1.
Reporting mark
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A reporting mark is an alphabetic code of one to four letters used to identify owners or lessees of rolling stock and other equipment used on certain railroad networks. In North America the mark, which consists of an code of one to four letters, is stenciled on each piece of equipment. The Association of American Railroads assigns marks to all carriers, under authority granted by the U. S, surface Transportation Board, Transport Canada, and Mexican Government. Under current practice, the first letter must match the initial letter of the railroad name, as it also acts as a Standard Carrier Alpha Code, the reporting mark cannot conflict with codes in use by other nonrail carriers. In another example, the mark for state-funded Amtrak services in California is CDTX because the state transportation agency owns the equipment used in these services. This is why the reporting mark for CSX Transportation, which is a railroad, is CSXT instead of CSX. This often resulted in five-letter reporting marks, an option not otherwise allowed by the AAR, the standard ISO6346 covers identifiers for intermodal containers. When the owner of a mark is taken over by another company. For example, when the Union Pacific Railroad acquired the Chicago and North Western Railway in the 1990s, some companies own several marks that are used to identify different classes of cars, such as boxcars or gondolas. If the acquiring company discontinues the name or mark of the acquired company, occasionally, long-disused marks are suddenly revived by the companies which now own them. For example, in recent years, the Union Pacific Railroad has begun to use the mark CMO on newly built covered hoppers, gondolas, CMO originally belonged to a predecessor of the CNW, which passed it on to them, from which the UP inherited it. Some of these still retain their temporary NYC marks. Because of its size, this list has been split into subpages based on the first letter of the reporting mark, railinc, a subsidiary of the AAR, maintains the active reporting marks for the North American rail industry. Railinc offers a free online look-up of reporting marks and other industry reference files through the Railincs Freight Rail 411 website, a railway vehicle must be registered in a national vehicle register using a 12-digit number derived from the old UIC system of vehicle numbering. The number contains the country in the third and fourth digit. The VKM must not contain special signs or digits, the VKM is preceded by the code for the country, where the vehicle is registered and a hyphen. Some examples, When a vehicle is sold it does not normally be transferred to another register, the Czech railways bought large numbers of coaches from ÖBB. The number remained the same but the VKM changed from A-ÖBB to A-ČD, the UIC introduced a uniform numbering system for their members based on a 12-digit number, largely known as UIC number
2.
Rail transport
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Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, also known as tracks. It is also referred to as train transport. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles run on a flat surface. Tracks usually consist of rails, installed on ties and ballast, on which the rolling stock, usually fitted with metal wheels. Other variations are possible, such as slab track, where the rails are fastened to a concrete foundation resting on a prepared subsurface. Rolling stock in a transport system generally encounters lower frictional resistance than road vehicles, so passenger. The operation is carried out by a company, providing transport between train stations or freight customer facilities. Power is provided by locomotives which either draw electric power from a railway system or produce their own power. Most tracks are accompanied by a signalling system, Railways are a safe land transport system when compared to other forms of transport. The oldest, man-hauled railways date back to the 6th century BC, with Periander, one of the Seven Sages of Greece, Rail transport blossomed after the British development of the steam locomotive as a viable source of power in the 19th centuries. With steam engines, one could construct mainline railways, which were a key component of the Industrial Revolution, also, railways reduced the costs of shipping, and allowed for fewer lost goods, compared with water transport, which faced occasional sinking of ships. The change from canals to railways allowed for markets in which prices varied very little from city to city. In the 1880s, electrified trains were introduced, and also the first tramways, starting during the 1940s, the non-electrified railways in most countries had their steam locomotives replaced by diesel-electric locomotives, with the process being almost complete by 2000. During the 1960s, electrified high-speed railway systems were introduced in Japan, other forms of guided ground transport outside the traditional railway definitions, such as monorail or maglev, have been tried but have seen limited use. The history of the growth, decline and restoration to use of transport can be divided up into several discrete periods defined by the principal means of motive power used. The earliest evidence of a railway was a 6-kilometre Diolkos wagonway, trucks pushed by slaves ran in grooves in limestone, which provided the track element. The Diolkos operated for over 600 years, Railways began reappearing in Europe after the Dark Ages. The earliest known record of a railway in Europe from this period is a window in the Minster of Freiburg im Breisgau in Germany
3.
U.S. state
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A U. S. state is a constituent political entity of the United States of America. There are 50 states, which are together in a union with each other. Each state holds administrative jurisdiction over a geographic territory. Due to the shared sovereignty between each state and the government, Americans are citizens of both the federal republic and of the state in which they reside. State citizenship and residency are flexible, and no government approval is required to move between states, except for persons covered by certain types of court orders. States range in population from just under 600,000 to over 39 million, four states use the term commonwealth rather than state in their full official names. States are divided into counties or county-equivalents, which may be assigned some local authority but are not sovereign. County or county-equivalent structure varies widely by state, State governments are allocated power by the people through their individual constitutions. All are grounded in principles, and each provides for a government. States possess a number of powers and rights under the United States Constitution, Constitution has been amended, and the interpretation and application of its provisions have changed. The general tendency has been toward centralization and incorporation, with the government playing a much larger role than it once did. There is a debate over states rights, which concerns the extent and nature of the states powers and sovereignty in relation to the federal government. States and their residents are represented in the federal Congress, a legislature consisting of the Senate. Each state is represented in the Senate by two senators, and is guaranteed at least one Representative in the House, members of the House are elected from single-member districts. Representatives are distributed among the states in proportion to the most recent constitutionally mandated decennial census, the Constitution grants to Congress the authority to admit new states into the Union. Since the establishment of the United States in 1776, the number of states has expanded from the original 13 to 50, alaska and Hawaii are the most recent states admitted, both in 1959. The Constitution is silent on the question of states have the power to secede from the Union. Shortly after the Civil War, the U. S. Supreme Court, in Texas v. White, as a result, while the governments of the various states share many similar features, they often vary greatly with regard to form and substance
4.
