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February 26, 1851 The first Milwaukee Road predecessor, the Milwaukee & Mississippi Railroad runs its first train: from Milwaukee to Waukesha, WI. (some sources say February 25).

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February 26, 1870 The experimental air-driven Beach Pneumatic Transit opens for public demonstrations over a one-block route in New York City. The next subway will not open for another 34 years as the city builds elevated railroads for mass transit.

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February 26, 1908 The Hudson & Manhattan "Tubes" open for service between 19th Street and Hoboken.

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February 26, 1928 Moffat Tunnel opens.

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February 26, 1950 The new streamlined Wabash "Blue Bird" is christened.

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February 26, 1951 Trolley service ends in Queens, NY.

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February 26, 1956 Pennsylvania Railroad's Aerotrain is placed in demonstration service between New York and Pittsburgh. Its seven hour, 30 minute schedule is the fastest ever between the two cities.

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February 26, 1973 The Chessie System Inc. Is formed from the Baltimore & Ohio, Chesapeake & Ohio and Western Maryland railroads.

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February 26, 1979 Amtrak "Superliner" cars begin operation.

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February 26, 2005 Charlotte NC breaks ground for a new light-rail line.

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February 26, 2017 Dolton Tower (IL) is closed. It was the last ex-Pennsylvania Railroad tower still active in the Chicago area.

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February 27, 1832 Baltimore coachbuilder Richard Imlay displays three railroad passenger cars in Monument Square, including one that will seat 50.

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February 27, 1837 Illinois passes an "Internal Improvements" Act.

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February 27, 1847 The Alton & Sangamon Railroad (later C&A, GM&O, ICG, UP) is chartered in Illinois to connect the towns of Alton and Springfield.

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February 27, 1860 The Central Railroad of New Jersey displays two new Woodruff sleepers designed for New York-Pittsburgh service.

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February 27, 1865 The Pennsylvania Legislature establishes a railroad police force. While railroads have employed security personnel previously, this is the first time they are given official police powers.

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February 27, 1886 The New Jersey Junction Railroad (later NYC&HR, NYC) is incorporated.

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February 27, 1917 The Milwaukee Railroad completes the electrification of its line from Harlowton, Montana, to Avery, Idaho, 440 miles.

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February 27, 1917 The Pennsylvania-Detroit Railroad Company is incorporated to extend the PRR into Detroit. This will let PRR tap the growing finished automobile market.

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February 27, 1921 The Pennsylvania Railroad creates a private telephone system on its Paoli Line to keep station agents informed of train delays, etc. The information is then posted at the station.

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February 27, 1921 Michigan Central and New York Central passenger trains collide at Porter IN when the engineer of the Michigan Central train misunderstands the fireman’s call of the home signal indication. The engineer’s view of the signal was obscured by the smoke of a standing freight train. Thirty-seven are killed.

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February 27, 1942 The Pennsylvania Railroad's Altoona Shops complete an experimental troop sleeper based on an X38 automobile box car.

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February 27, 1965 The Buffalo Creek & Gauley shuts down after 61 years of operation in West Virginia, having never operated a diesel locomotive. It will run again for a short time in the 1970's with diesels.

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February 27, 2000 Two Santa Fe Alco PA diesels arrive in Oregon from Mexico for restoration. The units are little more than hulks.

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February 27, 2002 In Godhra, northwest India, a region with long-standing Hindu-Muslim tensions, a train carrying mostly Hindus catches fire. Sixty people are killed. Although the cause of the fire is eventually traced to a fault in a coach, early reports say the fire was caused by radical Muslims dousing the train with gasoline and lighting it. This false allegation triggers religious riots in which nearly 1,000 people are killed.

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February 28, 1815 George Stephenson receives a Patent for his second steam locomotive, an improved version of the principles worked out in the "Blusher" last July.

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February 28, 1827 The Baltimore & Ohio, America's first passenger railroad is chartered.

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February 28, 1847 Maine Governor Joshua L. Chamberlain signs the charter of the Belfast & Moosehead Lake Railroad. Despite never getting as far as Moosehead Lake, the 33-mile railroad will remain in continuous operation through 2009.

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February 28, 1852 Because of a gap in the Pennsylvania Railroad, over 440 passengers stay each night at the Hollidaysburg Inn. Five hundred wagons and 2,600 horses are used to ferry passengers and freight across the gap.

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February 28, 1866 The Canada Southern Railway is incorporated in Canada from the Erie & Niagara Extension Railway.

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February 28, 1871 The Chicago & Michigan Lake Shore Railroad (later PM, C&O, CSX) reaches Grand Junction MI.

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February 28, 1903 President Theodore Roosevelt signs legislation authorizing a single, Union Station in Washington DC rather than two stations, for the Baltimore & Ohio and Pennsylvania Railroads.

