Wisconsin and Southern Railroad
Encyclopedia
The Wisconsin and Southern Railroad is a Class II
regional railroad
in the southern portion of Wisconsin
and the northeast corner of Illinois
. It operates former Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
(Milwaukee Road) and Chicago and North Western Transportation Company (C&NW) trackage, mostly acquired by the state of Wisconsin in the 1980s.
Within Wisconsin, WSOR connects with four western Class I railroad
s: BNSF Railway
, Canadian National Railway
, Canadian Pacific Railway
and Union Pacific Railroad
. Through trackage rights
over Metra
, WSOR accesses Chicago to connect with the two eastern Class I railroads, CSX Transportation
and the Norfolk Southern Railway
. WSOR also has access to harbor facilities in Prairie du Chien
, and transload facilities are located in Milwaukee
, Janesville
, Madison
, and Oshkosh
. 22 grain elevators have located rail load-out facilities on the WSOR system.
For train operation purposes, the WSOR system is divided into two divisions, the Northern Division and the Southern Division. The Northern Division is essentially the original WSOR trackage from 1980, with a few new lines that have been added around the Milwaukee
area since the 1990s. It includes the line northwest from Milwaukee to Horicon
, where it splits into branches to Cambria and Oshkosh, as well as a line from Milwaukee north to Kiel. The Southern Division includes the lines acquired from the Wisconsin and Calumet Railroad
in 1992, centered around Madison and Janesville, as well as several lines acquired in the 1990s in the Madison area. The two divisions are not physically connected with WSOR owned trackage, but trackage rights
over a short section of Wisconsin Central Ltd. from Waukesha
to Slinger
provide a link between the two divisions.
WSOR is headquartered in Milwaukee, where all dispatching duties are carried out. Locomotive maintenance is centered in Janesville
; WSOR's Horicon paint shops often do contract work on both rolling stock, for railroads such as Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad
, and locomotives, including Union Pacific Railroad
. and a major freight terminal is operated in Madison, WI
WSOR began operations in 1980 when the state acquired several Milwaukee Road branch lines, and signed a 50-year agreement with the Wisconsin and Southern Railroad, organized by the FSC Corporation, which also owned the Upper Merion and Plymouth Railroad. In August 1992, WSOR gained control of the Wisconsin and Calumet Railroad
, which had been created in 1985 to replace the Chicago, Madison and Northern Railroad's operations on state-owned lines formerly part of the Milwaukee and Illinois Central Gulf Railroad. (The latter has since been abandoned except for a short stub at Madison.) WSOR thus gained access to Chicago (through trackage rights
over Metra
from Fox Lake), Janesville, Madison, and Prairie du Chien. Further expansion came with a lease from the Union Pacific Railroad
(UP) of Madison-area ex-C&NW trackage in 1996, and of an ex-Milwaukee line between Madison and Watertown from the Soo Line Railroad
in 1998 (sold outright in 2003). The most recent acquisition was north of Milwaukee in 2005, when the state purchased the ex-Milwaukee line between Saukville and Kiel, which Wisconsin Central Ltd. was going to abandon. Soon thereafter, WSOR leased in part and bought in part an ex-C&NW line to Sheboygan from the UP.
In 2005, WSOR celebrated its 25th anniversary by painting engine number 4025, an EMD SD40-2
, in a special anniversary paint scheme, and holding "open house" parties in Janesville
on July 9 and in Madison
on July 23. In 2011, WSOR turned 30 years and in celebration of that, WSOR painted their 25th Anniversary unit, 4025, into 4030, in commemoration. Open House parties and such are scheduled for later this year.
WSOR was named the 2009 Regional Railroad of the Year
by Railway Age Magazine.
On April 11, 2011, WSOR's president and chief executive officer, William Gardner, was charged with two felonies after he was accused of funneling more than $60,000 in illegal campaign contributions through WSOR employees during the 2010 gubernatorial election in Wisconsin. Gardner agreed to plead guilty to two felony counts. Under a deal, prosecutors agreed not to seek jail time but instead would seek two years of probation. In a statement, Gardner acknowledged his mistakes and said he took full responsibility. The vast majority of the contributions were to Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker
.
