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The Illinois Central Railroad (ICRR) operated approximately 600 miles of mainline track throughout the Commonwealth of Kentucky, stretching from the Mississippi River to the central part of the state. In addition to Louisville, the state's largest city, the ICRR also served dozens of small towns. Kentucky's economy was built around coal mining and farming, and the ICRR played a major role in both industries. ICRR's coal trains served as a conveyor for Kentucky coal moving to Midwest factories, and the road hauled a wide variety of agricultural products, including tobacco, grain, and fresh fruit. No mention of the ICRR would be complete without discussing the fleet of fast passenger trains that whisked Kentucky residents to and from distant cities. To maintain the locomotives that hauled all these trains the ICRR operated one of the nation's largest locomotive repair shops in Paducah.
The Illinois Central Railroad (IC), between 1851 and 1856, built a rail line from Chicago IL, to Cairo IL. In 1876, IC entered Kentucky by purchasing the Mississippi Central Railroad that ran from East Cairo KY; via Fulton KY; to Canton, MI; and the New Orleans, Jackson & Great Northern Railroad that operated between New Orleans LA, and Canton MI. In 1896, Chesapeake Ohio & Southwestern and Ohio Valley Railroad were sold to IC. In 1896, when IC bought the Ohio Valley Railroad, that gave IC a route from Evansville IN, to Hopkinsville KY. End of track for IC in Louisville KY was Central Station, built in 1891 and served IC both as a depot and office building. In 1927 at Paducah KY, IC built their main locomotive repair and erecting shop. In 1970, IC operated some 550 miles of track in Kentucky. In 1972, IC merged with Gulf Mobile & Ohio Railroad to form Illinois Central Gulf Railroad (ICG). Then in 1998, IC was sold to Canadian National Railway (CN) and lost its identity.
The Illinois Central Railroad served fourteen states, including Kentucky. This pictorial explores IC's operations in western Kentucky during railroad's "Golden Era" of the 1940's through 1960's. Rare color photographs of IC's steam locomotives in action are included, along with scenes of IC's depots and trains.