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February 28, 1906 A gas-electric railcar built by Strang, the "Ogerita", leaves Weehawken Terminal bound for San Francisco. The car, which includes a back-up battery and can make 48 mph, has been testing on various Pennsylvania Railroad branch lines.

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February 28, 1908 First test run through Grand Trunk's St. Clair tunnel using electric locomotives.

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February 28, 1920 The Transportation Act is passed, allowing the ICC to set intrastate rates in some cases and forming the Railway Labor Board. It also sets a date for the end of USRA control.

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February 28, 1931 The Cleveland Southwestern & Columbus Railway (interurban) quits.

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February 28, 1931 The Detroit, Toledo & Ironton is sold to Pennroad Corporation (PRR subsidiary) and the Wabash Railroad.

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February 28, 1986 The last official move is made at Canadian National's Spadina Roundhouse in Toronto. The facility will later be demolished to make room for the Skydome.

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Mark Tomlonson

February 25, 1834 Formation date of the Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac.

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February 25, 1848 Future railroad magnate E.H. Harriman is born.

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February 25, 1848 Incorporation papers are filed for the Bellefontaine & Indianapolis Railroad. (later NYC)

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February 25, 1854 Grand Junction Railroad & Depot Company is merged the Union Railroad (later B&A).

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February 25, 1876 The Board of the six-foot gauge Erie Railroad ratifies a contract to lay a third rail on its line between Waverly NY and Buffalo/Suspension Bridge for the use of the standard-gauge Lehigh Valley Railroad.

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February 25, 1880 The Terminal Railroad of St. Louis is incorporated.

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February 25, 1893 Horsecar service ends in Kalamazoo MI.

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February 25, 1902 The 2-mile long Fulton Chain Railroad, notable for its initial operation with wooden rails, is reorganized as the Fulton Chain Railway, operated by the New York Central.

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February 25, 1941 Baltimore & Ohio EA #56 and EB #56X complete 365 trips on the "Capitol Limited", running over 280,000 miles with 100% availability.

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February 25, 2003 CSX announces it is moving its headquarters from Richmond VA to Jacksonville FL.

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February 25, 2016 Following a 4.2 million Pound makeover, the “Flying Scotsman” locomotive returns under steam to its home in York at the National Railway Museum.

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Mark Tomlonson

February 24, 1846 Congress is asked to fund a land grant to build a rail road from Lake Michigan to Oregon.

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February 24, 1865 The Jackson, Lansing & Saginaw Railroad (later MC, NYC, PC, CR, NS, A&B) receives its charter.

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February 24, 1875 The Pennsylvania Railroad YMCA is organized at Altoona. Railroad YMCA's will provide cheap and safe accommodations for crew layovers across the United States.

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February 24, 1879 The Pittsburgh & Lake Erie opens for passenger service between Pittsburgh and Youngstown.

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February 24, 1893 The Lake Superior & Ishpeming is formed.

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February 24, 1900 The Cincinnati & Miami Valley Traction Company is consolidated into Southern Ohio Traction

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February 24, 1916 The Pennsylvania Railroad makes its first payout under Pennsylvania's new Worker Compensation Law. The widow of a man killed by a locomotive on his way to work will receive $100 in funeral expenses plus $21.48 per month until November 1921. [$2,515.00 and $540.00 respectively in 2021]

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February 24, 1930 The Standard Steel Car Co. is incorporated as a Pullman subsidiary.

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February 24, 1955 The Pennsylvania Railroad announces it has purchased a "tubular" train from Budd. It will be known as the "Keystone".

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Mark Tomlonson

February 23, 1852 The Potsdam & Watertown Railroad (later RW&O, NYC) is chartered.

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February 23, 1855 The Hudson & Boston Railroad (later B&A) acquires the Hudson & Berkshire Railroad at foreclosure sale.

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February 23, 1864 Pennsylvania authorizes the Pennsylvania Railroad to tunnel under a house of worship without consent, clearing the way for construction of Grants Hill Tunnel in Pittsburgh.

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February 23, 1892 The Cincinnati, Jackson & Mackinaw becomes the Michigan & Mackinaw Railroad.

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February 23, 1926 The Pennsylvania Railroad announces it has let a contract for six 2-D-2, 3,730 HP electric passenger locomotives to Westinghouse. The car bodies are to be built at Altoona. The locomotives will see service between Penn Station and Manhattan Transfer.

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February 23, 1938 Opera Star Lily Pons christens the Reading's "Crusader" streamliner. The 5-car train has been in service for several months without a name. "Crusader" was chosen in a contest.

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February 23, 1944 The 100-foot turntable at the Pennsylvania Railroad's Conway Yard is replaced by a 110-foot turntable. The new turntable will accommodate PRR's Duplex locomotives.

