Marion and McPherson Railroad

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The Marion and McPherson Railroad was a short-line railroad in central Kansas.

Kansas State of the United States of America

Kansas is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka and its largest city is Wichita, with its most populated county being Johnson County. Kansas is bordered by Nebraska on the north; Missouri on the east; Oklahoma on the south; and Colorado on the west. Kansas is named after the Kansas River, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native Americans who lived along it banks. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the (south) wind" although this was probably not the term's original meaning. For thousands of years, what is now Kansas was home to numerous and diverse Native American tribes. Tribes in the eastern part of the state generally lived in villages along the river valleys. Tribes in the western part of the state were semi-nomadic and hunted large herds of bison.

Contents

History

As early as 1875, city leaders of Marion held a meeting to consider a branch railroad from Florence to Marion. In 1878, the Marion and McPherson Railway Company was chartered. [1]

Marion, Kansas City and County seat in Kansas, United States

Marion is a city in, and the county seat of, Marion County, Kansas, United States. It was named in honor of Francis Marion, a Brigadier General of the American Revolutionary War, known as the "Swamp Fox". At the 2010 census, the city population was 1,927.

Florence, Kansas City in Kansas, United States

Florence is a city in Marion County, Kansas, United States. The city was named after the daughter of the third Governor of Kansas Samuel J. Crawford. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 465.

In 1879, a rail line was built from Florence to McPherson. [2] In 1880, it was extended to Lyons, in 1881 it was extended to Ellinwood. [3] In 1901, the line was leased and operated by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, which used the name "Florence & Ellinwood Division" for it. [4]

McPherson, Kansas City and County seat in Kansas, United States

McPherson is a city in and the county seat of McPherson County, Kansas, United States, in the central part of the state. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 13,155. The city is named after Union General James Birdseye McPherson, a Civil War general. It is home to McPherson College and Central Christian College.

Lyons, Kansas City and County seat in Kansas, United States

Lyons is a city in and the county seat of Rice County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 3,739.

Ellinwood, Kansas City in Kansas, United States

Ellinwood is a city in the southeast corner of Barton County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 2,131.

The line from Florence to Marion was abandoned in 1969. [5] [6] [7] In 1992, the line from Marion to McPherson was sold to Central Kansas Railway. In 1993, after heavy flood damage, the line from Marion to McPherson was abandoned. In 2001, the railway from Lyons to 3 miles (5 kilometers) west of Conway was abandoned. [8] In 2001, Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad (K&O) took over operations of Central Kansas Railway. [9] [10]

Central Kansas Railway

The Central Kansas Railway (CKR) was a short-line railroad operating 900 miles (1,400 km) of trackage in the U.S. state of Kansas and west to Scott City, Kansas. All trackage was former Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway branchlines in Kansas & northern Oklahoma. The Kansas Southwestern Railway, a sister company which operated former Missouri Pacific Railroad branchlines in Kansas, was merged into the CKR in 2000. Owned by Omnitrax, CKR's main business was from the Kansas wheat harvests, as well as other traffic.

Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad

The Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad is a shortline railroad operating in the midwest United States. Despite the name, it is primarily located in Kansas but extends into Colorado, not Oklahoma.

Currently, the remaining parts of the former Marion and McPherson Railroad that still exists is: [11] [12]

Stations

At a high-level, the railroad connected the primary cities of Ellinwood (west end), Lyons, McPherson, Marion, Florence (east end).

See also

Further reading

Related Research Articles

Rice County, Kansas County in the United States

Rice County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 10,083. The largest city and county seat is Lyons. The county was named in memory of Samuel Allen Rice, Brigadier-General, United States volunteers, killed April 30, 1864, at Jenkins Ferry, Arkansas.

McPherson County, Kansas County in the United States

McPherson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 29,180. The largest city and county seat is McPherson. The county is named for Civil War General James B. McPherson.

Marion County, Kansas County in the United States

Marion County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 12,660. The county seat is Marion. The county was named in honor of Francis Marion, a Brigadier General of the American Revolutionary War, known as the "Swamp Fox".

Barton County, Kansas County in the United States

Barton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 27,674. Its county seat and most populous city is Great Bend. The county is named in honor of Clara Barton, responsible for the founding of the American Red Cross.

Canton, Kansas City in Kansas, United States

Canton is a city in McPherson County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 748. It is named after Canton, Ohio.

Galva, Kansas City in Kansas, United States

Galva is a city in McPherson County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 870.

Windom, Kansas City in Kansas, United States

Windom is a city in McPherson County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 130.

Chase, Kansas City in Kansas, United States

Chase is a city in Rice County, Kansas, United States. It is approximately seventy-three miles northwest of Wichita. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 477. Chase was founded in 1880.

Little River, Kansas City in Kansas, United States

Little River is a city in Rice County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 557.

Mitchell, Kansas Unincorporated community in Kansas, United States

Mitchell is an unincorporated community in Rice County, Kansas, United States. Located about 6 miles (9.7 km) east-northeast of the city of Lyons, the county seat, it lies along local roads a fraction of a mile north of U.S. Route 56.

Conway, Kansas Unincorporated community in Kansas, United States

Conway is an unincorporated community in southwestern Jackson Township, McPherson County, Kansas, United States. It lies along U.S. Route 56 and a Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad line, west of the city of McPherson, the county seat of McPherson County.

Canada, Kansas Unincorporated community in Kansas, United States

Canada is an unincorporated community in Marion County, Kansas, United States. It is named for many Canadian immigrants coming to the area.

Oursler, Kansas Ghost town in Kansas, United States

Oursler was an unincorporated community in Marion County, Kansas, United States. It is currently a ghost town that was located approximately 3.5 miles southeast of Marion next to a former railroad. No buildings remain of this former community.

The Florence, El Dorado, and Walnut Valley Railroad was a short-line railroad in central Kansas.

References

  1. ↑ Marion County Kansas : Past and Present; Sondra Van Meter; MB Publishing House; LCCN 72-92041; 344 pages; 1972.
  2. ↑ Railroad history for Lyons, Kansas; Frisco blog; December 2007.
  3. ↑ Fourth Annual Report of the Board of Railroad Commissioners for the Year Ending December 1, 1886 in State of Kansas; Kansas Publishing House; 1886.
  4. ↑ Florence & Ellinwood Division in Kansas: A Cyclopedia of State History; Standard Publishing Co; 805 pages; 1912.
  5. ↑ Railway Abandonment 1968
  6. ↑ Would Abandon Short Rail Line, page 1; Peabody Gazette-Herald; 10 pages; November 21, 1968.
  7. ↑ Santa Fe to Abandon Line?, page 10; Peabody Gazette-Herald; 13 pages; December 25, 1969.
  8. ↑ Central Kansas Railroad plans to stop service in 5 counties; The Associated Press; November 22, 2000.
  9. ↑ Kansas-Oklahoma railroad rich in orders; Knight Ridder Newspapers; July 5, 2001.
  10. ↑ Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad KO #380; Union Pacific.
  11. ↑ Kansas Railroad Map; KDOT.
  12. ↑ Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad Map Archived 2009-05-06 at the Wayback Machine .
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