The Northern Pacific Railway was a
transcontinental railroad
A transcontinental railroad or transcontinental railway is contiguous railroad trackage, that crosses a continental land mass and has terminals at different oceans or continental borders. Such networks can be via the tracks of either a single ...
that operated across the northern tier of the
western United States
The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the Wes ...
, from
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
to the
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...
. It was approved by
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
in 1864 and given nearly of
land grants
A land grant is a gift of real estate—land or its use privileges—made by a government or other authority as an incentive, means of enabling works, or as a reward for services to an individual, especially in return for military service. Grants ...
, which it used to raise money in Europe for construction.
Construction began in 1870 and the main line opened all the way from the
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...
to the
Pacific
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 ...
when former
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...
drove in the final "golden spike" in
western Montana
Western Montana is the western region of the U.S. state of Montana. The most restrictive definition limits western Montana only to the parts of the state west of the Continental Divide. Other common definitions add in the mountainous areas east o ...
on September 8, 1883. The railroad had about of track and served a large area, including extensive trackage in the states of
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...
, Minnesota,
Montana
Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...
,
North Dakota
North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...
,
Oregon
Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
,
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
, and
Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
. In addition, the NP had an international branch to
Winnipeg
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...
,
Manitoba
Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...
, Canada. The main activities were shipping wheat and other farm products, cattle, timber, and minerals; bringing in consumer goods, transporting passengers; and selling land.
The Northern Pacific was headquartered in Minnesota, first in
Brainerd, then in
Saint Paul
Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
. It had a tumultuous financial history; the NP merged with other lines in 1970 to form the
Burlington Northern Railroad
The Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States-based railroad company formed from a Mergers and acquisitions, merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1996.
Its historical lineage begins in the e ...
, which in turn merged with the
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 and Topeka, Kansas, and S ...
to become the
BNSF Railway
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 ...
in 1996.
History
Organization
![NorthernPacificLandGrant](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/NorthernPacificLandGrant.jpg)
Congress chartered the Northern Pacific Railway Company on July 2, 1864, with the goals of connecting the Great Lakes with Puget Sound on the Pacific, opening vast new lands for farming, ranching, lumbering and mining, and linking Washington and Oregon to the rest of the country.
Congress granted the railroad a potential 60 million acres (243,000 km
2) of land in exchange for building rail transportation to an undeveloped territory.
Josiah Perham was elected its first president on December 7, 1864.
[ It could not use all the land and in the end took just under 40 million acres.
]
Jay Cooke takes control
For the next six years, backers of the road struggled to find financing. Though John Gregory Smith
John Gregory Smith (July 22, 1818 – November 6, 1891) was a Vermont businessman and politician. He is most notable for serving as the 28th governor of Vermont from 1863 to 1865, the last of Vermont's Civil War chief executives.
Biography
S ...
succeeded Perham as president on January 5, 1865, groundbreaking did not take place until February 15, 1870, at Carlton, Minnesota, west of Duluth, Minnesota
, settlement_type = City
, nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City
, motto =
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...
. The backing and promotions of famed financier Jay Cooke
Jay Cooke (August 10, 1821 – February 16, 1905) was an American financier who helped finance the Union war effort during the American Civil War and the postwar development of railroads in the northwestern United States. He is generally acknowle ...
in the summer of 1870 brought the first real momentum to the company.
Over the course of 1871, the Northern Pacific pushed westward from Minnesota into present-day North Dakota
North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...
. Surveyors and construction crews had to maneuver through swamps, bogs, and tamarack forests. The difficult terrain and insufficient funding delayed by six months the construction phase in Minnesota. The NP also began building its line north from Kalama, Washington
Kalama (kaw-law-maw) is a city in Cowlitz County, Washington, Cowlitz County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. It is part of the Longview, Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,959 as of the 2020 United State ...
Territory, on the Columbia River
The Columbia River (Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, C ...
outside of Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
, towards Puget Sound
Puget Sound ( ) is a sound of the Pacific Northwest, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean, and part of the Salish Sea. It is located along the northwestern coast of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected ma ...
. Four small construction engines were purchased, the ''Minnetonka'', ''Itaska'', ''Ottertail'' and ''St. Cloud'', the first of which was shipped to Kalama by ship around Cape Horn
Cape Horn ( es, Cabo de Hornos, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which are the Diego Ramírez ...
. In Minnesota, the Lake Superior and Mississippi Railroad The Lake Superior and Mississippi Railroad is the name for two different railroads in Minnesota.
Historic railroad
The Lake Superior and Mississippi Railroad (LS&M) was the first rail link between the Twin Cities and Duluth and came into existence ...
completed construction of its line stretching from Saint Paul
Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
to Lake Superior
Lake Superior in central North America is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh wa ...
at Duluth in 1870. It was leased to the Northern Pacific in 1876, and was eventually absorbed by the Northern Pacific. The ''North Coast Limited'' was the Northern Pacific's flagship train and the Northern Pacific itself was built along the trail first blazed by Lewis and Clark.
The Northern Pacific reached Fargo, Dakota Territory (now North Dakota), early in June 1872. The following year, in June 1873, the N.P. reached the shores of the Missouri River, at Edwinton (now Bismarck) D.T. In the west, the track extended north from Kalama. Surveys were carried out in North Dakota protected by 600 troops under General Winfield Scott Hancock
Winfield Scott Hancock (February 14, 1824 – February 9, 1886) was a United States Army officer and the Democratic nominee for President of the United States in 1880. He served with distinction in the Army for four decades, including service ...
. Headquarters and shops were established in Brainerd, Minnesota
Brainerd is a city in Crow Wing County, Minnesota, United States. Its population was 14,395 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Crow Wing County. Brainerd straddles the Mississippi River several miles upstream from its confluence with ...
, a town named for the President John Gregory Smith's wife Anna Elizabeth Brainerd. A severe stock market crash and financial collapse after 1873, led by the Credit Mobilier Scandal
Credit (from Latin verb ''credit'', meaning "one believes") is the trust which allows one party to provide money or resources to another party wherein the second party does not reimburse the first party immediately (thereby generating a debt), ...
and 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 ...
fraud, stopped further railroad building for twelve years.
In 1886, the company put down of main line across North Dakota, with an additional in Washington. On November 1, General George Washington Cass George Washington Cass (March 12, 1810 – March 21, 1888) was an American industrialist and president of the Northern Pacific Railway.
Family
George Washington Cass was born near Dresden, Ohio, March 12, 1810, to George W. and Sophia (Lor ...
became the third president of the company. Cass had been a vice-president and director of the Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...
, and would lead the Northern Pacific through some of its most difficult times.
Attacks on survey parties and construction crews by Sioux
The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin (; Dakota language, Dakota: Help:IPA, /otʃʰeːtʰi ʃakoːwĩ/) are groups of Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribes and First Nations in Canada, First Nations peoples in North America. The ...
, Cheyenne
The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. Their Cheyenne language belongs to the Algonquian language family. Today, the Cheyenne people are split into two federally recognized nations: the Southern Cheyenne, who are enroll ...
, Arapaho
The Arapaho (; french: Arapahos, ) are a Native American people historically living on the plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Lakota and Dakota.
By the 1850s, Arapaho band ...
, and Kiowa
Kiowa () people are a Native American tribe and an indigenous people of the Great Plains of the United States. They migrated southward from western Montana into the Rocky Mountains in Colorado in the 17th and 18th centuries,Pritzker 326 and eve ...
warriors in North Dakota and Minnesota became so prevalent that the company received protection from units of the U.S. Army.
Settlement
In 1886, the Northern Pacific also opened colonization offices in Germany and Scandinavia, attracting farmers with cheap package transportation and purchase deals. The success of the NP was based on the abundant crops of wheat and other grains and the attraction to settlers of the Red River Valley
The Red River Valley is a region in central North America that is drained by the Red River of the North; it is part of both Canada and the United States. Forming the border between Minnesota and North Dakota when these territories were admitted ...
along the Minnesota-North Dakota border between 1881 and 1890.
