The Texas and Oklahoma Railroad (TXOR), created in 1991, ran between Oklahoma and Texas on rail purchased from 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 ...

(AT&SF). Much of the trackage has since been sold or abandoned; however, the railway continues to exist as a shortline carrier operating between

Sweetwater, Texas Sweetwater is a municipality in and the seat of Nolan County, Texas, United States. It is 123 miles southeast of Lubbock and 40 miles west of Abilene, Texas. Its population was 10,906 at the 2010 census. History The town's name "Sweetwater" is t ...

and

Maryneal, Texas Maryneal is an unincorporated community in southern Nolan County, Texas, United States. It lies along FM 608 south of the city of Sweetwater, the county seat of Nolan County. Its elevation is 2,566 feet (782 m). Although Maryneal i ...

History

The TXOR was incorporated April 22, 1991 as a Delaware corporation. It purchased two disconnected segments of track from the AT&SF, about 351 miles in total. The trackage was part of a line that had originally been laid around 1908 as part of the

Kansas City, Mexico and Orient Railway The Kansas City, Mexico and Orient Railway, started in 1900 by American railroad entrepreneur Arthur Edward Stilwell, was the predecessor of the Chihuahua al Pacífico railroad in Mexico. It was intended to reach the Pacific Ocean at Topolobamp ...

, an attempt to link

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 ...

to its closest Pacific Ocean port, Topolobampo, Mexico. However, that line never got south of Texas. The northern and far longer segment purchased by the TXOR ran from

Cherokee, Oklahoma Cherokee is the largest city within, and county seat of, Alfalfa County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,476 at the 2020 census, a decline of 1.5 percent from 2010. History Settlement and founding After the land opening of 1893, ...

south through Fairview,

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...

Clinton Clinton is an English toponymic surname, indicating one's ancestors came from English places called Glympton or Glinton.Hanks, P. & Hodges, F. ''A Dictionary of Surnames''. Oxford University Press, 1988 Clinton has frequently been used as a given ...

Altus Altus or ALTUS may refer to: Music *Alto, a musical term meaning second highest musical or vocal type *Altus (voice type), a vocal type also known as countertenor Places * Altus, Arkansas, US **Altus AVA, a wine-growing region near Altus, Arkans ...

and into

Elmer Elmer is a name of Germanic British origin. The given name originated as a surname, a medieval variant of the given name Aylmer, derived from Old English ''æþel'' (noble) and ''mær'' (famous). It was adopted as a given name in the United State ...

on the Oklahoma state line. Then it continued into Texas near Chillicothe to the Orient rail junction located just north of the town of Sweetwater. The southern segment ran from Shaufler, Texas south to

. In addition, the company obtained trackage rights between Orient Junction and Shaufler over AT&SF tracks, as well as rights in a trainyard in Sweetwater. However, major changes quickly occurred. Part of the Oklahoma trackage, south from Westhom (near Thomas) to Elmer, about 102 miles, was purchased in January 1993 by the

Oklahoma Department of Transportation The Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) is an government agency, agency of the government of Oklahoma responsible for the construction and maintenance of the state's transportation infrastructure. Under the leadership of the Oklahoma Sec ...

, which then leased it to Farmrail to operate. Some of this trackage was purchased by Farmrail in September 2013, and some has continued to be operated by Farmrail in connection with its affiliated line,

Grainbelt Corporation Farmrail System, Inc. is an employee-owned holding company for two Class III common-carrier railroads comprising "Western Oklahoma’s Regional Railroad" based in Clinton, Oklahoma. Farmrail Corporation has acted since 1981 as a lessee-operato ...

. The remaining Oklahoma tracks north to Cherokee were abandoned. In Texas, the segment from Chillicothe down to Sweetwater was abandoned in 1995. That left TXOR operating between Sweetwater and Maryneal. This railway is not to be confused with the Texas and Oklahoma Railroad which was incorporated in 1902 and was consolidated December 12, 1903 with the Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad Company (of 1901) to form the new Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad Company (of 1903).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Texas and Oklahoma Railroad (1991) Oklahoma railroads Texas railroads