Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad Co. - 1930-1945 dated Railway Stock Certificate

Stock printed by Security Banknote Company. Vignette logo different but otherwise similar to RS5084. Available in Orange, Blue, Purple or Green. Please specify color.

The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Railroad (CMStP&P), often referred to as the "Milwaukee Road" (reporting mark MILW), was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwest & Northwest of the United States from 1847 until 1986. The company experienced financial difficulty through the 1970s & 1980s, including bankruptcy in 1977 (though it filed for bankruptcy twice in 1925 & 1935, respectively). In 1980, it abandoned its Pacific Extension, which included track in the states of Montana, Idaho, & Washington. The remaining system was merged into the Soo Line Railroad (reporting mark SOO), a subsidiary of Canadian Pacific Railway (reporting mark CP), on January 1, 1986. Much of its historical trackage remains in use by other railroads. The company brand is commemorated by buildings like the historic Milwaukee Road Depot in Minneapolis & preserved locomotives such as Milwaukee Road 261 which operates excursion trains.

The railroad that became the Milwaukee Road began as the Milwaukee & Waukesha Railroad in Wisconsin, whose goal was to link the developing Lake Michigan port City of Milwaukee with the Mississippi River. The company incorporated in 1847, but changed its name to the Milwaukee & Mississippi Railroad in 1850 before construction began. Its first line, 5 miles (8.0 km) long, opened between Milwaukee & Wauwatosa, on November 20, 1850. Extensions followed to Waukesha in February 1851, Madison, & finally the Mississippi River at Prairie du Chien in 1857. Read more at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milwaukee_Road