Galena and Chicago Union Railroad



The Galena and Chicago Union Railroad (G&CU) was the first railroad constructed out of Chicago, intended to provide a shipping route between Chicago and the lead mines near Galena, Illinois. The railroad company was chartered on January 16, 1836, but financial difficulties delayed construction until 1848. While the main line never reached Galena, construction to Freeport, Illinois, allowed it to connect with the Illinois Central Railroad, thus providing an indirect route to Galena. A later route went to Clinton, Iowa.

Contexts
After the Erie Canal was completed in 1825, immigrants flooded into the Midwest from the East. Chicago's location, at the southwestern end of Lake Michigan with a short, easy portage to rivers flowing south and west, made it a strategic point for white settlers moving through—as it had been for Native peoples before them. The white population in the region expanded exponentially, creating both markets and products that would need transportation.

One particular market that had Chicago leaders' attention was centered in Galena, Illinois, a town named for the most common form of lead sulphide. Long mined by Native peoples and French explorers, substantial lead deposits in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Iowa became known to settlers from the East in the early 1800s. St. Louis had a monopoly on shipping lead from Galena down the Mississippi River by steamboat to link to markets on the East Coast. But merchants and miners in Galena wanted a quicker, more direct route to Lake Michigan.

The Illinois and Michigan Canal was chartered on February 13, 1835, to provide a water route from Lake Michigan to the Illinois River and then to the Mississippi. However, work on the canal didn't officially begin until 1836, and various issues delayed construction, so the canal wasn't completed and operable until April 1848. Once completed, the canal did in fact carry significant amounts of cargo, as its successor the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal still does.

But merchants in Galena thought a railroad would provide lower costs to transport goods more directly to and from Chicago, then on to the East Coast. Historian Patrick E. McLear notes that boosters on the North Side of Chicago—including the railroad's future president, William Butler Ogden—also favored a railroad line coming into the city from the north, which they believed would help balance trade patterns that had so far favored areas south of the Chicago River.

And so the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad was chartered on January 16, 1836, initially capitalized at one thousand shares of $100 each, for a total of $100,000. The first stockholders' meeting took place on May 23, 1836, at which a board of directors was elected; on July 3, 1836, the board elected Theophilus W. Smith as president.

Looming financial failure
The G&CU was one of seventeen railroads incorporated in that legislative session, seven of which failed within two years. New railroad companies were risky ventures, because they had to spend huge amounts on construction, rolling stock, and storage and maintenance facilities before they could even begin to make money. While communities in the Midwest wanted railroads, the population simply wasn't great enough to fund and support railroad services. Knowing this, the G&CU's commissioners initially sought financing from investors in the East, and on August 4, 1836, they increased the amount of stock for sale to $500,000, aware that building a railroad would cost much more than $100,000.

However, the Panic of 1837 played havoc with fundraising of any sort. Few people had money to invest in a railroad, and several Directors of the company had to resign as they themselves were engulfed in financial problems. Though the Board did commission a survey of the route from downtown Chicago to the Des Plaines River, they could not do anything further.

Things seemed about to change when Elijah K. Hubbard got involved, purchasing an overwhelming majority of G&CU stock—79 percent, in fact; he also provided $30,000 for construction costs, so the railroad had funds to work with until late 1838. However, Hubbard died in May 1839 of tuberculosis, at which point it was revealed that he had been silently representing Elihu Townsend, an Eastern financier who was a director of the New York and Erie Railroad. To show Townsend that things were moving, William B. Ogden worked with developer Walter L. Newberry to plot a general route for the railroad, and several towns along the route held public meetings to demonstrate support for continuing construction. But Townsend was not convinced, offered no further support, and did nothing with his shares.

Everything came to a halt. Construction was not resumed. After their final meeting on November 22, 1837, the Directors of the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad did not meet for years. The G&CU was no longer a functioning company.

William B. Ogden and new life for the G&CU
William B. Ogden led the movement to reinvigorate the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad. When the G&CU was first chartered, Ogden had been in Chicago for less than a year, overseeing his wealthy brother-in-law's land investments north of the Chicago River. He had already worked to support railroad development as a young legislator in the state of New York, taking the lead in March 1835 to argue for state support of the New York and Erie Railroad. He asked fellow legislators to help build "continuous railways from New York to Lake Erie . . . through Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, to the waters of the Mississippi," creating "the most splendid system of internal communication ever yet devised by man." The legislation passed, and his work was seen as a resounding success.

