The Alton and Southern Railway is a switching railroad in the

Greater St. Louis Greater St. Louis is a bi-state metropolitan area that completely surrounds and includes the independent city of St. Louis, the principal city. It includes parts of both Missouri and Illinois. The city core is on the Mississippi Riverfront on t ...

area in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

Overview

The Alton and Southern ''Railroad'' was formed in 1910, and in 1913 it absorbed the Denverside Connecting Railway (founded in 1910), and the Alton and Southern ''Railway'' (founded in 1911). The company was operated as a subsidiary of the

Aluminum Ore Company Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It has ...

, which was itself a subsidiary of the

Aluminum Company of America Alcoa Corporation (an acronym for Aluminum Company of America) is a Pittsburgh-based industrial corporation. It is the world's eighth-largest producer of aluminum. Alcoa conducts operations in 10 countries. Alcoa is a major producer of primary ...

(Alcoa), to serve the

Bayer process The Bayer process is the principal industrial means of refining bauxite to produce alumina (aluminium oxide) and was developed by Carl Josef Bayer. Bauxite, the most important ore of aluminium, contains only 30–60% aluminium oxide (Al2O3), the ...

bauxite-to-alumina refinery at

Alorton, Illinois Alorton (formerly Alcoa) was a village in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States. Incorporated in 1944, it was one of three municipalities that merged to form the city of Cahokia Heights on May 6, 2021; the other two were the village of Cah ...

. Alcoa sold the line to the

Missouri Pacific Railroad The Missouri Pacific Railroad , commonly abbreviated as MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers. In 1967, the railroad ...

and

Chicago and North Western Railway The Chicago and North Western was a Class I railroad in the Midwestern United States. It was also known as the "North Western". The railroad operated more than of track at the turn of the 20th century, and over of track in seven states befor ...

(CNW) in 1968, and it was reorganized as the Alton and Southern ''Railway''. In 1972, CNW's share was sold to the

St. Louis Southwestern Railway The St. Louis Southwestern Railway Company , known by its nickname of "The Cotton Belt Route" or simply "Cotton Belt", is a former Class I railroad that operated between St. Louis, Missouri, and various points in the U.S. states of Arkansas, Ten ...

. In 1982, the

(UP) took ownership of the Missouri Pacific share and then became full owner in 1996 with the acquisition of SSW parent

Southern Pacific Transportation Company The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

. The Alton and Southern is still a legally separate entity but is wholly owned by UP.

References

Alton & Southern - Chronology
– History of the A&S Railway

External links

Alton & Southern
– Official Website
Railroad Picture Archives
– Photographs of the Alton & Southern Railway {{DEFAULTSORT:Alton Southern Railway Illinois railroads Union Pacific Railroad Predecessors of the Union Pacific Railroad Railway companies established in 1911 Railway companies disestablished in 1913 Railway companies established in 1968 Switching and terminal railroads 1968 establishments in Illinois American companies established in 1911