The Northern Pacific reached Dakota Territory at Fargo in 1872, and began its career as one of the central factors in the economic growth of North Dakota. The climate, although very cold, was suitable for wheat, which was in high demand in the cities of the United States and Europe. Most of the settlers were German and Scandinavian immigrants who bought the land cheaply, and raised large families. They shipped huge quantities of wheat to Minneapolis, while buying all sorts of equipment and home supplies to be shipped in by rail.
The NP used its federal land grants as security to borrow money to build its system. The federal government kept every other section of land, and gave it away free to homesteaders. At first the railroad sold much of its holdings at low prices to land speculators in order to realize quick cash profits, and also to eliminate sizable annual tax bills. By 1905 the railroad company's land policies changed, after it was judged a costly mistake to have sold much of the land at wholesale prices. With better railroad service and improved methods of farming the Northern Pacific easily sold what had been heretofore "worthless" land directly to farmers at good prices. By 1910 the railroad's holdings in North Dakota had been greatly reduced.
Panic of 1873 and first bankruptcy
In 1873, Northern Pacific made impressive strides before a terrible stumble. Rails from the east reached the Missouri River on June 4. After several years of study, Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, Washington, Olympia, and northwest of Mount ...
, was selected as the road's western terminus on July 14, 1873.
For the previous three years the financial house of Jay Cooke and Company had been throwing money into the construction of the Northern Pacific. As with many western transcontinentals, the staggering costs of building a railroad into a vast wilderness had been drastically underestimated. Cooke had little success in marketing the bonds in Europe and overextended his house in meeting overdrafts of the mounting construction costs. Cooke overestimated his managerial skills and failed to appreciate the limits of a banker's ability to be also a promoter, and the danger of freezing his assets in the bonds of the Northern Pacific. Cooke and Company went bankrupt on September 18, 1873. Soon the Panic of 1873
The Panic of 1873 was a financial crisis that triggered an economic depression in Europe and North America that lasted from 1873 to 1877 or 1879 in France and in Britain. In Britain, the Panic started two decades of stagnation known as the "Lon ...
engulfed the United States, beginning an economic depression that ruined or nearly paralyzed newer railroads.
The Northern Pacific survived bankruptcy that year, due to austerity measures put in place by President Cass. In fact, working with last-minute loans from Director John C. Ainsworth
John Commingers Ainsworth (June 6, 1822 – December 30, 1893) was an American pioneer businessman and steamboat owner in Oregon. A native of Ohio, he moved west to mine gold in California before immigrating to Oregon where he piloted steamships ...
of Portland, the Northern Pacific completed the line from Kalama to Tacoma, a distance of , before the end of 1873. On December 16, the first steam train arrived in Tacoma. But in 1874 the company was moribund.
Northern Pacific slipped into its first bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...
on June 30, 1875. Cass resigned to become receiver of the company, and Charles Barstow Wright
Charles Barstow Wright (January 8, 1822 – March 24, 1898) was a United States financier.
Biography
Wright was born in Bradford County, Pennsylvania on January 8, 1822. He started in business at 15, and at 19 was taken as a partner by his employ ...
became its fourth president. Frederick Billings
Frederick H. Billings (September 27, 1823 – September 30, 1890) was an American lawyer, financier, and politician. He is best known for his legal work on land claims during the early years of California's statehood and his presidency of the ...
, namesake of Billings, Montana
Billings is the largest city in the U.S. state of Montana, with a population of 117,116 as of the 2020 census. Located in the south-central portion of the state, it is the seat of Yellowstone County and the principal city of the Billings Metrop ...
, formulated a reorganization plan which was put into effect.
Throughout 1874 to 1876, elements of the 7th Cavalry Regiment
The 7th Cavalry Regiment is a United States Army cavalry regiment formed in 1866. Its official nickname is "Garryowen", after the Ireland, Irish air "Garryowen (air), Garryowen" that was adopted as its march tune.
The regiment participated i ...
under the command of Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer (December 5, 1839 – June 25, 1876) was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the American Indian Wars.
Custer graduated from West Point in 1861 at the bottom of his class, b ...
operating out of Forts Abraham Lincoln and Rice
Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima
''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...
in Dakota Territory conducted expeditions to protect the railroad survey and construction crews in Dakota and Montana Territories.
Frederick Billings and first reorganization
In 1877, construction resumed in a small way. Northern Pacific pushed a branch line southeast from Tacoma to Puyallup, Washington
Puyallup ( or ) is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States, located about 10 miles (16 km) southeast of Tacoma and 35 miles (56 km) south of Seattle. It had a population of 42,973 at the 2020 census. The city's name comes from th ...
and on to the coal fields around Wilkeson, Washington
Wilkeson is a town in Pierce County, Washington, Pierce County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The population was 499 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census.
History
Settlers searching for coal arrived in the area that be ...
. Much of the coal was destined for export through Tacoma to San Francisco, California
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
, where it would be thrown into the fireboxes of Central Pacific Railroad
The Central Pacific Railroad (CPRR) was a rail company chartered by Pacific Railroad Acts, U.S. Congress in 1862 to build a railroad eastwards from Sacramento, California, to complete the western part of the "First transcontinental railroad" in N ...
steam engines
A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a cylinder. This pushing force can be trans ...
.
This small amount of construction was one of the largest projects the company would undertake in the years between 1874 and 1880. That same year the company built a large shop complex at Edison, Washington (now part of south Tacoma). For many years the shops at Brainerd and Edison would carry out heavy repairs and build equipment for the railroad.
On May 24, 1879, Frederick H. Billings
Frederick H. Billings (September 27, 1823 – September 30, 1890) was an American lawyer, financier, and politician. He is best known for his legal work on land claims during the early years of California's statehood and his presidency of the ...
became the president of the company. Billings' tenure would be short but ferocious. Reorganization, bond sales, and improvement in the U.S. economy allowed Northern Pacific to strike out across the Missouri River by letting a contract to build of railroad west of the river. The railroad's new-found strength, however, would be seen as a threat in certain quarters.
Henry Villard, Gold Creek, Gold Spike
German-born journalist Henry Villard
Henry Villard (April 10, 1835 – November 12, 1900) was an American journalist and financier who was an early president of the Northern Pacific Railway.
Born and raised by Ferdinand Heinrich Gustav Hilgard in the Rhenish Palatinate of the Kin ...
had raised capital for western railroads in Europe from 1871 to 1873. After returning to New York in 1874 he invested on behalf of his clients in railroads in Oregon. Through Villard's work, most of these lines became properties of the European creditors' holding company, the Oregon and Transcontinental Company
The Oregon and Transcontinental Company was a 19th-century holding company in the United States, organized by Henry Villard in 1881 to control the Northern Pacific Railroad and Oregon Railway and Navigation Company. It was incorporated in Oregon. ...
.
Of the lines held by the Oregon and Transcontinental, the most important was the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company
The Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company (OR&N) was a railroad that operated a rail network of running east from Portland, Oregon, United States, to northeastern Oregon, northeastern Washington, and northern Idaho. It operated from 1896 as a ...
, which ran east from Portland along the left bank of the Columbia River to a connection with 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 ...
's Oregon Short Line
The Oregon Short Line Railroad was a railroad in Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Montana and Oregon in the United States. The line was organized as the Oregon Short Line Railway in 1881 as a subsidiary of the Union Pacific Railway. The Union Pacific int ...
at the confluence of the Columbia River and the Snake River
The Snake River is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest region in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, in turn, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean. The Snake ...
near Wallula, Washington
Wallula () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Walla Walla County, Washington, United States. The population was 179 at the 2010 census.
History
The Lewis and Clark Expedition reached this area April 27, 1806, on their return journey from the P ...
.
Within a decade of his return, Villard was head of a transportation empire in the Pacific Northwest that had but one real competitor, the Northern Pacific. The Northern Pacific's completion threatened the holdings of Villard in the Northwest, and especially in Portland. Portland would become a second-class city if the Puget Sound ports at Tacoma and Seattle, Washington
Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...
