The Queen and Crescent Route was a system of railroads in the Southeastern U.S., connecting Cincinnati (the "Queen City") with New Orleans (the "Crescent City") and Shreveport. The main line to New Orleans was acquired by the Southern Railway, and is still part of the Norfolk Southern Railway

Norfolk Southern Railway

The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. With headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, the company operates 21,500 route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario, Canada...

 system, while the Illinois Central Railroad

Illinois Central Railroad

The Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, is a railroad in the central United States, with its primary routes connecting Chicago, Illinois with New Orleans, Louisiana and Birmingham, Alabama. A line also connected Chicago with Sioux City, Iowa...

 acquired the branch from Meridian to Shreveport through its subsidiary Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad

Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad

The Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad was incorporated in 1882 and was part of the Illinois Central Railroad system . Construction began in Jackson, Mississippi, and continued to Yazoo City, Mississippi. The line was later expanded through the Mississippi Delta and on to Memphis, Tennessee...

.
The following companies formed the route, controlled by the English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 Alabama, New Orleans, Texas and Pacific Junction Railways Company, Limited:

• Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pacific Railway
  Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pacific Railway
  The Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pacific Railway is a railroad that runs from Cincinnati, Ohio, south to Chattanooga, Tennessee, forming part of the Norfolk Southern Railway system. The rail line that it operates, the Cincinnati Southern Railway, is owned by the City of Cincinnati and is...
  
  , Cincinnati to Chattanooga
• Alabama Great Southern Railroad
  Alabama Great Southern Railroad
  The Alabama Great Southern Railroad is a railroad in the U.S. states of Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee. It is an operating subsidiary of the Norfolk Southern Corporation , running southwest from Chattanooga to New Orleans through Birmingham and Meridian...
  
  , Chattanooga to Meridian
• New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad
  New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad
  The New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad was a Class I railroad in Louisiana and Mississippi in the United States. The railroad operated of track from its completion in 1883 until it was absorbed by the Alabama Great Southern Railroad subsidiary of the Southern Railway in 1969.- History :The...
  
  , Meridian to New Orleans
• Alabama and Vicksburg Railway, Meridian to Vicksburg
• Vicksburg, Shreveport and Pacific Railway, Vicksburg to Shreveport