Kalamazoo and South Haven Railroad
Encyclopedia
Southern Michigan
Southern Michigan is a loosely defined geographic area of the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. Southern Michigan may be referred to as a sub-region or component area to the larger geographic regions of Central Michigan, West Michigan, and Southeast Michigan.Southern Michigan is a...
during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The company incorporated on April 2, 1869 with the intention of constructing a 40 miles (64.4 km) line from Kalamazoo
Kalamazoo, Michigan
The area on which the modern city stands was once home to Native Americans of the Hopewell culture, who migrated into the area sometime before the first millennium. Evidence of their early residency remains in the form of a small mound in downtown's Bronson Park. The Hopewell civilization began to...
to South Haven
South Haven, Michigan
South Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city is in Van Buren County, although a small portion extends into Allegan County. The population was 5,021 at the 2000 census....
, on the shores of Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...
. It was leased in 1870 to the Michigan Central Railroad
Michigan Central Railroad
The Michigan Central Railroad was originally incorporated in 1846 to establish rail service between Detroit, Michigan and St. Joseph, Michigan. The railroad later operated in the states of Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois in the United States, and the province of Ontario in Canada...
and merged with the same in 1916. The former rail bed has been transformed into the Kal-Haven Trail
Kal-Haven Trail
The Kal-Haven Trail, formally known as the Kal-Haven Trail Sesquicentennial State Park, is a rail trail that originally ran 33.5 miles between South Haven, Michigan, to a point just west of the city of Kalamazoo, Michigan, where there is a trailhead...
.
The railroad went through the following towns, starting from the east:
- Kalamazoo, MichiganKalamazoo, MichiganThe area on which the modern city stands was once home to Native Americans of the Hopewell culture, who migrated into the area sometime before the first millennium. Evidence of their early residency remains in the form of a small mound in downtown's Bronson Park. The Hopewell civilization began to...
- Alamo, Michigan
- Williams, Michigan
- Mentha, Michigan
- Kendall, Michigan
- Pine Grove Mills, Michigan
- Gobles, MichiganGobles, MichiganGobles is a city in Van Buren County of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 829. It was originally called Gobleville, after its founders, the Goble family.-History:...
- Bloomingdale, MichiganBloomingdale, MichiganBloomingdale is a village in Van Buren County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 528 at the 2000 census. The village is located within Bloomingdale Township and is the township seat....
- Berlamont, Michigan
- Grand Junction, Michigan
- Lacota, Michigan
- Kibbe, Michigan
- South Haven, MichiganSouth Haven, MichiganSouth Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city is in Van Buren County, although a small portion extends into Allegan County. The population was 5,021 at the 2000 census....