The St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway (St. L., I. M. & S.), commonly known as the Iron Mountain, was an American railway company that operated from 1874 until 1917 when it was merged into the
Missouri Pacific Railroad
The Missouri Pacific Railroad , commonly abbreviated as MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers. In 1967, the railroad ...
.
History
The Iron Mountain was initially established to deliver
iron ore
Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the fo ...
from
Iron Mountain to
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
,
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 ...
. In 1883 the railway was acquired by
Jay Gould
Jason Gould (; May 27, 1836 – December 2, 1892) was an American railroad magnate and financial speculator who is generally identified as one of the robber barons of the Gilded Age. His sharp and often unscrupulous business practices made hi ...
, becoming part of a system. On May 12, 1917, the company was officially merged into the
Missouri Pacific Railroad
The Missouri Pacific Railroad , commonly abbreviated as MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers. In 1967, the railroad ...
, which in turn was merged into the
Union Pacific Railroad
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 ...
in 1982. It was robbed twice, once by the
James-Younger Gang, on January 31, 1874, at
Gad's Hill
Gads Hill Place in Higham, Kent, sometimes spelt Gadshill Place and Gad's Hill Place, was the country home of Charles Dickens, the most successful British author of the Victorian era. Today the building is the independent Gad's Hill School.
...
, and once by the "One-Time Train Robbery Gang", on November 3, 1893, at Olyphant,
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 ...
.
Heritage railroad
A
heritage railroad
A heritage railway or heritage railroad (US usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) i ...
by the same name, based in
Jackson
Jackson may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name
Places
Australia
* Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region
* Jackson North, Q ...
, Missouri operates about of
shortline in
Cape Girardeau County
Cape Girardeau County is located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Missouri; its eastern border is formed by the Mississippi River. At the 2020 census, the population was 81,710. The county seat is Jackson, the first city in the US ...
.
Notes
See also
*
St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway 5
*
St. Louis Southwestern Railway
The St. Louis Southwestern Railway Company , known by its nickname of "The Cotton Belt Route" or simply "Cotton Belt", is a former Class I railroad that operated between St. Louis, Missouri, and various points in the U.S. states of Arkansas, Ten ...
*
Dardanelle and Russellville Railroad
The Dardanelle and Russellville Railroad Company (D&R) is a Class III railroad, Class III short-line railroad headquartered in Russellville, Arkansas.
D&R operates a line in Arkansas from Russellville (where it interchanges with Union Pacific) t ...
*
Mississippian Railway
The Mississippian Railway is a short line railroad operating from Amory, Mississippi, to Fulton, Mississippi. It is owned and operated by the Itawamba County Railroad Authority.
The MSRW interchanges with the BNSF Railway at Amory, Mississip ...
References
External links
*
Corporate historyat the Missouri Pacific Historical Society
at Cartography Associates
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Louis, Iron Mountain And Southern Railway
1874 mergers and acquisitions
1917 mergers and acquisitions
American companies established in 1874
American companies disestablished in 1917
Companies based in St. Louis
Defunct Arkansas railroads
Defunct Illinois railroads
Defunct Louisiana railroads
Defunct Kansas railroads
Defunct Oklahoma railroads
Defunct Tennessee railroads
Former Class I railroads in the United States
Heritage railroads in Missouri
Railway companies established in 1874
Railway companies disestablished in 1917
Standard gauge railways in the United States
Tourist attractions in Cape Girardeau County, Missouri