Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway
 | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Reporting mark | SPS |
| Locale | WashingtonandOregon |
| Dates of operation | 1905–1970 |
| Successor | Burlington Northern |
TheSpokane, Portland and Seattle Railway(reporting markSPS) was aUnited States-basedrailroadincorporated in 1905. It was a joint venture by theGreat Northern Railwayand theNorthern Pacific Railwayto build a railroad along the north bank of theColumbia River.
In 1970, it was leased to theBurlington Northern Railroad(BN), the consolidation of theGreat Northern Railway,Northern Pacific Railway,andChicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad.Due to outstanding bonds, the SP&S was not merged into the BN until November 1, 1979.[1]The Burlington Northern continued to operate it until 1987, when it announced intention to vacate the right-of-way between Snake River Junction (nearIce Harbor Dam) andCheney.The segment betweenPortlandandPascocontinues to serve successorBNSFand enjoys heavy traffic due to its low-grade and slight curvature crossing of theCascade Range.
In 1991, the Washington State Parks system acquired the right-of-way and established theColumbia Plateau Trail State ParkThis park is a 4,109-acre (16.63 km2), 130-mile (210 km)-long rail-bed trail that traces that portion of the 1908 route of the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railroad betweenCheneyandIce Harbor Damon theSnake River.[2]
History
The railroad was chartered in 1905 byJames J. Hillfor the purposes of connecting the two transcontinental railroads owned by him, theNorthern PacificandGreat Northern,toPortland,OregonfromSpokane,Washington, in order to gain a portion of the lumber trade in Oregon, a business that at the time was dominated byE.H. Harriman'sUnion PacificandSouthern Pacificrailroads. Construction began in 1907[3]under the name Portland & Seattle Railroad,[4]proceeding eastward fromVancouver, Washington.[3]
Within a year, and despite legal challenges from Harriman, who wished to block its construction, the line had been built as far asPasco, Washingtonalong theColumbia River,where there was a connection with Northern Pacific lines. The same year, Spokane was added to the railroad's name, which became Spokane, Portland & Seattle. By 1909, the railroad had completed construction of its line up to Spokane along theSnake River.In 1910, SP&S gained control of theOregon Electricinterurban railway, which the Great Northern had acquired two years before. Under the control of the SP&S, the railroad was extended southward toEugene, Oregonby 1912. SP&S also operated a second subsidiary railroad in western Oregon, theOregon Traction Company,[3]which owned a route toSeaside, Oregon.[4]A third route on which the SP&S operated extended southward fromWishram, WashingtontoBend, Oregon,which was jointly operated with aUnion Pacificsubsidiary, the Oregon-Washington Railway & Navigation.[3]
DuringWorld War II,the SP&S benefited from a significant increase in traffic along its lines, as war materials moved along the railroad towards thePacific Theatre,and new industries located along the Columbia River, taking advantage of cheap electricity fromhydroelectricdams on the river. New industries served by the SP&S included aluminum plants, sawmills, chemical factories and grain elevators.[5]
In 1954, an SP&S train derailed after hitting a rockslide on the route to Bend, Oregon. Part of the train landed in theDeschutes River,including a boxcar, which landed in a rapid that was later named "Boxcar Rapids"after the incident, which killed the entire crew of the train.[6]
Passenger Trains
The SP&S's passenger operations mostly involved hosting connections with parent's trains such as theEmpire BuilderandNorth Coast Limited,were combined to form the Streamliner (#1/#2).Oriental Limited,Mainstreeter,andWestern Starconnected with (#3/#4). However, it did operate one named train of its own, theColumbia River Express(#5/#6), which provided service along its main line between Portland and Pasco following the Columbia River most of the way. TheColumbia River Expressconnected at Pasco with Northern Pacific #5/#6 for service to/from Spokane.
See also
External links
References
- ^John T. Gaertner, North Bank Road: The Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railway, 1990, p. 204
- ^Columbia Plateau Trail State Park
- ^abcdSchafer, Mike (2003).Classic American Railroads Volume III.Andover Junction Publications.ISBN0-7603-1649-X.
- ^ab"The Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway,The Northwest's Own Railway".American-Rails.com.Retrieved25 April2010.
- ^"HISTORY".SP&S Railway Historical Society Railroad. 2004.Retrieved27 April2010.
- ^"S.P.&S. Engine wrecked near Maupin".Wasco County History Site.Retrieved27 April2010.
Gaertner, John (1990).North Bank Road.
Grande, Walt (1997).The Northwest's Own Railway, Spokane Portland & Seattle Railway and its Subsidiaries.