Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pacific Railway Co. - 1939 dated Railroad Stock Certificate

PMG graded Stock.

The Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pacific Railway Co. (CNO&TP) holds a unique place in American railroad history. Primarily, it operated as the lessee of the Cincinnati Southern Railway, a 337-mile line constructed entirely by the City of Cincinnati between 1873 and 1880. The city initiated this project to counter the threat of losing shipping traffic to Louisville. The Cincinnati Southern Railway traversed challenging Appalachian terrain, connecting the Midwest with the South. In 1881, the city leased this newly completed, municipally owned infrastructure to the CNO&TP, a company controlled by Parisian banker Frédéric Émile d’Erlanger. The CNO&TP operated it as part of the “Queen and Crescent Route.”

In 1894, the CNO&TP came under the control of the Southern Railway (a predecessor to Norfolk Southern). The Southern Railway maintained the lease to operate this crucial freight corridor, transporting intermodal, automotive, and bulk commodities. Despite facing financial challenges, including a brief receivership in the 1890s, the CNO&TP remained a highly active line. Upgrades like “daylighting” tunnels were implemented to accommodate modern, high-capacity traffic. This unique, long-standing relationship of public ownership and private operation concluded in 2024 when Norfolk Southern purchased the Cincinnati Southern Railway from the city for $1.62 billion. This transaction marked the final privatization of the historic route.