The Fox & Illinois Union Railway
by Stephen M. Scalzo
Headline image: One of the F&IU interurban cars is northbound at Lisbon and High Streets in Morris, probably in the mid-1910s. Where the house stands is today the parking lot of Morris Hospital. All photos from the Stephen Scalzo Collection of the Illinois Railway Museum.
The plan for building a 20-mile electric railway to connect the villages of Yorkville and Morris in northern Illinois was first discussed in 1902 after the Aurora Yorkville & Morris Railway was completed to Yorkville. Several companies tried to build the Yorkville to Morris railway, but none were successful. By July of 1909, surveys for the Yorkville & Morris Electric Railway were completed and most of the right-of-way obtained; however only three miles of trackage was constructed south of Yorkville before work stopped.
The Fox & Illinois Union Railway was incorporated on October 20, 1910. The company's name was derived from the plans to unite the valleys of the Fox and Illinois Rivers. On January 24, 1911, former state senator H.H. Evans of Aurora, at the age of 75, pledged his support and financial backing for the proposed railway, providing that the right-of-way was given to him. Senator Evans was no newcomer to electric railroading, as he was president of several railroads. He organized the Aurora Street Railway in September 1882, and was elected president and supervised the construction. He was the founder and principal projector of the Joliet Aurora & Northern Railroad (which later became part of the Elgin Joliet & Eastern Railroad). He build the first part of the Aurora to Yorkville interurban.
The other backers of the railway stated that the property in Kendall County had been secured except for one piece. The Morris Industrial Association planned a trip to visit local farmers north of Morris to secure property in Grundy County. Promoters for the interurban met with residents along the line, asking for support by purchasing stock. As a result, residents of Lisbon Township raised almost $3,800. The promoters also were looking at extending the railway south of the Illinois River.
On June 9, 1911, the Yorkville city council passed an ordinance granting the company a franchise and freight concession. In July, Mr. Evans deposited $50,000 in Yorkville and Morris banks as a guarantee that the railroad would be built. Once construction started, $50,000 in bonds would be issued to replace the deposited cash for further construction. On September 28, H.D. Hallett of Aurora was awarded the grading contract. However only about 16 days of grading was completed before winter stopped construction until spring. Work continued on the bridges.
By September of 1912, track construction using 70-pound rail had only been completed eight miles from Yorkville; by October, tracks were within four miles of Morris, with all trackage being completed in November. A leased Chicago Burlington & Quincy steam locomotive was used to haul freight over the completed trackage from Yorkville south. Sidings had been constructed at every crossroad for farmers' use in loading and unloading of dairy products. Construction of the line was estimated to have cost about $200,000. The line was level most of the way, with 1.5% maximum grades near each end in getting out of the river valleys and curves not in excess of 20 degrees. Standard oak ties were laid on curves and cedar ties on tangents; ballast was initially laid, with crushed rock to be used later.
The location of this Barney Neuberger photo is uncertain but it's got to be in either Yorkville or Morris.
The company formally began passenger service on January 1, 1913, when 200 passengers were carried on two round trips, using a steam locomotive to pull one of the new interurban cars. The installation of the overhead electrical system began in the early part of 1913. The erection of the cedar poles, which would carry the 35,000-volt transmission line and the 600-volt DC feeder and telephone lines, was completed by March 10. Bracket type Westinghouse overhead suspension material was employed. On the south end, the company purchased power from the Public Service Company of Joliet through the CO&P substation at Morris, and on the north end from the Aurora Elgin & Chicago. A Westinghouse 300KW capacity portable substation was placed midway on the line at Walker's Corners until a permanent substation building was constructed. Two 48-foot combination passenger-baggage interurbans and a 35-foot express interurban were received in the later part of 1912. The passenger interurbans were finished in brown with red or terra-cotta roof and yellow trim and lettering. Because there were no wyes on the railroad, the passenger interurbans always operated with the baggage vestibule on the south end.
Even airbrushed, marked up, and damaged, this is a fascinating photo showing one of the combines pulling flat car 303 with the portable substation equipment on top of it. Though undated, the print is stamped with a 1925 date, so it was taken sometime prior to that.
Car 100 is shown as Lisbon and High Streets in Morris, likely when still fairly new. Initial reports were that the F&IU was ordering four passenger cars but only two were delivered, 100 and 102. Intriguingly, an identical (or nearly identical) car numbered 104 was delivered at around the same time to the Sterling Dixon & Eastern, even though the SD&E wasn't using the 100-series for numbering cars at the time. Coincidence? It's impossible to say for certain.
Completion of the last mile of trackage to the CRI&P in Morris was completed in March of 1913. On April 16, Mr. Evans made an inspection trip over the trackage, and on April 24, a delegation of dignitaries inspected the line. Two steam-powered daily round trip trains for freight and passenger service were then placed into operation. On May 14, the last spike was driven on the initial trackage at Adams Street in Morris. On September 24, electric service began and four daily trains were operating. The sparse passenger revenue was supplemented by the more reliable grain business from five elevators located on the line; even in its best days, the company only operated five round trip passenger trains daily. Although the terminal towns were small, junctions were made with other interurbans at each end. At Yorkville, the company connected with the Aurora Elgin & Chicago's Fox River Division interurbans, and at Morris the company intersected with the Chicago Ottawa & Peoria interurbans. Freight connections were made with the CB&Q and AE&C in Yorkville, and the CRI&P and CO&P in Morris.
Freight motor 7 in its original, all-electric appearance is shown with an impressive snow plow affixed to its southern end.
