A friend has posed an interesting question today. Did the Wabash have any connection to the Milwaukee Road at Excelsior Springs, Missouri? Excelsior Springs was a hot spring/spa destination prior to the depression years. I know that the Milwaukee advertised it. Anyone? Boxcab E50
Don't know if this helps, or not? Terraserver Map This 1980 dated map shows the Milwaukee going through Excelsior Springs and the N&W (ex Wabash) a relatively short way south. There are abandoned grades mapped on there as well though...
Checking back from the depression era to 1902, I did find the branch to Excelsior Springs, MO which left the Kansas City mainline between Camden and Missouri City. Also found that the respective stations in Excelsior Springs were less than a mile apart, so a connection could have been possible. I couldn't find any reference to published joint tariffs, so if there was a physical connection, and any traffic was interchanged, it must have been very few cars, maybe based on just a local switching fee by either railroad. This is not the gospel, just what I found while looking. Surprising enough, many of the epic works on the Wabash, ie: Heimburger, Buist etc, provide no insite. Other resources you may want to check would be train orders, dispatch sheets, and/or manifests (if available) or maybe a quick message to the archivist at the Wabash Railroad Historical Society. WRHS Good luck with your quest!
Received this today. I have my answer! "No, the Wabash did not interchange with the Milwaukee Road at Excelsior Springs. You are correct about the branch to the hot springs." Jim Holmes WRHS Librarian/Historian ***** Thanks everyone! Boxcab E50