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February 23, 1947 Great Northern's "Empire Builder" is given new, streamlined equipment.

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February 23, 1956 The Board of the Pennsylvania Railroad authorizes building a new line to serve the Olin-Mathieson aluminum plant in Hannnibal OH. The branch, built on the grade of the unfinished Marietta & Ohio of 100 years earlier, is the last major line built by PRR.

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February 23, 2000 Conrail's Milwaukee Jct. Tower in Detroit is closed.

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Mark Tomlonson

February 22, 1850 The Columbus & Xenia Railroad is completed between its namesake Ohio cities. It is the first railroad in Ohio to be built with T-Rail (as opposed to strap rail) in its original construction. (Some sources say Feb 21.)

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February 22, 1851 The Cleveland, Columbus & Cincinnati RR (later Big Four) is completed from Cleveland to Columbus.

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February 22, 1852 The Buffalo & State Line Railroad (later LS&MS) opens between Buffalo and the NY/PA state line near Erie.

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February 22, 1854 The Chicago & Rock Island Railroad completes its line between Chicago and Rock Island, IL. It is the first railroad to reach the upper Mississippi River.

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February 22, 1855 The first common carrier railroad in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, the Iron Mountain Railroad (later DSS&A, SOO, CN) is charted.

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February 22, 1856 The first railroad in California, the Sacramento Valley (later Southern Pacific) is opened between Sacramento and Folsom.

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February 22, 1863 Construction begins on the Central Pacific Railroad.

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February 22, 1866 The first railroad bridge over the Hudson between Albany and Greenbush opens, linking the New York Central and the Hudson River Railroads. NYC will begin running through trains between New York and Buffalo, but in summer will still deliver most freight to the river steamers.

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February 22, 1867 The Pullman Palace Car Company is incorporated in Illinois.

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February 22, 1881 The Kankakee & Seneca Railroad is incorporated. Running 49 miles between its two namesake Illinois towns, it is intended to be a link between the Rock Island and Big Four railroads.

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February 22, 1890 The Peoria & Eastern Railroad is chartered (some sources say February 21).

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February 22, 1910 The Interstate Commerce Commission denies a petition filed by several railroads to allow them to increase their shipping rates to cover recent wage increases.

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February 22, 1919 The Pennsylvania Railroad halts work on a new freight yard in West Philadelphia. Laid out in 1914, it is now deemed too short for the longer freights trains created by heavier steam locomotives. Expanding the yard is deemed too difficult.

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February 22, 1920 The Milwaukee Road stages a pushing match (no drawbar could withstand a tug-of-war) between 2-6-6-2 Mallet 9520 and brand new bi-polar electric 10254. The bi-polar wins. A similar contest between two steam engines will be staged in 1930 for the movie "Danger Lights" starring Jean Arthur.

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February 22, 1938 Santa Fe's "El Capitan", offering coaches and “Lunch Counter” food service cars begins weekly Chicago-Los Angeles service.

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Mark Tomlonson

February 19, 1918 The Committee on Standard Locomotive and Cars reports to the USRA that its proposed standards of last week will delay construction of equipment due to material shortages. USRA Director William McAdoo ignores the advice and proceeds with standard designs.

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February 19, 1931 The 1927 application to unify the Great Northern, Northern Pacific and the Spokane, Portland & Seattle is withdrawn.

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February 19, 1935 New York Central 4-6-4 #5344 enters service as the first streamlined Hudson.

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February 19, 1978 The musical "On the 20th Century" with Book & Lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and Music by Cy Coleman opens on Broadway. It features sets based on the 1938 Dreyfus-styled New York Central train.

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February 19, 1982 The Chessie System abandons trackage between Manistee and Petoskey via Traverse City, the former Manistee & Northeastern.

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February 19, 1983 Pere Marquette 2-8-4 1225 is moved from the Michigan State University campus to Owosso MI.

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February 19, 2009 The San Joaquin Valley Railroad (CA) is forced to shut down operations when high winds cause dry cow manure to drift across the tracks. The three-foot drifts will later be cleared away by the rancher.

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February 20, 1852 The Michigan Southern Railroad via the Northern Indiana & Chicago (later MS&NI, LS&MS, NYC, PC, CR, NS) reaches Chicago. The rush to beat the Michigan Central into Chicago has left a break in Michigan Southern's line between Laporte and Michigan City. Michigan Southern travelers are forced to take a stagecoach between those two cities.

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February 20, 1873 The last rail is laid on the Canada Southern Railway, completing the line from St. Thomas to Ft. Erie, Ont.

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February 20, 1904 Streetcars begin running between Indiana Harbor and East Chicago IN.