, were connected to the East by rail.
Villard, who had been building a monopoly of river and rail transportation in Oregon
Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
for several years, now launched a daring raid. Using his European connections and a reputation for having "bested" 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 ...
in a battle for control of the Kansas Pacific
The Kansas Pacific Railway (KP) was a historic railroad company that operated in the western United States in the late 19th century. It was a federally chartered railroad, backed with government land grants. At a time when the first transcontin ...
years before, Villard solicited – and raised – $8,000,000 from his associates. This was his famous "Blind Pool," Villard's associates were not told what the money would be used for. In this case, the funds were used to purchase control of the Northern Pacific.
Despite a tough fight, Billings and his backers were forced to capitulate; he resigned the presidency June 9, 1881. Ashbel H. Barney
Ashbel Holmes Barney (September 2, 1816 – December 27, 1886) was an American banker and expressman who served as president of Wells Fargo & Company in 1869-1870.
Early life
Barney was born on September 2, 1816 at Adams, New York in Jefferson C ...
, former President of Wells Fargo & Company, served briefly as interim caretaker of the railroad from June 19 to September 15, when Villard was elected president by the stockholders. For the next two years, Villard and the Northern Pacific rode the whirlwind.
In 1882, of main line and of branch line
A branch line is a phrase used in railway terminology to denote a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line.
Industrial spur
An industri ...
were completed, bringing totals to and , respectively. On October 10, 1882, the line from Wadena, Minnesota
Wadena ( ) is a city in Otter Tail and Wadena counties in the State of Minnesota. It is about one hundred sixty miles northwest of the Minneapolis – Saint Paul metro area. The population was 4,325 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat ...
, to Fergus Falls, Minnesota
Fergus Falls is a city in and the county seat of Otter Tail County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 14,119 at the 2020 census.
History
The falls from which the city gets part of its name were discovered by Joe Whitford (a Scotti ...
, opened for service. The Missouri River was bridged with a million-dollar span on October 21, 1883. Until then, crossing of the Missouri had had to be managed with a ferry service for most of the year; in winter, when ice was thick enough, rails were laid across the river itself.
General Herman Haupt
Herman Haupt (March 26, 1817 – December 14, 1905) was an American civil engineer and railroad construction engineer and executive. As a Union Army
During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Nort ...
, another veteran of the Civil War and the Pennsylvania Railroad, organized the Northern Pacific Beneficial Association in 1881. A forerunner of the modern health maintenance organization
In the United States, a health maintenance organization (HMO) is a medical insurance group that provides health services for a fixed annual fee. It is an organization that provides or arranges managed care for health insurance, self-funded healt ...
, the NPBA ultimately established a series of four hospitals across the system in Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississip ...
; Glendive, Montana
Glendive is a city in and the county seat of Dawson County, Montana, United States, and home to Dawson Community College. Glendive was established by the Northern Pacific Railway when they built the transcontinental railroad across the northern ...
; Missoula, Montana
Missoula ( ; fla, label=Salish language, Séliš, Nłʔay, lit=Place of the Small Bull Trout, script=Latn; kut, Tuhuⱡnana, script=Latn) is a city in the U.S. state of Montana; it is the county seat of Missoula County, Montana, Missoula Cou ...
; and Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, Washington, Olympia, and northwest of Mount ...
, to care for employees, retirees, and their families.
On January 15, 1883, the first train reached Livingston, Montana
Livingston is a city and county seat of Park County, Montana, United States. It is in southwestern Montana, on the Yellowstone River, north of Yellowstone National Park. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 8,040.
History
T ...
, at the eastern foot of Bozeman Pass
Bozeman Pass el. is a mountain pass situated approximately east of Bozeman, Montana and approximately west of Livingston, Montana on Interstate 90. It separates the Bridger and Gallatin mountain ranges.
It is named after pioneer John Bozeman ...
. Livingston, like Brainerd and South Tacoma before it, would grow to encompass a large backshop
A backshop or back-shop is a specialized store or workshop found in service industries, such as locomotive and aircraft repair. Most repairs are carried out in small workshops, except where an industrial service is needed.
In the military, backs ...
handling heavy repairs for the railroad. It would also mark the east–west dividing line on the Northern Pacific system.
Villard pushed hard for the completion of the Northern Pacific in 1883. His crews laid an average of a mile and half (2.4 km) of track each day. In early September, the line neared completion. To celebrate, and to gain national publicity for investment opportunities in his region, Villard chartered four trains to carry guests from the East to Gold Creek in western Montana. No expense was spared and the list of dignitaries included Frederick Billings, Ulysses S. Grant, and Villard's in-laws, the family of abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison
William Lloyd Garrison (December , 1805 – May 24, 1879) was a prominent American Christian, abolitionist, journalist, suffragist, and social reformer. He is best known for his widely read antislavery newspaper '' The Liberator'', which he found ...
. On September 8, the Gold Spike was driven near Gold Creek.
Direct to Puget Sound
Villard's fall was swifter than his ascendancy. Like Jay Cooke, he was now consumed by the enormous costs of constructing the railroad. Wall Street bears attacked the stock shortly after the Golden Spike, after the realization that the Northern Pacific was a very long road with very little business. Villard himself suffered a nervous breakdown in the days after the driving of the Golden Spike, and he left the presidency of the Northern Pacific in January 1884.
Again, the presidency of the Northern Pacific was handed to a professional railroader, Robert Harris, former head of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illin ...
. For the next four years, until the return of the Villard group, Harris worked at improving the property and ending its tangled relationship with the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company.
Throughout the mid-1880s, the Northern Pacific pushed to reach Puget Sound directly, rather than by means of a roundabout route that followed the Columbia River. Surveys of the Cascade Mountains
The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...
, carried out intermittently since the 1870s, began anew. Virgil Bogue
Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: th ...
, a veteran civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing ...
, was sent to explore the Cascades again. On March 19, 1881, he discovered Stampede Pass
Stampede Pass (elevation ) is a mountain pass in the northwest United States, through the Cascade Range in Washington. Southeast of Seattle and east of Tacoma, its importance to transportation lies almost entirely with railroading, as no paved r ...
. In 1883, John W. Sprague
John Wilson Sprague (April 4, 1817 – December 27, 1893) was an American soldier and railroad executive. He served as a General officer, general in the Union Army in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, Western Theater of operation ...
, the head of the new Pacific Division, drove the Golden Spike to mark the beginning of the railroad from what would become Kalama, Washington
Kalama (kaw-law-maw) is a city in Cowlitz County, Washington, Cowlitz County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. It is part of the Longview, Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,959 as of the 2020 United State ...
. He resigned a months later due to impaired health.
In 1884, after the departure of Villard, the Northern Pacific began building toward Stampede Pass
Stampede Pass (elevation ) is a mountain pass in the northwest United States, through the Cascade Range in Washington. Southeast of Seattle and east of Tacoma, its importance to transportation lies almost entirely with railroading, as no paved r ...
from Wallula in the east and the area of Wilkeson in the west. By the end of the year, rails had reached Yakima, Washington
Yakima ( or ) is a city in and the county seat of Yakima County, Washington, and the state's 11th-largest city by population. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 96,968 and a metropolitan population of 256,728. The uninco ...
in the east. A gap remained in 1886.
In January of that year, Nelson Bennett was given a contract to construct a tunnel under Stampede Pass. The contract specified a short amount of time for completion, and a large penalty if the deadline were missed. While crews worked on the tunnel, the railroad built a temporary switchback route across the pass. With numerous timber trestles and grades which approached six percent, the temporary line required two M class 2-10-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-10-0 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, ten powered and coupled driving wheels on five axles, and no trailing wheels. This arrangement was of ...
s — the two largest locomotives in the world (at that time) — to handle a tiny five-car train. On May 3, 1888, crews holed through the tunnel, and on May 27 the first train passed through directly to Puget Sound.
