Copper Range Railroad Company - 1930's dated Michigan Railway Stock Certificate

Unissued Stock printed by Franklin Lee Division - American Bank Note Co. The Copper Range Railroad, identified by the reporting marks CR and COPR, was a former Class I railroad in the United States that functioned from 1899 until 1972 in the western region of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Established in 1899, the Copper Range Railroad emerged as a successor to the Northern Michigan Railroad and was operated by the Copper Range Company, which was the second-largest copper producer in the Lake Superior area. The railroad's initial line was inaugurated that same year, connecting Gay to McKeever, Michigan. By 1930, a reorganization became essential. In 1944, the railroad reintroduced passenger services, which had been limited to mixed train operations for some time, with the launch of the Chippewa service. This route ran between Houghton and McKeever, linking with the Milwaukee Road's Chippewa and offering daytime transportation between the Keweenaw Peninsula and Chicago. This service was implemented as a wartime initiative but was terminated in 1946.