The Lewis and Clark Railway is a county-owned railroad located in

Clark County, Washington Clark County is the southernmost county in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, the population was 503,311, making it Washington's fifth-most populous county. Its county seat and largest city is Vancouver. It was the first co ...

. The line is long, beginning at the

BNSF BNSF Railway is one of the largest freight railroads in North America. One of seven North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 35,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and nearly 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that ...

interchange at Rye Junction in

Vancouver, Washington Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington, located in Clark County. Incorporated in 1857, Vancouver has a population of 190,915 as of the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Was ...

and stretching northeast, passing through Brush Prairie and Battle Ground to the line's northern end past Yacolt.

History

*1888: Built to Brush Prairie as the Vancouver, Klickitat & Yakima. Original line extended from a ferry dock near the current Vancouver depot up Lincoln Street. *1898: Reorganized by new owners as the Portland, Vancouver and Yakima Railroad. *1902: Line extended to Yacolt. *1903:

Northern Pacific Railway The Northern Pacific Railway was a transcontinental railroad that operated across the northern tier of the western United States, from Minnesota to the Pacific Northwest. It was approved by Congress in 1864 and given nearly of land grants, whic ...

acquires the line. *1948: Harbor Plywood Company builds an independent line from Yacolt to Chelatchie Prairie. *1950:

Longview, Portland and Northern Railway The Longview, Portland and Northern Railway is a historic railroad operation in the U.S. states of Oregon and Washington. It was founded by timber baron Robert A. Long, the founder of Longview, Washington. The company was incorporated in 1922. B ...

acquires the Harbor Plywood line. *1960: Longview, Portland and Northern Railway acquires the NP line from Rye to Yacolt. NP continues to service branch to Rye. *1979:

International Paper The International Paper Company is an American pulp and paper company, the largest such company in the world. It has approximately 56,000 employees, and is headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee. History The company was incorporated January 31 ...

in Chelatchie Prairie closes. Traffic drops precipitously. *1981:

Chelatchie Prairie Railroad The Chelatchie Prairie Railroad is a heritage railroad in Yacolt, Washington. Formerly a Northern Pacific branchline and operated by the Longview, Portland and Northern Railway for many years, in the 1980s and 1990s the line went through a number ...

acquires the line. *1984: Service discontinued. *1985: Abandonment authorized on August 29. *1987: Line purchased by Clark County and begins operation as LINC. *2001:

(BYCX) leases the portion of the line from Battle Ground to Chelatchie and begins excursions. *2004: The line is leased to the Columbia Basin Railroad to take over operations. *2012: The lease agreement is sold to

Portland Vancouver Junction Railroad The Lewis and Clark Railway is a county-owned railroad located in Clark County, Washington. The line is long, beginning at the BNSF interchange at Rye Junction in Vancouver, Washington and stretching northeast, passing through Brush Prairie a ...

, which is wholly owned by Eric Temple.

External links

Railroad's websiteChelatchie Prairie Railroad website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis Clark Railway Transportation in Clark County, Washington Defunct Washington (state) railroads

History

See also

External links