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February 20, 1915 The Panama-Pacific Exhibition opens in San Francisco. The Pennsylvania Railroad wins the Grand Prize for the best railroad display. They have brought scale models of Penn Station. Washington Union Station and a 2 miles=1 inch map of the entire PRR system. They are also showing promotional films in two P70 coaches spliced together. Westinghouse contributes to the display with a DD1 locomotive.

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February 20, 1917 The Pennsylvania Company obtains trackage rights over the Wabash at Detroit.

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February 20, 1921 A blizzard hitting the east coast causes transmission lines to fail, halting or delaying electric-powered rail service. Some stranded passengers one-half mile east of Manhattan Transfer burn newspapers, advertising cards and car seats in an attempt to stay warm until help arrives.

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February 20, 1939 The Lehigh Valley introduces its "Asa Packer", a rebuilt heavyweight train that has been "streamstyled". It is in service between Jersey City NJ and Mauch Chunk PA.

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February 20, 1946 Pullman Standard claims (incorrectly) delivery of the first passenger car built after World War II.

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February 20, 1954 Last run of Potomac Edison (interurban) in Maryland.

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February 20, 2002 An overcrowded train en route from Cairo to the southern Egyptian city of Luxor bursts into flames. At least 360 are killed.

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February 20, 2014 While filming the movie “Midnight Rider” just outside Doctortown GA, a camera assistant is killed while on CSX’s Altamaha River bridge. The movie crew had permission to shoot in the area, but did not have permission to be on CSX tracks.

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February 21, 1804 Richard Trevithick, on a bet, mounts a stationary steam engine on wheels and pulls 10 tons of iron (the amount in the bet) plus 5 wagons and 70 men 16 km (9.75 miles) at an average speed of 5 mph. The engine was heavy enough to break some of the iron plates in the tramway it was running over. Trevithick collected 500 Guineas on the bet. The demonstration also proves that smooth wheels on a smooth iron rail could do useful work, although there were issues with traction. (Some sources put this event on February 13)

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February 21, 1843 Michigan authorizes an extension of the Central (later MC, NYC, PC, CR, NS) and Southern (later MS, MS&NI, LS&MS, NYC, PC, CR, NS) Railroads and the Clinton & Kalamazoo Canal in anticipation of proceeds from an 1841 land grant.

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February 21, 1879 The Senate Commerce Committee passes a bill on transporting livestock, sponsored by Senator John R. McPherson. The Bill reads that livestock must not be carried in railroad cars more than 28 hours at a time, but may be carried for 60 hours if fed and watered in cars. (Senator McPherson and his friends have recently obtained patents for devices that allow this.) The Bill also calls for federal inspection of cargo at major ports.

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February 21, 1880 The Pennsylvania Railroad begins posting the 1:00 a.m. weather report from the U.S. Signal Office in principal railroad stations.

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February 21, 1900 The Chicago Junction, Chicago Rock Island & Pacific, Michigan Central, and Pennsylvania railroads agree to joint operation of the Calumet Western Railroad in Calumet IL.

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February 21, 1900 The City of New York awards Subway Contract No. 1 to build a line from City Hall up 4th Avenue, 42nd Street and Broadway.

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February 21, 1935 The New Haven receives the last of its 50 new lightweight air-conditioned coaches. The new cars have been purchased through the Federal Emergency Administrator of Public Works.

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February 21, 1936 Streamline shrouding designed by Raymond Loewy is applied to Pennsylvania Railroad K-4s Pacific #3768.

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February 21, 1947 General Electric releases its final report on its coal-burning turboelectric locomotive. The units are more expensive to build and operate than comparable diesel-electric locomotives. General Electric scraps its project.

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February 21, 1951 Pullman's experimental "Train X" receives its first over-the-road test. A prototype car is evaluated on tracks between the Pullman-Standard plant in Hammond IN and nearby Griffith.

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February 21, 1954 An SNCF electric train hits 151 mph in tests, setting a world's record.

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February 21, 1954 Since Mississippi does not require advance notice, Gulf Mobile & Ohio terminates the Mississippi portion of their "Little Rebel" trains in mid-run. Passengers are taken by bus and car to their destinations.

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February 21, 1967 The last horse used in Great Britain to switch railroad cars is retired in Newmarket, Suffolk.

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February 21, 1968 The last "Golden State" arrives in Chicago on the Rock Island, on time.

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Mark Tomlonson

February 18, 1848 The Cleveland, Painesville & Ashtabula Railroad (later LS, LS&MS) is chartered, although it will not begin operations until 1852.

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February 18, 1868 The Erie Railway board approves an agreement to obtain a broad-gauge route to Chicago by building a new railroad between Akron and Toledo and having the Michigan Southern & Northern Indiana (later LS&MS, NYC, PC, CR, NS) lay a third rail between Toledo and Chicago.

