line was used by the PRR as a low-grade alternate to its main line in the Pittsburgh area.

Main Line (Pennsylvania Railroad)

The Main Line of the Pennsylvania Railroad was a rail line in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, connecting Philadelphia with Pittsburgh via Harrisburg. The rail line was split into two rail lines and now all of its right of way is now a cross-state corridor, composed of Amtrak's Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line and the Norfolk Southern Railway's Pittsburgh Line.

The New Castle Branch was a rail line owned and operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The line ran from New Castle north to Stoneboro, and is now entirely abandoned. At its south end, the line intersected the Erie and Pittsburgh Branch and Mahoningtown Branch. When the New Castle Branch ended at Stoneboro, the PRR had trackage rights east along the New York Central Railroad's Stoneboro Branch to Oil City and the Allegheny Branch, Chautauqua Branch, and Salamanca Branch.

Butler Branch (Indiana)

The Butler Branch is a historic railroad line that operated in Indiana, USA. It ran between the city of Logansport on the Wabash River in north central Indiana and the namesake town of Butler near the Ohio border in northeastern Indiana.

The Columbus to Indianapolis via Bradford Main Line was a rail line owned and operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad in the U.S. state of Ohio.

The Pittsburgh to St. Louis Main Line was a rail line owned and operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad in the U.S. states of Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. The line ran from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania west via Steubenville, Ohio, Columbus, Ohio, Dayton, Ohio, Indianapolis, Indiana, Terre Haute, Indiana, and Vandalia, Illinois to East St. Louis, Illinois. In addition to its east end in downtown Pittsburgh, where it met the Main Line and Pittsburgh to Chicago Main Line, junctions included the Columbus to Chicago Main Line at Columbus, the C&X Branch at Xenia, the Columbus to Indianapolis Main Line via Bradford at New Paris, the Richmond Branch and Fort Wayne Branch at Richmond, the Louisville Branch and I&F Branch at Indianapolis, and the Peoria Branch at Farrington, Illinois.

The Delaware Extension was a rail line owned and operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania.

The Pennsylvania, Ohio and Detroit Railroad was a railroad company in the U.S. states of Ohio and Michigan that existed from 1926 to 1956. Its sole purpose was to simplify the corporate structure of the Pennsylvania Railroad by merging subsidiaries into a common company leased to the PRR; the PO&D was merged into the Connecting Railway in 1956.

The Vandalia Railroad Company was incorporated January 1, 1905, by a merger of several lines in Indiana and Illinois that formed a 471-mile railroad consisting of lines mostly west of Indianapolis.

References

  1. ↑ Pennsylvania Railroad, "Western Region employee timetable" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2004-04-21. (23.3  MiB), April 30, 1967
  2. ↑ "PRR Chronology, 1853" (PDF). (91.5  KiB), March 2005 Edition
  3. ↑ "PRR Chronology, 1854" (PDF). (79.1  KiB), March 2005 Edition
  4. ↑ "PRR Chronology, 1859" (PDF). (60.9  KiB), March 2005 Edition
  5. ↑ "PRR Chronology, 1857" (PDF). (54.1  KiB), March 2005 Edition
  6. ↑ "PRR Chronology, 1861" (PDF). (176  KiB), May 2004 Edition
  7. ↑ PRR Corporate History: Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway Archived 2001-05-29 at Archive.today
  8. ↑ "PRR Chronology, 1865" (PDF). (110  KiB), June 2004 Edition
  9. ↑ "PRR Chronology, 1867" (PDF). (98.3  KiB), June 2004 Edition
  10. ↑ "PRR Chronology, 1868" (PDF). (93.8  KiB), June 2004 Edition
  11. ↑ "PRR Chronology, 1869" (PDF). (114  KiB), June 2004 Edition
  12. ↑ "PRR Chronology, 1921" (PDF). (100  KiB), June 2004 Edition
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