More interested in business than politics, however, two months later Ogden agreed to become the Chicago director of the American Land Company, arriving in May 1835. Although he himself was not wealthy, through his New York connections he had the trust of many rich investors. After two years in Chicago, Ogden was handling financial affairs for about a hundred Eastern investors, working with, on average, around $1 million of their funds. As his clients' profits grew, so did his own fortune. He was a savvy businessperson, well liked in Chicago, and he seems to have been a natural leader. In 1837 he was elected the first Mayor of Chicago, and in subsequent years he "was a leader in nearly every Chicago institution and investment enterprise in the 1840s and 1850s."

As he had been in New York, Ogden was particularly interested in building transportation networks. He invested in—and became president of—a steamboat company that operated for two years, linking Chicago with the western terminus of the Michigan Central Railroad. He and a partner got the contract to dig the Illinois and Michigan Canal, which they completed a few years after the Panic of 1837 had calmed down. Although both ventures strained him financially, he successfully avoided bankruptcy. It was only natural, then, that he became interested in reviving the moribund Galena and Chicago Union Railroad.

As the years had gone on with no railroad service, frustrated mine operators in Wisconsin had begun to use wagon companies to transport lead to Madison and then on to Milwaukee. Newspapers in Milwaukee documented the exponentially increasing shipments of lead, taunting Chicagoans that this trade suggested "Milwaukee is destined to be the greatest town on Lake Michigan." As time went on, more towns in northwestern Illinois demanded action, to the point where supporters from Chicago realized that they might also lose the Galena market to the Madison-Milwaukee wagon companies.

Ogden and his associates began planning. In 1845, a group of businessmen from Galena, Rockford, and Chicago met in Rockford to organize a convention of interested parties from along the G&CU route. The convention began in Rockford on January 7, 1846 and was attended by Charles S. Hempstead who had just finished his term as Galena's first mayor. According to D. W. Yungmeyer, "the Chicago group was so well organized that it practically took over all the official chairs, committee heads, and about everything else, and because of its readiness with resolutions, statistics, and so on, secured the whole-hearted consent and approval of . . . everything [they] proposed." Delegates voted to create an organization that would take on the task of resurrecting the Galena and Chicago Union, appointing a committee which included eight Chicago representatives.

William Ogden did not attend because he was in New York meeting with Elihu Townsend. With Ogden's eastern connections and his support of the New York and Erie Railroad—of which Townsend was a director—Ogden was in a good position to negotiate with Townsend. According to the original 1836 charter, if the G&CU company did not build a railroad within ten years, it would be disbanded as a corporation, and Townsend would lose everything he had invested. An amendment to the charter in 1837 had extended the construction deadline by five years, so they were still within the 15-year construction period, but it wasn't clear that Townsend planned to do anything on his own. If he were to let the new, still unofficial, group take over, Townsend could expect a profit if they were successful. Ogden set up the outlines of a deal in which Townsend would relinquish corporate control of the G&CU in exchange for the promise of substantial amounts of stock in what would essentially be a new company governed by the same charter.

When Ogden returned from New York with the promise of control over the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad Company, the new board of directors elected him as company president, on February 17, 1846. With the new organization, the deal with Townsend was completed in December 1846. A year after the first directors' meeting, on February 24, 1847, the Illinois legislature amended the railroad's charter to fit the new circumstances, setting the company's capital at $3 million. The Galena and Chicago Union was back in business.

Building capital
Though newly organized, the G&CU company still needed cash to begin building. In 1847, Richard Morgan, their civil engineer, estimated construction costs of a single-track line from Chicago to Galena at approximately $2.65 million, or $14,553 for each mile. The directors took a two-pronged approach to get this funded: they urged local farmers and townspeople to buy small amounts of stock in the railroad, and they sought other wealthy investors in the East. Neither approach worked well: local stock purchases were disappointing, and the Eastern financiers were dismissive, even rude. Shipping magnate William F. Weld told the G&CU representatives, "When it breaks down as it surely will . . . come and give it to us, and we will take hold of it and complete it."

