List of U.S. Class I railroads

List of U.S. Class I railroads identifies current and previous class I railroad, plus Amtrak; with brief description of the railroad company mergers or organization.

As of 2005 a Class I railroad in the United States has an operating revenue exceeding $319.3 million. There are currently seven, as well as two Canadian railways that would qualify. The classification was started in the 1930s, with the cutoff at $1 million until 1956. Many railroads have become Class II or III due to the rising cutoff; others have been merged or leased by others.

Current Class I railroads

BNSF Railway

The BNSF Railway reporting mark|BNSF is the second-largest Class I railroad in the United States, serving mainly the land west of the Mississippi River. It was formed in 1996 as a merger of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway into the Burlington Northern Railroad, and was known as the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway until 2005. BNSF is based in Fort Worth, Texas.

CSX Transportation

CSX Transportation reporting mark|CSXT is the third-largest Class I, serving the area east of the Mississippi River. The company was formed in 1986 as a renaming of the Seaboard System Railroad, and in 1987 the last of a long line of consolidations saw the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway merging into CSX. CSX absorbed the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad in 1991. In 1999 CSX began operating its portion, 42%, of the former Conrail system through its lease on the new Conrail subsidiary New York Central Lines reporting mark|NYC.

Grand Trunk Corporation/CN

The Grand Trunk Corporation is the corporation under which the CN operates railroads within the United States. The Grand Trunk Corporation also includes the Illinois Central Railroad. The CN identity is being phased in over the U.S. lines.

Kansas City Southern Railway

The Kansas City Southern Railway reporting mark|KCS is the smallest of the Class I railroads, with a main line from Kansas City, Missouri south to Port Arthur, Texas. It is owned by KCS Industries along with the Texas Mexican Railway and Grupo Transportación Ferroviaria Mexicana, extending its line south into Mexico as the NAFTA Railway. The company was chartered in 1890 as the Kansas City, Pittsburg and Gulf Railroad, completing its line from Kansas City to the Gulf of Mexico (at Port Arthur) in 1897. In 1900 it was reorganized as the Kansas City Southern Railway. In 1997 the KCS acquired the Gateway Western Railway, formerly part of the Alton Railroad, extending its system from Kansas City to East St. Louis, Illinois.

Norfolk Southern Railway

The Norfolk Southern Railway (AAR reporting mark NS), usually called Norfolk Southern, is a major Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. The company operates 21,500 route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario, Canada. The most common commodity hauled on the railroad is coal from mines in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia and Kentucky. The railroad also offers an extensive intermodal network in eastern North America. The current system was planned in 1982 with the formation of the Norfolk Southern Corporation, merged on December 31 1990 with the lease of the Norfolk and Western Railway by the renamed Southern Railway, and augmented on June 1 1999 with the acquisition of over half of Conrail.

oo Line Railroad

The Soo Line Railroad reporting mark|SOO is the United States arm of the Canadian Pacific Railway, serving Chicago, Illinois and the areas to the east and west. In 1985 the Soo Line purchased the Milwaukee Road and attempted to operate its old duplicate trackage as a wholly owned subsidiary railroad, the Lake States Transportation Division. This plan didn't work out too well for the Soo; most of the LSTD and most of the original Wisconsin Central Railway was sold in 1987 to the newly formed Wisconsin Central Transportation Corporation.

The Soo Line is a part of the Canadian Pacific Railway system. As time passes, more and more Soo Line equipment is being repainted into the Canadian Pacific's current paint scheme, slowly erasing the Soo's identity as a subsidiary railroad.

Union Pacific Railroad

The Union Pacific Railroad is the largest railroad in the United States. Its primary AAR reporting mark is UP.

The Union Pacific's route map covers most of the central and western United States, westward of Chicago and New Orleans. It has achieved this size thanks to purchasing a large number of other railroads; notable purchases include the Missouri Pacific Railroad, Chicago and North Western Railway, Western Pacific Railroad, Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad, and Southern Pacific Railroad (which itself was purchased by the Rio Grande before UP purchased it).

Union Pacific's chief competitor is the BNSF Railway, which covers much of the same territory in the Western United States. Union Pacific is based in Omaha, Nebraska.

