Lee County Central Electric Railway
Encyclopedia
The Lee County Central Electric Railway, or LCC, was an electric interurban
railway linking the small prairie town of Lee Center
with nearby Amboy
and Middlebury in northern Illinois
. The line was conceived as an electric railway link between the cities of Steward
, south of Rochelle
, and Dixon
, but was never able to raise enough capital
to reach either destination. The LCC was one of the smallest and shortest-lived electric operations in the entire national interurban network, and yet despite its notorious operational problems it survived as a de-electrified freight carrier far longer than most larger interurban railways.
. A year later a large wooden interurban car was bought from a line in Louisville, Kentucky
, but the little line's power system was insufficient for normal operation and the big car had trouble making it over the railroad. Adequate electric power also prevented freight from being carried, and a succession of outdated steam locomotive
s were used until a gas-electric locomotive was acquired in the late 1920s.
Despite its troubles the line was extended in 1912, this time seven miles in the opposite direction from Amboy to a country crossroads called Middlebury which consisted of a grain elevator
and a schoolhouse. For the next three years passenger operations were conducted using the line's two cars, mainly between Lee Center and Amboy with operation to Middlebury if there were any passengers.
In 1913 the line went into bankruptcy
and was reorganized as the Lee County Central Electric Railway. In 1915 passenger service was abandoned and the wires were taken down the next year, making the LCC among the earliest interurbans to abandon passenger service. Freight service continued, though, carrying grain to an interchange with the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railroad. In the 1930s the branch east from Lee Center to Middlebury was abandoned but in 1946 the Lee County Grain Association purchased the railroad and operated it into the 1970s, decades after most electric interurbans had completely ceased to exist.
Interurban
An interurban, also called a radial railway in parts of Canada, is a type of electric passenger railroad; in short a hybrid between tram and train. Interurbans enjoyed widespread popularity in the first three decades of the twentieth century in North America. Until the early 1920s, most roads were...
railway linking the small prairie town of Lee Center
Lee Center, Illinois
Lee Center is an unincorporated community in Lee County, Illinois, United States. Lee Center is southeast of Dixon. Lee Center has a post office with ZIP code 61331....
with nearby Amboy
Amboy, Illinois
Amboy is a city in Lee County, Illinois, along the Green River. The population was 2,561 at the 2000 census. The chain of Carson Pirie Scott & Co. began in Amboy when Samuel Carson opened his first dry goods store there in 1854...
and Middlebury in northern Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. The line was conceived as an electric railway link between the cities of Steward
Steward, Illinois
Steward is a village in Lee County, Illinois, United States. The population was 256 at the 2010 census, down from 271 at the 2000 census. Steward, Illinois, was named for Wesley Steward, who in 1855 came to this area in Alto Township to settle the land owned by his father, Marcus Steward...
, south of Rochelle
Rochelle, Illinois
Rochelle is a city in Ogle County, Illinois, United States. The population was 9,574 at the 2010 census, up from 9,424 at the 2000 census. Rochelle is about west of Chicago and south of Rockford...
, and Dixon
Dixon, Illinois
Dixon is a city in Lee County, Illinois, United States. The population was 15,733 as of the 2010 census, down from 15,941 at the 2000 census. Named for its founder, John Dixon , it is the county seat of Lee County. Located on the Rock River, Dixon was the boyhood home of former U.S...
, but was never able to raise enough capital
Capital (economics)
In economics, capital, capital goods, or real capital refers to already-produced durable goods used in production of goods or services. The capital goods are not significantly consumed, though they may depreciate in the production process...
to reach either destination. The LCC was one of the smallest and shortest-lived electric operations in the entire national interurban network, and yet despite its notorious operational problems it survived as a de-electrified freight carrier far longer than most larger interurban railways.
History
The LCC was incorporated as the Northern Illinois Electric Railway Company in 1901 but despite some early right-of-way work it was nearly a decade before serious construction started. In 1910 enough capital was raised to construct a section of the railroad between Lee Center, which had no railroad, and the nearby town of Amboy. Railroad construction engineer George H.T. Shaw, who lived in Lee Center, promoted the line, and on December 10, 1910 service opened over the five-mile route using a secondhand streetcar obtained from ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. A year later a large wooden interurban car was bought from a line in Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
, but the little line's power system was insufficient for normal operation and the big car had trouble making it over the railroad. Adequate electric power also prevented freight from being carried, and a succession of outdated steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s were used until a gas-electric locomotive was acquired in the late 1920s.
Despite its troubles the line was extended in 1912, this time seven miles in the opposite direction from Amboy to a country crossroads called Middlebury which consisted of a grain elevator
Grain elevator
A grain elevator is a tower containing a bucket elevator, which scoops up, elevates, and then uses gravity to deposit grain in a silo or other storage facility...
and a schoolhouse. For the next three years passenger operations were conducted using the line's two cars, mainly between Lee Center and Amboy with operation to Middlebury if there were any passengers.
In 1913 the line went into bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
and was reorganized as the Lee County Central Electric Railway. In 1915 passenger service was abandoned and the wires were taken down the next year, making the LCC among the earliest interurbans to abandon passenger service. Freight service continued, though, carrying grain to an interchange with the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railroad. In the 1930s the branch east from Lee Center to Middlebury was abandoned but in 1946 the Lee County Grain Association purchased the railroad and operated it into the 1970s, decades after most electric interurbans had completely ceased to exist.