The Kansas City Southern Railway Company is an American

Class I railroad In the United States, railroad carriers are designated as Class I, II, or III, according to annual revenue criteria originally set by the Surface Transportation Board in 1992. With annual adjustments for inflation, the 2019 thresholds were US$ ...

. Founded in 1887, it operates in 10 midwestern and southeastern

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

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 ...

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

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 ...

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

and

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. KCS hauls freight for seven major government and business sectors: agriculture and minerals, military, automotive, chemical and petroleum, energy, industrial and consumer products and intermodal. KCS has the shortest north-south rail route between

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

, and several key ports along the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. The KCS, along 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 Paci ...

railroad, is one of only two Class I railroads based 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 ...

that has not originated as the result of a merger between previously separate companies. The company owns or contracts with intermodal facilities along its rail network in Kansas City, Mo;

Jackson, Miss. Jackson, officially the City of Jackson, is the capital of and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city is also one of two county seats of Hinds County, along with Raymond. The city had a population of 153,701 at the ...

;

Wylie, Texas Wylie is a city and northeastern suburb of Dallas, that was once solely located in Collin County, Texas, Collin County, but now extends into neighboring Dallas County, Texas, Dallas and Rockwall County, Texas, Rockwall counties in the U.S. state o ...

;

Kendleton, Texas Kendleton is a city in western Fort Bend County, Texas southwest of Sugar Land, Texas. It was established by emancipated slaves after the American Civil War. The population was 380 at the 2010 census, down from 466 at the 2000 census. As of 2011, ...

; and

Laredo, Texas Laredo ( ; ) is a city in and the county seat of Webb County, Texas, United States, on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Laredo has the distinction of flying seven flags (the flag of t ...

. KCS operates over a railroad system consisting of that extend south to the

Mexico–United States border The Mexico–United States border ( es, frontera Estados Unidos–México) is an international border separating Mexico and the United States, extending from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Gulf of Mexico in the east. The border traver ...

at which point another KCS railroad,

Kansas City Southern de México Kansas City Southern de México (KCSM), formerly Transportación Ferroviaria Mexicana (TFM), is a company dedicated to freight transportation using rail in the northeastern part of Mexico. KCSM is fully owned and operated by Kansas City Southern ...

(KCSM), can haul freight into northeastern and central

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

and to the Gulf of Mexico ports of

Tampico Tampico is a city and port in the southeastern part of the state of Tamaulipas, Mexico. It is located on the north bank of the Pánuco River, about inland from the Gulf of Mexico, and directly north of the state of Veracruz. Tampico is the fifth ...

Altamira Altamira may refer to: People *Altamira (surname) Places * Cave of Altamira, a cave in Cantabria, Spain famous for its paintings and carving *Altamira, Pará, a city in the Brazilian state of Pará * Altamira, Huila, a town and municipality in ...

, and

Veracruz Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...

, as well as to the Pacific

Port of Lázaro Cárdenas The Port of Lázaro Cárdenas () is the largest Mexican seaport and one of the largest seaports in the Pacific Ocean basin, with an annual traffic capacity of around 25 million tonnes of cargo and 2,200,000 TEU. In November 2003, the Mexican Nav ...

, fulfilling the vision of KCS founder

Arthur Edward Stilwell Arthur Edward Stilwell (October 21, 1859 – September 26, 1928) was the founder of the Kansas City, Pittsburg and Gulf Railroad, predecessor to the Kansas City Southern Railway. He served as KCPG's president from 1897 to 1900. He was also t ...

. ,

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 ...

has succeeded in placing Kansas City Southern in an independent voting trust. If a merger of operations is approved by the US

Surface Transportation Board The Surface Transportation Board (STB) of the United States is a federal, bipartisan, independent adjudicatory board. The STB was established on January 1, 1996, to assume some of the regulatory functions that had been administered by the Intersta ...

, the combined "Canadian Pacific Kansas City Limited" will form the first and only railroad serving three of North America's countries (Canada, Mexico and the United States).

Corporate structure

Kansas City Southern Railway is owned by Kansas City Southern (until 2002: ''Kansas City Southern Industries''), which in turn also owns other companies like

and the

Panama Canal Railway The Panama Canal Railway ( es, Ferrocarril de Panamá) is a railway line linking the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean in Central America. The route stretches across the Isthmus of Panama from Colón (Atlantic) to Balboa (Pacific, near P ...

's operator, Panama Canal Railway Company.

History

Origins (1887–1900)

Arthur Stilwell began construction on the first line of what would eventually become the Kansas City Southern Railway in 1887, in suburban Kansas City, Mo. Together with Edward L. Martin, Stilwell built the Kansas City Suburban Belt Railway, which was incorporated in 1887 and began operation in 1890. In 1897, Stilwell completed the Kansas City, Pittsburg and Gulf Railroad Company (KCP&G) with a route running north and south from Kansas City to

Shreveport, Louisiana Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population of 393,406 in 2020, is t ...

, terminating at

Port Arthur, Texas Port Arthur is a city in Jefferson County within the Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan area of the U.S. state of Texas. A small, uninhabited portion extends into Orange County; it is east of Houston. The largest oil refinery in the United Sta ...