Amtrak

"See article for Amtrak"

Amtrak reporting mark|AMTK and AMTZ is the brand name of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, created on May 1, 1971, by the mergers of several rail passenger services, as the United States' intercity passenger train system. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "American" and "track".Fact|date=June 2007

Amtrak is a quasi-governmental agency; all of its preferred stock is owned by the federal government. The members of its board of directors are appointed by the President of the United States, and are subject to confirmation by the United States Senate. Some common stock is held by the private railroads that transferred their passenger service to Amtrak in 1971. Though Amtrak stock does not pay dividends and is not routinely traded, a small number of private investors have purchased Amtrak stock from its original owners.

Amtrak employs over 19,000 people. The nationwide network of 22,000 miles (35,000 km) of routes serves 500 communities in 46 states of the United States, with some of the routes serving communities in Canada. In fiscal year 2006, Amtrak served an estimated 25 million passengers, a company record.

Former Class I railroads

Akron, Canton and Youngstown Railroad

The Akron, Canton and Youngstown Railroad reporting mark|ACY ran west from Mogadore, Ohio via Akron to Delphos, Ohio. The line from Mogadore to Akron opened in 1913, and in 1920 it leased the Northern Ohio Railway, continuing its line west from Akron to Delphos. The Norfolk and Western Railway gained control in 1964, at the same time as the N&W merged the New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad (Nickel Plate Road), but the AC&Y continued to operate independently until it was merged into the N&W in 1982. The line was sold in 1990 to the new spinoff Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway.

Alabama Great Southern Railroad

The Alabama Great Southern Railroad Company reporting mark|AGS was organized in 1877 as the successor to the Alabama and Chattanooga Railroad (A&C). The A&C had completed about 230 miles of a planned 293-mile line from Chattanooga to Meridian, Mississippi. About 25 of these miles were in Georgia, including a section from Trenton to Wauhatchie that was built in 1860 as the Wills Valley Railroad. After 1895 the A&C was controlled by the Southern Railway. Today it is a division of Norfolk Southern Railway.

Alton Railroad

The Alton Railroad reporting mark|A or CA ran from Chicago, Illinois southwest via Alton, Illinois to East St. Louis, Illinois and Kansas City, Missouri. The line was completed from Alton to Joliet outside Chicago in 1855, and in 1856 it reached Chicago, acquiring the name Chicago and Alton Railroad reporting mark|C&A in 1862. In 1879 it leased the Kansas City, St. Louis and Chicago Railroad, giving it access to Kansas City. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad bought the railroad in 1929, and in 1931 it was reorganized as the Alton Railroad. The B&O sold it in 1943 and it was bought by the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad at bankruptcy in 1947. The Illinois Central Gulf Railroad, successor to the GM&O, sold the main lines except Chicago-Joliet to the new spinoff Chicago, Missouri and Western Railway. The CM&W quickly failed; the Southern Pacific Railroad bought the Joliet-East St. Louis line in 1989 and the Gateway Western Railway acquired the Kansas City line in 1990. In 1997 the Kansas City Southern Railway acquired the GWWR.

Ann Arbor Railroad

The Ann Arbor Railroad reporting mark|AA ran from Toledo, Ohio north via Ann Arbor, Michigan to Frankfort, Michigan. The company started as the Toledo, Ann Arbor and Northern Railroad, and after several renamings became the Ann Arbor Railroad in 1895. From 1905 to 1910 the Detroit, Toledo and Ironton Railroad controlled it. The Wabash Railroad controlled it from 1925 to 1963, at which time it was sold back to the DT&I until 1976, when it was to be merged into Conrail. However, Conrail would have abandoned most of the route, and the State of Michigan bought the AA to prevent that. Conrail operated the full line for about a year, after which the Michigan Interstate Railway took over operations. In 1983 the line was split among three short lines - Michigan Interstate Railway, Tuscola and Saginaw Bay Railway and Michigan Northern Railway. In 1984 the T&SB took over the MN, and the MI was reorganized as the Ann Arbor Railroad in 1988. The section operated by the current Ann Arbor Railroad is south of Ann Arbor, which is the portion that Conrail would have retained.

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway

The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway reporting mark|ATSF had a main line from Chicago, Illinois to Los Angeles, California with many branches. It started as the Atchison and Topeka Railroad, and was consolidated into the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad in 1863. In 1996 the AT&SF merged into the Burlington Northern Railroad to form the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway.

