Expansion
The track from the south into Grand Rapids was completed September 13, 1870. The line extended north to Paris, Michigan by October 1, 1870 and a train first traveled between Fort Wayne and Paris on that date.
In June 1871 the Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad Company took control of the road and property of the Cincinnati, Richmond and Fort Wayne Railroad Company, extending the line south to Cincinnati.
The Traverse City Rail Road Company, a branch providing service between Walton Junction on the main line to Traverse City, was completed in December 1872, bringing a wave of immigration to that area. This branch offered service to Traverse City, Northport and many towns between by 1909.
The line between Paris and Petoskey, Michigan was completed November 25, 1873. The road was opened to Mackinaw City, Michigan and the Straits of Mackinac on July 3, 1882. The total length of the line at this time was 529 miles (851 km).
In 1886 the company added an "airline" branch from Grand Rapids to Muskegon, Michigan, allowing travel between the two cities in about 1 hour.
As of July 1888, the railroad had expanded its fleet to 66 locomotives and 3,100 cars. Its gross earnings were close to $2.3 million in 1887.
In 1891 the Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad featured the longest North-South line in the country. The railroad served to accelerate the settlement of Northern Michigan, which was largely a wilderness in the mid-19th century.
On July 2, 1896 the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad reorganized as the Grand Rapids and Indiana Railway.
Read more about this topic: Grand Rapids And Indiana Railroad
Famous quotes containing the word expansion:
“Artistic genius is an expansion of monkey imitativeness.”
—W. Winwood Reade (1838–1875)
“We are caught up Mr. Perry on a great wave whether we will or no, a great wave of expansion and progress. All these mechanical inventions—telephones, electricity, steel bridges, horseless vehicles—they are all leading somewhere. It’s up to us to be on the inside in the forefront of progress.”
—John Dos Passos (1896–1970)
“Every expansion of government in business means that government in order to protect itself from the political consequences of its errors and wrongs is driven irresistibly without peace to greater and greater control of the nation’s press and platform. Free speech does not live many hours after free industry and free commerce die.”
—Herbert Hoover (1874–1964)