Villard and the Panic of 1893
Despite this success, the Northern Pacific, like many U.S. roads, was living on borrowed time. From 1887 until 1893, Henry Villard returned to the board of directors. Though offered the presidency, he refused. An associate of Villard dating back to his time on the Kansas Pacific, Thomas Fletcher Oakes
Thomas Fletcher Oakes (July 15, 1843 – March 14, 1919) was president of Northern Pacific Railway from 1888 to 1893.
Biography
Thomas Fletcher Oakes was born in Boston on July 15, 1843. He entered railway service June 1, 1863; to April, 1879, ...
, assumed the presidency on September 20, 1888.
In an effort to garner business, Oakes pursued an aggressive policy of branch line expansion. In addition, the Northern Pacific experienced the first competition in the form of James Jerome Hill
James Jerome Hill (September 16, 1838 – May 29, 1916) was a Canadian-American railroad director. He was the chief executive officer of a family of lines headed by the Great Northern Railway, which served a substantial area of the Upper Midwes ...
and his Great Northern Railway. The Great Northern, like the Northern Pacific before it, was pushing west from the Twin Cities towards Puget Sound, and would be completed in 1893.
Mismanagement, sparse traffic, and the Panic of 1893
The Panic of 1893 was an economic depression in the United States that began in 1893 and ended in 1897. It deeply affected every sector of the economy, and produced political upheaval that led to the political realignment of 1896 and the pres ...
sounded the death knell for the Northern Pacific and Villard's interest in railroading. The company slipped into its second bankruptcy on October 20, 1893. Oakes was named receiver and Brayton Ives
Brayton Ives (August 23, 1840 – October 22, 1914) was president of Northern Pacific Railway from 1893 to 1896 and was president of the New York Stock Exchange and the Western National Bank of New York. He also served as an officer in the Union A ...
, a former chairman of the New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed c ...
, became president.
Railroad labor dispute
In 1894, the 10th Cavalry Regiment
The 10th Cavalry Regiment is a unit of the United States Army. Formed as a segregated African-American unit, the 10th Cavalry was one of the original "Buffalo Soldier" regiments in the post–Civil War Regular Army. It served in combat during t ...
of the U.S. Army was involved in protecting property of the Northern Pacific Railroad from striking workers.
From Villard to Morganization
For the next three years, the Villard-Oakes interests and the Ives interest feuded for control of the Northern Pacific. Oakes was eventually forced out as receiver, but not before three separate courts were claiming jurisdiction over the Northern Pacific's bankruptcy. Things came to a head in 1896, when first Edward Dean Adams
Edward Dean Adams (April 9, 1846 – May 20, 1931) was an American businessman, banker, power broker and numismatist. He was the president of Niagara Falls Hydraulic Power and Manufacturing Company which built the first hydroelectric power plant ...
was appointed president, then less than two months later, Edwin Winter
Edwin Wheeler Winter (born November 18, 1845, in Bloomfield, Vermont – June 28, 1930, in Little Compton, Rhode Island) was president of Northern Pacific Railway in 1896 then president of Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company, Brooklyn Heights Railroa ...
.
Ultimately, the task of straightening out the muddle of the Northern Pacific was turned over to J. P. Morgan
John Pierpont Morgan Sr. (April 17, 1837 – March 31, 1913) was an American financier and investment banker who dominated corporate finance on Wall Street throughout the Gilded Age. As the head of the banking firm that ultimately became known ...
. Morganization of the Northern Pacific, a process which befell many U.S. roads in the wake of the Panic of 1893, was handed to Morgan lieutenant Charles Henry Coster. The new president, beginning September 1, 1897, was Charles Sanger Mellen
Charles Sanger Mellen (August 16, 1852 – November 17, 1927) was an American railroad man whose career culminated in the presidencies of the Northern Pacific Railway (1897-1903) and the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad (1903-1913). H ...
.
Though James J. Hill had purchased an interest in the Northern Pacific during the troubled days of 1896, Coster and Mellen would advocate, and follow, a staunchly independent line for the Northern Pacific for the next four years. Only the early death of Coster from overwork, and the promotion of Mellen to head the Morgan-controlled New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad
The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad , commonly known as The Consolidated, or simply as the New Haven, was a railroad that operated in the New England region of the United States from 1872 to December 31, 1968. Founded by the merger of ...
in 1903, would bring the Northern Pacific closer to the orbit of James J. Hill.
Hill, Harriman and the Northern Pacific Corner
In the late 1880s, the Villard regime, in another one of its costly missteps, attempted to stretch the Northern Pacific from the Twin Cities to the all-important rail hub of Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
. A costly project was begun in creating a union station and terminal facilities for a Northern Pacific which had yet to arrive.
Rather than build directly down to Chicago, perhaps following the Mississippi River as the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy
The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illin ...
had done, Villard chose to lease the Wisconsin Central. Some backers of the Wisconsin Central had long associations with Villard, and an expensive lease was worked out between the two companies which was only undone by the Northern Pacific's second bankruptcy.
The ultimate result was that the Northern Pacific was left without a direct connection to Chicago, the primary interchange point for most of the large U.S. railroads. Fortunately, the Northern Pacific was not alone. James J. Hill
James Jerome Hill (September 16, 1838 – May 29, 1916) was a Canadian-American railroad director. He was the chief executive officer of a family of lines headed by the Great Northern Railway, which served a substantial area of the Upper Midwes ...
, controller of the Great Northern Railway, which was completed between the Twin Cities and Puget Sound in 1893, also lacked a direct connection to Chicago. Hill went looking for a road with an existing route between the Twin Cities and Chicago which could be rolled into his holdings and give him a stable path to that important interchange. At the same time, E. H. Harriman
Edward Henry Harriman (February 20, 1848 – September 9, 1909) was an American financier and railroad executive.
Early life
Harriman was born on February 20, 1848, in Hempstead, New York, the son of Orlando Harriman Sr., an Episcopal clergyman ...
, head of 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 ...
, was also looking for a road which could connect his company to Chicago.
The road both Harriman and Hill looked at was the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy. To Harriman, the Burlington was a road which paralleled much of his own, and offered tantalizing direct access to Chicago. For Hill as well, there was the possibility of a high-speed link directly with Chicago. Though the Burlington did not parallel the Great Northern or the Northern Pacific, it would give them a powerful railroad in the central West. Harriman was the first to approach the Burlington's aging leader, the irascible Charles Elliott Perkins
Charles Elliott Perkins (November 24, 1840 – November 8, 1907) was an American businessman and president of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad."Charles E. Perkins, Dead." ''New York Times.'' November 9, 1907. He was so well respected th ...
. The price for control of the Burlington, as set by Perkins, was $200 a share, more than Harriman was willing to pay. Hill met the price, and control of the Burlington was divided equally at about 48.5 percent each between the Great Northern and the Northern Pacific.
Not to be outdone, Harriman now came up with a crafty plan: Buy a controlling interest in the Northern Pacific and use its power on the Burlington to place friendly directors upon its board. On May 3, 1901, Harriman began his stock raid which would become known as the Northern Pacific Corner. By the end of the day he was short just 40,000 shares of common stock. Harriman placed an order to cover this, but was overridden by his broker, Jacob Schiff
Jacob (; ; ar, يَعْقُوب, Yaʿqūb; gr, Ἰακώβ, Iakṓb), later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Jac ...
, of Kuhn, Loeb & Co. Hill, on the other hand, reached the vacationing Morgan in Italy and managed to place an order for 150,000 shares of common stock. Though Harriman might be able to control the preferred stock, Hill knew the company bylaws allowed for the holders of the common stock to vote to retire the preferred.
In three days the Harriman-Hill imbroglio managed to wreak havoc on the stock market. Northern Pacific stock was quoted at $150 a share on May 6, and is reported to have traded as much as $1,000 a share behind the scenes. Harriman and Hill now worked to settle the issue for brokers to avoid panic. Hill, for his part, attempted to avoid future stock raids by placing his holdings in the Northern Securities Company
The Northern Securities Company was a short-lived American railroad trust formed in 1901 by E. H. Harriman, James J. Hill, J.P. Morgan and their associates. The company controlled the Northern Pacific Railway; Great Northern Railway; Chicago, Bu ...
