History & Overview
Read through the journey of the D&I Subdivion and discover most of the past, and even the present.
The Beginning
In 1865 the Chicago and Atlantic Railroad was chartered, although it never built towards the Atlantic and in 1872 it would change its name to the Chicago & Pacific. Building west from a point near what is now Goose Island, it ran along Bloomingdale Avenue to a crossing with the Milwaukee and St. Paul, who also reached Chicago in 1873 and in 1874 would change their name to Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul - more commonly known as the Milwaukee Road. The Chicago & Pacific would then meander west-northwest towards Elgin before turning almost straight west. The C&P would meet the Racine & Mississippi at Kittredge, by then another part of the Milwaukee Road, and continue to Savanna and Iowa.
The Chicago & Pacific was never a money maker and like many early railroads quickly found itself bankrupt following the Panic of 1873. The railroad tried to sell bonds, but investors were wary and the C&P went into receivership in 1876, and foreclosure followed in 1879. The railroad was purchased by John Blair, an investor known for purchasing insolvent railroads at low prices and whose lawsuit forced foreclosure to begin with. The railroad had one year to produce the amount of money Blair had spent to purchase it and redeem the property, and found financial backing from the Milwaukee Road. In 1880 the Milwaukee Road provided the funding, and in exchange the C&P was leased to the Milwaukee Road. The Milwaukee Road would eventually gain a controlling interest in the railroad and effectively absorb it.
In 1982, Milwaukee Road would sell off its commuter line, collectively known as the Milwaukee District West from Chicago to Elgin (for our purposes from Bensenville to Elgin, and were turned over to the Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Rail Corporation, a forerunner of commuter rail agency Metra), as they were in the process of selling off their remaining trackage to either Soo or the CNW. Soo ultimately won the bid and reorganized the property as the Milwaukee Road, Inc., prior to merging the Milwaukee into the company itself effective January 1, 1986.
Midlife
The Soo acquisition would primarily affect operations west of Elgin to Savanna, of which was now fully in control by Soo, whereas from Elgin to Bensenville belonged to Metra as of 1982. In 1990, Soo would be acquired by Canadian Pacific in a huge merger deal, effectively merging the two systems together to increase traffic. The line east of Elgin remained under Metra ownership but was in control by Soo dispatchers until 2001, when CP fully integrated the Soo line operations into their own, eventually merging into CPKC in 2023.
In 1997, Soo was looking to sell off its line from Elgin to Savanna to a new, smaller railroad known as the “I&M Rail Link” or IMRL. These operations would prove well and the railroad would thrive under new ownership, leading to a boom in traffic along the line. In late 2001 however, Washington Company, the parent owner of the IMRL, sought to divest itself of the railroad, stating that at the time it was becoming unprofitable. On July 29, 2002 the assets of the I&M Rail Link were transferred to the Iowa, Chicago & Eastern, which was owned by the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern subsidiary, Cedar American Railroad Holdings. Operations were curtailed at 12:01 p.m. on that date.
Modern Day
Effective in 2002, IC&E began their share of operations from Elgin to Savanna, and that proved to be a major success. Traffic increased considerably, as did profit, and the IC&E was proving to be one of the stronger regional railroads around Chicago. For the next 6 years, IC&E would operate well until Canadian Pacific sought to get its former trackage back. On September 4, 2007, Canadian Pacific announced its intention to purchase the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad in a transaction that would include the IC&E and other affiliated companies. On September 30, 2008, the United States Surface Transportation Board announced its approval of Canadian Pacific's proposed purchase of the DM&E, IC&E and Cedar American Rail Holdings, with the official last day of operations for DM&E and IC&E scheduled for October 30, 2008.
For the next 15 years, Canadian Pacific would retain complete control of the line from Elgin to Savanna, albeit with lots of changes, including a reduction in train numbers but an increase in traffic on said trains, especially around 2020 with the introduction of PTC, or Positive Train Control, becoming a national requirement in the US. On March 21, 2021, CP announced that it was planning to purchase the Kansas City Southern Railway (KCS) for US$29 billion. That approval came on March 15, 2023, which permitted the railroads to merge as soon as April 14. On April 14, 2023, KCS officially became a subsidiary of CPR, and CPR with its subsidiaries began conducting business under the name of its parent company, Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC), which is where ownership stands today of the line from Elgin to Savanna.