Nebraska
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Nebraska /nᵻˈbræskə/ is a state that lies in both the Great Plains and the Midwestern United States. Its area is just over 77,220 sq mi with almost 1.9 million people and its largest city is Omaha, which is on the Missouri River. The state is crossed by many trails and was explored by the Lewis. Nebraska was admitted as the 37th state of the United States in 1867 and it is the only state in the United States whose legislature is unicameral and officially nonpartisan. Nebraska is composed of two major regions, the Dissected Till Plains and the Great Plains. The Dissected Till Plains is a region of rolling hills. The Great Plains occupy most of western Nebraska, characterized by treeless prairie, the state has a large agriculture sector and is a major producer of beef, pork, corn, and soybeans. Two major climatic zones are represented in Nebraska, the half of the state has a humid continental climate, and the western half. Indigenous peoples lived in the region of present-day Nebraska for thousands of years before European exploration. The historic tribes in the state included the Omaha, Missouria, Ponca, Pawnee, Otoe, when European exploration, trade, and settlement began, both Spain and France sought to control the region. In the 1690s, Spain established trade connections with the Apaches, by 1703, France had developed a regular trade with the native peoples along the Missouri River in Nebraska, and by 1719 had signed treaties with several of these peoples. After war broke out between the two countries, Spain dispatched an expedition to Nebraska under Lieutenant General Pedro de Villasur in 1720. The party was attacked and destroyed near present-day Columbus by a force of Pawnees and Otoes. The massacre of the Villasur expedition effectively put an end to Spanish exploration of Nebraska for the remainder of the 18th century, in 1762, during the Seven Years War, France ceded the Louisiana territory to Spain. Frances withdrawal from the area left Britain and Spain competing for dominance along the Mississippi, by 1773, later that year, Mackays party built a trading post, dubbed Fort Carlos IV, near present-day Homer. In 1819, the United States established Fort Atkinson as the first U. S. Army post west of the Missouri River, the army abandoned the fort in 1827 as migration moved further west. European-American settlement did not begin in any numbers until after 1848, on May 30,1854, the US Congress created the Kansas and the Nebraska territories, divided by the Parallel 40° North, under the Kansas–Nebraska Act. The Nebraska Territory included parts of the current states of Colorado, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, the territorial capital of Nebraska was Omaha
5.
Iowa
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Iowa is a U. S. state in the Midwestern United States, bordered by the Mississippi River on the east and the Missouri River and the Big Sioux River on the west. Surrounding states include Wisconsin and Illinois to the east, Missouri to the south, Nebraska and South Dakota to the west, in colonial times, Iowa was a part of French Louisiana and Spanish Louisiana, its state flag is patterned after the flag of France. After the Louisiana Purchase, people laid the foundation for an economy in the heart of the Corn Belt. Iowa is the 26th most extensive in area and the 30th most populous of the 50 United States. Its capital and largest city by population is Des Moines, Iowa has been listed as one of the safest states in which to live. Its nickname is the Hawkeye State, Iowa derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many Native American tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa is bordered by the Mississippi River on the east, the Missouri River and the Big Sioux River on the west, Iowa is the only state whose east and west borders are formed entirely by rivers. Iowa has 99 counties, but 100 county seats because Lee County has two, the state capital, Des Moines, is in Polk County. Iowas bedrock geology generally increases in age from west to east, in northwest Iowa, Cretaceous bedrock can be 74 million years old, in eastern Iowa Cambrian bedrock dates to c.500 million years ago. Iowa is generally not flat, most of the consists of rolling hills. Iowa can be divided into eight landforms based on glaciation, soils, topography, Loess hills lie along the western border of the state, some of which are several hundred feet thick. Northeast Iowa along the Mississippi River is part of the Driftless Zone, consisting of steep hills, several natural lakes exist, most notably Spirit Lake, West Okoboji Lake, and East Okoboji Lake in northwest Iowa. To the east lies Clear Lake, man-made lakes include Lake Odessa, Saylorville Lake, Lake Red Rock, Coralville Lake, Lake MacBride, and Rathbun Lake. The states northwest area has remnants of the once common wetlands. Iowas natural vegetation is tallgrass prairie and savanna in areas, with dense forest and wetlands in flood plains and protected river valleys. Most of Iowa is used for agriculture, crops cover 60% of the state, grasslands cover 30%, as of 2005 Iowa ranked 49th of U. S. states in public land holdings. Endangered or threatened plants include western prairie fringed orchid, eastern prairie fringed orchid, Meads milkweed, prairie bush clover, the explosion in the number of high-density livestock facilities in Iowa has led to increased rural water contamination and a decline in air quality. Iowa has a continental climate throughout the state
6.
