In the late 1800s, about 150 companies had a part in building what would become the Pere Marquette Railroad Company. These companies were primarily railroads, railroad construction firms, or enterprises otherwise involved in the lumber trade during the late 1800's. This dependence upon the lumber trade played a large role in the eventual PM amalgamation as the recessions of the late 1800s greatly diminished the demand for building materials, which in turn greatly reduced earnings of the railroads. On January 1, 1900, PM was formed primarily by the merger of the following railroads:
1) The Flint & Pere Marquette Railway Company, formed Jan. 22, 1857, one of the first of these companies in Michigan with track from East Saginaw to Mt. Morris. Originating traffic was lumber and salt. By 1874 the track extended from Monroe on Lake Erie to Ludington on Lake Michigan. Further expansion extended the system to Port Huron and Bay City and added numerous spur lines in the Saginaw Valley. The line was built south to Toledo as well. Today the remains of this system is the CSXT Saginaw Subdivision. 2) The Chicago & West Michigan RR was formed by 15 companies on December 28, 1868. The tracks extended from New Buffalo to Bay View, following the shoreline of Lake Michigan. It connected with the Flint and Pere Marquette Railway Company lines at Baldwin and Ludington. Traffic was primarily lumber, and later, manufactured goods. The remains of these lines is now the core of the present CSXT Grand Rapids Subdivision. 3) The Detroit, Grand Rapids and Western began as the Detroit and Howell which was incorporated September 21, 1864. By 1871 the trains were running from Detroit westward to Howard City, with 164 miles of track. Trackage was added by merging with several financially troubled roads in central lower Michigan, and had interchanges to the Flint & Pere Marquette at Saginaw and Plymouth. It also connected with the Chicago & West Michigan at Grand Rapids. Today the remains of this system is the CSXT Plymouth subdivision. The financial difficulties that led to the merger were not solved by the consolidation as the lumber revenue decreased without the anticipated offset of increased agricultural traffic. At this time in Michigan history the western plains were available for settlement with land better suited to farming than the stump covered swamp left by the timber harvest. Competition from water transportation for bulk loads such as coal or salt also depleted the revenue stream. The newly formed Pere Marquette embarked on an expansion program through a series of takeovers and trackage rights agreements to allow through traffic from Buffalo to Chicago. This, combined with the Port Huron to Ludington traffic that by-passed Chicago, was hoped to keep the system profitable or at least solvent. It operated 1700 route miles in Michigan with another 41 out of state. Shortly after its formation, the control of the PM was in the hands of a St. Louis based stock syndicate comprised of midwest business interests. The administration of the railroad by this group led to great difficulty as questionable financial arrangements, policies of deferred maintenance, and loss of exchange traffic all combined to cripple operations. By 1910 the system was in receivership with control being shuffled between the Erie, B&O and J.P. Morgan companies over the next several years. In 1916 the Van Sweringen Brothers got into the railroad business with the purchase of the New York, Chicago & St. Louis railroad, better known as the Nickel Plate. Their expansion plans were to merge the C&O, Erie and Pere Marquette with the Nickel Plate. They executed this plan between 1922-1924 buying a controlling interest in these roads. The ICC did not approve the merger and the Brothers sold their Pere Marquette interest to the C&O. In 1946 the C&O formally consolidated the Pere Marquette into the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway.
