Chicago Rapid Transit Co.- 1923 dated $1,000 Railway Bond (Uncanceled) - Railroad Adjustment Debenture Bond
Inv# RB5169A Bond
$1,000 4% orange Adjustment Debenture Bond “Gold”. Uncanceled. Graphics by Hamilton Bank Note. All 40 coupons. Choice Condition! Rare!
The Chicago Rapid Transit Company (CRT), a privately owned firm, operated rapid transit rail service in Chicago, Illinois, and several adjacent communities between 1924 and 1947. Notably, the CRT is one of the predecessors of the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), Chicago’s current mass transit operator.
The consolidation of the ‘L’ companies into the CRT was a gradual process that spanned several decades. The Chicago Elevated Railways Collateral Trust (CER), an entity directly affiliated with utilities magnate Samuel Insull, played a pivotal role in this transformation. CER established the groundwork for the companies’ merger by negotiating financial agreements and simplifying their operations. This allowed for seamless transfers between the various lines at shared facilities, such as Loop elevated stations. Additionally, CER facilitated through-routing of trains from one company’s line to another, enabling riders to take a single train from Ravenswood on the Northwestern ‘L’ to 35th Street on the South Side ‘L’.
The CRT was a conglomeration of several elevated railroad operators, each serving a specific section of the city. Among these predecessors were:
- Chicago and South Side Rapid Transit Railroad (operating since 1892)
- Lake Street Elevated Railroad (operating since 1893)
- Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad (operating since 1895)
- Northwestern Elevated Railroad (operating since 1900)
The Chicago Rapid Transit (CRT) network was entirely at or above grade level until the 1943 opening of the State Street subway, which is now part of CTA’s Red Line. After World War II and the persistent financial difficulties faced by the privately owned bus, streetcar, and elevated/subway operators, both the city government of Chicago and the Illinois legislature supported consolidating the three separate systems into a single, public-owned authority. Consequently, on October 1, 1947, the assets and operations of the CRT were transferred to the newly established Chicago Transit Authority.
A bond is a document of title for a loan. Bonds are issued, not only by businesses, but also by national, state or city governments, or other public bodies, or sometimes by individuals. Bonds are a loan to the company or other body. They are normally repayable within a stated period of time. Bonds earn interest at a fixed rate, which must usually be paid by the undertaking regardless of its financial results. A bondholder is a creditor of the undertaking.
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