The Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad was a

Class I railroad Railroad classes are the system by which Rail freight transport, freight railroads are designated in the United States. Railroads are assigned to Class I, II or III according to annual revenue criteria originally set by the Surface Transportatio ...

that linked

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

to southern

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

, and

Evansville Evansville is a city in Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 118,414 at the 2020 census, it is Indiana's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the most populous city in S ...

. Founded in 1877, it grew aggressively and stayed relatively strong throughout the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

and two World Wars before finally being purchased by the

Missouri Pacific Railroad The Missouri Pacific Railroad , commonly abbreviated as MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers. In 1967, the railroad o ...

(MP or MoPac) and the

Louisville and Nashville Railroad The Louisville and Nashville Railroad , commonly called the L&N, was a Class I railroad that operated freight and passenger services in the southeast United States. Chartered by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1850, the road grew into one of ...

(L&N). Missouri Pacific merged with the C&EI corporate entity in 1976, and was later acquired itself by the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...

History

The Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad was organized in 1877 as a consolidation of three others: the Chicago, Danville and Vincennes Railroad (Chicago-Danville, November 1871), the Evansville, Terre Haute and Chicago Railroad (Danville-Terre Haute, October 1871) and the

Evansville and Terre Haute Railroad Evansville is a city in Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 118,414 at the 2020 census, it is Indiana's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the most populous city in So ...

(Terre Haute-Evansville, November 1854). Intended to merge or purchase railroads that had built lines between the southern suburbs of Chicago and

Terre Haute, Indiana Terre Haute ( ) is a city in Vigo County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 58,389 and Terre Haute metropolitan area, its metropolitan area had a populati ...

through

Danville, Illinois Danville is a city in Vermilion County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. The populations was 29,204 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Danville micropolitan area. History The area that is now Danville was on ...

, the C&EI constructed a new line from Chicago to a

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 ...

connection in extreme southern Illinois at

Thebes Thebes or Thebae may refer to one of the following places: *Thebes, Egypt, capital of Egypt under the 11th, early 12th, 17th and early 18th Dynasties *Thebes, Greece, a city in Boeotia *Phthiotic Thebes Phthiotic Thebes ( or Φθιώτιδες Θ ...

The management of the Chicago and Eastern Illinois and the Chicago and Indiana Coal Railway ("the Coal Road" or C&IC) became intertwined and eventually a connection was built between the two railroads between Goodland, Indiana (on the C&IC) and Momence (on the C&EI). By 1894 the Eastern had merged the C&IC. The C&EI continued this vigorous growth into the next decade. The city of

, was the midpoint of the primary mainline between Chicago and Evansville. The first repair shops for locomotives and cars were built on the west side of the city in 1877 at the intersection of East Fairchild and Section Streets. When it became apparent that the original shops had become obsolete, it was decided to build new shops on the east side of town in the Oaklawn neighborhood. By that time the C&EI was considered a large regional railroad with 737 miles of mainline, 159 locomotives, 125 passenger cars, and 11,000 freight cars. Expansion of the railroad in the early 1900s led to the near doubling of the shop capacity just a few years later, at which point about 1,200 people were employed there. In 1902, the Frisco purchased a controlling interest in the Chicago and Eastern Illinois and continued building; first a connection between the two railroads at

Pana, Illinois Pana is a small town in Christian County, Illinois, United States. A small portion is in Shelby County. The population was 5,199 at the 2020 census. History The area around Pana was first organized as Stone Coal Precinct in 1845. The count ...

, next extending the line in Indiana to

and a connection with the

Ohio River The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its river mouth, mouth on the Mississippi Riv ...

. However, in 1913 financial problems led to the collapse of the Frisco, and the Eastern was once again on its own by 1920. The C&EI spun off a variety of their lines, including the "Coal Road" (which became the Chicago, Attica and Southern Railroad). The C&EI did not survive the Great Depression intact, entering

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 deb ...

in 1933, re-emerging just before

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in 1940. The railroad continued its brisk growth once again, gaining access to

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

in 1954. The

began to quietly purchase C&EI stock in 1961. After approval was gained from the Interstate Commerce Commission, Mopac assumed control of the C&EI in May 1967. One of the stipulations of the merger required sale of C&EI's Evansville line to the

in 1969. The line directly south of Chicago to near Danville was actually purchased by both railroads (and continues to be owned and operated jointly by MoPac and L&N's successors,

and

CSX Transportation CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of track, it is the lead ...