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February 18, 1871 The Mahoning Coal Railroad (later LS&MS, NYC, PC) is chartered.

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February 18, 1925 The Pennsylvania Railroad announces it has replaced over 1,500 handcars with motorized track cars.

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February 18, 1930 The Pullman Company buys the Osgood-Bradley Car Company, which has been making trolleys and other transit cars since 1833.

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February 18, 1947 The Pennsylvania Railroad announces it first operating loss, for the year 1946.

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February 18, 1947 The "Red Arrow" derails at Bennington Curve, just west of Horseshoe Curve. Twenty-four are killed as the cars roll down the mountain.

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February 18, 2003 A Korean man, despondent over his failing health, sets fire to a commuter train in Daegu, South Korea. The blaze spreads to a second train arriving at the station. At least 198 people are killed and 147 suffer injuries.

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February 18, 2004 Runaway freight cars carrying fuel and industrial chemicals derail, setting off explosions that destroy five villages in Neyshabur, Iran. Up to 295 people are killed, up to 200 of those being rescue workers.

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Mark Tomlonson

February 17, 1848 The Indianapolis & Bellefontaine Railroad (later NYC) is chartered.

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February 17, 1870 The Pullman Palace Car Company leases Central Transportation Company, retroactive to January 1, 1870 and absorbs its sleeping car fleet. This gives Pullman, formerly confined to some Midwestern roads, an additional 6,000 route-miles.

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February 17, 1872 The President of the Peninsular Railway (later GTW, CNR) writes to the Pennsylvania Company noting that his road is laid from Lansing MI to a point 12 miles west of South Bend. He proposes joining the Pittsburgh, Ft. Wayne & Chicago (later PRR) at Valparaiso for a route to Chicago in exchange for Bonds and a favorable freight rate.

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February 17, 1885 The Southern Pacific Railroad and the Central Pacific Railroad are consolidated into the Southern Pacific Company, a Kentucky corporation.

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February 17, 1911 The Locomotive and Boiler Inspection Act sets regular and mandatory boiler inspections, to be performed by the ICC.

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February 17, 1912 The eastbound “Pennsylvania Limited” wrecks near Ft. Wayne. Four are killed and 10 injured.

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February 17, 1950 A head-on collision between two Long Island commuter trains at Rockville Center results in 32 deaths.

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February 17, 1961 An application to create the Burlington Northern Railroad is filed with the ICC.

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February 17, 2003 Heavy snow causes the roof of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Museum in Baltimore to collapse, damaging several exhibits.

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Mark Tomlonson

February 16. 1847 The State of Illinois sells a portion of the Northern Cross Railroad (later Wabash) between Springfield and Meredosia. It is the only portion of the state railroad, chartered in 1837, ever completed. The new owners find the line worn out and revert to horse or ox power for the trains. (Some sources say April 27)

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February 16, 1869 The Michigan Lake Shore Railroad (later C&WM, PM, C&O, CSX) is incorporated in Michigan to build from Ferrysburg through Grand Haven to Holland.

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February 16, 1881 The Canadian Pacific Railway is formed. James Stephen is its first President and James J. Hill is on the board. Hill will leave CP when a route change takes it out of the United States. He will then build the Great Northern.

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February 16, 1897 The "Pere Marquette", first all-steel carferry on the Great Lakes, makes its maiden voyage from Ludington MI to Manitowoc WI.

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February 16, 1907 The New York Central's "Brewster Express" pulled by two S-1 electric locomotives derails at 205th Street in the Bronx, killing 21 and injuring 150. The wreck is blamed on the engines lateral force shearing spikes and causing the rails to spread. The electric locomotives will be rebuilt to 2-D-2 configuration and limited to 35 mph on curves.

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February 16, 1911 Due to claims resulting from the Kingsland Wreck last September, the stockholders of the Ft. Wayne & Wabash Valley agree to reorganize as the Ft. Wayne & Northern Indiana Traction Company.

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February 16, 1925 The Michigan Central opens a new bridge over Niagara Falls, replacing the previous span built in 1855.

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February 16, 1929 The Toledo, Peoria & Western drops all mail contracts, as well as rider cars on freight trains. Caboose passengers will continue to be carried for a short time.

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February 16, 1996 An Amtrak train and a MARC commuter train collide in Silver Spring, MD. Eleven people are killed. The crash, along with a crash on New Jersey Transit one week earlier that killed three, leads to a broader usage of the "Delay in Block" rule, revised standards for cab-end construction and larger windows in passenger equipment for easier evacuation.

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February 16, 2004 Jervis Langdon dies. Mr. Langdon was appointed a trustee of Penn Central following its bankruptcy and later served as its President. He was one of the movers and shakers behind the Chesapeake & Ohio's purchase of the Baltimore & Ohio, although he left the new company shortly thereafter to join the reorganized Rock Island.