Atlanta and St. Andrews Bay Railway

Atlanta and West Point Rail Road

The Atlanta and West Point Rail Road reporting mark|A℘ AWP ran from Atlanta, Georgia west to West Point, Georgia on the Alabama state line. Together with the Western Railway of Alabama it formed the "West Point Route" through Montgomery, Alabama to Selma, Alabama. The company started as the Atlanta and LaGrange Rail Road, finished in 1854; the Atlanta and West Point Rail Road name was adopted in 1857. The Georgia Railroad and Banking Company gained control in 1875, and after various sales of that company it ended up being owned half-and-half by the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad and Louisville and Nashville Railroad. The L&N merged with the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad (the ACL's successor) to form the Seaboard System Railroad in 1983, and the separate company was unnecessary and was quickly merged into the Seaboard.

Atlantic Coast Line Railroad

The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad reporting mark|ACL was a major system in the Southeast U.S. with a main line from Richmond, Virginia to Tampa, Florida. The Atlantic Coast Line name was assigned in 1898 to the sections in South Carolina and Virginia (the latter including the 1833 Petersburg Railroad) and in 1900 to the North Carolina section. In 1967 the ACL merged with the competing Seaboard Air Line Railroad to form the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad.

Atlantic and Danville Railway

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad

The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad reporting mark|B&O; BO had a main line from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania via Baltimore, Maryland and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Chicago, Illinois, with additional lines to Rochester, New York, St. Louis, Missouri, and numerous branches. The first section near Baltimore opened in 1830, and the original main line to Wheeling, West Virginia on the Ohio River was completed in 1853. The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway gained control in 1963, and the B&O and C&O gained control of the Western Maryland Railway in 1967. B&O was operated as part of the Chessie System from 1973, with the WM being merged into the B&O in 1983. In 1987 the B&O was merged into the C&O, which itself merged into CSX Transportation later that year.

Bangor and Aroostook Railroad

Beaumont, Sour Lake and Western Railway

Bessemer and Lake Erie Railroad

The Bessemer and Lake Erie Railroad (B≤ reporting mark BLE) was a railroad company operating mainly in western Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio. The railroad's main line ran from the Lake Erie port of Conneaut, Ohio to industrial city of North Bessemer, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh, a distance of 153 miles. The company has operated continuously since its founding in 1897 until it was purchased by Canadian National Railway in 2004. The B&LE formerly had passenger service, but is now strictly a freight hauler

Boston and Maine Railroad

The Boston and Maine Railroad reporting mark|BM was a large system serving much of northern New England, with lines to Boston, Massachusetts, Portland, Maine, Troy, New York and many New Hampshire and Vermont points. It started out as the Andover and Wilmington Railroad, and was completed as a branch of the Boston and Lowell Railroad into Maine in 1843. The Boston and Maine Railroad name was first used in 1835 in New Hampshire, and in 1842 for the whole line. The B&M later took over the B&L and many other lines and systems. B&M was reorganized outside of Conrail after a 1970 bankruptcy, and was bought by the Guilford Rail System in 1983 along with the Delaware and Hudson Railway and Maine Central Railroad. In 1990 [http://stb.dot.gov/decisions/readingroom.nsf/ce02ea332d99ba468525709d0000b52c/30934dc93dbb7be8852565f50063c6d7?OpenDocument] GRS leased the B&M to the Springfield Terminal Railway, formerly a tiny subsidiary of the B&M, to reduce labor costs.

Burlington Northern Railroad

The Burlington Northern Railroad reporting mark|BN was formed in 1970 as a merger of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, Great Northern Railway, Northern Pacific Railway and Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway. The BN acquired the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway in 1980, and absorbed the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway in 1996 to form the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway.

Burlington-Rock Island Railroad

Cambria and Indiana Railroad

Central of Georgia Railroad

The Central of Georgia Railroad reporting mark|CG owned a large system in Georgia and into neighboring states. It began as the Central Rail Road and Canal Company, becoming the Central Rail Road and Banking Company in 1835 and the Central of Georgia Railway in 1895. From 1909 to 1948 it was controlled by the Illinois Central Railroad, and by the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway from 1956 to 1963. In 1963 the Southern Railway bought the CG, and in 1971 the Southern merged several other companies - the Georgia and Florida Railroad, Savannah and Atlanta Railway and Wrightsville and Tennille Railroad - with the CG, renaming it the Central of Georgia Railroad.

