The Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railroad (FE&MV), sometimes called "the Elkhorn," was a railroad established in 1869 in the state of Nebraska in the Midwestern United States.

About

The company constructed several lines in Nebraska, including a long east–west route from

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest city ...

across northern Nebraska to Chadron, trackage that later became known as the "

Cowboy Line A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the ''vaquero'' ...

." Beginning in the 1880s the FE&MV expanded north and west from Chadron, building a line along the eastern edge of the Black Hills to Rapid City and Belle Fourche, South Dakota, as well as a line westward to Casper, Wyoming. Charles Henry King, grandfather of President

Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( ; born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected ...

, was to make his fortune establishing banks and freighting services in towns he helped found along the line including Chadron and Casper. Ford's father

Leslie Lynch King, Sr. Leslie Lynch King Sr. (July 25, 1884 – February 18, 1941) was the biological father of U.S. President Gerald Ford. Because of his alcoholism and abusive behavior, his wife, Dorothy Gardner, left him sixteen days after Ford's birth. Personal ...

was born in Chadron during this time. The larger Chicago and North Western Railway (C&NW) acquired control of the FE&MV in the late 19th century, and in 1903, the FE&MV was formally absorbed into the C&NW. The FE&MV's passenger depot in Douglas, Wyoming is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Today, much of the FE&MV trackage has been abandoned. The trackage through Rapid City is operated by the Rapid City, Pierre and Eastern Railroad.

Track segment abandonments and sales

* Fremont, Nebraska- Norfolk, Nebraska; Abandoned 1982. Fremont to West Point sold to Fremont and Elkhorn Valley Railroad 1985. Hooper to West Point dismantled 1988. * Norfolk-

Chadron, Nebraska Chadron ( ) is a city and the county seat of Dawes County, in the state of Nebraska in the Great Plains region of the United States. The population was 5,851 at the 2010 census. This city is the location of Chadron State College. Chadron also is ...

; Sold: Chadron-Merriman; Abandoned: Norfolk-Merriman 1992 * Chadron-northeastern Wyoming (Rapid City Branchline); Sold: Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad in 1996; to

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

in 2008; to Rapid City, Pierre and Eastern in 2014. * Norfolk, Nebraska to Winner, South Dakota—Abandoned—1978 * Chadron- Lander, Wyoming; Abandoned: Chadron-Lander 1992 includes a photograph

References

Defunct Nebraska railroads Defunct South Dakota railroads Defunct Wyoming railroads Railway companies established in 1869 Railway companies disestablished in 1903 Predecessors of the Chicago and North Western Transportation Company 1869 establishments in Nebraska {{US-rail-transport-stub

About

Track segment abandonments and sales

See also

References