I) Flint & Pere Marquette R.R. Co 1889-1899
I.a) East Saginaw & St. Clair R.R Co 1872
I.b) Flint & Pere Marquette R.R. Co 1880-1889
I.b.1) Flint & Pere Marquette Ry Co 1872-1880
I.b.1a) Bay City and East Saginaw R.R Co. 1864-1872
I.b.1b) Flint & Pere Marquette R.R. Co 1868-1872
I.b.1b.1) Flint & Pere Marquette R.R. Co 1857-1868
I.b.1b.2) The Flint & Holly R.R. Co. 1863-1868
I.b.1b.2a) The Flint & Fentonville R.R. Co 1863
I.b.1c) The Flint River R.R. Co 1871-1872
I.b.1d) Holly, Wayne & Monroe Ry. Co 1865-1872
I.b.1e) The Cass River R.R. Co 1871-1872
I.c) Saginaw & Mount Pleasant R.R. Co 1879-1889
I.d) Manistee R.R. Co 1880-1889
I.e) Saginaw & Clare County R.R Co 1877-1889
I.f) Port Huron & Northwestern Ry. Co 1882-1889 *
I.g) The Monroe & Toledo Ry. Co 1893-1897*
II.) Chicago & West Michigan Ry. Co 1881-1899
II.a) Chicago & West Michigan Ry. Co 1878-1881
II.a.1) Chicago & Michigan Lake Shore R.R. Co. 1872-1878
II.a.1a) Chicago & Michigan Lake Shore R.R. Co. 1871-1872
II.a.1a.1) Chicago & Michigan Lake Shore R.R. Co. 1870-1871
II.a.1a.1a) Chicago & Michigan Lake Shore R.R. Co.1869-1870
II.a.1a.1a.1) Chicago & Michigan Lake Shore R.R. Co. 1869
II.a.1a.1a.2) Lake Shore R.R. Co of Western Michigan 1869
II.a.1a.1b) The Grand Rapids & Lake Shore R.R. Co. 1869-1870
II.a.1a.2) The Montague, Pentwater & Manistee R.R. Co 1871
II.a.1a.3) The Grand Rapids & Holland R.R. Co 1871
II.a.1b) Muskegon & Big Rapids R.R. Co 1871-1872
II.b) Indiana & Michigan R.R.Co 1881
II.c) Grand Rapids, Newaygo & Lake Shore R.R. Co 1869-1881
II.d) Grand Haven R.R. Co 1878-1881
II.d.1) Michigan Lake Shore R.R. Co 1869-1878
II.d.1a) Michigan Lake Shore R.R. Co 1869
II.d.1b) Allegan & Holland R.R. Co 1868-1869
II.d.1c) The Muskegon & Ferrysburg R.R. Co 1869
II.e) White River R.R. Co. 1879-1884
II.f) Chicago & North Michigan R.R. Co 1879-1899
III.) Detroit, Grand Rapids & Western R.R. Co 1896-1899
III.a) Saginaw and Grand Rapids R.R. Co 1878-1896
III.b) Saginaw Valley & St. Louis R.R. Co 1871-1896
III.c) Detroit,Lansing and Northern R.R. Co 1876-1896
III.c.1) Detroit,Lansing and Lake Michigan R.R. Co 1872-1876
III.c.1a) The Ionia, Stanton & Northern R.R. Co 1872
III.c.1b) The Detroit,Lansing & Lake Michigan R.R. Co 1871-1872
III.c.1b.1) The Ionia & Lansing R.R. Co 1866-1871
III.c.1b.2) Detroit, Howell & Lansing R.R.Co 1870-1871
III.c.1b.2a) The Detroit & Howell R.R. Co 1864-1870
III.c.1b.2b) Howell &Lansing R.R. Co 1868-1870
III.d) Grand Rapids, Lansing and Detroit 1887-1896
III.e) The Saginaw & Western R.R. Co 1883-1896
III.e.1) The Chicago, Saginaw & Canada R.R. Co 1873-1883
IV.) The Muskegon Lake R.R. Co. 1879-1900
V.) South Haven & Eastern R.R. Co 1894-1903
V.a) Toledo & South Haven 1886-1894
V.a.1) Paw Paw R.R. Co 1857-1886
V.a.2) The Lake Michigan Division of the Toledo & South Haven R.R. 1884-1886
V.a.3) Van Buren Division of the Toledo & South Haven R.R.1876-1886
VI.) Sanilac R.R. Co. 1901-1903
VII.) Bay City Belt Line R.R. Co. 1889-1903
VIII) Saginaw, Tuscola & Huron R.R. Co 1881-1903
IX.) Milwakee, Benton Harbor & Columbus Ry. Co 1897-1903
IX.a) Benton Harbor & South Eastern Ry. Co 1893-1897
IX.b) St. Joseph Valley Ry. Co 1889-1897
IX.b.1) St. Joseph Valley R.R. Co 1884-1889
IX.b.1a) St. Joseph Valley R.R. Co 1880-1884
IX.b.1b) South Bend & St. Joseph Ry. Co 1884
X.) The Benton Harbor, Coloma &Paw Paw Lake Train Ry. Co 1895-1903
XI.) Grand Rapids, Belding and Saginaw R.R. Co. 1898-1903
XI.a) Lowell & Hastings R.R. Co 1887-1899
XI.a.1) Hastings, Lowell & Northern Michigan R.R. Co 1883-1887
XI.a.1.a) Kalamazoo, Lowell & Northern Michigan R.R. Co 1871-1883
XII.) Harbor Beach & Port Hope R.R. Co. 1880-1889
I.e) Saginaw & Clare County R.R Co 1877-1889
I.f) Port Huron & Northwestern Ry. Co 1882-1889 *
IRON HIGHWAY - The Corporate Perspective