The Kalispell bee. [volume] (Kalispell, Mont.) 1901-1901, 1901-06-10
To Connect the Northern
Properties Of G. N.
FROM EAST AND WEST
Great Falls & Canada Will Be the Main
Channel frora Crows Nest
Pass Coal.

Confederation of the sale of the
Great Falls and Canada railroad to the
Great Northern which occurred last
March, has been received and pub
lished by the Great Falls Leader.
which prints other railroad matters
OF interest in it's last issue. The
Great Northern proposes to utilize the
property as a short cut between the
Montana Central at Great Falls, and
the main line Of the Great Northern
at Shelby Junction.
The sale was made last March,
while President Hill, of the Great
Northern roilroad, was in New York.
The purchase includes all of the
trackage, right of way, equipment
and buildings of the purchased road
north to the Canadian boundary. The
road has 134 miles of narrow-gauge
track, and it's equipment consists of
| seven locomotives and ia cars, in
Guiding passenger freight and coal
cars.
A circular has been recently issued
| to the stockholders of the company
to meet in the general offices of the
company to ratify the sale.
One of the provisions of the sale
is that portion of the purchase
money shall be utilized in broaden:
ing the Alberta Railway & Coal
company's road to a standard gauge
from the Canadian boundary to
Lethbridge. The Alberta Railway 4
Coal company's road is simply con-
tinuation of the Great Falls & Cana
da into the Canadian territory. It
has sixty-seven miles of trackage
and possesses a rolling stock of II
locomotives and 3O6 cars. The ma
jority of the latter are principally
coal cars.
For the past two months the at
torneys Of the Great Falls & Cana
da road have been busy Strengthening
out the legal part of the roads right
of way, preparatory to making it
standard gauge road. It was unoffi-
cially stated Saturday that the Great
Northern would begin grading and
commence making the road into
broad gauge this summer.
The Great Northern has made the
purchase principally to shorten up
the extra 1O5 mile of haulage that it
is necessary for them to make in
hauling goods from Shelby Junction
to Great Falls of vice versa, and in
cidentally shut out any competition
that might develop in that direction.
Nothing definite has been learned
regarding the disposition of the
present employees of the Great Falls
& Canada when it is turned over to
the Great Northern, but it is prob
able that they will be left out and
the management of the road assum-
ed by the Montana Central.
Further remarking upon these rail
road changes the same paper says in
succeeding issue:
The sale of the road to the Great
Northern system means much to
northern Montana and to Great Falls
particularly. as the broadening of
increased transportation facilities to
the road to, a standard gauge assures
points north of this city and a prob
BILE decrease in freight rates.
It was learned last evening that
the only real object of the purchase
was not only to do away with the ex-
ira haulage of 1O5 miles now neces.
sary by way of Havre by the Monta-
ma Central and Great Northern, but
to also enable the Hill system to tap
the large rich coal fields in the vi
cinity of Fernie, about 100 miles west
of Lethbridge. The provision made
is the purchasing sum of $750.000
shall be utilized in making the Cana
dian portion of the road, the Alberta
Coal & Railway company's railroad,
standard gauge, is but step in the
plan outlined to reach and utilize the
rich coal fields in the vicinity of Fer
ME for the Great Northern system on
the eastern side of the Rocky noun
tains. The Crows Nest Pass rail-
way already extends from Fernie to
Fort Mcleod. distance of about 20
miles. Fort Mcleod is situated only
about thirty miles west and slightly
north of Lethbridge, and it is propos-
| fN0nfinmn6 I'M 000o ~