Pittsburg County Railway

Last updated
Pittsburg County Railway
Overview
HeadquartersMcAlester
Locale Oklahoma
Dates of operation1903–1946
Technical
Track gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Length23.29 miles (37.48 km)

Beginning life as the Indian Territory Traction Co. and then the Choctaw Railway & Lighting Co., the Pittsburg County Railway was a long-lived interurban running between McAlester, Oklahoma and Hartshorne, Oklahoma. It lasted from 1903 until 1946.

Contents

History

Indian Territory Traction Co.

The Indian Territory Traction Co. was granted its franchise December 10, 1901 for a period of 40 years. [1] Its proposed route map was accepted by the Secretary of the Interior on July 25, 1903. [1] The basic system was built In the 1903-1904 timeframe. [2] It first linked the northern and southern parts of what became the unified town of McAlester in 1907, the area being a coal mining and rail transportation center. [3] It continued southeast through Krebs, Alderson, Bache, and Haileyville before terminating in Hartshorne. [4] [5]

Choctaw Railway & Lighting Co.

After the franchise was passed through a third party to the Choctaw Electric Co., Indian Territory Electric was consolidated with Choctaw Electric to form Choctaw Railway & Lighting Co. on February 1, 1908. [1] When the power company was split from the transportation business in 1916, the transportation side was incorporated as the Pittsburg County Railway Co. on June 24 of that year. [6] [7] On August 27, 1928, this became a subsidiary of Public Service Company of Oklahoma (“PSO”). [4] [2]

The system under PSO consisted of the 18.44-mile main line, but spur lines within towns and connecting tract to other railroads brought total trackage to about 23.29 miles. [4] The railway carried both passengers and freight, the latter consisting of mail and (mostly) grains, particularly corn and oats. [4]

Abandonment

The line remained active through World War II, including by delivering canned goods to a POW camp near the town's northern limit, and the U.S. Naval Ammunition Depot to the south. [4] [3] But PSO, being forced to divest non-utility assets, sold the railroad November 26, 1945. [4] Given the popularity of the automobile and other changes in the postwar economy, the line shut down December 2, 1946. [4] [8]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "2nd and 3rd Annual Reports of the Corporation Commission of the State of Oklahoma for the years 1909-1910, p. 936". Oklahoma Corporation Commission (accessed on Google Books). Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Pittsburg County". Oklahoma Historical Society. Retrieved January 13, 2026.
  3. 1 2 "McAlester". Oklahoma Historical Society. Retrieved January 13, 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "PSO's Last Railway Conductor Recalls Fender-Benders, Passengers, Routes". Sue Smith, The Oklahoman, November 28, 1982. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
  5. ↑ "Hartshorne". Oklahoma Historical Society. Retrieved January 13, 2026.
  6. ↑ Chandler, Allison (1980). When Oklahoma Took the Trolley. Interurbans. pp. 87–92. ISBN   0-916374-35-1.
  7. ↑ "Railway Retirement letter of April 19, 1938" (PDF). GovInfo.gov. Retrieved January 13, 2026.
  8. ↑ "Oklahoma Interurbans and Streetcars:History, Lines, Photos". American Rails. Retrieved January 13, 2026.
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