Humeston and Shenandoah Railway - Overview

Overview

Organized as an Iowa corporation on February 12, 1881, the railroad was built with 113 miles (182 km) of track. It had 18 locomotives on its roster as it started operations, and by 1898 the H&S listed 14 locomotives. Most original H&S locomotives were 4-4-0s built by the Pittsburgh Locomotive Co. The H&S track was built connecting Humeston, Iowa westward to Shenandoah, Iowa. To the east it handed traffic off to the MI&N and, later, to the Keokuk and Western Railroad, successor to the MI&N. The H&S had enough business and was doing well enough to be acquired outright by the Burlington Route in 1901. Primary traffic on the line in the early 1900s was bituminous coal mined in southern Iowa, grains, cattle and livestock, less-than-carload merchandise, and timber products. The railroad also had a considerable passenger business up until about 1920.