On November 29, 2011 it was announced that WSOR will now be owned by Watco Companies
Class II railroad
A Class II railroad in the United States is a mid-sized freight-hauling railroad, in terms of its operating revenue. , a railroad with revenues greater than $20.5 million but less than $277.7 million for at least three consecutive years is considered a Class II railroad...
regional railroad
Regional railroad
In the United States, a regional railroad is a railroad company that is not Class I, but still has a substantial amount of traffic or trackage . The Association of American Railroads has defined the lower bound as of track or $40 million in annual operating revenue...
in the southern portion of Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
and the northeast corner of Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. It operates former Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
The Milwaukee Road, officially the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad , was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwest and Northwest of the United States from 1847 until its merger into the Soo Line Railroad on January 1, 1986. The company went through several official names...
(Milwaukee Road) and Chicago and North Western Transportation Company (C&NW) trackage, mostly acquired by the state of Wisconsin in the 1980s.
Within Wisconsin, WSOR connects with four western Class I railroad
Class I railroad
A Class I railroad in the United States and Mexico, or a Class I rail carrier in Canada, is a large freight railroad company, as classified based on operating revenue.Smaller railroads are classified as Class II and Class III...
s: BNSF Railway
BNSF Railway
The BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary...
, Canadian National Railway
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
, Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
and Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
. Through trackage rights
Trackage rights
Trackage rights , running rights or running powers is an agreement whereby a railway company has the right to run its trains on tracks owned by another railway company....
over Metra
Metra
Metra is the commuter rail division of the Illinois Regional Transportation Authority. The system serves Chicago and its metropolitan area through 240 stations on 11 different rail lines. Throughout the 21st century, Metra has been the second busiest commuter rail system in the United States by...
, WSOR accesses Chicago to connect with the two eastern Class I railroads, CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...
and 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...
. WSOR also has access to harbor facilities in Prairie du Chien
Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin
Prairie du Chien is a city in and the county seat of Crawford County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 5,911 at the 2010 census. Its Zip Code is 53821....
, and transload facilities are located in Milwaukee
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
, Janesville
Janesville, Wisconsin
Janesville is a city in southern Wisconsin, United States. It is the county seat of Rock County and the principal municipality of the Janesville, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 62,998.-History:...
, Madison
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
, and Oshkosh
Oshkosh, Wisconsin
As of the census of 2000, there were 62,916 people, 24,082 households, and 13,654 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,662.2 people per square mile . There were 25,420 housing units at an average density of 1,075.6 per square mile...
. 22 grain elevators have located rail load-out facilities on the WSOR system.
For train operation purposes, the WSOR system is divided into two divisions, the Northern Division and the Southern Division. The Northern Division is essentially the original WSOR trackage from 1980, with a few new lines that have been added around the Milwaukee
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
area since the 1990s. It includes the line northwest from Milwaukee to Horicon
Horicon, Wisconsin
Horicon is a city in Dodge County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 3,775 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Horicon is located at . The city of Horicon is located at the southernmost tip of the Horicon Marsh...
, where it splits into branches to Cambria and Oshkosh, as well as a line from Milwaukee north to Kiel. The Southern Division includes the lines acquired from the Wisconsin and Calumet Railroad
Wisconsin and Calumet Railroad
The Wisconsin and Calumet Railroad was a Class III shortline railroad that operated in the southern portion of Wisconsin and northern portion of Illinois from 1985 until 1997.-History:...
in 1992, centered around Madison and Janesville, as well as several lines acquired in the 1990s in the Madison area. The two divisions are not physically connected with WSOR owned trackage, but trackage rights
Trackage rights
Trackage rights , running rights or running powers is an agreement whereby a railway company has the right to run its trains on tracks owned by another railway company....
over a short section of Wisconsin Central Ltd. from Waukesha
Waukesha, Wisconsin
Waukesha is a city in and the county seat of Waukesha County, Wisconsin, in the Upper Midwest region of the United States. The population was 70,718 at the 2010 census, making it the largest community in the county and 7th largest in the state. The city is located adjacent to the Town of Waukesha...
to Slinger
Slinger, Wisconsin
Slinger is a village in Washington County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 3,901 at the 2000 census.-History:Originally named Schleisingerville after the founder, state senator Baruch Schleisinger in 1857, it was shortened during the 1920s to Slinger, a nickname which was already in...
provide a link between the two divisions.
