Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway


The Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway was formed in 1885 with Marcus Low, a former attorney for the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad, as its president. The CRI&P advanced the CK&N about twenty-five million dollars to begin construction in exchange for nearly all of the CK&N's stock. Essentially, this made the CRI&P the owner of the CK&N from the very beginning. The CK&N had put down about 1388 miles of track, mostly in Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado and Indian Territory, but in 1889 it failed to make its interest payment to the CRI&P. The CRI&P started foreclosure proceedings on the CK&N, eventually fully taking over by June 17, 1891.

Construction Record