Central Railroad of New Jersey

The Central Railroad of New Jersey reporting mark|CNJ owned a system in New Jersey and west to Scranton, Pennsylvania. It started out as the Elizabethtown and Somerville Railroad, and was renamed to the CNJ in 1849. In 1870 it leased the Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad to reach Scranton, and was under Philadelphia and Reading Railway control from 1883 to 1887. From 1946 to 1952 the Pennsylvania lines (former L&S) were leased to a new company, the Central Railroad of Pennsylvania, in a failed tax dodge. In 1976 the CNJ was merged into Conrail. Most of the former CNJ lines are now owned by New Jersey Transit and operated through trackage rights by Conrail on behalf of CSX Transportation and the Norfolk Southern Railway; part of the line in Pennsylvania went to NS in the 1998 Conrail breakup.

Central Railroad of Pennsylvania

The Central Railroad of Pennsylvania reporting mark|CRP was a short-lived subsidiary of the Central Railroad of New Jersey. In 1946 the CNJ created a separate company (renamed from the short CNJ-operated Easton and Western Railroad) to operate their lines in Pennsylvania to avoid some New Jersey taxes. The attempt failed and operations were merged back in 1952.

Central Vermont Railway

The Central Vermont Railway reporting mark|CV had a main line from New London, Connecticut north through Vermont to near Montreal, Quebec. It started out in 1843 as the Vermont Central Railroad, with renamings to the Central Vermont Railroad in 1872 and Central Vermont Railway in 1899. The Canadian Grand Trunk Railway gained control during the 1899 reorganization, passing it along to the Canadian National Railway in 1923. In 1995 the CN sold off the majority of the CV, which was renamed as the New England Central Railroad. Thus there are a lot of railroads.....

Charleston and Western Carolina Railway

The Charleston and Western Carolina Railway reporting mark|C&WC had a main line from Port Royal, South Carolina via Augusta, Georgia to Spartanburg, South Carolina. It started out as the Port Royal and Augusta Railway, owned by the Georgia Railroad and Banking Company. In 1881 the Central Rail Road and Banking Company bought the line, selling it to the State of South Carolina in 1894. In 1896 it merged with the Port Royal and Western Carolina Railway to form the C&WC, and the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad gained control in 1897. It continued to operate independently until 1959, when it was merged into the ACL. The majority of the line is still used by CSX Transportation.

Chesapeake and Ohio Railway

The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway reporting mark|CO had a main line from Newport News, Virginia west to Cincinnati, Ohio and beyond to Chicago, Illinois. It started out in 1836 as the Louisa Railroad, and eventually merged in 1868 with the Covington and Ohio Railroad to form the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad. In 1878 the name was changed to Railway. In 1963 the C&O gained control of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, and they jointly gained control of the Western Maryland Railway in 1967, becoming part of the Chessie System holding company in 1973. The B&O absorbed the WM in 1983 and merged into the C&O in 1987; the C&O merged into CSX Transportation later that year.

Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad

The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad (AAR reporting mark CBQ) was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington or as the Q, the railroad served a large area, including extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Its primary connections included Chicago, Minneapolis-St. Paul, St. Louis, Kansas City and Denver. Because of this extensive tracking in the mountain states the Q used the slogan "Everywhere West".

Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad

The Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad reporting mark|CEI had main lines from Chicago, Illinois south to Evansville, Indiana and St. Louis, Missouri (splitting in northern Illinois). It served mainly as a bridge line with much passenger and freight traffic continuing to the U.S. South. The line started out as the Chicago, Danville and Vincennes Railroad, and was completed from Chicago to Evansville in 1871 in conjunction with the Evansville and Illinois Railroad and Evansville, Terre Haute and Chicago Railway. The C&EI was formed in 1877 as a reorganization of the CD&V, and leased the other sections. In 1963 the Interstate Commerce Commission awarded control to the Missouri Pacific Railroad, stipulating that the branch to Evansville and a half interest in the combined line to Chicago be sold to the Louisville and Nashville Railroad. That sale occurred in 1969, and in 1976 the C&EI merged into the MP.

Chicago Great Western Railway

The Chicago Great Western Railway reporting mark|CGW linked Chicago, Minneapolis, Omaha, and Kansas City. It was founded in 1885 as a regional line between St. Paul and the Iowa state line called the Minnesota and Northwestern Railroad, but through acquisition and construction, the railroad, named Chicago Great Western after 1909, developed into an innovative and efficient addition to the competitive markets it served. It survived the two World Wars and two periods of bankruptcy to be merged with the Chicago and North Western Railway (CNW) in 1968, which abandoned most of the CGW's trackage.