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February 16, 2010 A perfume manufacturer announces what it calls "the first perfume dedicated to a rail line". The manufacturer claims to have captured the essence of Manhattan's former New York Central High Line, now a park.

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February 16, 2013 Amtrak takes operational control of the State-owned former New York Central line between Kalamazoo and Dearborn MI.

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Mark Tomlonson

February 15, 1854 The Pennsylvania Railroad opens its Pittsburgh to Harrisburg main line, including Horseshoe curve.

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February 15, 1855 The Joliet & Chicago Railroad (later C&M, StlA&C, C&A, GM&O, ICG, CN) is chartered. It will be completed next year.

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February 15, 1857 The Michigan legislature ratifies and land grant awarded last June for the Flint & Pere Marquette (later PM, C&O, CSX) railroad.

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February 15, 1870 Ground is broken for the Northern Pacific Railroad.

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February 15, 1872 The Pittsburgh, Cincinnati & St Louis Railway (later PRR) grants the Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway and the Northern Railway of Illinois use of its tracks between Canal Street and its Chicago passenger station.

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February 15, 1873 George M. Pullman meets with Midland Railway officials to establish Pullman service in Great Britain. The first attempt is not a success as passengers refuse to pay the extra Pullman fare.

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February 15, 1904 Passenger service on the Grand Rapids & Indiana ends between Milton Junction and Luther MI.

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February 15, 1916 The Ft. Wayne & Springfield (Interurban) is sold. It will re-emerge as the Ft. Wayne & Decatur.

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February 15, 1918 The Pennsylvania Railroad signs a permanent agreement with the New Haven giving NH access to Penn Station.

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February 15, 1937 The Indiana Service Corporation abandons passenger service on the former Toledo & Chicago north of Ft. Wayne to Waterloo, Garrett and Kendallville. Freight service will continue through May 10, 1945.

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February 15, 1946 Sleeping cars return to Great Northern trains with 351-450 mile runs.

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February 15, 1950 The Pennsylvania Railroad says 90% of all of its passenger trains are now pulled by diesel locomotives, as well as 65% of its freight trains.

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February 15, 1953 Kansas City Public Service ends trolley service in Kansas. Trolleys remain for a time in Kansas City MO.

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February 15, 1955 The Mechanical Research Committee, made up of representatives from six roads says four of its members will order new lightweight equipment. The Pennsylvania Railroad will order a "tubular" train from Budd, New York Central and New Haven will look into "Train X" or something similar and the Santa Fe is looking at high-level cars for its "El Capitan". Baltimore & Ohio and Chesapeake & Ohio do not weigh in.

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February 15, 1997 The former Detroit, Toledo & Ironton lines making up Grand Trunk's Flatrock Subdivision south of Diann become part of the Indiana & Ohio Railway. Grand Trunk retains rights north of Diann.

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February 15, 2005 Phoenix breaks ground for its new light-rail system.

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February 15, 2012 Amtrak begins 110 mph operation on its line between Kalamazoo MI and Porter IN. This is the first Amtrak line outside of the Northeast Corridor to operate at those speeds.

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February 15, 2016 The first train arrives in Tehran, Iran from China. The rail journey is 30 days shorter than one made by sea. The monthly freight train is part of a planned “One Belt One Road” program to use existing rails to connect China and Europe.

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Mark Tomlonson

February 12, 1827 Two dozen Baltimore merchants, concerned over loss of trade to New York and Philadelphia, hold their first meeting to discuss a rail road to the West, to be built along the line of the National Road.

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February 12, 1849 The Aurora Branch Railroad is chartered, the first segment in what will be the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy.

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February 12, 1855 Michigan passes a law requiring crews on passenger trains and depot personnel to wear badges on their hats or caps indicating their job title.

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February 12, 1855 The Detroit & Pontiac merges with the Oakland & Ottawa to form the Detroit & Milwaukee Railroad (later GT).

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February 12, 1868 The Columbus, Chicago & Indiana Central Railway (later PRR) is incorporated by the merger of the Columbus & Indiana Central Railway and Chicago & Great Eastern Railway The CC&IC operates between Columbus and Chicago via Logansport and between Columbus and Indianapolis, with a branch from Logansport to Effner.

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February 12, 1879 The Board of the Pennsylvania Railroad gives the Altoona (PA) Library Association $500 and the use of a room at the Altoona Shops to create a library for the use of PRR employees.

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February 12, 1900 The Pennsylvania Railroad Lines West Executive Committee authorizes the further expansion of Conway Yard, including a lengthened turntable for Class H4 and H6 locomotives.

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February 12, 1901 In two separate acts, Congress requires the Baltimore & Ohio and the Pennsylvania Railroads to eliminate grade crossings within the District of Columbia and to build new passenger stations.