Ogden and the Directors adjusted their strategy in two ways. They decided to begin construction as they gained funding, even if they didn't yet have money to build the whole route, and they intensified their efforts to sell stock in Illinois. One approach was to target farmers: as Morgan had written in his construction report, "a farmer near Rock River expends as much [money] getting his wheat to market as all other expenses of ploughing, sowing, harvesting and threshing," adding that the railroad would reduce their costs by $150 annually. Ogden in particular traveled the length of the planned route, trying to sell stock to farmers, businessmen, and miners in both Illinois and Wisconsin; he emphasized that downpayment on a $100 share would only cost $2.50, and that investors could make partial payments over time to complete the purchase. Two other company directors, J. Young Scammon and Walter Newberry, approached tired farmers who had just driven their harvest loads into Chicago, pointing out that a railroad would save them that work.

By the time of the first annual meeting of the new G&CU's stockholders, on April 5, 1848, slightly over $350,000 worth of stock had been sold, but downpayments on the stock amounted only to $20,817. Still, the board decided this was enough to pay for construction of the first segment from Chicago to Elgin. It helped that the terrain was flat, making construction simpler and cheaper. New chief engineer John Van Nortwick planned to save money by using strap-iron rails—wooden rails topped by 3/4-inch-thick iron strips—which were commonly used among early railroads. So that spring, Ogden and fellow director Raymond Turner went east to buy construction materials and rolling stock, including locomotives, cars, and iron for the tracks. Although they had to use stock instead of cash for some of these purchases, they could get what they needed.

Construction began that summer, 1848, with the first four miles of track laid in October and November, reaching what is now Oak Park. To show off the new railroad's potential, the company held a celebratory first trip from Kinzie Street to Oak Park for stockholders and journalists, which raised people's excitement. Construction was completed to Elgin on January 22, 1850, but even before then the railroad had been hauling freight and passengers for profit. In its first year of official operation, the Galena and Chicago Union earned over $45,000, proving its feasibility. Its success encouraged stockholders and investors, so that funding was never again a problem. On February 26, 1850, the company paid its first dividend to stockholders, an increase of ten percent paid in further stock.

Building the G&CU
To support their construction work, the G&CU used the same locomotive that had pulled the celebratory train, an 11-year-old engine purchased from the Michigan Central Railroad; it arrived in Chicago in October 1848. A 4-2-0 Baldwin locomotive, it was refurbished and given the new name of Pioneer. This little engine, the first to operate in Chicago, was to become a symbol of the company, and later the Chicago and North Western Railway, carrying construction materials back and forth as well as passengers and freight. For a time it was leased to the recently completed Aurora Branch Railroad, which had a close working relationship with the G&CU, but the Pioneer stayed in the G&CU's fleet for years and was used extensively to support further construction of the line westward.

In 1849 the company ordered a new engine with four driving wheels from Norris Brothers in Philadelphia, and they planned to order another similar locomotive. Their inventory included 25 freight cars of various types, with more on the way. That year the G&CU also built a freight station, where they located the company's administrative headquarters, as well as two repair shops and an engine house. They had built a wharf on the Chicago River's north branch, but they had to make the river's channel wider before they could use it. Other facilities had been constructed at West Chicago and Elgin.

Tracks were completed from Chicago to Elgin on January 22, 1850. Construction reached Cherry Valley on March 10, 1852, and the stretch to Rockford was completed on August 10, 1852. By that point the board had also decided to replace the strap-iron rails first used on the earlier segments with better-quality "T-shaped" steel rails, even though the strap-iron had only been in place for two years. The road from Elgin westwards had been laid with the "T" rails, despite the added cost of $130,000, because they were safer and longer-lasting, and the company wanted to ensure the quality of rails along the whole route.

In May 1849, the Directors issued a resolution reaffirming that their western terminus would be Galena. However, in 1851 the board learned that there were two viable routes into Galena, and that the Illinois Central Railroad (IC) had priority to choose which one they would use. As a result, rather than build a redundant parallel line, the Board considered linking up with the IC approximately 50 miles east of Galena, then using the Illinois Central's tracks into Galena. An agreement to do so was completed by May 1, 1852, with the G&CU planning to meet the Illinois Central tracks at Freeport. That town was on the planned route, so when construction to Freeport was completed on September 1, 1853, the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad had accomplished the goal identified in its company name. This agreement also benefited the Illinois Central, in that they would be allowed to use the G&CU's depot in Chicago.

