C&NW Cowboy Line

The Chicago & North Western Cowboy Line

A History of the Longest Rail-to-Trail Project in America

By Mike Bartels, Bill Kratville, Rick Mills and Jerry Penry

** This title is currently out of print. **
Click here for more information.

On March 31, 1992, the Chicago & North Western Railroad was granted permission to discontinue operations on 319 miles of track that meandered across northern Nebraska. In years past, the end of the line for a railroad usually meant an irreversible economic loss for those communities once served by the steel pathway. However, a new rationale was adding a new slant to railroad abandonments: rails to trails. While 73 miles on the western end of the "Cowboy Line" retained rail service courtesy of a new short-line company, efforts were underway for the remaining 247 miles from Merriman to Norfolk to allow the recreation minded the opportunity to experience northern Nebraska's rich variety of scenery. But can a corridor originally created by a railroad to tie towns together and allow them to prosper continue to accomplish this task once the trains are gone?

ISBN: 0-942035-44-5

Bookmark and Share
Home | Current Titles | Out-of-Print Titles | Coming Soon | Mailing List | About SPP
This site and contents Copyright © South Platte Press