WSOR is headquartered in Milwaukee, where all dispatching duties are carried out. Locomotive maintenance is centered in Janesville
Janesville, Wisconsin
Janesville is a city in southern Wisconsin, United States. It is the county seat of Rock County and the principal municipality of the Janesville, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 62,998.-History:...
; WSOR's Horicon paint shops often do contract work on both rolling stock, for railroads such as Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad
Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad
The Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad is a Class II railroad subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway operating across South Dakota and southern Minnesota in the northern plains of the United States...
, and locomotives, including Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
. and a major freight terminal is operated in Madison, WI
History
Wisconsin and Calumet Railroad
The Wisconsin and Calumet Railroad was a Class III shortline railroad that operated in the southern portion of Wisconsin and northern portion of Illinois from 1985 until 1997.-History:...
, which had been created in 1985 to replace the Chicago, Madison and Northern Railroad's operations on state-owned lines formerly part of the Milwaukee and Illinois Central Gulf Railroad. (The latter has since been abandoned except for a short stub at Madison.) WSOR thus gained access to Chicago (through trackage rights
Trackage rights
Trackage rights , running rights or running powers is an agreement whereby a railway company has the right to run its trains on tracks owned by another railway company....
over Metra
Metra
Metra is the commuter rail division of the Illinois Regional Transportation Authority. The system serves Chicago and its metropolitan area through 240 stations on 11 different rail lines. Throughout the 21st century, Metra has been the second busiest commuter rail system in the United States by...
from Fox Lake), Janesville, Madison, and Prairie du Chien. Further expansion came with a lease from the Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
(UP) of Madison-area ex-C&NW trackage in 1996, and of an ex-Milwaukee line between Madison and Watertown from the Soo Line Railroad
Soo Line Railroad
The Soo Line Railroad is the primary United States railroad subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway , controlled through the Soo Line Corporation, and one of seven U.S. Class I railroads. Although it is named for the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste...
in 1998 (sold outright in 2003). The most recent acquisition was north of Milwaukee in 2005, when the state purchased the ex-Milwaukee line between Saukville and Kiel, which Wisconsin Central Ltd. was going to abandon. Soon thereafter, WSOR leased in part and bought in part an ex-C&NW line to Sheboygan from the UP.
In 2005, WSOR celebrated its 25th anniversary by painting engine number 4025, an EMD SD40-2
EMD SD40-2
The EMD SD40-2 is a C-C locomotive produced by EMD from 1972 to 1989.The SD40-2 was first introduced in January 1972 as the mid-range offering in EMD's six-axle "Dash-2" series, competing against the GE U30C and the MLW M630...
, in a special anniversary paint scheme, and holding "open house" parties in Janesville
Janesville, Wisconsin
Janesville is a city in southern Wisconsin, United States. It is the county seat of Rock County and the principal municipality of the Janesville, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 62,998.-History:...
on July 9 and in Madison
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
on July 23. In 2011, WSOR turned 30 years and in celebration of that, WSOR painted their 25th Anniversary unit, 4025, into 4030, in commemoration. Open House parties and such are scheduled for later this year.
WSOR was named the 2009 Regional Railroad of the Year
Regional Railroad of the Year
The Regional Railroad of the Year is an annual award given to exemplary North American regional railroads by rail transport industry publication Railway Age...
by Railway Age Magazine.
On April 11, 2011, WSOR's president and chief executive officer, William Gardner, was charged with two felonies after he was accused of funneling more than $60,000 in illegal campaign contributions through WSOR employees during the 2010 gubernatorial election in Wisconsin. Gardner agreed to plead guilty to two felony counts. Under a deal, prosecutors agreed not to seek jail time but instead would seek two years of probation. In a statement, Gardner acknowledged his mistakes and said he took full responsibility. The vast majority of the contributions were to Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker
Scott Walker (politician)
Scott Kevin Walker is an American Republican politician who began serving as the 45th Governor of Wisconsin on January 3, 2011, after defeating Democratic candidate Tom Barrett, 52 percent to 47 percent in the November 2010 general election...
.
On November 29, 2011 it was announced that WSOR will now be owned by Watco Companies
External links
- Wisconsin & Southern Railroad Co. – Official Site
- RailPictures.Net – Photographs of the Wisconsin & Southern Railroad