, a move which would be undone by the Supreme Court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
in 1904 under the auspices of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act
The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 (, ) is a United States antitrust law which prescribes the rule of free competition among those engaged in commerce. It was passed by Congress and is named for Senator John Sherman, its principal author.
Th ...
. Harriman was not immune either; he was forced to break up his holdings in 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 ...
and the Southern Pacific Railroad
The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...
a few years later.
From Hill to Howard Elliott
In 1903, Hill finally got his way with the House of Morgan. Howard Elliott, another veteran of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy, became president of the Northern Pacific on October 23. Elliott was a relative of the Burlington's crusty chieftain Charles Elliott Perkins, and more distantly the Burlington's great backer, John Murray Forbes
John Murray Forbes (February 23, 1813 – October 12, 1898) was an American railroad magnate, merchant, philanthropist and abolitionist. He was president of both the Michigan Central railroad and the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad in ...
. He had spent 20 years in the trenches of Midwest railroading, where rebates, pooling, expansion and rate wars had brought ruinous competition. Having seen the effects of having multiple railroads attempt to serve the same destination, he was very much in tune with James J. Hill's philosophy of "community of interest," a loose affiliation or collusion among roads in an attempt to avoid duplicating routes, rate wars, weak finances and ultimately bankruptcies and reorganizations. Elliott would be left to make peace with the Hill-controlled Great Northern; the Harriman-controlled Union Pacific; and, between 1907 and 1909, the last of the northern transcontinentals, the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (CMStP&P), often referred to as the "Milwaukee Road" , was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwest and Northwest of the United States from 1847 until 1986.
The company experience ...
, more commonly known as the Milwaukee Road.
Into the twentieth century
After the turn of the century the Northern Pacific had a record of steady improvement. Together with the Great Northern, the Northern Pacific also gained control of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, gaining important access to Chicago, the central Middle West 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 ...
, as well as the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway
The Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railway (SP&S) was a railroad in the northwest United States. Incorporated in 1905, it was a joint venture by the Great Northern Railway and the Northern Pacific Railway to build a railroad along the north bank o ...
, an important route through eastern and southern Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
. Its physical plant was upgraded continuously, with double-tracking in key areas, and automatic block signaling along its entire main line. This in turn gave way to centralized traffic control, microwave and radio communications as time progressed.
The Northern Pacific maintained and continuously upgraded its equipment and service. The road helped pioneer the 4-8-4
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles and four trailing wheels on two axles. The type w ...
Northern type steam engine and the 2-8-8-4
A 2-8-8-4 steam locomotive, under the Whyte notation, has two leading wheels, two sets of eight driving wheels, and a four-wheel trailing truck. The type was generally named the ''Yellowstone'', a name given it by the first owner, the Northern ...
Yellowstone. It was among the first railroads in the country to adopt diesel power beginning with General Motors’ FTs in 1944. Despite this, with cheap (albeit low-quality) coal reserves in Wyoming it was among the last US railroads to complete dieselization
Dieselisation (US: dieselization) is the process of equipping vehicles with a diesel engine or diesel engines. It can involve replacing an internal combustion engine powered by petrol (gasoline) fuel with an engine powered by diesel fuel, as o ...
, in 1960.
The Northern Pacific's premier passenger train, the ''North Coast Limited
The ''North Coast Limited'' was a List of named passenger trains, named passenger train operated by the Northern Pacific Railway between Chicago and Seattle via Bismarck, North Dakota. It started on April 29, 1900, and continued as a Burlington ...
'' was among the safest and finest in the nation, suffering only one passenger fatality in nearly seventy years of operation.
By 1900, most of the remaining land-grant holdings were located west of Montana, in the "western district." The railroad still hoped to sell this land, both to provide operating funds and to populate the region to provide new markets to sustain the railroad. Nearly all the good farm land had been sold, leaving large tracts of grazing land or timber. The grazing acreage was poor quality, and difficult to sell. However, the timber lands were of high quality; much of these were sold to Frederick Weyerhaeuser
Weyerhaeuser () is an American timberland company which owns nearly of timberlands in the U.S., and manages an additional of timberlands under long-term licenses in Canada. The company also manufactures wood products. It operates as a real e ...
.
Unification of the Hill Lines
In later years, Louis W. Menk
Louis Wilson Menk (April 8, 1918 - November 23, 1999) was an American railway worker and executive. He served as the last president of Northern Pacific Railway 1966-1970, before the railroad was merged into Burlington Northern Railroad, and the ...
became president of the Northern Pacific, and then he brought it together with the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illin ...
, the Great Northern Railway, and the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway
The Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railway (SP&S) was a railroad in the northwest United States. Incorporated in 1905, it was a joint venture by the Great Northern Railway and the Northern Pacific Railway to build a railroad along the north bank o ...
on March 2, 1970, to form the Burlington Northern Railroad
The Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States-based railroad company formed from a Mergers and acquisitions, merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1996.
Its historical lineage begins in the e ...
. The merger was allowed despite a challenge in the Supreme Court, essentially reversing the outcome of the 1904 Northern Securities ruling. A portion of the former Northern Pacific mainline in Montana was spun off to form the Montana Rail Link
Montana Rail Link is a privately held Class II railroad in the United States. It operates on trackage originally built by the Northern Pacific Railway and leased from its successor BNSF. MRL is a unit of The Washington Companies and is he ...
. However, as of January 10, 2022, 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 ...
ended their lease of the former Northern Pacific right-off-way to the MRL and is set to return to the direct management of 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 ...
.
Divisions
In 1949, the Northern Pacific's headquarters in Saint Paul presided over a system of , which of main line, of branch line under seven operating divisions.
Lake Superior
Headquartered in Duluth, Minnesota
, settlement_type = City
, nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City
, motto =
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...
, the Lake Superior Division's main routes were from Duluth to Ashland, Wisconsin
Ashland is a city in Ashland and Bayfield counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the county seat of Ashland County. The city is a port on Lake Superior, near the head of Chequamegon Bay. The population was 7,908 at the 2020 census, al ...
, Duluth to Staples, Minnesota
Staples is a city in Todd County, Minnesota, Todd and Wadena County, Minnesota, Wadena counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 2,989 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census.
History
Staples developed around a sawmill. ...
, and Duluth to White Bear Lake, Minnesota
White Bear Lake is a city in Ramsey County in the state of Minnesota, United States. A small portion of the city also extends into Washington County. The population was 23,769 at the 2010 census. The city is located on White Bear Lake, one o ...
.
The division encompassed 631 route miles; 356 in main line and 274 in branches.
St. Paul
Headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississippi River, Saint Paul is a regional business hub and the center o ...
in the company's Railroad and Bank Building
The Railroad and Bank Building at 176 E. 5th Street in St. Paul, Minnesota, renamed Great Northern Building in 2019, was the largest office building in the Upper Midwest from its completion in 1914 until 1973. For most of its existence, it wa ...
, the St. Paul Division's main routes were from Saint Paul to Staples, Saint Paul to White Bear Lake, and Staples to Dilworth, Minnesota
Dilworth is a city in Clay County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 4,612 at the time of the 2020 census. Dilworth is one of the core cities of the Fargo–Moorhead metro area; it is on the eastern border of Moorhead. Dilworth is ho ...
. The division encompassed 909 route miles; 310 in main line and 599 in branches.
Fargo
Headquartered in Fargo, North Dakota
Fargo ( /ˈfɑɹɡoʊ/) is a city in and the county seat of Cass County, North Dakota, United States. According to the 2020 census, its population was 125,990, making it the most populous city in the state and the 219th-most populous city in ...
, the Fargo Division's main routes were from Dilworth to Mandan, North Dakota
Mandan is a city on the eastern border of Morton County and the eighth-largest city in North Dakota. Founded in 1879 on the west side of the upper Missouri River, it was designated in 1881 as the county seat of Morton County. The population was ...
