Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railway Company

In 1912, the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway announced its decision to operate on hydroelectric power. Hydroelectric power or electrification was a highly cost-efficient power source and companies throughout the U.S. converted their steam-powered engines to it. The Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway began its electrification project on the 113-mile stretch between Three Forks and Deer Lodge, Montana. The General Electric Company submitted a proposal to design the locomotives, as well as supply the motors and electrical components for the new trains; its offer was accepted and it became the sole provider of electrical equipment to the railway. In addition to designing the engines, General Electric created the regenerative braking system; this system allowed the locomotive to hold the train back while descending steep grades and fed the unused power currents back into the engine. The system allowed for efficient use of power and was so successful that all subsequent electric locomotives incorporated it into their design. The company debuted its first electrified train, the 10200 Locomotive, on the Three Forks-Deer Lodge line in 1915. The Three Forks-Deer Lodge line, also known as the Rocky Mountain Division, provided fast and cost-efficient incoming and outgoing transportation to Montana.

From the guide to the General Electric Company's "Proposal for Electrification of Rocky Mountain Division, Three Forks-Deer Lodge", 1914-1915, (University of Montana--Missoula Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library K. Ross Toole Archives)

The Iowa and Dakota division of the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railway Company engaged in activities to secure lands for and construct a railroad line from Calmar west to Pattersonville, Iowa from 1867 to 1879. As a part of this endeavor the company entered into a contract with the McGregor & Sioux City Railway Company, an Iowa land grant recipient. The line from Calmar to Clear Lake (84 miles) was completed in 1869; the extension from Clear Lake to Algona (42 miles) was completed in 1870; the 100 mile segment from Algona to Pattersonville (now called Hull, Iowa) was completed in 1878. By 1879 the railroad had been completed as far west as the Iowa state line.

From the description of Construction Algona extension, 1878-1880. 1878-1880. (Iowa Sate Historical Society). WorldCat record id: 57000059

In 1910 the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railway Company built a depot on the south bank of the Clark Fork River in Missoula, Montana, as it completed its east-west rail line. The castle-like building included two observation towers, mission style parapet walls (using brick imported from China), Romanesque windows, and a Spanish-style roof. Today, the building, known locally as the Old Milwaukee Depot, is owned by the Boone and Crockett Club. It is on state and national registers of historic places.

From the guide to the Milwaukee, Chicago, and St. Paul Railway, Missoula (Montana) depot drawings, 1910, (University of Montana--Missoula Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library Archives and Special Collections)