Yellowstone monitor. [volume] (Glendive, Mont.) 1905-1928, 1913-01-30
$25,OOO,OOO
TO BE EXPENDED
500 Will Have Busy Year If
Plans Are Carried Out.

The 500 Line, in the biggest con
strnctive plan of any kind that has
developed so far this year in the west
ern part of the United States, will put
s25, 900, 900 into the building OF 72s
miles of new road, will cross the state
of Montana, open up an enormous ter
ritory for direct connection with the
twin cities and strike the Canadian Pa
cific somewhere near the extreme edge
of Montana where the state of WASH
ington begins, it was announced today.
Late in December the 500 Line was
known to have plans for an extentlon
of the Ambrose line for eighty miles
into Montana and for the Plaza, N. u.
line thirty miles to the Missouri river
and these extension plans, although
contemplating the construction of only
a short mileage, were considered in the
railroad world at large as developments
of the first Importance, marking, as
they would, the initial appearance OF
500 rails in one of the greatest states
in the union in area, productivity ana
rapidity of development. From the
Minneapolis standpoint the definite an
nouncement of the purpose to lay the
first 500 Line rail into the eastern part
of Montana, in which state Minneap-
oils bankers, manufacturers, millers,
and grain elevator men have invested
millions, and wherein wholesale trade
Of Minneapolis has grown enormously,
was considered vastly important for
the trade growth of Minneapolis in the
future.
These former plans today fall into
position of comparative minor import
ance, for the 500 is not only going to
build the thirty miles to the Missouri
river from Plaza, but, crossing the
river ot Sanslt, will strike west and 60
over the Montana boundary, follow
the Yellowstone river for approximate
ly 25O miles across the northern part
of big Dawson county, 60 over the
Musselshell river into Fergus county,
which is geographically the central
county of Montana, cross the south
western portion of Choteau county, en-
ter Teton county in the western end of
Montana and strike northerly and west
erly, going over the Canadian boundary
either in Teton or Flathead counties.
A third transcontinental route with
Minneapolis as its principal basis
point will have been created. Two
years ago the 500 line began work on
an extension from Drake to Fordville,
N. d. the full purpose of which was
believed at the time to be entrance
into a part of North Dakota where
population growth had increased grain
production to an extent making it
profitable. This purpose was realized.
Today's development shows the rela-
ton of the Drake Fordville plan of
that time to an eventual far western
extention, for the 725 miles of new
road, with connection at Plaza, will
make possible the oneration of trains
on almost straight line to the Drake
Fordville cutoff, to either Minneapolis
or Duluth.
President Edmund Pennington of the
500 line who returned today from Mon
treal confirmed the statement that the |
road had six locating crews in the
field all summer and that they have
been working far west in Montana.
Of the territory that will be crossed,
about 70 per cent is agricultural land
and 80 per cent grazing country. Much
Of it is land that can be irrigated. |
That part of the new line through |
Dawson county will open country that |
is entirely new, in which there is as
yet but little settlement and where
towns Of size are few and far between.