The Illinois Central Railroad

Valerie Voss
All Saints Academy, Breese

How did strawberries from Hammond, Louisiana, arrive in Centralia, Illinois, and Casey Jones become a hero in 1900? What is the background of the Illinois Central Railroad that ties these two stories together?

In 1851 the federal land grant officer of Illinois realized, along with many others, that Illinois needed a railroad. It was decided that the railroad would go from Cairo, Illinois (where the Ohio and the Mississippi River converge), to Galena and branch off into the northwestern corner of Illinois and down to Centralia, Illinois. The railroad was to be called the Illinois Central Railroad. This railroad would not have been possible without the support of many people, including Abraham Lincoln, Stephen A. Douglas, Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, Stuyvesant Fish, John Jacob Astor, Sidney Breese, Edward H. Harriman, Andrew Carnegie, and William Averall Harriman.

By 1852 the first section of the Illinois Central Railroad was finished, but it would take four more years to complete the entire railroad (not including extensions added later). Its first business was to carry coal for the mining industry located in southern Illinois. From 1861 to 1865, the Illinois Central

Locomotives like the one pictured here were used to carry freight and passengers from Chicago to stations along the Illinois Central Railroad route.

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played a large part in the Civil War, funneling Federal troops and supplies south to Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi.

By 1870 the Illinois Central had reached Sioux City, Iowa. The following year the Illinois Central began to use the debris from the Great Chicago Fire for trackage. Workers were needed to accomplish this task and received a salary between one and three dollars a day. When the Illinois Central could not get enough workers, more workers were shuttled in from New York for a $1.50 a day. If one worked for the Illinois Central, one would have to promise to work for at least two years; one could remain longer if desired.

To strengthen its position, the Illinois Central in 1886 launched a plan to improve its railroad and its service. It rebuilt its entire track by replacing the standard gauge equipment with a newer narrower gauge. With these improvements, the Illinois Central was able to attach refrigerated cars to their passenger trains enabling the trains to carry fresh fruit up from the South. One of the first to do this was John Heftler, the president of Centralia National Bank. In 1900 Heftler sent the first shipment of strawberries from Hammond, Louisiana, up to Centralia, Illinois, using one of the first refrigerator cars attached to passenger trains.

Also, on April 30, 1900, John Luther "Casey" Jones and his fireman, Sim Webb, were driving the cannonball express down to Memphis. That night Casey and Sim were asked to work a double shift. On their return trip, Casey and Sim were bringing the train back up to Illinois, carrying cargo and many sleeping passengers. While rounding a curve to get into Vaughn train station in Mississippi, Casey did not see the parked train ahead and rammed into it. Before the train hit, Sim yelled to Casey to "get out of the way," but Casey refused, saying, "forget about me, save yourself." Casey ended up killing himself and injuring others. Later on Casey was found at his post, hands clutching the throttle and the air break control. Casey Jones became a folk hero. Casey was also honored for his bravery in 1950 on a three-cent postage stamp that read, "Honoring Railroad Engineers of America." These are only some of the stories in the long history of the Illinois Central Railroad.—[From "A Brief Historical Sketch of the Illinois Central Railroad," <http://icrrhistorical.org>; "Building of the Illinois Central," <www.eslarp.uiuc.edu/ibex /archive/vignettes/BuildingIC.htm>; David Buisseret, Historic Illinois from the Air; Carlton J. Corliss, Main Line of Mid-America; Lucile M. Gray, The Story of Illinois and Michigan Canal; Donald Hiemburger, Illinois Central; Dorrell Kilduff, Illinois.]

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