The Chicago Central and Pacific Railroad is part of the

Illinois Central Railroad The Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, is a railroad in the Central United States. Its primary routes connected Chicago, Illinois, with New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama, and thus, ...

(IC), which is owned by the

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company () is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of both revenue a ...

(CN) through the

Grand Trunk Corporation The Grand Trunk Corporation is the subsidiary holding company for the Canadian National Railway's properties in the United States, and Canada. It is named for CN subsidiary railroad Grand Trunk Western Railroad. The Association of American Railr ...

. Operationally, the Chicago Central & Pacific is designated as the Iowa Zone of CN's Southern Region.

History

The Iowa Division of the original Illinois Central Railroad began its service to

Warren, Illinois Warren is a village in Jo Daviess County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,323 at the 2020 census, down from 1,428 at the 2010 census. Warren was named after Warren Burnett, the first male child born at the site. History Captain Al ...

in January 1854. By September 1854 the tracks ran to

Scales Mound, Illinois Scales Mound is a village in Jo Daviess County, Illinois, United States. The population was 436 at the 2020 census. History The original town of Scales Mound was located at the base of an erosional remnant similar to Charles Mound, about a mil ...

and on October 31, 1854, the Illinois Central made it to

Galena, Illinois Galena is the largest city in Jo Daviess County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. It had a population of 3,308 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. A section of the city is listed on the National Register of Historic Plac ...

. On June 12, 1855 the tracks were expanded to

East Dubuque, Illinois East Dubuque is a city in Jo Daviess County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,505 at the 2020 census, down from 1,704 in 2010. East Dubuque is located alongside the Mississippi River. Across the river is the city of Dubuque, Iowa. ...

. By December 1868 a drawbridge was built over 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 ...

to Dubuque, Iowa. The Dubuque Rail Bridge was rebuilt in the 1890s. With entrepreneur Jack Haley as president and CEO, the Chicago Central & Pacific Railroad was formed by a spin-off from the by-then-named Illinois Central Gulf. Distinct operations began on December 24, 1985. The IC repurchased the railroad in 1996 and operated it as a subsidiary until the IC itself was purchased by CN three years later. The operation continues as a subsidiary of the

Structure

The railroad was organized into eight subdivisions and other spurs. The subdivisions listed from east to west include the following: * Freeport Subdivision * Dubuque Subdivision * Cedar Rapids Subdivision * Osage Subdivision * Waterloo Subdivision * Omaha Subdivision * Cherokee Subdivision * Ida Grove Subdivision

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chicago Central Pacific Railroad Railway companies established in 1985 Illinois railroads Iowa railroads Nebraska railroads Predecessors of the Illinois Central Railroad Canadian National Railway subsidiaries Spin-offs of the Illinois Central Gulf Railroad 1985 establishments in Illinois