Minnesota
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Minnesota is a state in the midwestern and northern regions of the United States. Minnesota was admitted as the 32nd U. S. state on May 11,1858, the state has a large number of lakes, and is known by the slogan Land of 10,000 Lakes. Its official motto is LÉtoile du Nord, Minnesota is the 12th largest in area and the 21st most populous of the U. S. Minnesota is known for its progressive political orientation and its high rate of civic participation and voter turnout. Until European settlement, Minnesota was inhabited by the Dakota and Ojibwe/Anishinaabe, in recent decades, immigration from Asia, the Horn of Africa, and Latin America has broadened its historic demographic and cultural composition. Minnesotas standard of living index is among the highest in the United States, Native Americans demonstrated the name to early settlers by dropping milk into water and calling it mnisota. Many places in the state have similar names, such as Minnehaha Falls, Minneiska, Minneota, Minnetonka, Minnetrista, and Minneapolis, a combination of mni and polis, Minnesota is the second northernmost U. S. state. Its isolated Northwest Angle in Lake of the Woods county is the part of the 48 contiguous states lying north of the 49th parallel. The state is part of the U. S. region known as the Upper Midwest and it shares a Lake Superior water border with Michigan and a land and water border with Wisconsin to the east. Iowa is to the south, North Dakota and South Dakota are to the west, with 86,943 square miles, or approximately 2.25 percent of the United States, Minnesota is the 12th-largest state. Minnesota has some of the Earths oldest rocks, gneisses that are about 3.6 billion years old. About 2.7 billion years ago, basaltic lava poured out of cracks in the floor of the primordial ocean, the roots of these volcanic mountains and the action of Precambrian seas formed the Iron Range of northern Minnesota. Following a period of volcanism 1, in more recent times, massive ice sheets at least one kilometer thick ravaged the landscape of the state and sculpted its terrain. The Wisconsin glaciation left 12,000 years ago and these glaciers covered all of Minnesota except the far southeast, an area characterized by steep hills and streams that cut into the bedrock. This area is known as the Driftless Zone for its absence of glacial drift, much of the remainder of the state outside the northeast has 50 feet or more of glacial till left behind as the last glaciers retreated. Gigantic Lake Agassiz formed in the northwest 13,000 years ago and its bed created the fertile Red River valley, and its outflow, glacial River Warren, carved the valley of the Minnesota River and the Upper Mississippi downstream from Fort Snelling. Minnesota is geologically quiet today, it experiences earthquakes infrequently, the states high point is Eagle Mountain at 2,301 feet, which is only 13 miles away from the low of 601 feet at the shore of Lake Superior. Notwithstanding dramatic local differences in elevation, much of the state is a rolling peneplain. Two major drainage divides meet in Minnesotas northeast in rural Hibbing, forming a triple watershed, precipitation can follow the Mississippi River south to the Gulf of Mexico, the Saint Lawrence Seaway east to the Atlantic Ocean, or the Hudson Bay watershed to the Arctic Ocean
7.
Wisconsin
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Wisconsin is a U. S. state located in the north-central United States, in the Midwest and Great Lakes regions. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, Wisconsin is the 23rd largest state by total area and the 20th most populous. The state capital is Madison, and its largest city is Milwaukee, the state is divided into 72 counties. Wisconsin is second to Michigan in the length of its Great Lakes coastline, Wisconsin is known as Americas Dairyland because it is one of the nations leading dairy producers, particularly famous for its cheese. Manufacturing, especially paper products, information technology, and tourism are major contributors to the states economy. The word Wisconsin originates from the given to the Wisconsin River by one of the Algonquian-speaking Native American groups living in the region at the time of European contact. French explorer Jacques Marquette was the first European to reach the Wisconsin River, arriving in 1673, subsequent French writers changed the spelling from Meskousing to Ouisconsin, and over time this became the name for both the Wisconsin River and the surrounding lands. English speakers anglicized the spelling from Ouisconsin to Wisconsin when they began to arrive in numbers during the early 19th century. The legislature of Wisconsin Territory made the current spelling official in 1845, the Algonquin word for Wisconsin and its original meaning have both grown obscure. Interpretations vary, but most implicate the river and the red sandstone that lines its banks, other theories include claims that the name originated from one of a variety of Ojibwa words meaning red stone place, where the waters gather, or great rock. Wisconsin has been home to a variety of cultures over the past 12,000 years. The first people arrived around 10,000 BCE during the Wisconsin Glaciation and these early inhabitants, called Paleo-Indians, hunted now-extinct ice age animals such as the Boaz mastodon, a prehistoric mastodon skeleton unearthed along with spear points in southwest Wisconsin. After the ice age ended around 8000 BCE, people in the subsequent Archaic period lived by hunting, fishing, agricultural societies emerged gradually over the Woodland period between 1000 BCE to 1000 CE. Toward the end of period, Wisconsin was the heartland of the Effigy Mound culture. Later, between 1000 and 1500 CE, the Mississippian and Oneota cultures built substantial settlements including the village at Aztalan in southeast Wisconsin. The Oneota may be the ancestors of the modern Ioway and Ho-Chunk tribes who shared the Wisconsin region with the Menominee at the time of European contact, the first European to visit what became Wisconsin was probably the French explorer Jean Nicolet. He canoed west from Georgian Bay through the Great Lakes in 1634, pierre Radisson and Médard des Groseilliers visited Green Bay again in 1654–1666 and Chequamegon Bay in 1659–1660, where they traded for fur with local Native Americans. In 1673, Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet became the first to record a journey on the Fox-Wisconsin Waterway all the way to the Mississippi River near Prairie du Chien
8.
