The Chicago and Atlantic Railway, later the Chicago and Erie Railroad, was a

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

which existed from 1871 to 1941, and was an important connection between the

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

metropolitan area and

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

.Camp, Mark J. ''Railroad Depots of West Central Ohio.'' Mount Pleasant, S.C.: Arcadia Publishing, 2006. The railway was formed in 1871 as the Chicago, Continental and Baltimore Railway, and renamed to the Chicago and Atlantic Railway in 1873. The western terminus was in the Chicago suburb of

Hammond, Indiana Hammond ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area, and the only city in Indiana to border Chicago. First settled in the mid-19th century, it is one of the oldest cities of northern Lake County. As of the ...

, while the eastern terminus was at

Marion, Ohio Marion is a city in and the county seat of Marion County, Ohio, Marion County, Ohio, United States. The municipality is located in north-central Ohio, approximately north of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus. The population was 35,999 at the 2020 United S ...

. The road suffered financial difficulties (particularly after a collision in 1887 outside Kouts, Indiana, which killed 10 people), and went through several internal reorganizations and name changes. It went through

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

in 1890, and emerged as the Chicago and Erie Railroad with

John G. McCullough John Griffith McCullough (September 16, 1835 – May 29, 1915) was an American state legislator, businessperson and attorney. He served as Attorney General of California during the Civil War, and the 49th governor of Vermont from 1902 to 190 ...

as its president.Hill, Edwin Charles. ''The Historical Register.'' New York: E.C. Hill, 1921. In 1895, the road was purchased by the

Erie Railroad The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the northeastern United States, originally connecting New York City — more specifically Jersey City, New Jersey, where Erie's Pavonia Terminal, long demolished, used to stand — with Lake Erie ...

, but retained its name and identity until it was consolidated in 1941.

Notes

External links

"Erie Railroad Company Records: An Inventory of Its Records." Florence Library. Syracuse University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chicago Atlantic Railway Defunct Ohio railroads Defunct Illinois railroads Defunct Indiana railroads Predecessors of the Erie Railroad Railway companies established in 1873 Railway companies disestablished in 1890