Chicago and Illinois Midland Railway

Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad

The Milwaukee Road, officially the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (AAR reporting mark MILW), was a Class I railroad that operated in the midwest and northwest of the United States from 1847 until its acquisition by and merger with the Soo Line railway in 1985–1986. The company went through several official names and faced bankruptcy several times in that period. While the railroad does not exist as a separate entity anymore, it is still commemorated in buildings like the historic Milwaukee Road Depot in Minneapolis, Minnesota and in railroad hardware still maintained by railfans, such as the Milwaukee Road 261 steam locomotive.

Chicago and North Western Railway

The Chicago and North Western Railway (AAR reporting marks: CNW, CNWS, CNWZ; unofficial abbreviation: C&NW) was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was also known as the North Western. Union Pacific bought them in 1995.

Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad

The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad (AAR reporting mark RI) was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, THE ROCK. Its ancestor, the Chicago and Rock Island Railroad, was incorporated on February 7, 1851 and operated its first train on October 10, 1852. Once an acquisition target of the Union Pacific Railroad, the company went into receivership for its third and final bankruptcy in 1975, and after attempts to reorganize failed, the company was liquidated, operating its final train on March 30, 1980.

Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Railway

Commonly known as the "Omaha Road", CStPM&O operated trackage from Chicago to St Paul and St Paul to Omaha with a main branchline that reached from St Paul to Ashland, Wisconsin on Lake Superior. Another branchline reached from near Eau Claire, Wisconsin to Superior, Wisconsin crossing the St Paul/Ashland branch at Spooner, Wisconsin which made the famous "Omaha X" in northwestern Wisconsin. CStPM&O was owned primarily by the Chicago & Northwestern, but retained its identity as an independent carrier until 1957 when C&NW leased the CStPM&O and merging it fully in to the C&NW in 1972.

Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pacific Railway

Clinchfield Railroad

Colorado and Southern Railway

Colorado and Wyoming Railway

Columbus and Greenville Railway

Conrail

Conrail (AAR reporting mark CSAO), officially the Consolidated Rail Corporation, is an American railroad company. It operates three networks - the North Jersey, South Jersey/Philadelphia and Detroit Shared Assets Areas, where it serves as a local carrier and switching company for CSX Transportation and the Norfolk Southern Railway. This arrangement is often referred to as Conrail Shared Assets Operations, the basis of the current reporting mark.

Conrail (AAR reporting mark CR) was formed on April 1, 1976 as a federally-funded takeover of the major railroad companies in the Northeast, all of which were financially failing. Against all predictions, Conrail managed to turn a profit, and on August 22, 1998 (the Control Date), most of Conrail's track was split between two newly-formed Conrail subsidiary limited liability companies - 42% to New York Central Lines, to be operated by CSX, and 58% to Pennsylvania Lines, to be operated by Norfolk Southern. (The names were chosen because of the former owners of the main lines west from New Jersey/New York City into Ohio, the New York Central Railroad and Pennsylvania Railroad.) Conrail continued to operate its former system until June 1, 1999 (Day One, the Closing Date or the Split Date). The three shared assets areas were kept to avoid giving one railroad an advantage in those areas.

Delaware and Hudson Railway

The Delaware and Hudson Railway (D&H) (AAR reporting mark DH) is a subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway, giving it access to New York City and other parts of the northeastern United States. It was formerly an important bridge line, connecting New York with Montreal, Quebec. The company started out as the Delaware and Hudson Canal, running from Kingston, New York on the Hudson River southwest to Port Jervis, New York on the Delaware River and beyond to the anthracite coal fields at Honesdale, Pennsylvania. The canal company later built a railroad, one of the first railroads in the United States, later known as the Delaware and Hudson Company and then the Delaware and Hudson Railroad until 1968. The railroad company has called itself "America's oldest continually operated transportation company".

Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad

Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad

The Denver and Rio Grande Railroad (DRG or D&RG) generally referred to as the Rio Grande, became the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad (DRGW or D&RGW) in 1920. The D&RGW served mainly as transcontinental bridge line between Denver, Colorado, and Salt Lake City, Utah, and a major origin of coal and mineral traffic with a motto of Through the Rockies, not around them. The Rio Grande was the epitome of mountain railroading, operating the highest mainline rail line in the United States over 10,240 ft (3121 m) Tennessee Pass in Colorado and the famed routes through the Moffat Tunnel and the Royal Gorge. At its height around 1890, the D&RG had the largest operating narrow gauge railroad network in North America. Known for its independence, the D&RGW operated the last private long haul passenger train in the United States, the Rio Grande Zephyr.