South Dakota
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South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes, South Dakota is the 17th most expansive, but the 5th least populous and the 5th least densely populated of the 50 United States. Once the southern portion of the Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2,1889, Pierre is the state capital and Sioux Falls, with a population of about 171,000, is South Dakotas largest city. South Dakota is bordered by the states of North Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming, the state is bisected by the Missouri River, dividing South Dakota into two geographically and socially distinct halves, known to residents as East River and West River. Eastern South Dakota is home to most of the states population, West of the Missouri, ranching is the predominant agricultural activity, and the economy is more dependent on tourism and defense spending. Most of the Native American reservations are located in West River, the Black Hills, a group of low pine-covered mountains sacred to the Sioux, are located in the southwest part of the state. Mount Rushmore, a major tourist destination, is located there, South Dakota experiences a temperate continental climate, with four distinct seasons and precipitation ranging from moderate in the east to semi-arid in the west. The ecology of the state features species typical of a North American grassland biome, humans have inhabited the area for several millennia, with the Sioux becoming dominant by the early 19th century. In the late 19th century, European-American settlement intensified after a rush in the Black Hills. Encroaching miners and settlers triggered a number of Indian wars, ending with the Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890, historically dominated by an agricultural economy and a rural lifestyle, South Dakota has recently sought to diversify its economy in areas to attract and retain residents. South Dakotas history and rural character still strongly influence the culture of the state, South Dakota is situated in the north-central United States, and is considered a part of the Midwest by the U. S. Census Bureau, it is also part of the Great Plains region. The culture, economy, and geography of western South Dakota have more in common with the West than the Midwest, South Dakota has a total area of 77,116 square miles, making the state the 17th largest in the Union. Black Elk Peak, formerly named Harney Peak, with an elevation of 7,242 ft, is the states highest point, while the shoreline of Big Stone Lake is the lowest, with an elevation of 966 ft. South Dakota is bordered to the north by North Dakota, to the south by Nebraska, to the east by Iowa and Minnesota, the geographical center of the U. S. is 17 miles west of Castle Rock in Butte County. The North American continental pole of inaccessibility is located between Allen and Kyle,1,024 mi from the nearest coastline, the Missouri River is the largest and longest river in the state. Other major South Dakota rivers include the Cheyenne, James, Big Sioux, Eastern South Dakota has many natural lakes, mostly created by periods of glaciation. Additionally, dams on the Missouri River create four large reservoirs, Lake Oahe, Lake Sharpe, Lake Francis Case, South Dakota can generally be divided into three regions, eastern South Dakota, western South Dakota, and the Black Hills. The Missouri River serves as a boundary in terms of geographic, social, at times the Black Hills are combined with the rest of western South Dakota, and people often refer to the resulting two regions divided by the Missouri River as West River and East River
9.
Chicago and North Western Transportation Company
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The Chicago and North Western Transportation Company was a Class I railroad in the Midwestern United States. It was also known as the North Western, the railroad operated more than 5,000 miles of track as of the turn of the 20th century, and over 12,000 miles of track in seven states before retrenchment in the late 1970s. Until 1972, when the company was sold to its employees, it was named the Chicago and North Western Railway. The C&NW became one of the longest railroads in the United States as a result of mergers with other railroads, such as the Chicago Great Western Railway, Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway and others. By 1995, track sales and abandonment had reduced the total back to about 5,000. The majority of the abandoned and sold lines were lightly trafficked branches in Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, South Dakota and Wisconsin. Large line sales, such as those that resulted in the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad further helped reduce the railroad to a core with several regional feeders. The company was purchased by Union Pacific Railroad in April 1995, the Chicago and North Western Railway was chartered on June 7,1859. It had purchased the assets of the bankrupt Chicago, St. Paul, on February 15,1865, it officially merged with the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad, which had been chartered on January 16,1836. The Winona and St. Peter Railroad was added to the network in 1867, the North Western had owned a majority of the stock of the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Railway since 1882. On January 1,1957 it leased the company, and merged it into the North Western in 1972. The Omaha Roads main line ran from an interchange with the North Western at Elroy, Wisconsin, to the Twin Cities, down to Sioux City, Iowa, the North Western picked up several important short railroads during its later years. It finalized acquisition of the Litchfield and Madison Railway on January 1,1958, the Litchfield and Madison railroad was a 44-mile bridge road from East St. Louis to Litchfield, Illinois. On July 30,1968, the North Western acquired two former interurbans — the 36-mile Des Moines and Central Iowa Railway, and the 110-mile Fort Dodge, Des Moines and Southern Railway. The DM&CI gave access to the Firestone plant in Des Moines, Iowa, on November 1,1960, the North Western acquired the rail properties of the 1, 500-mile Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway. In spite of its name, it ran only from Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Peoria and this acquisition provided traffic and modern rolling stock, and eliminated competition. On July 1,1968 the 1,500 mi Chicago Great Western Railway was merged into the North Western and this railroad went from Chicago to Oelwein, Iowa. From there lines went to the Twin Cities, Omaha, Nebraska, a connection from Hayfield, Minnesota, to Clarion, Iowa, provided a Twin Cities to Omaha main line
10.
