Pacific Northwest Trains!!!

[Anonymous]

OK, I know that UP and SP and NP all had mains up in Nor Cal, Oregon, and Washington but wat about Santa Fe, WP, or DRGW? Any trackage rights? Also, how far did the ATSF run passenger services up north? BTW Im looking for info between 1960-1990 thnks.

PS,,dont want to offend anyone, i didnt forget GN! go GOAT!...Ram...whatever he is.

[SpaceMouse]

The ATSF co-owned with the SP the Northwestern Pacific Railroad that ran up to Trinidad Head California. The NWP was completed in 1914 and the SP bought out the ATSF a few years later.

[twhite]

WP's "High Line" ran in northern california to Bieber, meeting with the Great Northern extension from Klamath Falls--that particular portion of California is generally regarded as the "Northwest", since the Cascade Mountains begin there. Though the Santa Fe was part of the ATSF/WP/GN Los Angeles to Spokane/Seattle traffic pattern, its trackage rights ended in Stockton, CA, where the freight was picked up by WP. Perhaps an occasional Santa Fe loco might have run through, but not on a regular basis. ATSF passenger service ran as far north as Richmond on San Francisco Bay.

Rio Grande ran strictly in Colorado and Utah (and some narrow gauge trackage in New Mexico), until the merger with SP--then I suppose you could stretch the point and say that the Rio Grande ran as far north as Portland, Oregon. With the mix of locos between SP and Rio Grande after the merger, it probably wouldn't have been unusual to see Rio Grande motive power on SP's Cascade Line into Oregon. I know there was a great deal of run-through Rio Grande power on SP's Donner Pass line after the merger (BTW, that color scheme looked right at home in the Sierras.).
Tom

[johncolley]

Don't forget SP&S, Milwaukee Rd., and Union Pacific to Portland and/or Seattle. There were also short lines such as the Port Townsend RR that was eventually taken over by Milwaukee Rd. using car ferries from Seattle and Everett. It ran from P.T. to Quilcene in the south, and Port Angeles and Forks to the west, as a common carrier and also connecting with logging operations. It died in '84/'85

[Anonymous]

When was SP DRGW merge?
Also when was SP UP merge? Thanks

[jfugate]

Here are the key dates around the DRGW + SP merger ...

September 25, 1987:
Rio Grande Industries announced its intention to purchase the Southern pacific Transportation Co., from the Santa Fe Southern Pacific Corporation, the merged parent company of the two AT&SF and SP railroads. With the failed SPSF merger, denied by the ICC on June 30, 1987, the ICC ordered SFSP Corp., to divest itself of one or both of its railroads. (Pacific Rail News, Issue 290, January 1988, page 36)

December 28, 1987:
Santa Fe Pacific Corp., announced its intention to sell the Southern Pacific Transportation Co., to Rio Grande Industries. RGI announced that it would file the intended sale with the ICC on or about February 22, 1988. (Pacific Rail News, Issue 291, February 1988, pages 7, 12)

August 9, 1988:
Rio Grande Industries received ICC approval for its purchase and control of Southern Pacific Transportation Company. (August 9, 1988 Rio Grande Industries news release; Pacific Rail News, Issue 300, November 1988, page 4; Trains, Volume 48, Number 12, October 1988, page 8; CTC Board, Issue 154, July 1988, page 3, full page of coverage)

The ICC approved the sale of Southern Pacific Transportation Co. to Rio Grande Industries, for the amount of $1.02 billion. The new combined D&RGW and SP system will be 15,000 miles in 15 states, and will be the fifth largest railroad in the U.S. (Wall Street Journal, August 10, 1988; Pacific Rail News, Issue 299, October 1988, page 7)

August 25, 1988:
The Interstate Commerce Commission approved the acquisition of control of the Southern Pacific Transportation Company by Rio Grande Industries, Inc., SPTC Holding, Inc., and the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad Company (DRGW). (Rio Grande Industries, et al.— Control—SPTC et al., 4 I.C.C. 2d 834)

October 13, 1988:
Rio Grande Industries took control of Southern Pacific Transportation Co. (CTC Board, Issue 159, May 1989, page 18)
==================================================================
And here are the key dates around the UP acquisition of the SP ...

* Union Pacific Corporation was granted control of Southern Pacific Rail Corporation (formerly Rio Grande Industries) on September 11, 1996, with an effective date of October 1, 1996.
* Southern Pacific Rail Corporation controlled Southern Pacific Transportation Co., Denver & Rio Grande Western (D&RGW), St. Louis Southwestern (SSW, Cotton Belt), and the SPCSL Corp.
* D&RGW locomotive fleet (135 freight units, 6 switch units) combined with UP locomotive fleet on May 1, 1997.
* D&RGW was merged into Union Pacific Railroad on June 30, 1997.
* SPCSL (Southern Pacific Chicago St. Louis) Corp., was merged into Union Pacific Railroad on June 30, 1997.
* SSW locomotive fleet (273 freight units, 23 switch units) combined with UP locomotive fleet on August 1, 1997.
* SSW was merged into Union Pacific Railroad on September 30, 1997.
* SP merged with Union Pacific Railroad on February 1, 1998.
* Included in the sale were five terminal companies: Alton & Southern Railway (St. Louis area); Central California Traction Co. (Stockton, Calif. area); Ogden Union Railway & Depot Co. (Ogden, Utah); Portland Terminal Railroad (Portland, Ore.; Portland Traction Co. (Portland, Ore.)