The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1905-10-04
PLANS ARE ANNOUNCED
FOR A VALLEY RAILROAD
Robert r. Straforn Files Articles Of
Incorporation of Two New
Companies.

Robert E. Strahorn and his asso-
ciates, including men OF wealth and
standing in the east and in the west,
has fulfilled the predictions of many
in filing articles Of incorporation of a
company whose avowed intention is
to construct a railway in the valley.
This was done last week, and is as
surance that there will be a contest
worth witnessing to see which of the
two companies now in the field Sc
cures franchise for privileges in the
city. The articles filed are of the
North Coast improvement Com
pany," and many look upon it as
connected with the North Coast rail-
way, for which articles of incorpora-
ton were filed at the same time.
North Yakima IS named as the prin-
cipal place of business, and the capt.
talization is given as 100000, in
the case of the North Coast railway,
and 100000 in the case of the North
Coast Improvement company. OF
the former the incOrporators are:
Robert E. Strahorn of Spokane,
Frank A. Dudley of Niagara Falls,
N. Y, James A. Kerr, John H. Nc
Graw, E. S. McCord, S. H. Kerr and
l.. V. Newcomb of Seattle; O. A..
Fechter and J. ]. Rudkin of North
Yakima.
The incorporators of the North
Coast Improvement company are:
Frank A. Dudley, X. E. Strahorn, J.
A. Kerr, E. s. McCord, S. II. Kerr and
j. J. Rudkin. The object of this
company, as stated in the articles of
incorporation, is to conduct and car
ry on general contracting business,
railroad construction, mining. log
ging, numbering, manufacturing, etc.
The primary object of The organize
ton is to do construction work for
the North Coast railway. The North
Coast railway is to build steam and
electric railways, either or both, to
maintain and operate lines of steam
ships on the Puget Sound, Columbia
river and Pacific ocean and do other
business that would legitimately
come to a concern of that kind.
Farther than this, the articles of in
corporation do not reveal what the in
corporation is for, or where the COM
pany Is to construct it's road.
That there is more in the move
ments Of the latest company to pro-
than the promoters are ready to ac-
quaint the public with at this time, is
indicated in an article which ap-
peared in last Fridays Tacoma
News, from which the following ex-
tracts are taken:
That both the Hartman roads and
the Chicago. Milwaukee & st. Paul
road are persistently working to
bring their lines to Tacoma and
Puget Sound Is not in the least
doubted by persons acquainted with
methods of railroad building and
with the mysterious movements that
have been witnessed during the past
few months.
Through the Natchez pass. 1925
feet above sea level, the Milwaukee
road is looking for a gateway to the
Sound, while the Hartman lines seek
a route by way of Cowlitz pass, s 900
feet high.
The evidence that the Hartman
interests now control the Tacoma
Eastern railway, and that that con-
Germ has much method in its recent
extensions into the Big Bottom coun-
try, grows into gratifying proper
tions when considered in connection
with railroad movements east of the
mountains.
In North Yakima a company has
just been formed with $1,000, 600
capital. 1t is stated in North Yaki-
ma that, while the trustees are local
men, the hackers of the proposed line
through the valley and eventually to
the coast, are eastern financiers. The
direction of this line is toward Cow
lltZ pass. In other worus, while the
Yakima company builds from the
east, the Tacoma Eastern is building
from the west.
Some time ago a company was
formed in North Yakima, known as
the North Yakima & Valley Rail-
way company. 1t has surveyed a
line up the Natchez pass and has pur-
chased l miles of right of way.
At the same time surveyors have
been quietly working through the
hills west of the pass, along the
Greenwater river. One of the rea-
sons why the city officials of Tacoma
were In such hurry to file on water
rights along the Greenwater river
was that they had information that
other persons were after the same
valuable properties. When the city's
forces went up the river they found
several parties Of engineers at work.