). The C&EI was maintained as a separate subsidiary for a few years, but Missouri Pacific merged it in 1976. The route from Woodland Junction, Illinois through Danville into Indiana became part of L&N and its successors (now CSX), while the western fork toward Thebes and St. Louis became MoPac/UP. The

terminal for the C&EI passenger trains was

Dearborn Station Dearborn Station (also called, Polk Street Depot) was, beginning in the late 1800s, one of six intercity train stations serving downtown Chicago, Illinois. It remained in operation until May 1, 1971. Built in 1883, it is located at Dearbo ...

, sometimes known as 'Polk Station.'

LaSalle Street Station LaSalle Street Station is a commuter rail terminal at 414 South LaSalle Street in downtown Chicago. First used as a rail terminal in 1852, it was a major intercity rail terminal for the New York Central Railroad until 1968, and for the Chicago ...

was used during Frisco control of the railroad. Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railway cafe-lounge car

The C&EI operated many streamliners. Its own trains, the Chicago to

Cypress Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs from the ''Cupressus'' genus of the '' Cupressaceae'' family, typically found in temperate climates and subtropical regions of Asia, Europe, and North America. The word ''cypress'' ...

Meadowlark Meadowlarks are New World grassland birds belonging to genera '' Sturnella'' and '' Leistes''. This group includes seven species of largely insectivorous grassland birds. In all species the male at least has a black or brown back and extensively ...

'', and the Chicago to Evansville ''

Whippoorwill The eastern whip-poor-will (''Antrostomus vociferus''; also called "whip-o-will", "whip o' will", etc.) is a medium-sized () bird within the nightjar family, Caprimulgidae, from North America. The whip-poor-will is commonly heard within its ran ...

'' were short lived. The C&EI ran the Chicago to Evansville portion of the L&N's ''

Humming Bird A hummingbird is a member of a family (Trochilidae) of very small birds. Hummingbird or Humming bird may also refer to: Music *The Hummingbirds, an Australian jangle pop band *Gibson Hummingbird, an acoustic guitar *Humming Bird Records, a reco ...

'', and '' Georgian''. The railroad also participated in the Chicago to Florida passenger service on the "Dixie Route", with trains such as the ''Dixie Limited'', the '' Dixie Flyer'', the ''Dixie Mail'', the ''

Dixie Flagler The ''Dixie Flagler'' was a streamlined passenger train operated by the Florida East Coast Railway (FEC) between Chicago, Illinois and Miami, Florida. It began in 1939 as the ''Henry M. Flagler'', a regional service between Miami and Jacksonville, ...

'', and the '' Dixiana.'' It handled the trains from Chicago to Evansville, which then passed to the

Louisville and Nashville The Louisville and Nashville Railroad , commonly called the L&N, was a Class I railroad that operated freight and passenger services in the southeast United States. Chartered by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1850, the road grew into one of t ...

, Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis,

Central of Georgia The Central of Georgia Railway started as the Central Rail Road and Canal Company in 1833. As a way to better attract investment capital, the railroad changed its name to Central Rail Road and Banking Company of Georgia. This railroad was constr ...

, Atlantic Coast Line and

Florida East Coast The Florida East Coast Railway is a Class II railroad operating in the U.S. state of Florida, currently owned by Grupo México. Built primarily in the last quarter of the 19th century and the first decade of the 20th century, the FEC was a pro ...

. In 1968 the C&EI terminated its Chicago to Evansville passenger operations, resulting in the loss of the Chicago leg of the remaining trains among those mentioned above, the ''Georgian'' and the ''Humming Bird.'' The ''Georgian'' was discontinued as a named train at this point. The C&EI's sole remaining train was the two and a half hour Chicago - Danville, Illinois ''Danville-Chicago Flyer.'' Miles of road operated at year end: 945 in 1925, 863 in 1967, 643 in 1970 after L&N took over its piece. Track-miles operated: 1928 in 1925, 1435 in 1967, 1067 in 1970. In 1967 it reported 3173 million ton-miles of revenue freight and 41 million passenger-miles.

References

Bibliography

External links

Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad Historical Society
(includes predecessor roads)

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20110716112706/http://www.ceihs.org/historians_main_5.html Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad System Mapbr>1953 Chicago and Eastern Illinois timetableChicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad Company Records
a
the Newberry Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chicago Eastern Illinois Railroad Railway companies established in 1877 Railway companies disestablished in 1921 Railway companies established in 1940 Railway companies disestablished in 1976 Predecessors of the Missouri Pacific Railroad Defunct Illinois railroads Defunct Indiana railroads Defunct Missouri railroads Railroads in the Chicago metropolitan area Former Class I railroads in the United States American companies established in 1940 1877 establishments in Illinois