. In order to comply with Louisiana laws Stilwell, William S. Taylor, E. L. Martin, and others, officers of the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Trust Company of Kansas City, Missouri, as well as the KCP&G, incorporated the ''Kansas City, Shreveport & Gulf Railway Company'' (KCS&G) on September 27, 1894, to build or acquire railroads in Louisiana. The Arkansas Construction Company completed a 41.10-mile line from Arkansas-Louisiana State line (northern terminus with the Texarkana & Fort Smith Railway Company) to Shreveport on April 15, 1896. The Kansas City Terminal Construction Company completed a 76.40-mile Shreveport to Many line on October 26, 1896, an 85.80-mile Many to De Quincy line on June 30, 1897, and the 19.16-mile De Quincy to the Louisiana-Texas state line on September 11, 1897, where the southern terminus was with the Texarkana & Fort Smith Railway Company. A 26.60-mile narrow gauge branch line was acquired from the Calcasieu, Vernon & Shreveport Railway Company (CV&S), through the Arkansas Construction Company, that ran from De Quincy, West Lake, Lake Charles, and Lockport, and the construction company widened the tracks to standard gauge. In 1895 the KCP&G entered into a contract with the KCS&G to operate and maintain its property. In 1900, KCP&G was taken over by the Kansas City Southern Railway Company (KCS). By 1914 the KCS owned the separate entities of the Arkansas Western Railway Company, Fort Smith & Van Buren Railway Company, Kansas City, Shreveport & Gulf Railway Company, the Kansas City, Shreveport & Gulf Terminal Company, the Maywood & Sugar Creek Railway Company, the Port Arthur Canal & Dock Company, the Poteau Valley Railroad Company, the Texarkana & Fort Smith Railway Company, the Arkansas Western Railway Company, the Glenn Pool Tank Line Company, the Joplin Union Depot Company, the Kansas City Terminal Railway Company, and the K. C. S. Elevator Company.

20th century (1900–2000)

In 1962, Kansas City Southern Industries, Inc. (KCSI) was established when the company began to diversify its interests into other industries. At that time, KCS became a subsidiary of KCSI. In 2002, KCSI formally changed its name to Kansas City Southern (KCS), with KCS remaining a subsidiary. From 1940 to 1969, the Kansas City Southern operated two primary passenger trains, the ''Flying Crow'' (Trains #15 & 16) between Kansas City and Port Arthur (discontinued on May 11, 1968) and the ''

Southern Belle Southern belle () is a colloquialism for a debutante in the planter class of the Antebellum South. Characteristics The image of a Southern belle is often characterized by fashion elements such as a hoop skirt, a corset, pantalettes, a wi ...

'' (Trains #1 & 2) between Kansas City and New Orleans (discontinued on November 2, 1969). In 1995, a new ''

'' was created as an executive train to entertain shippers and guests. It also pulls the ''Holiday Express'' train in December, making the rounds to several KCS cities and stations.

21st century (2000–present)

Merger attempts by Canadian Pacific and Canadian National in 2021

On March 21, 2021,

(CP) and KCS announced that CP would purchase KCS for US$29 billion. The US

(STB) would first have to approve the purchase, which was expected to be completed by the middle of 2022. However, a competing cash and stock offer was later made by

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN i ...

(CNR) on April 20, 2021 at $33.7 billion. On May 13, 2021, KCS announced in a statement that they planned to accept the merger offer from CN, but would give CP until May 21 to come up with a higher bid. On May 21, KCS and CN agreed to a merger. CN's merger attempt was damaged by a STB ruling in August 2021 that the company's proposal to use a voting trust to assume control of KCS pending review of the merger by the board was not permissible, due to concerns about potentially reduced competition in the railroad industry. KCS backed out of the merger agreement made with CN on September 12, 2021, in favor of a new $31 billion offer from CP. Though CP's offer is lower than the offer made by CN, the STB has permitted CP to use a voting trust to take control of KCS. The voting trust allowed CP to become the beneficial owner in December 2021, but the trust must be run independently, until CP receives approval for a merger of operations from the STB.

Awards and recognition

In 2017, KCS, an

American Chemistry Council American Chemistry Council (ACC), formerly known as the Manufacturing Chemists' Association (at its founding in 1872) and then as the Chemical Manufacturers' Association (from 1978 until 2000), is an industry trade association for American chemic ...

(ACC)

Responsible Care Started in Canada in 1985, Responsible Care is a global, voluntary initiative developed autonomously by the chemical industry for the chemical industry. It runs in 67 countries whose combined chemical industries account for nearly 90% of global che ...

partner, received an Exceptional Merit designation. The ACC honored KCS for implementing energy management technology, Trip Optimizer, which improves KCS’s energy efficiency. The

E. H. Harriman Award The E.H. Harriman Award was an annual award presented to American railroad companies in recognition for outstanding safety achievements. History The award was founded in 1913 by Mary Averell Harriman, wife of the late Edward H. Harriman. Afte ...

was an award formerly bestowed on railroads for rail safety. KCS had been consistently recognized for its employee safety record (in group B: line-haul railroads with between four and 15 million employee hours per year) by the E.H. Harriman Memorial Awards Institute with a Gold Award in 2001, 2002, 2006, 2007 and 2008, Bronze Award in 2003 and 2004 and a Silver Award in 2005. In addition, KCS annually awards its “Safe Shipper” customers for originating more than 500 bulk hazmat shipments annually without incident with KCS’s Hazmat Shipper Safety Appreciation Award.

Bibliography

* Kansas City Southern History (2008)
History of the Kansas City Southern Railway
Retrieved July 7, 2008. * "Kansas City Southern Color Pictorial", Steve Allen Goen, 1999

References

External links