Elroy, Wisconsin
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Elroy is a city in Juneau County, Wisconsin, United States, along the Baraboo River and at the east end of the Elroy-Sparta Bike Trail. The population was 1,442 at the 2010 census, Elroy is located at 43°44′31″N 90°16′11″W. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 1.98 square miles. As of the census of 2010, there were 1,442 people,590 households, the population density was 728.3 inhabitants per square mile. There were 680 housing units at a density of 343.4 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 96. 8% White,0. 3% African American,0. 8% Native American,0. 2% Asian,0. 3% from other races, hispanic or Latino of any race were 2. 2% of the population. 33. 6% of all households were made up of individuals and 13. 4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older, the average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.92. The median age in the city was 41.6 years. 22. 5% of residents were under the age of 18,6. 7% were between the ages of 18 and 24,24. 3% were from 25 to 44, 27% were from 45 to 64, and 19. 4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48. 2% male and 51. 8% female, as of the census of 2000, there were 1,578 people,632 households, and 396 families residing in the city. The population density was 823.0 people per square mile, there were 692 housing units at an average density of 360.9 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 98. 48% White,0. 32% African American,0. 32% Native American,0. 13% Asian,0. 38% from other races, hispanic or Latino of any race were 1. 27% of the population. 32. 0% of all households were made up of individuals and 15. 0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older, the average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.97. In the city, the population was out with 26. 0% under the age of 18,7. 7% from 18 to 24,26. 7% from 25 to 44,19. 4% from 45 to 64. The median age was 39 years, for every 100 females there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.1 males, the median income for a household in the city was $31,859, and the median income for a family was $42,452. Males had an income of $31,699 versus $24,250 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,529, about 9. 9% of families and 14. 2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17. 3% of those under age 18 and 11. 8% of those age 65 or over
11.
Chicago
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Chicago, officially the City of Chicago, is the third-most populous city in the United States. With over 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the state of Illinois, and it is the county seat of Cook County. In 2012, Chicago was listed as a global city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network. Chicago has the third-largest gross metropolitan product in the United States—about $640 billion according to 2015 estimates, the city has one of the worlds largest and most diversified economies with no single industry employing more than 14% of the workforce. In 2016, Chicago hosted over 54 million domestic and international visitors, landmarks in the city include Millennium Park, Navy Pier, the Magnificent Mile, Art Institute of Chicago, Museum Campus, the Willis Tower, Museum of Science and Industry, and Lincoln Park Zoo. Chicagos culture includes the arts, novels, film, theater, especially improvisational comedy. Chicago also has sports teams in each of the major professional leagues. The city has many nicknames, the best-known being the Windy City, the name Chicago is derived from a French rendering of the Native American word shikaakwa, known to botanists as Allium tricoccum, from the Miami-Illinois language. The first known reference to the site of the current city of Chicago as Checagou was by Robert de LaSalle around 1679 in a memoir, henri Joutel, in his journal of 1688, noted that the wild garlic, called chicagoua, grew abundantly in the area. In the mid-18th century, the area was inhabited by a Native American tribe known as the Potawatomi, the first known non-indigenous permanent settler in Chicago was Jean Baptiste Point du Sable. Du Sable was of African and French descent and arrived in the 1780s and he is commonly known as the Founder of Chicago. In 1803, the United States Army built Fort Dearborn, which was destroyed in 1812 in the Battle of Fort Dearborn, the Ottawa, Ojibwe, and Potawatomi tribes had ceded additional land to the United States in the 1816 Treaty of St. Louis. The Potawatomi were forcibly removed from their land after the Treaty of Chicago in 1833, on August 12,1833, the Town of Chicago was organized with a population of about 200. Within seven years it grew to more than 4,000 people, on June 15,1835, the first public land sales began with Edmund Dick Taylor as U. S. The City of Chicago was incorporated on Saturday, March 4,1837, as the site of the Chicago Portage, the city became an important transportation hub between the eastern and western United States. Chicagos first railway, Galena and Chicago Union Railroad, and the Illinois, the canal allowed steamboats and sailing ships on the Great Lakes to connect to the Mississippi River. A flourishing economy brought residents from rural communities and immigrants from abroad, manufacturing and retail and finance sectors became dominant, influencing the American economy. The Chicago Board of Trade listed the first ever standardized exchange traded forward contracts and these issues also helped propel another Illinoisan, Abraham Lincoln, to the national stage
12.
Union Pacific Railroad
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The Union Pacific Railroad is a freight hauling railroad that operates 8,500 locomotives over 32,100 route-miles in 23 states west of Chicago, Illinois and New Orleans, Louisiana. The Union Pacific Railroad network is the largest in the United States and it is also one of the worlds largest transportation companies. Union Pacific Railroad is the operating company of Union Pacific Corporation. Union Pacific Corporations main competitor is the BNSF Railway, the second largest freight railroad. Together, the two railroads have a duopoly on all freight rail lines in the U. S. The original company was incorporated on July 1,1862, under an act of Congress entitled Pacific Railroad Act of 1862. The act was approved by President Abraham Lincoln, and it provided for the construction of railroads from the Missouri River to the Pacific as a war measure for the preservation of the Union. It was constructed westward from Council Bluffs, Iowa to meet the Central Pacific Railroad line, the line was constructed primarily by Irish labor who had learned their craft during the recent Civil War. The two lines were joined together at Promontory Summit, Utah,53 miles west of Ogden on May 10,1869, hence creating the first transcontinental railroad in North America. Under the guidance of its dominant stockholder Dr. Thomas Clark Durant, the namesake of the city of Durant, Iowa, the first rails were laid in Omaha. It built or purchased local lines that gave it access to Denver, Colorado, to Portland, Oregon and it also owned narrow gauge trackage into the heart of the Colorado Rockies and a standard gauge line south from Denver across New Mexico into Texas. UP was entangled in the Crédit Mobilier scandal, exposed in 1872 and its independent construction company the Crédit Mobilier had bribed congressmen. The UP itself was not guilty but it did get bad publicity, the financial crisis of 1873 led to financial troubles but not bankruptcy. The company was reorganized as the Union Pacific Railway on January 24,1880, the new company declared bankruptcy during the Panic of 1893. When it emerged in 1897 it reverted to the original name, the corporate headquarters of the Union Pacific Corporation were located in New York City from its initial founding in the 1860s until Drew Lewis became CEO in the mid-1980s. He relocated it to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, later the headquarters was shifted to Dallas, Texas, before relocating to Omaha to join the operating headquarters. From the ICC annual reports, except 1979 is from Moodys, on December 31,1925 UP-OSL-OWRN-LA&SL-StJ&GI operated 9,834 route-miles and 15,265 track-miles. At the end of 1980, Union Pacific operated 9,266 route-miles and 15,647 miles of track, Moodys shows 220,697 million revenue ton-miles in 1993 on the expanded system
13.
