Toledo, Peoria and Western Railway
Encyclopedia
The Toledo, Peoria and Western Railway is a short-line railroad that operates 247 miles (397.5 km) of track from Mapleton, Illinois
, through Peoria
across Illinois to Logansport, Indiana
, and includes a branch line between Logansport to Winamac, Indiana
. TP&W has trackage rights between Galesburg, Illinois
, and Peoria, between Logansport and Kokomo, Indiana
, and between Reynolds, Indiana
, and Lafayette, Indiana
. TPW has connections with UP, BNSF, NS, CSXT
, CN
, CP, CERA, CIM, KBSR and T&P.
The railroad's traffic comes largely agricultural products, including both raw and processed grain products, as well as chemicals and completed tractors. The TPW hauled around 26,000 carloads in 2008.
The Toledo, Peoria & Western was incorporated in Illinois on March 28, 1887, and consolidated the operation of the Toledo, Peoria, and Warsaw Railway and the Logansport, Peoria, and Burlington Railroad. The Logansport, Peoria and Burlington Railroad, built from Galesburg to East Burlington, Illinois, in 1855, reached Gilman, Illinois
, in 1857, and Effner in 1859. A TP&W passenger train was involved in the Great Chatsworth Train Wreck in Chatsworth, Illinois
, in 1887.
The Toledo, Peoria & Western Railroad purchased six Class H-10 Northerns from the American Locomotive Company in 1937. These locomotives were given road numbers 80 through 85 and were the lightest 4-8-4
ever built for a North American railroad, weighing only 361,000 pounds. They had 69-inch drivers, 23.5 x 30 cylinders, a 250 psi (1,723,689.3 Pa) boiler pressure and a tractive effort
of 51,000 pounds force.
In January 1960, the ATSF & PRR gained joint control (half interests) of TP&W. When Conrail was created in 1976, the TP&W acquired the former Pennsylvania Railroad
trackage from Effner into Logansport, which otherwise would have been abandoned. The value of this trackage diminished in 1981 when Conrail closed the Logansport interchange.
In 1979, the Santa Fe reached agreement to acquire the former Pennsylvania Railroad's interest in TP&W. TP&W was merged into ATSF on December 31, 1983.
The ATSF sold the Lomax-Peoria-Logansport main line on February 3, 1989, to new investors, who reused the TP&W name; TP&W was an independent railroad again. When the parent companies of ATSF and Burlington Northern merged in 1995, TP&W was granted operating rights over BN's line between Peoria and Galesburg, Illinois. Control of TP&W was acquired by Delaware Otsego Corporation in 1996. In 1998, TP&W had revenues of approximately $13.4 million and moved over 59,000 freight carloads and intermodal units. It was acquired by RailAmerica
in 1999, and it is still operated as TP&W.
now owns parts of the old TP&W line, including the Western Illinois & Keokuk section of TP&W (Fulton, McDonough and Hancock counties in Illinois).
In December 1986, KJRY purchased 33.5 miles of former TP&W trackage (then owned by the Santa Fe Railroad) from Keokuk, Iowa
, and Warsaw, Illinois
, to La Harpe, Illinois
.
KJRY's feeder line application with the Surface Transportation Board
(STB) to acquire the assets of the west end of the new TP&W was granted on 2004-10-28. KJRY completed the acquisition on 2005-02-11, adding 76 miles from LaHarpe to Peoria, the old TP&W main line west of Peoria.
Mapleton, Illinois
Mapleton is a village in Peoria County, Illinois, United States. The population was 227 at the 2000 census. Mapleton is part of the Peoria, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area. There are three different plants in Mapleton, all located along U.S...
, through Peoria
Peoria, Illinois
Peoria is the largest city on the Illinois River and the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, in the United States. It is named after the Peoria tribe. As of the 2010 census, the city was the seventh-most populated in Illinois, with a population of 115,007, and is the third-most populated...
across Illinois to Logansport, Indiana
Logansport, Indiana
Logansport is a city in and the county seat of Cass County, Indiana, United States. The population was 18,396 at the 2010 census. Logansport is located in northern Indiana, at the junction of the Wabash and Eel rivers, northeast of Lafayette.-History:...
, and includes a branch line between Logansport to Winamac, Indiana
Winamac, Indiana
Winamac is a town in Monroe Township, Pulaski County, Indiana, United States. The population was 2,490 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Pulaski County.-Geography:Winamac is located at ....
. TP&W has trackage rights between Galesburg, Illinois
Galesburg, Illinois
Galesburg is a city in Knox County, Illinois, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 32,195. It is the county seat of Knox County....
, and Peoria, between Logansport and Kokomo, Indiana
Kokomo, Indiana
Kokomo is a city in and the county seat of Howard County, Indiana, United States, Indiana's 13th largest city. It is the principal city of the Kokomo, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Howard and Tipton counties....
, and between Reynolds, Indiana
Reynolds, Indiana
Reynolds is a town in Honey Creek Township, White County, Indiana, United States. The population was 533 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Reynolds is located at ....
, and Lafayette, Indiana
Lafayette, Indiana
Lafayette is a city in and the county seat of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, northwest of Indianapolis. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 67,140. West Lafayette, on the other side of the Wabash River, is home to Purdue University, which has a large impact on...
