Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad Company correspondence
Scope and Content of the Collection
The collection consists of mostly letters between John B. Carson, the president for the Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad Company and Belt Railway Company of Chicago, and Anthony J. Thomas who represented J.P. Morgan's railroad interests in New York City was a treasurer for Morgan's company. The content of the letters mostly discuss financing for construction projects like viaducts and two-way tracks. The collection also contains a few telegrams and one 1881 letter from the real estate promoter John B. Brown who envisioned and chartered the Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad.
Dates
- Creation: 1881-1890
Creator
- Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad Company (Organization)
Language
Materials are in English.
Conditions Governing Access
The Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad Company correspondence is open for research in the Special Collections Reading Room; 1 box at a time (Priority III).
Ownership and Literary Rights
The Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad Company correspondence is the physical property of the Newberry Library. Copyright may belong to the authors or their legal heirs or assigns. For permission to publish or reproduce any materials from this collection, contact the Roger and Julie Baskes Department of Special Collections at reference@newberry.org.
History of the Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad Company and Belt Railway Company of Chicago
A Chicago railroad company that prior to 1882 was known as the Chicago and Western Indiana Belt Railway Company. The Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad (CWI), was originally an idea of the real estate promoter John B. Brown and was chartered by him and his associates in 1879. The charter was bought by five railroad carriers and became a reality in 1882 with the consolidation of three short lines that were created in the late 1870s to help connect major freight railways that originally ended in central Chicago. It was later called the "Belt Railway" and by 1883 connected almost all the railroads that served Chicago. Also in 1883 the CWI was approved to build a downtown passenger terminal at Dearborn and Polk. In 1885 the Dearborn Station was completed.
Extent
0.2 Linear Feet (1 box)
Abstract
Letters from John B. Carson, president of the Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad Company and Belt Railway Company of Chicago (formerly Chicago and Western Indian Belt Railway Company) to Anthony J. Thomas who represented J.P. Morgan railroad interests in New York City. Thomas also was the treasurer of this company, which was mostly concerned with financing for construction projects like viaducts and two-way track in Chicago.
Arrangement
Materials are in original order which is roughly chronological.
Collection Stack Location
1 9 4
Provenance
Gift, James Olmstead, 2016.
Processed by
Nora Gabor, 2017.
Subject
- Belt Railway Company of Chicago (Organization)
- Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad Company (Organization)
- Morgan, J. Pierpont (John Pierpont), 1837-1913 (Person)
- Olmstead, James (Person)
- Brown, John B. (Person)
- Carson, John B., 1835-1892 (Person)
- Thomas, Anthony J., Esq. (Person)
Genre / Form
Geographic
Topical
- Title
- Inventory of the Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad Company correspondence, 1881-1890
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Nora Gabor
- Date
- ©2017.
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the The Newberry Library - Modern Manuscripts and Archives Repository
60 West Walton Street
Chicago Illinois 60610 United States
312-255-3512
reference@newberry.org