Denver and Salt Lake Railway

Detroit and Mackinac Railway

Detroit, Toledo and Ironton Railroad

Detroit and Toledo Shore Line Railroad

Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range Railway

Duluth, South Shore and Atlantic Railway

Duluth, Winnipeg and Pacific Railway

Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway

Erie Railroad

Erie Lackawanna Railway

Florida East Coast Railway

The Florida East Coast Railway (AAR reporting mark FEC) is a Class II railroad operating in the US state of Florida; in the past, it has been a Class I railroad. The FEC is renowned as the railroad that built the first railroad bridges to Key West that have since been rebuilt into road bridges for vehicle traffic, now known as the Overseas Highway. It was originally known as the Florida Coast and Gulf Railway and then the Jacksonville, St. Augustine and Indian River Railway; for more information and other former railroads merged into the line, see the family tree below.

Fort Worth and Denver Railway

Georgia Railroad and Banking Company

Georgia and Florida Railroad

Georgia Southern and Florida Railway

Grand Trunk Western Railroad

The Grand Trunk Western Railroad (GTWR, GT post-1960, AAR reporting mark GTW) is a subsidiary railroad of the Canadian National Railway's Grand Trunk Corporation operating in the midwestern United States. A CN system-wide rebranding beginning in 1995 has seen the GT logo and name largely replaced by its parent company. The GT line serves as CN's connection between Port Huron and Chicago, Illinois, where the railroad connects to CN subsidiaries Wisconsin Central Ltd. and Illinois Central, as well as other US railroads.

Great Northern Railway

Green Bay and Western Railroad

Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway

Gulf, Mobile and Northern Railroad

Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad

The Gulf, Mobile and Ohio (AAR reporting mark GMO) was a railroad carrier in the central United States, with its primary routes from Chicago to Mobile, Alabama and Kansas City, Missouri.

Illinois Central Railroad

The Illinois Central (AAR reporting mark IC), sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, was a railroad carrier in the central United States, with its primary routes from Chicago to New Orleans and Sioux City, Iowa.

Illinois Central Gulf Railroad

On August 10, 1972 the Illinois Central Railroad merged with the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad to form the Illinois Central Gulf Railroad. In the 1980s, the railroad spun off most of its east-west lines and many of its redundant north-south lines, including much of the former GM&O. Most of these lines were bought by other railroads, including entirely new railroads, such as the Chicago, Missouri and Western Railway and Chicago Central and Pacific Railroad. On February 29, 1988, the ICG dropped the "Gulf" from its name and again became known as the Illinois Central Railroad.

Illinois Terminal Railroad

International-Great Northern Railroad

Kansas, Oklahoma and Gulf Railway

Lake Superior and Ishpeming Railroad

Lehigh and Hudson River Railway

Lehigh and New England Railroad

Lehigh Valley Railroad

Long Island Rail Road

Louisiana and Arkansas Railway

The Louisiana and Arkansas Railway (AAR reporting marks LA) was a railroad that operated in the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas. The railroad's main line extended 332 miles, from Hope, Arkansas to Shreveport and New Orleans. Branch lines served Vidalia, Louisiana (opposite Natchez, Mississippi), and Dallas, Texas.

Louisiana, Arkansas and Texas Railway

Louisville and Nashville Railroad

Maine Central Railroad

Midland Valley Railroad

Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway

Mississippi Central Railroad

Missouri-Illinois Railroad

Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad

Missouri Pacific Railroad

Monon Railroad

Monongahela Railway

Montour Railroad

Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway

New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad

New Orleans, Texas and Mexico Railway

New York Central Railroad

New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad

New York Connecting Railroad

New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad

New York, Ontario and Western Railway

New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway

Norfolk and Western Railway

Northern Pacific Railway

Northwestern Pacific Railroad

The NWP served the Redwood Empire of California between the San Francisco North Bay to Eureka. For many years it ran as a Southern Pacific subsidiary and was eventually consolidated into the SP.

