Michigan Air-Line Railroad
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The Michigan Air Line Railroad was a railroad company in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. It was incorporated in 1868 and constructed a line between
Jackson, Michigan Jackson is a city in Jackson County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The population was 31,309 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located along Interstate 94 in Michigan, Interstate 94 and U.S. Route 127 in Michigan, U.S ...
, and
South Bend, Indiana South Bend is a city in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. It lies along the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. It is the List of cities in ...
. The
Michigan Central Railroad The Michigan Central Railroad (reporting mark MC) was originally chartered in 1832 to establish rail service between Detroit, Michigan, and St. Joseph, Michigan. The railroad later operated in the states of Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois in th ...
leased the company in 1871 and merged it in 1916. The
New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected New York metropolitan area, gr ...
leased the Michigan Central in 1930. The Michigan Air Line Railroad also built a short line between
Romeo, Michigan Romeo is a village in Macomb County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,767 at the 2020 census. Romeo is located on the rural-urban fringe of the Detroit metropolitan area, and many of its residents commute to jobs closer to th ...
, and
Richmond, Michigan Richmond, also known as "Grit City", is a city within Metro Detroit in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 5,878 at the 2020 census. Most of the city is located in Macomb County, though there is a small portion in neighboring St. C ...
, which became part of the
Michigan Air Line Railway The Michigan Air Line Railway was a railroad company in the United States. It was incorporated in 1875 and constructed a line between Richmond, Michigan, and Jackson, Michigan, between 1877 and 1884. It was under the control of the Grand Trunk ...
, a predecessor of the
Grand Trunk Western Railroad The Grand Trunk Western Railroad Company was an American subsidiary of the Grand Trunk Railway, later of the Canadian National Railway operating in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. Since a corporate restructuring in 1971, the railroad ha ...
.


History

The Grand Trunk Railway of Michigan and Grand Trunk Railway of Northern Indiana were chartered in their respective states in 1867 and 1868, as part of a scheme to build a new railway line between
Richmond, Michigan Richmond, also known as "Grit City", is a city within Metro Detroit in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 5,878 at the 2020 census. Most of the city is located in Macomb County, though there is a small portion in neighboring St. C ...
, and
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 ...
. The two companies were consolidated on July 2, 1868, to form the Michigan Air Line Railroad. The new company constructed a line between
Romeo, Michigan Romeo is a village in Macomb County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,767 at the 2020 census. Romeo is located on the rural-urban fringe of the Detroit metropolitan area, and many of its residents commute to jobs closer to th ...
, and
Richmond, Michigan Richmond, also known as "Grit City", is a city within Metro Detroit in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 5,878 at the 2020 census. Most of the city is located in Macomb County, though there is a small portion in neighboring St. C ...
, (then called Ridgeway) in 1869. Afterward, possibly with the encouragement of the
Michigan Central Railroad The Michigan Central Railroad (reporting mark MC) was originally chartered in 1832 to establish rail service between Detroit, Michigan, and St. Joseph, Michigan. The railroad later operated in the states of Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois in th ...
, the company began building a line between
Jackson, Michigan Jackson is a city in Jackson County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The population was 31,309 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located along Interstate 94 in Michigan, Interstate 94 and U.S. Route 127 in Michigan, U.S ...
, and
South Bend, Indiana South Bend is a city in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. It lies along the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. It is the List of cities in ...
. At the same time, the backers of the Michigan Air Line Railroad founded another company with the same name in
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 ...
. This company was consolidated with the
Chicago and Canada Southern Railway The Chicago and Canada Southern Railway was a planned extension of the Canada Southern Railway west from Grosse Ile, Michigan, to Chicago, Illinois. The line was only built to Fayette, Ohio, and was later split between the Detroit, Toledo and Iro ...
in 1871. The company completed the first between Jackson and
Homer, Michigan Homer is a village in Calhoun County, Michigan, Calhoun County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is part of the Battle Creek, Michigan, Battle Creek, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,575 at the 2020 United States census ...
, in the summer of 1870. In the fall of 1870 the line reached
Three Rivers, Michigan Three Rivers is a city in St. Joseph County, Michigan. The population was 7,973 at the time of the 2020 census. Three Rivers derives its name from its location at the confluence of the St. Joseph River and two tributaries, the Rocky and Porta ...
. In February of 1871 it was completed to
Niles, Michigan Niles is a city in Berrien County, Michigan, Berrien and Cass County, Michigan, Cass counties in the U.S. state of Michigan, near the Indiana state line city of South Bend, Indiana, South Bend. The population was 11,988 according to the 2020 Unit ...
, at which point the Michigan Central Railroad leased the company. The branch to South Bend opened in 1872, using the route and franchise of the St. Joseph Valley Railroad, merged in 1870. The Michigan Air Line leased the Romeo–Richmond line to the St. Clair River, Pontiac and Jackson Railroad in 1872; this line subsequently became the basis of the
Michigan Air Line Railway The Michigan Air Line Railway was a railroad company in the United States. It was incorporated in 1875 and constructed a line between Richmond, Michigan, and Jackson, Michigan, between 1877 and 1884. It was under the control of the Grand Trunk ...
, a predecessor of the
Grand Trunk Western Railroad The Grand Trunk Western Railroad Company was an American subsidiary of the Grand Trunk Railway, later of the Canadian National Railway operating in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. Since a corporate restructuring in 1971, the railroad ha ...
. In 1916 the Michigan Air Line Railroad merged with the Michigan Central and ceased to exist as an independent company.


Route

Under the Michigan Central/New York Central ownership the line between Jackson and Niles was known as the Air Line branch, while the line from Niles to South Bend was known as the South Bend branch. Both lines have been abandoned.


Notes


References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Michigan Air Line Railroad Companies affiliated with the Michigan Central Railroad Defunct Michigan railroads Defunct Indiana railroads Predecessors of the New York Central Railroad Railway companies established in 1868 Railway companies disestablished in 1916 1868 establishments in Michigan