The Ellis and Eastern Company (

reporting mark A reporting mark is a code used to identify owners or lessees of rolling stock and other equipment used on certain rail transport networks. The code typically reflects the name or identifying number of the owner, lessee, or operator of the equip ...

EE) is a railroad owned and operated by Sweetman Construction Company. Operating on former Chicago and Northwestern (CNW) trackage, it was formed to ship Sioux Quartzite and other materials such as sand and gravel from a large quarry in

Sioux Falls, South Dakota Sioux Falls () is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into Lincoln County to the south, which continues up ...

, for Sweetman Construction Company, which uses the railroad primarily to ship materials from the quarry it operates to a concrete plant nearby. Over time, the Ellis and Eastern has shipped more diverse products such as lumber, chemicals, machinery, scrapmetals, and grain to other customers.

Trackage

The Ellis and Eastern Company operates between

Brandon Brandon may refer to: Names and people *Brandon (given name), a male given name *Brandon (surname), a surname with several different origins Places Australia *Brandon, a farm and 19th century homestead in Seaham, New South Wales *Brandon, Q ...

and

Ellis Ellis is a surname of Welsh and English origin. Retrieved 21 January 2014 An independent French origin of the surname is said to derive from the phrase fleur-de-lis. Surname A * Abe Ellis (Stargate), a fictional character in the TV series ' ...

, South Dakota on former Chicago and Northwestern trackage. This line was originally constructed by the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Railway (Omaha Road), which stretched from Org, Minnesota, to

Mitchell, South Dakota Mitchell is a city in and the county seat of Davison County, South Dakota, Davison County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 15,660 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census making it the List of cities in South Dakota, sixth mos ...

. The portion between Mitchell and Ellis was abandoned in the 1980s, by the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad, the successor of the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Railway. Since the current western terminus of the railroad is at Ellis due to the abandonment of the line westward to Mitchell, the Ellis and Eastern only operates east of that point, hence the name, Ellis and Eastern Company.

Purchase of the Minnesota Southern Railway

In 2017, the Ellis and Eastern Company announced that it had purchased the Minnesota Southern Railway, which ran from Manley to

Worthington, Minnesota Worthington is a city in and the county seat of Nobles County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 13,947 at the time of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The city's site was first settled in the 1870s as Okabena Station on ...

. The Minnesota Southern Railway owned a line which was former Chicago and Northwestern trackage, which was a segment of the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Railway which was originally built from Org, MN to Mitchell, SD. It connected Manley to

, which the Ellis and Eastern had attempted to purchase for years for the opportunity to connect with the

Union Pacific 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 Pac ...

in Worthington. The Minnesota Southern Railway had declined all attempts by the EE to purchase it, so it sat disputed between the two competitors. That stretch of track had not operated since 1994, and sat dormant until the EE’s acquisition of the MSR’s system. In 2017, the Minnesota Southern Railway officially was purchased by the EE, allowing the EE to assume control of the line to Worthington.The Ellis and Eastern has set out to rehabilitate the stretch between Manley and Brandon to connect with the Union Pacific Railroad in Worthington, Minnesota. The rehabilitation is expected to take up to three years. The railroad was awarded nearly $14.5 million in a Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation in March 2020. The grant dollars will be combined with a $19.4 million commitment from Ellis & Eastern to make improvements to the shortline railroad that stretches from Sioux Falls, South Dakota to near the unincorporated community of Org, southwest of Worthington.Buntjer, Julie
Ellis & Eastern Railroad gets $14.5 million federal grant
The Globe, Worthington, Minnesota, March 6, 2020

References

{{Reflist South Dakota railroads Minnesota railroads

Trackage

Purchase of the Minnesota Southern Railway

See also

References