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February 12, 1930 The Columbia City and Logansport (IN) RPO is discontinued.

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February 12, 1933 The last passenger train runs between Niles and Benton Harbor on the New York Central.

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February 12, 1934 In Chicago, Union Pacific takes delivery of M-10000, later known as the "City of Salina". It begins a nationwide tour of 12,625 miles. Some of that mileage will be run at 111 mph.

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February 12, 1953 The New York Central sells 28 acres of its old coach yard in Boston. The land will be developed as the Prudential Center.

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February 12, 2008 Arthur Lewis passes away at the age of 89. Mr. Lewis was an investment banker who oversaw both the creation of Amtrak and the creation of Conrail. He also worked for a bus-lobbying group and headed several airlines.

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February 12, 2012 Berkshire Hathaway acquires the BNSF Railway for $44 billion.

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February 13, 1849 The Vermont Central Railway opens from White River Junction south to Windsor VT.

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February 13, 1855 The Detroit & Milwaukee Railroad (later GTW) is formed by the merger of the Detroit & Pontiac and Oakland & Ottawa Railroad. This will create a continuous line from Detroit to Lake Michigan

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February 13, 1907 The New York Central & Hudson River Railroad uses an electric locomotive for the first time to pull a passenger train out of Grand Central Terminal. Earlier electric passenger trains used MU equipment.

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February 13, 1910 The Pennsylvania Railroad announces it has 324 all-steel passenger cars in service: 245 coaches, 21 combines, 10 diners, 29 baggage cars, 18 postal cars and one office car. This represents about 25% of the entire fleet.

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February 13, 1935 Madison, Wisconsin streetcar service ends as damage from an ice storm hastens the already-planned conversion to buses.

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February 14, 1834 King Ludwig I of Bavaria approves the first railroad in Germany.

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February 14, 1842 Author Charles Dickens arrives in New York, after traveling from Boston via railroad and steamship.

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February 14, 1857 The State of Michigan awards a federal land grant between Grand Rapids and Little Traverse Bay to the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad.

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February 14, 1867 The first car of flour shipped using the new Blue Line, a cooperative traffic agreement among several railroads, arrives in Boston from St. Louis.

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February 14, 1886 California orange groves ship the first trainload of fruit to the east.

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February 14, 1891 The last spike in the construction of the Great Northern is driven at Blaine WA.

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February 14, 1896 The Northern Pacific Railway opens Portland (OR) Union Station.

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February 14, 1897 Railroad reformer Robert R. Young is born. Chairman of the Board of Chesapeake & Ohio, Erie, Missouri Pacific, Nickel Plate, Pere Marquette, Wheeling & Lake Erie and finally New York Central, he is perhaps best known for his advertising campaign: "A hog can cross the country without changing trains but you can't".

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February 14, 1905 Workers tunneling for the Pennsylvania Railroad blast a hole under the Erie Railroad's Weehawken NJ yard. A number of freight cars are swallowed up by the hole, but no one is injured.

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February 14, 1915 The first position-light signals are placed in service between Overbrook and Bryn Mawr PA. Designed to increase signal visibility in electrified areas, they will eventually become a Pennsylvania Railroad standard.

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February 14, 1923 Great Lakes carferry "Ann Arbor #4" encounters a gale soon after leaving Frankfort MI. She turns around and heads back, but her load of freight cars break loose and careen about the deck. A huge wave hits her and swamps her. She founders against the Frankfort breakwater. No hands are lost, but some of the crew are injured.

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February 14, 1927 The first New York Central "J-1" Hudson locomotive is outshopped by Alco.

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February 14, 1932 The Kenosha Electric Railway ends operations. Streetcars will return to Kenosha in 2000.

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February 14, 1998 In Yaounde, Cameroon, an oil train collides with another freight train. After the wreck, a person trying to scavenge some of the waste oil sets off an explosion which kills 120.

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February 14, 2004 Tower 17 closes in Texas, the last in the state and the next to the last west of the Mississippi.

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February 14, 2007 A TGV train sets a new world speed record for conventional flanged-wheel-on-rail trains of 553 km/h (343.6 mph) breaking the 513.5 km/h record set in May 1990. The record will be broken again when preparations are made for an all-out attempt in April 2007.

Mark Tomlonson

February 11, 1848 Ohio passes a General Railroad Law. It requires all new railroads in the state to be built with a 4'-10" gauge and complete construction within seven years of being granted a charter.

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February 11, 1855 The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad is formed.

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February 11, 1862 The 13th Michigan infantry leaves Kalamazoo for the front lines in 21 coaches, 10 baggage and 8 freight cars.

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February 11, 1869 Following an investigation requested by the legislature, the Michigan Attorney General reports that the Grand Rapids & Indiana is insolvent and recommends dissolution.