Oklahoma City-Ada-Atoka Railway

Oregon Electric Railway

Oregon Trunk Railway

Panhandle and Santa Fe Railway

Penn Central Transportation

Pennsylvania Railroad

Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines

Pere Marquette Railway

The Pere Marquette Railroad was formed in December 1899 by the merger of the Flint & Pere Marquette RR, the Chicago & West Michigan Ry and the Detroit, Grand Rapids & Western RR. On March 12, 1917 it was renamed the Flint & Pere Marquette Ry. Operating primarily in the state of Michigan, it also had lines in Indiana, Illinois, Ohio and the Canadian provence of Ontario. It was renamed the Pere Marquette Railway on March 12, 1917 and was absorbed by the Chesapeake & Ohio Ry on April 1, 1947. The Pere Marquette name was revived in the mid 1980s by Amtrak as the name of the route running between Grand Rapids, Michigan and Chicago, Illinois.

Piedmont & Northern Railway

Piedmont & Northern was created in the 1914 consolidation of two physically separated 2-year-old Duke Power electric interurbans, Piedmont Traction Co. in North Carolina and Greenville, Spartanburg & Anderson in South Carolina. P&N replaced electric operation with diesel 1951-1958, and was acquired by Seaboard Coast Line on July 1, 1969.

Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad

Pittsburg, Shawmut and Northern Railroad

Pittsburgh and West Virginia Railway

Reading Company

The Reading Company reporting mark|RDG, usually called the Reading Railroad, and officially known as the Philadelphia and Reading Rail Road and then the Philadelphia and Reading Railway until 1924, operated in southeast Pennsylvania and neighboring states. Until the decline in anthracite loadings in the Coal Region after World War II, it was one of the most prosperous corporations in the United States. However, the reduced coal traffic, coupled with highway competition and short hauls, forced it into bankruptcy in the 1970s. The Reading Company's railroad was merged into Conrail in 1976, but the corporation lasted into 2000 disposing of real estate holdings. Since the railroad served Atlantic City, New Jersey, "Reading Railroad" is also a property in the popular board game Monopoly.

Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad

Rutland Railroad

acramento Northern Railway

t. Louis, Brownsville and Mexico Railway

t. Louis-San Francisco Railway

t. Louis, San Francisco and Texas Railway

t. Louis Southwestern Railway

an Antonio, Uvalde and Gulf Railroad

eaboard Air Line Railroad

eaboard Coast Line Railroad

eaboard System Railroad

pokane International Railroad

pokane, Portland and Seattle Railway

taten Island Rapid Transit Railway

outhern Railway

outhern Pacific Railroad

Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia Railway

Tennessee Central Railway

Texas Mexican Railway

The Texas Mexican Railway Company is a Class II railroad (formerly a Class I railroad) that operates as a subsidiary of Kansas City Southern Railway in Texas. It is often referred to as the Tex-Mex, or TexMex, Railway. On January 1, 2005, Kansas City Southern (KCS) took control of The Texas Mexican Railway Company and the U.S. portion of the Texas-Mexican Railway International Bridge in Laredo, Texas. The railroad is a vital link in KCS's rail network, connecting The KCS and TFM, S.A. de C.V. While Tex-Mex remains a separate legal entity, KCS and Tex-Mex are operated as one railroad.

Texas and New Orleans Railroad

Texas and Northern Railway

Texas and Pacific Railway

Toledo, Peoria and Western Railroad

Virginian Railway

Wabash Railroad

Western Railway of Alabama

Western Maryland Railway

Western Pacific Railroad

Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway

Wisconsin Central Railway

Wisconsin Central Limited

Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad

The Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad was a part of the Illinois Central Railroad system, running west of the main line from New Orleans, Louisiana north to Memphis, Tennessee. It was incorporated in 1882 by the Illinois Central to build from Jackson, Mississippi north to Yazoo City and beyond. The IC bought the Memphis-New Orleans Louisville, New Orleans and Texas Railway and merged it into the Y&MV in 1892, forming its main line. In 1946 the IC leased the Y&MV, merging operations.

References

* [http://www.trains.com/story/story_list.asp?idMenuCategory=2&idMenuSubCategory=24 Trains.com Articles - "Fallen Flags"]
* [http://www.earlpleasants.com/search_1.asp Railroad History Database]
* [http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=44889 Trains.com: "List of Class I Railroads in 1950"]

External links

* [http://www.aar.org/PubCommon/Documents/AboutTheIndustry/Statistics.pdf AAR.org: "2005 & 2006 Class 1 Statistics"]