The Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf Railroad (CO&G), known informally as the "Choctaw Route," was an American railroad in the states of Arkansas and

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

. The company, originally known as the Choctaw Coal and Railway Company, completed its main line between West Memphis, Arkansas and western Oklahoma by 1900. In 1901 the CO&G chartered a subsidiary company, the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Texas Railroad, to continue construction west into the Texas panhandle, and by 1902 the railroad had extended as far west as Amarillo. The CO&G came under the control of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad (the "Rock Island") in 1902, and was formally merged into the Rock Island on January 1, 1948. The Memphis-Amarillo route remained an important main line for the Rock Island, hosting local and transcontinental freight traffic as well as passenger trains such as the '' Choctaw Rocket'' from 1940-1964.

The Choctaw Route today

Ownership of the Choctaw Route's railway components were split into numerous pieces as a result of the dissolution of the Rock Island Railroad in 1980. Some segments of the former CO&G were abandoned; others remain in use by the Union Pacific Railroad and various short lines. As of 2014, the former Choctaw Route can be described from east to west as: * Memphis, Tennessee to Brinkley, Arkansas: active; owned by Union Pacific * Brinkley to the eastern side of Little Rock: abandoned, with rail removed * Little Rock to Danville: active; operated by the

Little Rock and Western Railway The Little Rock and Western Railway is a Class III short-line railroad headquartered in Perry, Arkansas, and owned by Genesee & Wyoming Inc. LRWN operates over a line from Danville, Arkansas to Pulaski, Arkansas, then over of Union Pacific R ...

* Danville to Howe, Oklahoma: abandoned, with rail removed; owned by the State of Oklahoma * Howe to McAlester: active; owned and operated by the

Arkansas–Oklahoma Railroad The Arkansas–Oklahoma Railroad is a Class III carrier headquartered in Wilburton, OK that operates two segments of the former Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad (CRIP) Choctaw Route that originally ran between Memphis Tennessee and Tu ...

* McAlester to Shawnee: disused, with rail in place but most road crossings paved over. Owned by the UP, last operated by Union Pacific in 1996 * Shawnee to Oklahoma City: active; owned by Union Pacific, operated by the Arkansas-Oklahoma Railroad * Oklahoma City to El Reno: active; owned by Union Pacific, operated by Union Pacific and

AT&L Railroad The AT&L Railroad was started in May 1985 by Wheeler Brothers Grain Company operating about of former Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad (CRI&P) track in Oklahoma. It replaced the North Central Oklahoma Railway, which operated the track b ...

* El Reno to Geary: active; owned and operated by AT&L railroad * Geary to Watonga Spur: active; owned and operated by AT&L Railroad * Geary to Bridgeport: Active; Owned by the State of Oklahoma, operated by AT&L Railroad * Bridgeport to Weatherford: Out of service; owned by the State of Oklahoma. Rails are still in place for most of this segment, but several sections are washed out. * Weatherford to Erick: active; owned by the State of Oklahoma, operated by the

Farmrail Corporation Farmrail System, Inc. is an employee-owned holding company for two Class III common-carrier railroads comprising "Western Oklahoma’s Regional Railroad" based in Clinton, Oklahoma. Farmrail Corporation has acted since 1981 as a lessee-operator ...

* Erick, Oklahoma to east end of Amarillo, Texas: abandoned, with rail removed The former Choctaw Route passenger depot in Little Rock, Arkansas, is now a component of the

William J. Clinton Presidential Center and Park The William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum is the presidential library of Bill Clinton, the 42nd president of the United States (1993–2001). It is located in Little Rock, Arkansas and includes the Clinton Presidential Library, t ...

, though the adjoining historic freight depot was razed as part of the Clinton Center's development.

External links

Rock Island Lines Historical Overview

Choctaw, Oklahoma and Texas Railroad

Oklahoma Digital Maps: Digital Collections of Oklahoma and Indian Territory
{{DEFAULTSORT:Choctaw Oklahoma Gulf Railroad Predecessors of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad Defunct Arkansas railroads Defunct Oklahoma railroads Railway companies established in 1894 Railway companies disestablished in 1948 Defunct Kansas railroads

The Choctaw Route today

See also

External links