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February 11, 1904 The Chicago River & Indiana Railroad (later NYC) is incorporated.

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February 11, 1908 The Pennsylvania Railroad issues an order forbidding the use of profanity in its shops.

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February 11, 1932 Dessert is added to the $1.25 ($23.09 in 2021 dollars) combination plate and a $2.00 ($36.95) steak dinner is added on Pennsylvania Railroad east-west passenger trains.

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February 11, 1948 New York Central’s “Pacemaker” becomes its first of 28 all-new post war passenger trains.

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February 11, 1956 Rock Island's Aerotrain, "Jet Rocket" begins service between Chicago and Peoria.

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February 11, 1997 Mona MacDonald Tippens of Arkansas ends her record-setting 79,841 miles of unduplicated train travel in 33 countries. She began her travels 28 months earlier. She will later write "Tomorrow The Train: Journey to the World Record", a book about her travels.

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February 11, 1998 Canadian National purchases the Illinois Central for $2.4 billion (US - $3.86 billion in 2021 dollars) in cash and shares.

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Mark Tomlonson

February 10, 1851 The Illinois Central Railroad receives its charter.

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February 10, 1879 The Pittsburgh & Lake Erie begins operations.

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February 10, 1887 The Lake Erie & Western Railroad (later NYC, NKP) is chartered.

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February 10, 1892 The Pennsylvania Railroad hosts a rail tour from New York City via New Orleans to Mexico City. The tour will last 4 weeks and cost $450.

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February 10, 1903 Union Traction Company opens its Elwood to Tipton [IN] line.

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February 10, 1935 Through electric service begins between New York and Washington on the Pennsylvania Railroad.

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February 10, 1935 The Pennsylvania Railroad's GG-1 electric locomotives make their first revenue run.

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February 10, 1942 RCA Victor spray paints one of its masters gold and presents it to Glenn Miller for "Chattanooga Choo Choo". The song has sold over a million recordings, but this "Gold Record" is a publicity stunt. The first Gold Record, an award from the Recording Industry of America, will be awarded 16 years later.

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Mark Tomlonson

February 9, 1875 The Troy & Greenfield Railroad (later B&M) opens Hoosac Tunnel.

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February 9, 1875 Theodore N. Ely of the Pennsylvania Railroad issues orders that locomotives will henceforth be painted "green". This is the origin of "dark green locomotive enamel" a. k .a. "Brunswick Green" as the standard PRR locomotive color. Number 131, a Class E 4-6-0 will be the first locomotive painted in the new scheme.

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February 9, 1899 The Minneapolis & St. Lois Railway purchases the Minneapolis, New Ulm & Southern.

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February 9, 1900 In Ford River MI a Chicago & North Western accommodation train running late is hit from the rear by a fast freight running on time. Nine people are killed, most of them not by the collision but by being trapped in the burning debris.

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February 9, 1904 Long Island Railroad President William H. Baldwin approves the electrification of the railroad's western end.

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February 9, 1907 The Peoria & Pekin Traction is bought 50/50 by the Chicago & Alton and the Rock Island, and is renamed the Peoria Railway Terminal.

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February 9, 1935 Budd delivers the trainset that will be most famously known as the "Flying Yankee" to the Boston & Maine.

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February 9, 2010 Pioneer Railcorp-owned Elkhart & Western applies to take over 23 miles of ex-Nickel Plate trackage from Argos to Walkerton IN. Norfolk Southern is expected to hand over the line as soon as March 6.

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Mark Tomlonson

February 8, 1867 The first through passenger train from Council Bluffs, IA arrives in Chicago over the Chicago & North Western Railway. It is the first such through service to the Missouri River.

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February 8, 1879 The Pennsylvania Railroad tests a passenger train that is heated by a steam boiler located in the baggage car.

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February 8, 1904 The Interborough Rapid Transit tests a steel subway car on the 2nd Avenue El.

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February 8, 1913 The Great Northern receives its first motor cars, numbered 2300 and 2301.

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February 8, 1918 The USRA announces that it will standardize rolling stock for all new equipment orders.

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February 8, 1985 Secretary of Transportation Elizabeth Dole recommends selling the government's share of Conrail common stock to Norfolk Southern Corporation for $1.2 billion. This is before the formal merger of the Norfolk & Western and Southern Railroads in 1990.

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February 8, 1986 A Canadian National freight runs a red signal in Dalehurst AB, possibly because the crew was asleep, and crashes head-on into VIA's train No. 4. Twenty-three people are killed; 71 are injured. Most of the first responders come from Hinton, just over 11 miles away.

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February 8, 2002 The last EMD FP45 makes its last revenue run on the Wisconsin Central.

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Mark Tomlonson