Bayfield, Wisconsin
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Bayfield is a city in Bayfield County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 530 at the 2010 census, the town is named after Henry Bayfield, a British Royal Topographic Engineer who explored the region in 1822-23. Wisconsin Highway 13 serves as an arterial route in the community. It is a county seat, lumbering town and commercial fishing community. There are many restaurants, hotels, bed & breakfasts establishments, specialty shops, a post office has been in operation at Bayfield since 1856. Bayfield is located at 46°48. 7′N 90°49. 2′W, according to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 0.87 square miles, of which,0.86 square miles is land and 0.01 square miles is water. Bayfield is considered the gateway to the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. Madeline Island, the largest of the Apostle Islands and the one with private residences, is another popular destination near Bayfield. The ferry to Madeline Island links Bayfield with La Pointe, Wisconsin, as of the census of 2010, there were 487 people,261 households, and 130 families residing in the city. The population density was 566.3 inhabitants per square mile, there were 482 housing units at an average density of 560.5 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 77. 8% White,0. 2% African American,14. 8% Native American,1. 0% Asian, hispanic or Latino of any race were 1. 8% of the population. 44. 1% of all households were made up of individuals and 18. 7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older, the average household size was 1.87 and the average family size was 2.58. The median age in the city was 53.2 years. 15. 4% of residents were under the age of 18,3. 2% were between the ages of 18 and 24,18. 6% were from 25 to 44, 36% were from 45 to 64, and 26. 9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48. 9% male and 51. 1% female, as of the census of 2000, there were 611 people,289 households, and 167 families residing in the city. The population density was 703.3 people per square mile, there were 403 housing units at an average density of 463.8 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 76. 92% White,0. 65% Black or African American,15. 22% Native American,1. 31% from other races, hispanic or Latino of any race were 0. 49% of the population. 10. 5% were of American,10. 1% German,9. 4% Norwegian,8. 1% Irish,7. 4% Swedish and 5. 4% English ancestry according to Census 2000
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Eau Claire, Wisconsin
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Eau Claire is a city in Chippewa and Eau Claire counties in the west-central part of the U. S. state of Wisconsin. Located almost entirely in Eau Claire County, for which it is the county seat, Eau Claire is the principal city of the Eau Claire, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is a part of the Eau Claire-Menomonie Combined Statistical Area. Eau Claire took its name from Eau Claire County, Eau Claire is the singular form of the original French name, Eaux Claires, meaning Clear Waters, for the Eau Claire River. The city motto, which appears on the city seal, the name is pronounced as if it were spelled OClare. Eau Claire is located at 44°49′N 91°30′W, approximately 90 miles east of Minneapolis and St. Paul, the city is located on the northern fringes of the Driftless Zone. The city was founded near the confluence of the Eau Claire, the main section of downtown is on the site of the original village, where Stephen McCann, in partnership with J. C. Thomas, put up three buildings in 1845, although these structures were erected to establish a claim to the land they stood on, the McCann family moved into one of them and became the first permanent settlers. West Eau Claire, founded in 1856, was across the river near the county courthouse. Between a mile and a half and two miles downstream, the Daniel Shaw & Co. lumber company founded Shawtown, which was annexed by the 1930s, by the 1950s, the entire city had spread far enough to the east to adjoin Altoona. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 34.14 square miles. The terrain of the city is characterized by the river valleys, the lands into which the urban area is currently expanding are increasingly hilly. There are two lakes in the city, Dells Pond, and Half Moon Lake, Dells Pond is a reservoir created by a hydroelectric dam, and was formerly used as a holding pool for logs. Half Moon Lake is a lake created as part of the former course of the Chippewa River. As of 2000, the income for a household in the city was $36,399. Males had an income of $32,503 versus $23,418 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,230, about 5. 5% of families and 13. 6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10. 4% of those under age 18 and 7. 4% of those age 65 or over. As of the most recent census, the Eau Claire County portion had a population of 63,902 inhabitants, as of the census of 2010, there were 65,883 people,26,803 households, and 14,293 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,056.3 inhabitants per square mile, there were 28,134 housing units at an average density of 878.1 per square mile
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Spooner, Wisconsin
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Spooner is a city in Washburn County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,682 at the 2010 census, the citys nickname is Crossroads of the North, a reference to the fact that the city is at the junction of two U. S. highways,53 and 63, and State Highways 70 and 253. The city was named after Senator John Coit Spooner, Spooner is located at 45°49′33″N 91°53′28″W. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 3.52 square miles. Spooner has a Humid continental climate, typical of northern Wisconsin with warm, humid summers and relatively long, as of the census of 2010, there were 2,682 people,1,180 households, and 666 families residing in the city. The population density was 815.2 inhabitants per square mile, there were 1,302 housing units at an average density of 395.7 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 95. 1% White,0. 3% African American,1. 9% Native American,0. 7% Asian,0. 1% from other races, Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1. 3% of the population. 38. 1% of all households were made up of individuals and 18. 3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older, the average household size was 2.18 and the average family size was 2.84. The median age in the city was 41.6 years. 23. 9% of residents were under the age of 18,7. 8% were between the ages of 18 and 24,21. 5% were from 25 to 44,25. 3% were from 45 to 64, and 21. 5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 45. 6% male and 54. 