. The division encompassed 1,167 route miles; 216 in main line and 951 in branches.
Yellowstone
Headquartered in Glendive, Montana
Glendive is a city in and the county seat of Dawson County, Montana, United States, and home to Dawson Community College. Glendive was established by the Northern Pacific Railway when they built the transcontinental railroad across the northern ...
, the Yellowstone Division's main routes were from Mandan, North Dakota
Mandan is a city on the eastern border of Morton County and the eighth-largest city in North Dakota. Founded in 1879 on the west side of the upper Missouri River, it was designated in 1881 as the county seat of Morton County. The population was ...
, to Billings, Montana
Billings is the largest city in the U.S. state of Montana, with a population of 117,116 as of the 2020 census. Located in the south-central portion of the state, it is the seat of Yellowstone County and the principal city of the Billings Metrop ...
, and from Billings to Livingston, Montana
Livingston is a city and county seat of Park County, Montana, United States. It is in southwestern Montana, on the Yellowstone River, north of Yellowstone National Park. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 8,040.
History
T ...
. The division encompassed 875 route miles; 546 in main line and 328 in branches.
Rocky Mountain
Headquartered in Missoula, Montana
Missoula ( ; fla, label=Salish language, Séliš, Nłʔay, lit=Place of the Small Bull Trout, script=Latn; kut, Tuhuⱡnana, script=Latn) is a city in the U.S. state of Montana; it is the county seat of Missoula County, Montana, Missoula Cou ...
, the Rocky Mountain Division's main routes were from Livingston to Paradise, Montana
Paradise ( Salish: čɫl̓q̓ʷe) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Sanders County, Montana, United States. The population was 166 at the 2020 census.
The community began in 1883, when the Northern Pacific Railroad chose the site as a div ...
via Helena, Montana
Helena (; ) is the capital city of Montana, United States, and the county seat of Lewis and Clark County.
Helena was founded as a gold camp during the Montana gold rush, and established on October 30, 1864. Due to the gold rush, Helena would ...
and Mullan Pass
Mullan Pass is a mountain pass in the western United States, in the Rocky Mountains of Montana. It sits on the Continental Divide on the border between Powell and Lewis and Clark counties at 5,902 feet (1,799 m) above sea level. Located in ...
, and from Logan, Montana
Logan is an unincorporated community in Gallatin County, Montana, United States. Logan can be accessed via exit 283 on Interstate 90.
Demographics
History
Logan is situated on the Gallatin River and was established in 1889 as a railroad statio ...
, to Garrison, Montana
Garrison is a census-designated place (CDP) in Powell County, Montana, United States. The population was 112 at the 2000 census.
The traditional Salish name for the area that was later named Garrison Junction is ''snx̣ʷq̓pusaqs''. Groups wou ...
, via Butte, Montana
Butte ( ) is a consolidated city-county and the county seat of Silver Bow County, Montana, United States. In 1977, the city and county governments consolidated to form the sole entity of Butte-Silver Bow. The city covers , and, according to the ...
, and Homestake Pass
Homestake Pass is a mountain pass in the Rocky Mountains of Montana in the United States. It sits on the Continental Divide on the border between Jefferson County and Silver Bow County, six miles south-southeast of Butte in Beaverhead-Deerlodg ...
. The division encompassed 892 route miles; 563 in main line and 330 in branches. It was home to the principal central district repair facility at Livingston, Montana.
Idaho
Headquartered in Spokane, Washington
Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the Canada ...
, the Idaho Division's main routes were from Paradise, Mont., to Yakima, Washington
Yakima ( or ) is a city in and the county seat of Yakima County, Washington, and the state's 11th-largest city by population. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 96,968 and a metropolitan population of 256,728. The uninco ...
, via Pasco, Washington
Pasco ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Franklin County, Washington, United States. It had a population of 59,781 at the 2010 census, and 75,432 as of the July 1, 2019 Census Bureau estimate.
Pasco is one of three cities (the others b ...
. The division encompassed 1,123 route miles; 466 in main line and 657 in branches.
Tacoma
Headquartered in Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, Washington, Olympia, and northwest of Mount ...
, the Tacoma Division's main routes were from Yakima to Stuck Junction, near future Auburn, Washington
Auburn is a city in King County, Washington, United States (with a small portion crossing into neighboring Pierce County). The population was 87,256 at the 2020 Census. Auburn is a suburb in the Seattle metropolitan area, and is currently rank ...
, Seattle, Washington
Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...
to Sumas, Washington
Sumas () is a city in Whatcom County, Washington, United States. It had a population of 1,307 as of the 2010 census. Sumas is located adjacent to the Canada–U.S. border and borders the city of Abbotsford, British Columbia. The Sumas-Huntingd ...
, on the border with British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
, Canada, and from Seattle to Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
. The division encompassed 1,034 route miles; 373 in main line and 661 in branches. It was home to the principal west end repair facility at South Tacoma, Washington.
As the railroad expanded, immigrants, families, and single men moved to the Pacific Northwest.
Tacoma's population grew rapidly: in 1880 there were 1,098 residents, and in 1889 there were 36,000.
Passenger service
The ''North Coast Limited
The ''North Coast Limited'' was a List of named passenger trains, named passenger train operated by the Northern Pacific Railway between Chicago and Seattle via Bismarck, North Dakota. It started on April 29, 1900, and continued as a Burlington ...
'' was the premier passenger train operated by the Northern Pacific Railway between Chicago and Seattle via Butte, Montana
Butte ( ) is a consolidated city-county and the county seat of Silver Bow County, Montana, United States. In 1977, the city and county governments consolidated to form the sole entity of Butte-Silver Bow. The city covers , and, according to the ...
and Homestake Pass
Homestake Pass is a mountain pass in the Rocky Mountains of Montana in the United States. It sits on the Continental Divide on the border between Jefferson County and Silver Bow County, six miles south-southeast of Butte in Beaverhead-Deerlodg ...
. It commenced service on April 29, 1900, served briefly as a Burlington Northern train after the merger on March 2, 1970, and ceased operation on April 30, 1971, the day before Amtrak began service. The Chicago Union Station to Saint Paul leg of the train's route was operated by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illin ...
along its Mississippi River mainline through Wisconsin.
The Northern Pacific's secondary transcontinental passenger train was the ''Alaskan,'' until it was replaced by the ''Mainstreeter
The ''Mainstreeter'' was a passenger train on the Northern Pacific Railway between Chicago, Illinois, and the Pacific Northwest from 1952 to 1971. When the ''North Coast Limited'' got a faster schedule in November 1952 the Mainstreeter was intro ...
'' on November 16, 1952. The ''Mainstreeter'', which operated via Helena, Montana
Helena (; ) is the capital city of Montana, United States, and the county seat of Lewis and Clark County.
Helena was founded as a gold camp during the Montana gold rush, and established on October 30, 1864. Due to the gold rush, Helena would ...
and Mullan Pass
Mullan Pass is a mountain pass in the western United States, in the Rocky Mountains of Montana. It sits on the Continental Divide on the border between Powell and Lewis and Clark counties at 5,902 feet (1,799 m) above sea level. Located in ...
, continued in service through the Burlington Northern
The Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States-based railroad company formed from a merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1996.
Its historical lineage begins in the earliest days of railroadin ...
merger until Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
Day (May 1, 1971). It had been reduced to a Saint Paul
Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
to Seattle train after the last run of the former Burlington Route
The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwest, Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colora ...
''Black Hawk Black Hawk and Blackhawk may refer to:
Animals
* Black Hawk (horse), a Morgan horse that lived from 1833 to 1856
* Common black hawk, ''Buteogallus anthracinus''
* Cuban black hawk, ''Buteogallus gundlachii''
* Great black hawk, ''Buteogallus ur ...
'' on April 12–13, 1970.
The Northern Pacific also participated in the ''Coast Pool Train'' service between Portland
Portland most commonly refers to:
* Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States
* Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...
and Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
with the Great Northern Railway and 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 ...
. NP and GN ''Coast Pool Trains'' lasted until Amtrak.
