The Kansas City, Fort Scott and Memphis Railroad (“KCFS&M”) was a railway system which, at its maximum extent, operated across Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Oklahoma, a total of over . Its predecessor company started in 1865, and another railroad assumed ownership in 1928.

History

Kansas and Neosho Valley Railroad

The railway system began as the Kansas and Neosho Valley Railroad in March 1865. The original ambitious plans called for the line to extend south from

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

along the Neosho Valley of eastern Kansas, through what was then

Indian Territory Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United States, ...

(now Oklahoma), and continue to the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...

. Trackage from Kansas City to

Olathe, Kansas Olathe ( ) is the county seat of Johnson County, Kansas, United States. It is the List of cities in Kansas#Highest population listing, fourth-most populous city in both the Kansas City metropolitan area and the state of Kansas, with a 2020 Uni ...

, a distance of 21 miles, was built by December 1868.

Missouri River, Fort Scott & Gulf Railroad

However, before the railroad even reached Olathe, its ownership had changed, and its name had become the Missouri River, Fort Scott & Gulf Railroad (“MRFS&G”). Its objective did not change, and the railway built another 100 miles to

Fort Scott, Kansas Fort Scott is a city in and the county seat of Bourbon County, Kansas, Bourbon County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 7,552. It is named for Gen. Winfield Scott. The cit ...

, arriving by December 1869. To secure the right to cross Indian Territory, the MRFS&G was in a race to be the first railway to reach the Indian Territory border. However, it made the decision to accept financial incentives from the town of

Baxter Springs, Kansas Baxter Springs is a city in Cherokee County, Kansas, United States, and located along Spring River. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 3,888. History Indigenous settlement For thousands of years, indigenous peoples ...

to build to that location, arriving by May 1870. The line at this point was about 160 miles in total length. However, the detour cost the railroad the race to the border, and hence the dream of transiting Indian Territory to the Gulf. Still, the railroad system did later make some minor inroads into Indian Territory, with the Kansas City, Fort Scott and Memphis Railroad building to

Miami, Oklahoma Miami ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Ottawa County, Oklahoma, United States, founded in 1891. Lead and zinc mining were established by 1918, causing the area's economy to boom. This area was part of Indian Territory. Miami is the capit ...

in 1896, and the Kansas City, Fort Scott and Memphis Railway extending this line to

Afton, Oklahoma Afton is a town in northeast Oklahoma in Ottawa County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 734 at the time of the 2020 United States census. History Afton developed in this part of the Cherokee Nation in Indian Territory after the ...

in 1901.

Kansas City, Fort Scott, and Gulf Railroad

The MRFS&G was reorganized in 1879. It was combined with several minor branch lines and changed names to become the Kansas City, Fort Scott, and Gulf Railroad. Its trains proceeded to reach

Springfield, Missouri Springfield is the List of cities in Missouri, third most populous city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County, Missouri, Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 censu ...

from Fort Scott, but did so via leased lines.

Kansas City, Springfield and Memphis Railroad

A subsidiary called the Kansas City, Springfield and Memphis Railroad, incorporated March 31, 1883, constructed a line from Springfield to the west bank of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

across from

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

, arriving in the 1883 timeframe. However, without a bridge over the river to Memphis, train traffic had to be ferried into town.

Kansas City, Memphis and Birmingham Railroad

On April 10, 1886, the system acquired the remnants of several failed attempts to construct a line from Memphis to

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Alabama, Jefferson County. The population was 200,733 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List ...

, including actual construction from Memphis to

Holly Springs, Mississippi Holly Springs is a city in and the county seat of Marshall County, Mississippi, Marshall County, Mississippi, United States, near the border with Tennessee to the north. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 6,96 ...

. These assets were added to its

Kansas City, Memphis and Birmingham Railroad The Kansas City, Memphis & Birmingham Railroad is a historic railroad that operated in the southern United States. The company was created by consolidation in 1887 from a line of the same name (which was originally incorporated in Mississippi on F ...

subsidiary. That company got the line to Birmingham, and opened it for business on October 17, 1887.

Consolidation into the KCFS&M

The Kansas City, Fort Scott and Memphis Railroad Company was incorporated in Kansas on April 20, 1888. A subsidiary of the Kansas City, Fort Scott, and Gulf Railroad, it was a consolidation of The Kansas City, Fort Scott and Springfield Railroad together with the Kansas City, Springfield and Memphis Railroad. The KCFS&M started construction on a grand bridge over the Mississippi to Memphis on November 7, 1888, and completed it on April 6, 1892. Originally known as the Memphis Bridge, that bridge today is known as the

Frisco Bridge The Frisco Bridge, previously known as the Memphis Bridge, is a cantilevered through truss bridge carrying a rail line across the Mississippi River between West Memphis, Arkansas, and Memphis, Tennessee. Construction At the time of the Memph ...

and has been designated as a

National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark __NOTOC__ The following is a list of Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks as designated by the American Society of Civil Engineers since it began the program in 1964. The designation is granted to projects, structures, and sites in the United Stat ...

. At this point, the main line of the KCFS&M extended from Kansas City through Fort Scott, Springfield, and the state of Arkansas to Memphis, and then through the state of Mississippi to Birmingham. Ultimately, taking into account subsidiaries, the branch to Oklahoma, and other trackage, this railroad system came to own of road. The whole system came to be known as the “Memphis Route.”

Kansas City, Fort Scott and Memphis Railway

Technically, the KCFS&M made one further corporate change, when on August 12, 1901, it was sold to the Kansas City, Fort Scott and Memphis Railway incorporated June 14, 1901. The St. Louis-San Francisco Railway (known as the “Frisco”) had purchased a controlling interest that year, and on August 23, 1901, the whole system was leased to the Frisco. But the Frisco did not assume formal ownership of the system until September 1, 1928.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kansas City, Fort Scott and Memphis Railroad Kansas railroads Missouri railroads Arkansas railroads Tennessee railroads Mississippi railroads Alabama railroads Oklahoma railroads Defunct Kansas railroads Defunct Missouri railroads Defunct Arkansas railroads Defunct Tennessee railroads Defunct Mississippi railroads Defunct Alabama railroads Defunct Oklahoma railroads