The Kansas City, Mexico and Orient Railway, started in 1900 by American railroad entrepreneur

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 ...

, was the predecessor of the Chihuahua al Pacífico

railroad 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 ...

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 ...

. It was intended to reach the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

Topolobampo Topolobampo () is a port on the Gulf of California in northwestern Sinaloa, Mexico. It is the fourth-largest town in the municipality of Ahome (after Los Mochis, Ahome, and Higuera de Zaragoza), reporting a 2010 census population of 6,361 inhabit ...

, Sinaloa. The United States portion was incorporated in 1900 as the Kansas City, Mexico, and Orient Railway. It was completed between

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas, Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 397,532. The Wichita metro area had ...

, and

Alpine, Texas Alpine ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Brewster County, Texas, United States. The population was 5,905 at the 2010 census. The town has an elevation of , and the surrounding mountain peaks are over above sea level. The university, hospi ...

. Grading took place between

El Dorado El Dorado (, ; Spanish for "the golden"), originally ''El Hombre Dorado'' ("The Golden Man") or ''El Rey Dorado'' ("The Golden King"), was the term used by the Spanish in the 16th century to describe a mythical tribal chief (''zipa'') or king o ...

and

Bazaar, Kansas Bazaar is an unincorporated community in Chase County, Kansas, United States. It is located about halfway between Strong City and Matfield Green near the intersection of K-177 highway and Sharps Creek Rd. History A post office was establish ...

. Primary shops were first located in

Fairview, Oklahoma Fairview is a city in Major County, Oklahoma, United States. Its population was 2,579 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Major County. History The first permanent settlers arrived in the area of the present town at the time of the Ch ...

. In 1910, the Fairview shops were destroyed by fire and the shops were then re-established in Wichita. The railroad was forced into bankruptcy in 1912, but its receiver, William T. Kemper, was to make a fortune when oil was discovered under its tracks. In 1914, it was reorganized as the KCM&O Railroad. Another reorganization in 1925 returned it to its original name. It was popularly called ''The Orient'' railroad.Popular History of Railroading in the San Angelo Area (David Wood)
/ref> At the end of 1925, KCM&O and KCM&O of Texas (the portions of interstate railroads in Texas were required to be under unique charters) together operated of track over of

right of way Right of way is the legal right, established by grant from a landowner or long usage (i.e. by prescription), to pass along a specific route through property belonging to another. A similar ''right of access'' also exists on land held by a gov ...

; they reported a total of 330 million net ton-miles of revenue freight and 8 million passenger-miles. The KCM&O was acquired by the

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The railroad was chartered in February 1859 to serve the cities of Atchison, Kansas, Atchison and Top ...

in 1928, mainly to gain access to the

West Texas West Texas is a loosely defined region in the U.S. state of Texas, generally encompassing the arid and semiarid lands west of a line drawn between the cities of Wichita Falls, Abilene, and Del Rio. No consensus exists on the boundary betwee ...

oil fields. The Santa Fe then sold the Mexican portions. The railway reached

Presidio A presidio ( en, jail, fortification) was a fortified base established by the Spanish Empire around between 16th century, 16th and 18th century, 18th centuries in areas in condition of their control or influence. The presidios of Captaincy Genera ...

in 1930 and the

Presidio–Ojinaga International Rail Bridge The Presidio–Ojinaga International Rail Bridge (also known as the Presidio Rail Bridge or the ''Puente Ferro Carril Ojinaga'') is an international bridge that crosses the Rio Grande (Río Bravo) between the cities of Presidio, Texas, and Ojinaga, ...

was built. Operating rights on the portion from San Angelo Junction ( NEE of San Angelo) to Presidio (known as South Orient Rail Line) later were awarded to

Texas Pacifico Transportation Texas Pacifico Transportation Ltd. is a Class III railroad operating company in West Texas owned by Grupo México. The company operates over the South Orient Rail Line under a lease and operating agreement with the Texas Department of Transpor ...

References

Defunct Kansas railroads Defunct railway companies of Mexico Defunct Oklahoma railroads Defunct Texas railroads Former Class I railroads in the United States Predecessors of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Fort Stockton, Texas Railway companies established in 1900 1928 disestablishments in Mexico Railway companies disestablished in 1928 1928 mergers and acquisitions Porfiriato Mexican companies established in 1900 {{US-ClassI-rail-transport-stub

See also

References