4% female, as of the census of 2000, there were 2,653 people,1,148 households, and 662 families residing in the city. The population density was 875.9 people per square mile, there were 1,249 housing units at an average density of 412.4 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 95. 97% White,0. 41% Black or African American,2. 04% Native American,0. 04% Asian,0. 38% from other races,1. 21% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 37. 8% of all households were made up of individuals and 20. 4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older, the average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.90. In the city, the population was out with 24. 0% under the age of 18,7. 2% from 18 to 24,24. 3% from 25 to 44,21. 7% from 45 to 64. The median age was 41 years, for every 100 females there were 85.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.8 males, the median income for a household in the city was $27,768, and the median income for a family was $39,677. The median income of its residents was $16,390, about 7. 6% of families and 11. 9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12. 7% of those under age 18 and 10. 5% of those age 65 or over
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Cameron, Barron County, Wisconsin
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Cameron is a village in Barron County in the U. S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 1,783 at the 2010 census, a post office called Cameron has been in operation since 1882. The village was named for Angus Cameron, a United States Senator from Wisconsin, Cameron is located at 45°24′32″N 91°44′33″W. According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has an area of 2.51 square miles. As of the census of 2010, there were 1,783 people,744 households, the population density was 721.9 inhabitants per square mile. There were 797 housing units at a density of 322.7 per square mile. The racial makeup of the village was 97. 0% White,0. 4% African American,0. 2% Native American,0. 5% Asian,0. 2% from other races, hispanic or Latino of any race were 2. 0% of the population. 27. 0% of all households were made up of individuals and 9. 6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older, the average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.89. The median age in the village was 34.5 years. 26. 9% of residents were under the age of 18,7. 8% were between the ages of 18 and 24,28. 6% were from 25 to 44,23. 7% were from 45 to 64, and 13. 1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 48. 9% male and 51. 1% female, as of the census of 2000, there were 1,546 people,640 households, and 414 families residing in the village. The population density was 641.3 people per square mile, there were 661 housing units at an average density of 274. 2/sq mi. The racial makeup of the village was 97. 74% White,0. 84% Native American,0. 19% Asian,0. 32% from other races, hispanic or Latino of any race were 1. 81% of the population. 28. 3% of all households were made up of individuals and 13. 3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older, the average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.94. In the village, the population was out with 25. 9% under the age of 18,9. 5% from 18 to 24,29. 4% from 25 to 44,20. 8% from 45 to 64. The median age was 36 years, for every 100 females there were 96.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.1 males, the median income for a household in the village was $34,167, and the median income for a family was $40,625. Males had an income of $30,069 versus $20,885 for females
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Trego, Wisconsin
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Trego is a town in Washburn County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 885 at the 2000 census, the census-designated place of Trego is located in the town. Trego is located at the junction of U. S. Highway 53 and U. S. Highway 63, Trego has a post office with ZIP code 54888. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has an area of 36.8 square miles. As of the census of 2000, there were 885 people,347 households, the population density was 24.6 people per square mile. There were 528 housing units at a density of 14.7 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 96. 95% White,0. 11% African American,1. 47% Native American,0. 23% Asian,0. 11% Pacific Islander, hispanic or Latino of any race were 0. 23% of the population. 23. 6% of all households were made up of individuals, the average household size was 2.55, and the average family size was 3.02. In the town, the population was out, with 27. 1% under the age of 18,5. 5% from 18 to 24,23. 8% from 25 to 44,30. 2% from 45 to 64. The median age was 40 years, for every 100 females, there were 100.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.6 males, the 2000 median income for a household in the town was $35,069, and the median income for a family was $39,000. Males had an income of $30,250 versus $23,125 for females. The per capita income for the town was $16,000, about 13. 4% of families and 15. 1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18. 3% of those under age 18 and 11. 2% of those age 65 or over
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Wisconsin Great Northern Railroad
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The Wisconsin Great Northern Railroad operates a historic train line in Trego, Wisconsin on approximately 20 miles of track. It was founded on April 1,1997, the line runs dinner trains, bed and breakfast trains, and scenic sight seeing tours. It was formerly used on Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range Railway on Maintenance-of-way trains, WGN #112 Richard F. Gilberg - Originally a mail car, now bar car. Multiple unrestored coaches of types that are either being used for storage purposes or are presently awaiting restoration. = Former Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range Railway crane X-7 & Boom Car #W6331
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Duluth, Minnesota