There were several other passenger trains which were discontinued before the Burlington Northern merger. These included:
* Saint Paul to International Falls, Minnesota
International Falls (sometimes referred to as I-Falls) is a city in and the county seat of Koochiching County, Minnesota. The population was 5,802 at the time of the 2020 census.
International Falls is located on the Rainy River directly acro ...
;
* Saint Paul to Duluth, Minnesota
, settlement_type = City
, nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City
, motto =
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...
(which at one time was also a pool operation, with Great Northern Railway and the Soo Line);
* Duluth to Staples, Minnesota
Staples is a city in Todd County, Minnesota, Todd and Wadena County, Minnesota, Wadena counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 2,989 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census.
History
Staples developed around a sawmill. ...
;
* Saint Paul to Jamestown, North Dakota
Jamestown is a city in Stutsman County, North Dakota, United States. It is the county seat of Stutsman County. The population was 15,849 at the 2020 census, making it the ninth largest city in North Dakota. Jamestown was founded in 1883 and i ...
(the last remnant of the Alaskan);
*Fargo, North Dakota
Fargo ( /ˈfɑɹɡoʊ/) is a city in and the county seat of Cass County, North Dakota, United States. According to the 2020 census, its population was 125,990, making it the most populous city in the state and the 219th-most populous city in ...
to Winnipeg, Manitoba
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...
;
The Route of "the Great Big Baked Potato"
Hazen Titus was appointed as the line's dining car superintendent in 1908. He learned that Yakima Valley farmers were unable to sell their potato crops because the potatoes they were growing were simply too large; they fed them to the hogs. Titus learned that a single potato could weigh from two to five pounds, but that smaller potatoes were preferred by the end buyers of the vegetable because many people considered large potatoes inedible due to their thick, rough skin.
Titus and his staff discovered the "inedible" potatoes were delicious after baking in a slow oven. He contracted to purchase as many potatoes as the farmers could produce that were more than two pounds in weight. Soon after the first delivery of " Netted Gem Bakers", they were offered to diners on the North Coast Limited beginning in early 1909. Word of the line's specialty offering traveled quickly, and before long it was using "the Great Big Baked Potato" as a slogan to promote the railroad's passenger service. Hollywood stars were hired to promote it. When an addition was built for the Northern Pacific's Seattle commissary in 1914, a ''Railway Age
''Railway Age'' is an American trade magazine for the rail transport industry. It was founded in 1856 in Chicago (the United States' major railroad hub) and is published monthly by Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corporation.
History
The magazine's ...
'' reporter wrote, "A large trade mark, in the shape of a baked potato, 40 ft. long and 18 ft. in diameter, surmounts the roof. The potato is electric lighted and its eyes, through the electric mechanism, are made to wink constantly. A cube of butter thrust into its split top glows intermittently." Premiums such as postcards, letter openers, and spoons were also produced to promote "The Route of the Great Big Baked Potato"; the slogan served the Northern Pacific for about 50 years.[
]
Presidents
Presidents of Northern Pacific Railway were:
* Josiah Perham, 1864–1866.
* John Gregory Smith
John Gregory Smith (July 22, 1818 – November 6, 1891) was a Vermont businessman and politician. He is most notable for serving as the 28th governor of Vermont from 1863 to 1865, the last of Vermont's Civil War chief executives.
Biography
S ...
, 1866–1872.
* George Washington Cass George Washington Cass (March 12, 1810 – March 21, 1888) was an American industrialist and president of the Northern Pacific Railway.
Family
George Washington Cass was born near Dresden, Ohio, March 12, 1810, to George W. and Sophia (Lor ...
, 1872–1875.
* Charles Barstow Wright
Charles Barstow Wright (January 8, 1822 – March 24, 1898) was a United States financier.
Biography
Wright was born in Bradford County, Pennsylvania on January 8, 1822. He started in business at 15, and at 19 was taken as a partner by his employ ...
, 1875–1879.
* Frederick Billings
Frederick H. Billings (September 27, 1823 – September 30, 1890) was an American lawyer, financier, and politician. He is best known for his legal work on land claims during the early years of California's statehood and his presidency of the ...
, 1879–1881.
* Henry Villard
Henry Villard (April 10, 1835 – November 12, 1900) was an American journalist and financier who was an early president of the Northern Pacific Railway.
Born and raised by Ferdinand Heinrich Gustav Hilgard in the Rhenish Palatinate of the Kin ...
, 1881–1884.
* Robert Harris, 1884–1888.
* Thomas Fletcher Oakes
Thomas Fletcher Oakes (July 15, 1843 – March 14, 1919) was president of Northern Pacific Railway from 1888 to 1893.
Biography
Thomas Fletcher Oakes was born in Boston on July 15, 1843. He entered railway service June 1, 1863; to April, 1879, ...
, 1888–1893.
* Brayton Ives
Brayton Ives (August 23, 1840 – October 22, 1914) was president of Northern Pacific Railway from 1893 to 1896 and was president of the New York Stock Exchange and the Western National Bank of New York. He also served as an officer in the Union A ...
, 1893–1896.
* Edward Dean Adams
Edward Dean Adams (April 9, 1846 – May 20, 1931) was an American businessman, banker, power broker and numismatist. He was the president of Niagara Falls Hydraulic Power and Manufacturing Company which built the first hydroelectric power plant ...
, 1896.
* Edwin Winter
Edwin Wheeler Winter (born November 18, 1845, in Bloomfield, Vermont – June 28, 1930, in Little Compton, Rhode Island) was president of Northern Pacific Railway in 1896 then president of Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company, Brooklyn Heights Railroa ...
, 1896.
* Charles Sanger Mellen
Charles Sanger Mellen (August 16, 1852 – November 17, 1927) was an American railroad man whose career culminated in the presidencies of the Northern Pacific Railway (1897-1903) and the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad (1903-1913). H ...
, 1897–1903.
* Howard Elliott, 1903–1913.
* Jule Murat Hannaford
Jule Murat Hannaford (November 19, 1850 – September 24, 1934) was president of Northern Pacific Railway 1913–1920.
Biography
He was born November 19, 1850, at Claremont, New Hampshire.
Entered railway service: June 1866, since which he ...
, 1913–1920.
* Charles Donnelly, 1920–1939.
* Charles Eugene Denney
Charles Eugene Denney Sr. (October 18, 1879 – January 18, 1965) was president of Northern Pacific Railway from 1939 through 1950.
Biography
He was born in Washington, D.C., on October 18, 1879, the son of William H. Denney and Sarah E. Tabert.
...
, 1939–1950.
* Robert Stetson Macfarlane
Robert Stetson Macfarlane (January 15, 1899 – March 9, 1982) was president of Northern Pacific Railway 1951–1966.
He was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on January 15, 1899, the son of Walker K. and Blanche (Stetson) Macfarlane. He married ...
, 1951–1966.
* Louis W. Menk
Louis Wilson Menk (April 8, 1918 - November 23, 1999) was an American railway worker and executive. He served as the last president of Northern Pacific Railway 1966-1970, before the railroad was merged into Burlington Northern Railroad, and the ...
, 1966–1970.
Chief engineers
* Edwin Ferry Johnson (1803–1872), engineer-in-chief, 1867. Wrote ''The Railroad To the Pacific, Northern Route, Its General Characteristics, Relative Merits, Etc.'' in 1854.
*William Milnor Roberts
William Milnor Roberts (February 12, 1810 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – July 14, 1881 in Soledad, Brazil)An Obituary Notice of William Milnor Roberts, Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, Vol. 20, No. 111 (Jan. - Jun., 1882) ...
(1810–1881), engineer-in-chief, 1869 to 1879. Proposed the general route of the Northern Pacific from Bismarck to Portland. Also, Vice President, American Society of Civil Engineers, 1873 to 1878, and then President, 1878.[
*]Adna Anderson
General Adna Anderson (July 25, 1827 – May 15, 1889) was chief engineer of the Northern Pacific Railroad from 1880 to 1888. He first worked in railways in 1847, and worked his way up through various railways, leading to being an assistant engin ...
