The Chicago and North Western, Route of the "400"

Of all the many granger roads which sprawled out across the Midwest, the Chicago and North Western is likely the best remembered of all. When the railroad was merged unto the Union Pacific in 1995 it was one of the oldest railroads in the Midwest, its name unchanged since 1859. Because of its age the C&NW actually has the distinction of being the first railroad to operate a train out of Chicago, the Pioneer. The North Western's main line into that city is also a key link in the UP’s empire today. While its eye-catching green and yellow paint no longer adorns locomotives today the Chicago and North Western's legacy certainly continues to live on.

The very familiar Chicago and North Western name has its roots dating back to the late 1840s when the Galena & Chicago Union was chartered to reach Freeport, Illinois and the Mississippi River from Chicago, which it accomplished via two separate lines. The other railroad to make up the original C&NW was the Chicago & Fond du Lac, chartered to build throughout northeastern Illinois and the UP of Michigan.

The C&NW was born in 1859 when the C&FL was reorganized as the Chicago and North Western and then merged with the G&CU in 1864. After the CN&W’s formation it began to aggressively expand and grow, mostly in the form of acquisitions and mergers although it did construct a number of its own lines, particularly branch lines to serve the Heartland and agricultural regions. By the late 1860s the railroad had completed its most important line, which connected Council Bluffs, Iowa with Chicago, essentially a straight shot across Illinois and Iowa (this is the line used today by Union Pacific to reach and serve Chicago, it sees dozens of trains daily).

Throughout much of the C&NW’s life it did two things; serve the Heartland and northern Great Lakes regions as well as ferry traffic to and from Chicago, particularly the Union Pacific, a close ally for years. The railroad’s final growth period came during the late 1950s when it acquired the Litchfield & Madison giving the CN&W entrance to St. Louis. Other acquisitions included the much larger roads of the Minneapolis & St. Louis in 1960 and Chicago Great Western in 1968, totaling nearly 3,000 miles in additional trackage. While this swelled the railroad’s size to over 10,000 total rail miles it lost much of this in the 1970s when America’s breadbasket could no longer support so many railroads and thus the C&NW dumped many of these unprofitable lines.

Aside from the North Western’s freight operations it was quite successful with its passenger operations as well, both its own and those of the Union Pacific. It’s most famous was its fleet of ”400”’s, streamlined trains which competed with the likes of the Milwaukee Road’s> Hiawathas and the Burlington’s Zephyrs. While never quite as successful as the other competitors’ trains it did hold its own and did well enough that the Chicago and North Western operated an entire fleet of ”400”’s, ranging from the Twin Cities “400” and Dakota “400” to the Flambeau “400” and Peninsula “400”. These trains served all of the railroad’s largest markets although they slowly began to disappear as intercity passenger rail travel dwindled starting in the 1950s and 1960s.

Aside from its long-distance trains the Chicago and North Western also operated a number of commuter operations, particularly around the Chicago and Milwaukee regions. To accomplish this it used bi-level cars and was one of the first to implement the “push-pull” method of commuter operations to save both time and money. It would, eventually, however, rid itself of even this and turn the commuter operations over to local and state governments.

Although the railroad was no longer in the passenger business by the 1970s and 1980s it began to streamline operations and earn healthy profits. One way it did this was by opening a modern new rail line into the lucrative Powder River coal basin in the mid-1980s allowing it to tap the highly demanded low-sulfur coal found in the region. It also renewed its partnership with the Union Pacific at this time and for the next decade the road prospered.

Alas, however, the inevitable happened in the 1990s, like so many roads before it the Chicago and North Western became another part of the Union Pacific in 1995.

Although the C&NW is no longer an independent company almost all of its main lines continue to serve as important arteries under the UP banner, especially its Powder River coal basin line. The Union Pacific also recently paid homage to its predecessor by painting one of its new EMD SD70ACe locomotives into a version of the railroad’s famous green and yellow company livery and numbered 1995 after the year the C&NW was merged into its system.

Chicago and North Western Railway All-Time Locomotive Rosters

C&NW Diesel Locomotive Roster

C&NW Steam Locomotive Roster

Notable Chicago & North Western Railway Passenger Trains

Twin Cities 400

Ashland Limited: (Chicago - Green Bay - Ashland)

Dakota "400": (Chicago - Madison - Huron)

Duluth-Superior Limited: (Chicago - Madison - Duluth)

Flambeau "400": (Chicago - Green Bay - Ashland)

Kate Shelly "400": (Chicago - Boone, Iowa)

North Western Limited: (Chicago - Twin Cities)

Peninsula "400": (Chicago - Green Bay - Ishpeming)

Shoreland "400": (Chicago - Milwaukee - Green Bay)

Valley "400": (Chicago - Green Bay - Menominee, Michigan)

Ashland Limited: (Chicago - Green Bay - Ashland)

Until 1955 the C&NW also forwarded the Union Pacific's City fleet to Chicago, after which time the Milwaukee Road handled such duties.

Today, aside from the new EMD in heritage C&NW colors, there are still a few in original colors although they are now few and far between so be on the lookout for them!

For more reading about the C&NW you might want to consider Chicago & North Western Railway from Tom Murray. From another of MBI's "Railroad Color History" series the book gives an excellent general history of the 'North Western from its humble beginnings to purchase by Union Pacific in 1995, all the while stuffed full of colored photographs (typical of "Railroad Color History" publications). If you're interested in perhaps purchasing this book please visit The Railroad Diamond by clicking the tab in the menu to your left marked "TRD Store".