The Central Kansas Railway (CKR) was a short-line railroad operating 900 miles (1,448.4 km) of trackage in the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Kansas

Kansas

Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...

 and west to Towner, Colorado

Towner, Colorado

Towner is a census-designated place in Kiowa County, Colorado, United States. The population as of the 2010 Census was 22. The U.S. Post Office at Sheridan Lake now serves Towner postal addresses. The town was originally known as Memphis. It was a frequent attraction for Kansans when their...

, most all of which were former Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway

The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often abbreviated as Santa Fe, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The company was first chartered in February 1859...

 lines. Owned by Omnitrax

OmniTRAX

OmniTRAX, Inc. is one of North America's largest private railroad and transportation management companies, providing management services to 16 regional and short-line railroads that serve 10 U.S...

, CKR's main business was from the Kansas wheat harvests, as well as other traffic.

The Watco Companies

Watco Companies

Watco Companies, Inc. is a Pittsburg, Kansas-based transportation company that was formed in 1983 by Charles R. Webb. Watco is composed of three divisions: transportation, mechanical and transloading. WCI is the owner of Watco Transportation Services, Inc...

 of Pittsburg, Kansas

Pittsburg, Kansas

Pittsburg is a city in Crawford County, in southeastern Kansas, United States. It is the most populous city in Crawford County and in southeastern Kansas. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 20,233.-History:...

 purchased all of the CKR's lines on May 31, 2001 and formed the Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad

Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad

The Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad is a shortline railroad operating in the western United States.The tracks Kansas and Oklahoma operate on include the Kansas City-Colorado main line formerly operated by the Missouri Pacific and later Union Pacific railways....

.