(1827–1889), engineer-in-chief, February 18, 1880, to January 1888. In October 1886, he was also named second vice-president of the Northern Pacific. He completed the line between Saint Paul, Minnesota, and Wallula (where it connected with the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company's line to Portland), witnessing the driving of the last spike on September 8, 1883. Thereafter, he evaluated possible routes for the Cascade Division, intended to connect the NP at some point near the mouth of the Snake River with Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, Washington, Olympia, and northwest of Mount ...
on Puget Sound
Puget Sound ( ) is a sound of the Pacific Northwest, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean, and part of the Salish Sea. It is located along the northwestern coast of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected ma ...
. Preliminary reconnaissance and surveys began in March 1880, and in autumn, 1883, Anderson concluded that the line should be built through Stampede Pass
Stampede Pass (elevation ) is a mountain pass in the northwest United States, through the Cascade Range in Washington. Southeast of Seattle and east of Tacoma, its importance to transportation lies almost entirely with railroading, as no paved r ...
.
*John William Kendrick
John William Kendrick (October 14, 1853 – February 16, 1924) was chief engineer, general manager and vice-president of the Northern Pacific Railway and later vice-chairman of the board of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway.
Biography
He ...
(1853–1924), chief engineer, January 1888, to July 1893. From July 1893, to February 1, 1899, he was general manager of the reorganized Northern Pacific Railway.
* Edwin Harrison McHenry (1859 – August 21, 1931), chief engineer, July 1893, to September 1, 1901. Subsequently, he was chief engineer for the 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 ...
and then fourth vice-president of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad
The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad , commonly known as The Consolidated, or simply as the New Haven, was a railroad that operated in the New England region of the United States from 1872 to December 31, 1968. Founded by the merger of ...
.
*William Lafayette Darling
William Lafayette Darling (1856-1938), was a consulting engineer in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Early life and education
William Lafayette Darling was born in Oxford, Massachusetts on March 24, 1856. He was educated at Worcester Polytechnic Institute ...
(1856–1938), chief engineer, September 1, 1901, to September 1903, and January 1906, to 1916. Between 1905 and 1906, he was chief engineer for the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (CMStP&P), often referred to as the "Milwaukee Road" , was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwest and Northwest of the United States from 1847 until 1986.
The company experience ...
, returning to the NP in 1906 as chief engineer and also vice-president and engineer in charge of construction of the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway
The Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railway (SP&S) was a railroad in the northwest United States. Incorporated in 1905, it was a joint venture by the Great Northern Railway and the Northern Pacific Railway to build a railroad along the north bank o ...
.
*Edward J. Pearson
Edward Jones Pearson (October 4, 1863 - December 7, 1928) was president of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad.
Biography
He was born on October 4, 1863 in Rockville, Indiana.
Graduated from Engineering Department of Cornell University. ...
(1863–1928), chief engineer, September 1903, to December 1905.
*Howard Eveleth Stevens
Howard is an English-language given name originating from Old French Huard (or Houard) from a Germanic source similar to Old High German ''*Hugihard'' "heart-brave", or ''*Hoh-ward'', literally "high defender; chief guardian". It is also probabl ...
, chief engineer, 1916 to 1928.
*Bernard Blum Bernard J. Blum (1 September 1938 in Besançon – 13 August 2014 in Paris) was a French agricultural scientist, industry manager and founding president of the International Biocontrol Manufacturers' Association (IBMA). He campaigned for sustainab ...
, chief engineer, 1928 to March 1953.
* Harold Robert Peterson (1896–1963), chief engineer, March 1953, to May 1962.
*Douglas Harlow Shoemaker
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 ...
, chief engineer, May 1962, to March 2, 1970.
Locomotives
Trademark
In search of a trademark, the Northern Pacific considered and rejected many designs. Edwin Harrison McHenry, the Chief Engineer, was struck with a geometric design, a Taijitu
In Chinese philosophy, a ''taijitu'' () is a symbol or diagram () representing Taiji () in both its monist ('' wuji'') and its dualist (yin and yang) aspects. Such a diagram was first introduced by Neo-Confucian philosopher Zhou Dunyi (; 1017 ...
in the Korean flag
This is a list of flags used by South Korea, North Korea, and their predecessor states.
=Korean reunification flag=
=National=
=North Korean government=
=South Korean government=
=Military=
Korea
North Korea
South Korea
=See also= ...
he saw while visiting the Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
n exhibit at the Chicago World's Fair in 1893. The idea came to him that it was just the symbol for the long-sought-for trademark. With a slight modification, and rendered in red and black, the symbol became the railroad's trademark.
In 1876, photographer Frank Jay Haynes
Frank Jay Haynes (October 28, 1853 – March 10, 1921), known as F. Jay or the ''Professor'' to almost all who knew him, was a professional photographer, publisher, and entrepreneur from Minnesota who played a major role in documenting through pho ...
began contract work with the railroad for publicity photographs. In 1881 he met Charles Fee and through his 20-year friendship with Fee, Haynes became known as the "Official Photographer of the N.P.R.R". His "Northern Pacific Views" photographically documented over the years, the routes, destinations, infrastructure and equipment of the railroad.
References
*Antonio Areddu, Vita e morte del marchese di Mores Antoine Manca (1858-1896), Cagliari, Condaghes, 2018
* Antonio Areddu. Il marchesato di Mores. Le origini, il duca dell´Asinara, le lotte antifeudali, l´abolizione del feudo e le vicende del marquis de Morès, Cagliari, Condaghes, 2011.
Further reading
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
* , for statistics on land sales
*
*
*
*
*
*
* , full text online of early history.
*
*
*
*
Primary sources and official sources
* Campbell, Marius Robinson.
Guidebook of the Western United States, Part A: The Northern Pacific Route, with a side trip to Yellowstone Park
'' Washington (D.C.): Government Printing Office, 1915.
*
*
*
External links
Northern Pacific Railway Corporate Records
Minnesota Historical Society.
Northern Pacific Railway Historical Association (NPRHA)
Quarterly magazine ''The Mainstreeter'', calendar, annual convention, research pages.
Articles, research and rosters for the Northern Pacific.
NPTellTale
The ''NPTellTale'' at ''finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/NPTellTale'', is a Web-based discussion about the history of the Northern Pacific.
White River Valley Museum (WRVM)
Tri-annual presentations on NP history; the Albert E. Farrow photographic collection; the Robert E. Munn photographic collection; the Harold R. Burch locomotive manual collection.
brief history maintained by BNSF Railway
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 ...
.
University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections – Transportation Photographs
An ongoing digital collection of photographs depicting various modes of transportation in the Pacific Northwest region and Western United States during the first half of the 20th century. Includes images of the Northern Pacific Railway.
Guide to the Northern Pacific Railway Company Records at the University of Montana
Contains company materials predominantly from the late 1880s through the early 1940s.
Guide to the Nolan Northern Pacific Railroad Collection, 1872–1947
at The Bancroft Library
The Bancroft Library in the center of the campus of the University of California, Berkeley, is the university's primary special-collections library. It was acquired from its founder, Hubert Howe Bancroft, in 1905, with the proviso that it retai ...
* illustrated account of the Northern Pacific and other North American Railroads
* Northern Pacific Railway Company Maps and Drawings. Yale Collection of Western Americana, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Northern Pacific Railway
Railway companies established in 1896
Railway companies disestablished in 1970
Predecessors of the Burlington Northern Railroad
Former Class I railroads in the United States
Companies based in Saint Paul, Minnesota
Former components in the Dow Jones Transportation Average
Defunct Idaho railroads
Defunct Minnesota railroads
Defunct Montana railroads
Defunct North Dakota railroads
Defunct Oregon railroads
Defunct Washington (state) railroads
Defunct Wisconsin railroads
Crow Wing County, Minnesota
Rail lines receiving land grants
History of Missoula, Montana
1896 establishments in the United States
1970 disestablishments in Minnesota
American companies disestablished in 1970