Branching out
In 1862 the G&CU leased in perpetuity the Chicago Iowa & Nebraska and the Cedar Rapids and Missouri Railroad, building westward from Clinton and Cedar Rapids in Iowa and including a bridge and ferry across the Mississippi river. This was to be the first railroad to reach Council Bluffs, Iowa and connect with the First transcontinental railroad which was being constructed westward by the Union Pacific Railroad in Omaha, Nebraska. The 1862 map by G. Woolworth Colton shown here lays out the various lines in operation at that time. The G&CU and its leased Iowa roads consolidated with the Chicago and North Western Railway in 1864. This new consolidated railroad completed a connection without transfer from Chicago to Council Bluffs and Omaha in early 1867. The C&NW merged with the Union Pacific Railroad over a century later in 1996.

Today, the G&CU's main line between Chicago and West Chicago is a busy commuter service, jointly operated by Union Pacific and Metra as the Union Pacific / West Line. The remainder of the line from West Chicago to Rockford is still in service carrying only freight (though Amtrak service to Rockford has been proposed and planned) with local industrial spurs in Rockford and Loves Park. The route between Rockford and Freeport is abandoned, and is being converted into a rail trail.

Depots
Stations between Chicago and Freeport included the following:
 * Chicago, Illinois (1848. Depot at Kinzie and Canal Streets north of the Chicago River was converted to an employees' reading room 1853. Second depot at Kinzie and Wells Streets burned in 1871. The Merchandise Mart now occupies the site)
 * Garfield Park (1848. formerly Central Park)
 * Oak Park, Illinois (1848. formerly Oak Ridge, Cicero)
 * Melrose Park, Illinois (1849) formerly Melrose
 * Berkeley, Illinois (1849. Formerly Proviso)
 * Elmhurst, Illinois (1849. Formerly Cottage Hill)
 * Lombard, Illinois (1849. Babcock's Grove)
 * Glen Ellyn, Illinois (1849. Formerly Danby)
 * Wheaton, Illinois (1849)
 * Winfield, Illinois (1849–1854. Hedges Station)
 * West Chicago, Illinois (1849. Turner Junction. Hotel and roundhouse 1853)
 * Wayne, Illinois (1850)
 * South Elgin, Illinois (1850. formerly Clintonville)
 * Elgin, Illinois (1850)
 * Gilberts, Illinois (1855. Gilbert's Station)
 * Huntley, Illinois (1851)
 * Union, Illinois (1851)
 * Marengo, Illinois (1851)
 * Garden Prairie, Illinois (1853)
 * Belvidere, Illinois (1851)
 * Cherry Valley, Illinois (1853)
 * Rockford, Illinois (1851)
 * Winnebago, Illinois (1853)
 * Pecatonica, Illinois (1853)
 * Nevada, Ridott Township, Stephenson County, Illinois (1853. Depot was moved to Ridott 10 July 1860. Nevada no longer exists)
 * Ridott, Illinois (1860)
 * Freeport, Illinois (1853)

From West Chicago to Clinton: Crystal Lake Branch
 * La Fox, Illinois (1859)
 * Elburn, Illinois (1854, formerly Blackberry)
 * Maple Park, Illinois (1854, formerly Lodi)
 * Cortland, Illinois (1854)
 * DeKalb, Illinois (1854)
 * Malta, Illinois (1855, formerly Milton)
 * Creston, Illinois (1855, Formerly Dement)
 * Rochelle, Illinois (1855, formerly Hang Town)
 * Flagg, Illinois(1856)
 * Ashton, Illinois (1855, formerly Ogle)
 * Franklin Grove, Illinois (1855)
 * Nachusa, Illinois (1855)
 * Dixon, Illinois (1855)
 * Nelson, Illinois (1858)
 * Sterling, Illinois (1855)
 * Galt, Illinois (1857)
 * Agnew, Illinois (1860)
 * Como, Illinois (1855. Depot was moved to Agnew in 1860)
 * Round Grove, Illinois (1855)
 * Lyndon, Illinois (1857)
 * Morrison, Illinois (1855)
 * Union Grove, Illinois (1859)
 * Fulton, Illinois (1855. Line was moved to East Clinton after C&NW takeover)
 * Clinton, Iowa (1855)
 * East Dundee, Illinois (1854)
 * Algonquin, Illinois (1855)
 * Crystal Lake, Illinois (1855)

Aurora Branch
 * Batavia, Illinois (1872)
 * Aurora, Illinois (1888)

St. Charles Branch
 * Geneva, Illinois (1854)
 * St. Charles, Illinois (1871)