Construction of the car barn in Yorkville began in October of 1913. The connection switch with the AE&C was installed in December, enabling the interurbans to operate to the bank corner in Yorkville. During August of 1914, construction of the trackage on Benton, Washington, and Liberty Streets in Morris began. After crossing under the CRI&P tracks, the trackage was constructed on the south side of Benton Street between the CO&P trackage and the curb. The first interurban operated to Liberty and Washington Streets in Morris on November 7, with construction completed on the trackage on Washington to the Commercial Hotel by November 10. At the celebration on November 13 in Yorkville to mark the completion of the railroad, Mr. Evans stated that if $25,000 could be raised to construct a bridge over the Illinois River at Morris, the company would be extended to Dwight.
Local resident Bill Thompson boards combine 100 at Lisbon and High Streets in Morris. Note how the baggage door on this side of the car can be latched partway open and the trap raised for passenger boarding.
By 1915, earnings were only $29,331 with 86,336 passengers. However with the death of Mr. Evans on March 27, 1917, the driving force behind the company was gone and the line started its downward trend. By 1920, the company earned $35,953 (negative $4,434 net and $19,017 freight). By the beginning of the 1920s, the automobile and concrete highways started drawing passengers away, and in 1923 the company filed an application with the Illinois Commerce Commission to abandon all service. On September 4, 1924, a group of local farmers who owned the five elevators along the line purchased the company for $117,000 so that freight service could continue. However, the new ownership could not halt the losses. On January 31, 1925, the Aurora Elgin & Fox River Electric abandoned its trackage south of the Fox River Park, ending the passenger connection from Yorkville to Aurora. Interurban passenger service continued on a reduced basis, but there was now no hope for a profit in carrying passengers. The passenger interurbans were also being pressed into freight hauling service as needed. As losses mounted, maintenance on the interurbans declined rapidly.
Combine 100 and its crew
Authority was finally granted to end all passenger service, and on February 3, 1931, the last interurban operated. The overhead wires were quickly removed and sold for scrap, and the right-of-way sold to the Public Service Company for a handsome profit. The box motor interurban was equipped with a gasoline engine to continue carload freight service (with an occasional CB&Q steam locomotive being leased). Freight revenue continued to decline, mainly due to the construction of concrete Illinois Route 47 which paralleled the entire trackage. The passenger interurbans remained stored on a storage track outside of the Yorkville car barn until 1933, when they were scrapped.
This undated image shows one of the combines on a siding, quite possibly in the yard at Yorkville.
As the Depression continued, freight revenue continued to dwindle. The company went into bankruptcy early in 1938, and the received was authorized to discontinue all operations on February 29, 1938 [sic]. Service continued on an occasional hand-to-mouth basis until October 3, when all service was stopped. The remaining trackage was torn up and scrapped by Hyman-Michaels of Chicago. The self-propelled box motor was sold to the scrap dealer, and it was then sold to the Colorado & Southeastern Railroad at Pueblo, Colorado, where it operated until scrapped in 1957.
This is what freight motor 7 looked like after it was converted to gas-electric power in 1931.
This article was edited and laid out by Frank Hicks. Thanks to Ray and Julie Piesciuk and Richard Schauer for making available the materials from the Stephen Scalzo Collection used to publish this history.
Equipment Roster
Car 7 - DE DT AR freight motor, built 1912 by McGuire-Cummings, McG 70A trucks, 4xWH 306 motors, HL control; rebuilt 1931 with Buda gas engine; to Hyman-Michaels 1938, stored at Eola yards, sold to Colorado Railroad 1939, used near Pueblo until scrapped in 1957
Cars 100 and 102 - DE DT AR combines, built 1912 by McGuire-Cummings, McG 70A trucks, 4xWH 306 motors, HL control; scrapped 1933
Car 303 - portable substation, built 1912 by McGuire-Cummings, used at Walkers Corners until permanent substation built; scrapped 1933
Engine 1494 - 0-6-0 steam engine, built 1910 by CB&Q Aurora shops as class G-3, purchased sometime after 1931; final disposition unknown
Timetable
1915 Fox & Illinois Union timetable courtesy John Csoka. Do you suppose F.M. Zimmerman was related to IRM's own F. Zimmerman?
Route Map
Very interesting article. I believe F&IU was also instrumental in bringing commercial electric power to Kendall County. In the early 1900’s, only Yorkville had electric service from a small plant owned by Fred G. Young. Elsewhere in Kendall, power was not available. At the time F&IU was in process of acquiring right of way, Public Service Company of Northern Illinois, incorporated in 1911, was also in process of establishing itself as a sole provider of commercial power in northern Illinois. A 1912 PSCoNI system map shows a proposed extension of their transmission line at Morris to Yorkville which matches exactly the line of the F&IU. PSCoNI purchased Young's plant in 1912, obtained a franchise from Yorkville in 1913, and started furnishing power from Morris to Yorkville in 1914, the same time F&IU started operations. Based upon the 1912 map and timing, I think PSCoNI utilized the F&IU in a joint-pole arrangement for power transmission from Morris to Yorkville, rather than go through the trouble of a separate line. Furthermore, in 1924, F&IU sold their "power right of way" to PSCoNI for $23,000. Now, if PSCoNI had their own line from Morris to Yorkville, then there would have been no need for this purchase. Once PSCoNI had ownership, extensions were made to other Kendall communities. As a side note, when F&IU petitioned the Illinois Commerce Commission in 1931 to change its method of motive power from electricity, it was reported F&IU was selling DC power to five grain elevator companies with the consent of PSCoNI!
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