Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1901-06-27
NAMES OF OUR RAILROADS.
Curious Changes In Titles Brought
About by the Public.

The fashion of naming railroads has
changed considerably in the last quarter
Of century. The three and four word
titles have about gone out of style, and
one word names succeed them. For in
stance, the Santa Fe is no longer referred
TO as the Atchison, Topeka and Santa
Fe, although this is the corporation title.
The old Chicago, Burlington and Quin-
cy has been contracted TO simply Burling-
t.u by the public decree, and the title
Rock Island has replaced the Chicago,
Rock Island and Pacific.
Many towns otherwise practically un-
known are kept before the public be
cause they had the luck to be worked into
a railroad title. For instance, who knows
the real name OF the Monon railway? AS
a matter of fact it was organized as the
Chicago, Indianapolis and Louisville
road. The little town Of Monon, Ind,
gave it its popular name. The Wabash
system does not take its name from the
river, but from u station Of this name on
the line.
One Of the most sensible railroad
names was selected for the combination
OF railroads organized in the south and
now known as the Southern railway.
The Southern is very fitting, as it enters
nearly every southern state. 1t is also
an economical name.
Another name that strikes you is the
Cotton Belt. This is how the st. Louis
Southwestern railroad has been mod
srnized. AS it passes through one Of
the largest cotton producing regions Of
the United States 1t is very appropriate.
Because a little road up in Nova SEQ
tia with the ponderous title of the Domin.
ion and Atlantic reached the land made
famous in Longfsllows poem tourists
have given it the title OF the Evaugeline
road, and perhaps this is more appro-
pirate than the other. 1t is certainly
more picturesque.
A change which must have shocked
the directors was in the case of the
Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and st.
Louis. This was altogether too much
for its patrons and the railway men, and
some one thought of the size of the cities
named and called it the Big Four.
Down in Texas and the neigh boring
states they have habit Of handling the
railroads without gloves when it comes
to giving names. A favorite plan Is to
take the principal initials Of a road and
spell them out. Only a native of the
southwestern ranches would know Pee
Gee stands for the Kansas City, Pitts
burg and Gulf railroad. Another Texas
road, the Kansas City, Beaumont and
Gulf, Is merely called Kaysee cutting off
the last part of it. Sap is short and
sweet. 1t has been contracted from S.,
A. p, meaning San Antonio and Aran-
sas Pass, one Of the principal lines
In Texas. The New York capitalists
who built another road thought that Mis-
souri,, Kansas and Texas would be a
suitable name, but the Texas people re-
duced it to Katy.
Including nicknames, the shortest name
of any railroad in the United States is
the Sap, which has already been re-
ferred TO. II is 637 miles In length. A
little road in Mississippi, the Chester,
Perryville, Sainte Gensvievs and Farm
ington, has the longest title Of any in
America. This contains no fewer than
43 letters, but two other lines are close
to it, the Richmond. Nicholasville, Irvine
and Beatyyville and the Southwestern
Arkansas and Indian Territory. The
Chester line is only n miles long.-Chi-
cago Inter Ocean.