. TPW has connections with UP, BNSF, NS, CSXT
CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...
, CN
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
, CP, CERA, CIM, KBSR and T&P.
The railroad's traffic comes largely agricultural products, including both raw and processed grain products, as well as chemicals and completed tractors. The TPW hauled around 26,000 carloads in 2008.
History
Toledo, Peoria & Western's earliest ancestor was the Peoria and Oquawka. The eastern extension began construction, three years after its charter, in 1855.The Toledo, Peoria & Western was incorporated in Illinois on March 28, 1887, and consolidated the operation of the Toledo, Peoria, and Warsaw Railway and the Logansport, Peoria, and Burlington Railroad. The Logansport, Peoria and Burlington Railroad, built from Galesburg to East Burlington, Illinois, in 1855, reached Gilman, Illinois
Gilman, Illinois
Gilman is a city in Douglas Township, Iroquois County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,793 at the 2000 census, and 1,677 in 2009.-Geography:...
, in 1857, and Effner in 1859. A TP&W passenger train was involved in the Great Chatsworth Train Wreck in Chatsworth, Illinois
Chatsworth, Illinois
Chatsworth is an incorporated town in Livingston County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,265 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Chatsworth is located at ....
, in 1887.
The Toledo, Peoria & Western Railroad purchased six Class H-10 Northerns from the American Locomotive Company in 1937. These locomotives were given road numbers 80 through 85 and were the lightest 4-8-4
4-8-4
Under the Whyte notation classification of steam locomotives, 4-8-4 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 .Other equivalent classifications are:UIC classification: 2D2...
ever built for a North American railroad, weighing only 361,000 pounds. They had 69-inch drivers, 23.5 x 30 cylinders, a 250 psi (1,723,689.3 Pa) boiler pressure and a tractive effort
Tractive effort
As used in mechanical engineering, the term tractive force is the pulling or pushing force exerted by a vehicle on another vehicle or object. The term tractive effort is synonymous with tractive force, and is often used in railway engineering to describe the pulling or pushing capability of a...
of 51,000 pounds force.
In January 1960, the ATSF & PRR gained joint control (half interests) of TP&W. When Conrail was created in 1976, the TP&W acquired the former Pennsylvania Railroad
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
trackage from Effner into Logansport, which otherwise would have been abandoned. The value of this trackage diminished in 1981 when Conrail closed the Logansport interchange.
In 1979, the Santa Fe reached agreement to acquire the former Pennsylvania Railroad's interest in TP&W. TP&W was merged into ATSF on December 31, 1983.
The ATSF sold the Lomax-Peoria-Logansport main line on February 3, 1989, to new investors, who reused the TP&W name; TP&W was an independent railroad again. When the parent companies of ATSF and Burlington Northern merged in 1995, TP&W was granted operating rights over BN's line between Peoria and Galesburg, Illinois. Control of TP&W was acquired by Delaware Otsego Corporation in 1996. In 1998, TP&W had revenues of approximately $13.4 million and moved over 59,000 freight carloads and intermodal units. It was acquired by RailAmerica
RailAmerica
RailAmerica, Inc., based in Jacksonville, Florida, is a holding company of a number of short-line railroads and regional railroads in the United States and Canada....
in 1999, and it is still operated as TP&W.
Keokuk Junction Railway purchases
The Keokuk Junction RailwayKeokuk Junction Railway
The Keokuk Junction Railway Company , is a Class III railroad terminal railroad in the US states of Illinois and Iowa.KJRY started service as a terminal railroad operating over tracks built in 1857 as part of the Keokuk & Des Moines Valley Railroad...
now owns parts of the old TP&W line, including the Western Illinois & Keokuk section of TP&W (Fulton, McDonough and Hancock counties in Illinois).
In December 1986, KJRY purchased 33.5 miles of former TP&W trackage (then owned by the Santa Fe Railroad) from Keokuk, Iowa
Keokuk, Iowa
Keokuk is a city in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Iowa and one of the county seats of Lee County. The other county seat is Fort Madison. The population was 11,427 at the 2000 census. The city is named after the Sauk Chief Keokuk, who is thought to be buried in Rand Park...
, and Warsaw, Illinois
Warsaw, Illinois
Warsaw is a city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,793 at the 2000 census. The city is notable for its historic downtown and the Warsaw Brewery, which operated for more than 100 years beginning in 1861...
, to La Harpe, Illinois
La Harpe, Illinois
La Harpe is a city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,385 at the 2000 census.-Geography:La Harpe is located at , along the South Branch La Moine River....
.
KJRY's feeder line application with the Surface Transportation Board
Surface Transportation Board
The Surface Transportation Board of the United States is a bipartisan, decisionally-independent adjudicatory body organizationally housed within the U.S. Department of Transportation. The STB was established in 1996 to assume some of the regulatory functions that had been administered by the...
(STB) to acquire the assets of the west end of the new TP&W was granted on 2004-10-28. KJRY completed the acquisition on 2005-02-11, adding 76 miles from LaHarpe to Peoria, the old TP&W main line west of Peoria.