Osage Railway
Overview
LocaleOklahoma
Dates of operation1922–1953
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Length16 mi (26 km)

The Osage Railway was incorporated in 1921 to accommodate traffic from the oil fields located in the Osage Nation.[1] The first part of its mainline was constructed in 1922 from a connection with the Midland Valley Railroad at Foraker, Oklahoma, to the town of Shidler, Oklahoma, about 10 miles southwest.[2][3] The line was independently owned from the Midland Valley, but was jointly operated with the Midland Valley and two other lines as part of the Muskogee Roads.[1] Beginning July 2, 1923 and completing in early 1924, the Osage Railway's trackage was extended northwesterly from Shidler through Webb City to Lyman, Oklahoma, about another 6 miles.[4][5]

Oil production in the area began to decline in the late 1920s and the start of the Great Depression lowered demand and prices.[6] The railroad managed to survive for a time by prudent management, but the entire line was abandoned in 1953.[1][2]

Osage Railroad

The Osage Railway should not be confused with the Osage Railroad (ORR).[7] That company, a unit of Watco, bought a 35-mile-long rail line between Tulsa and Barnsdall, Oklahoma from the Union Pacific (UP) in 1990.[8] That trackage had been built as part of the Midland Valley in 1905.[8][9] It was included when the Midland Valley was acquired by a subsidiary of the Missouri Pacific Railroad in 1967, and became a UP line when the Missouri Pacific was merged into the UP in 1997.[10][11] But Watco abandoned the line in 2000,[7] and at least part of the route subsequently became a multi-use rail trail.[7][12]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Muskogee Company records, Part 1". The University of Texas at Austin, University of Texas Libraries. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  2. 1 2 "Foraker". Jon D. May, Oklahoma Historical Society. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  3. ↑ "Shidler". Jon D. May, Oklahoma Historical Society. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  4. ↑ "Webb City". Jon D. May, Oklahoma Historical Society. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  5. ↑ "Osage County, Oklahoma-Lyman". Geocaching. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  6. ↑ "History of the Osage". Sharon Hamilton, USGenWebArchives. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  7. 1 2 3 "Osage Railroad 1000 leads a South Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad train in the Moline, KS yard in July 1991". Watco, July 19, 2018 (accessed on Facebook). Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  8. 1 2 "Old rails may become trail". Curtis Killman, Tulsa World, December 28, 2000. 28 December 2000. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  9. ↑ "Midland Valley Railroad". Augustus J. Veenendaal, Jr., Oklahoma Historical Society. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  10. ↑ "Missouri Pacific Railway". Augustus J. Veenendaal, Jr., Oklahoma Historical Society. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  11. ↑ "Oklahoma 1989 Official State Railroad Map". Oklahoma Department of Transportation. 3 December 2009. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  12. ↑ "Osage Prairie Trail". Landplan Consultants. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
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