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Duluth /dəˈluːθ/ is a major port city in the U. S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Saint Louis County. Duluth has a population of 86,110 and is the second-largest city on Lake Superiors shores, after Thunder Bay, Ontario, in Canada, the Duluth MSA had a population of 279,771 in 2010, the second-largest in Minnesota. Duluth forms an area with neighboring Superior, Wisconsin, called the Twin Ports. The cities share the Duluth–Superior harbor and together are the Great Lakes largest port, transporting coal, iron ore, the city is also the starting point for vehicle trips along Minnesotas North Shore. The city is named for Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut, the Anishinaabe, also known as the Ojibwe or Chippewa, have inhabited the Lake Superior region for more than 500 years. They were preceded by the Dakota, Fox, Menominee, Nipigon, Noquet and Gros Ventre peoples, after the arrival of Europeans, the Anishinaabe found a niche as the middlemen between the French fur traders and other Native peoples. They soon became the dominant Indian nation in the region, forcing out the Dakota Sioux and Fox, by the mid-18th century, the Ojibwe occupied all of Lake Superiors shores. For both the Ojibwe and the Dakota, interaction with Europeans during the period revolved around the fur trade. The Ojibwe are historically known for their crafting of birch bark canoes, use of arrow points. In 1745, they adopted guns from the British for use against the Dakota nation of the Sioux, the Ojibwe Nation was the first to set the agenda with European-Canadian leaders for signing more detailed treaties before many European settlers were allowed too far west. Duluths name in Ojibwe is Onigamiinsing, a reference to the small, the Stopping Places were the places the Native Americans occupied during their westward migration as the Europeans overran their territory. Several factors brought fur traders to the Great Lakes in the early 17th century, the fashion for beaver hats in Europe generated demand for pelts. Étienne Brûlé is credited with the European discovery of Lake Superior before 1620, pierre-Esprit Radisson and Médard des Groseilliers explored the Duluth area, Fond du Lac in 1654 and again in 1660. The French soon established fur posts near Duluth and in the far north where Grand Portage became a trading center. The French explorer Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut, whose name is anglicized as DuLuth. The first post was where Superior, Wisconsin, later developed, known as Fort Saint Louis, the post became the headquarters for North Wests new Fond du Lac Department. It had stockaded walls, two houses of 40 feet each, a shed of 60 feet, a warehouse. Over time, Indian peoples and European Americans settled nearby, in 1808, the American Fur Company was organized by German-born John Jacob Astor
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Sioux City, Iowa
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Sioux City is a city in Woodbury and Plymouth counties in the northwestern part of the U. S. state of Iowa. The population was 82,684 in the 2010 census, which makes it the fourth largest city in Iowa, the bulk of the city is in Woodbury County, of which it is the county seat, though a small portion is in Plymouth County. Sioux City is the city of the five-county Sioux City, IA–NE–SD Metropolitan Statistical Area, with a population of 168,825 in 2010. The Sioux City–Vermillion, IA–NE–SD Combined Statistical Area had a population of 182,675 as of 2010 and has grown to a population of 183,052 as of 2012. Sioux City is at the head, or the most upstream point to which general cargo ships can travel, of the Missouri River. Sioux City and the areas of northwestern Iowa, northeastern Nebraska and southeastern South Dakota are sometimes referred to as Siouxland. Money recognized Sioux City in its August 2010 issue of the Best Places To Live, Sioux City was also ranked 1st in regards to Metro Populations between 50,000 and 200,000. Forbes placed the Sioux City metro in the Top 15 Best Small Places for Businesses and Careers, the Daily Beast, an American news reporting website, placed Sioux City on their list of The Top 40 Drunkest Cities in America, with a ranking of 14th. Iowa is in the prairie of the North American Great Plains. The area of Sioux City was inhabited by Yankton Sioux when it was first reached by Spanish, the first documented US citizens to record their travels through this area were Meriwether Lewis and William Clark during the summer of 1804. Sergeant Charles Floyd, a member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, died here on August 20,1804, Sioux City was laid out in the winter of 1854-55. It became a major Entrepôt to the western Plains, including Mormons heading to Salt Lake City, however, the system fell into bankruptcy and closed within a decade. The city gained the nickname Little Chicago during the Prohibition era due to its reputation for being a purveyor of alcoholic beverages, Sioux City is located at 42°29′53″N 96°23′45″W. Sioux City is at an altitude of 1,135 feet above sea level. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 58.49 square miles. Typical of Iowa, Sioux City has a continental climate, with very warm, humid summers, cold, dry winters. The normal monthly mean ranges from 20.4 °F in January to 74.3 °F in July. On average, there are 25 days that reach 90 °F or higher,52 days that do not climb above freezing, the average window for freezing temperatures is October 1 thru April 26, allowing a growing season of 157 days
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Org, Minnesota
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Org is an unincorporated community in Nobles County, Minnesota, United States. Org is located about 4 miles southwest of Worthington on Minnesota State Highway 60 and it lies directly adjacent to the Union Pacific Railroads Minneapolis-to-Omaha Line. Main highways include, U. S. Highway 59 Minnesota State Highway 60 Origin of name, Org was originally called Islen, Iselin, one of the directors of the St. Paul and Sioux City Railroad Company. The year was 1872, and no town existed, Iselin consisted of a section house and a water-stop. Steam locomotives consumed enormous quantities of water, and water-stops were established every 8 to 12 miles along any rail route. When the St. Paul and Sioux City Railroad Company built a line from Iselin to Sioux Falls in 1876. In 1890 the name was changed to Org by W. A. Scott, a manager of the Chicago & Northwestern Railway. He considered the railroad junction an ideal location for a town, the significance of the name Org remains obscure, it may be derived from dog. The town was platted in 1899, and a station was built on the Chicago & Northwestern Railways main St Paul to Sioux City line. Even though Org never became incorporated, a post office was established between 1895-1917, distinguished visitors, Two American presidents brielfly visited Org. Theodore Roosevelt travelled through Org when he was running for president in 1912 as the Bull Moose Party candidate, woodrow Wilson passed through in 1919 on his nationwide tour to sell the Treaty of Versailles to the nation. Roosevelt actually stopped in Org and spoke from the back of his train, wilsons train merely slowed down enough to switch from the main Chicago & Northwestern track to the Sioux Falls spur line. Orgs heyday, For many years, the town had but one street—the old wagon road that connected Worthington, Minnesota with Sibley, when a paved highway was built in 1931, it paralleled the wagon road about 50 yards to the southwest. A one-block long road was constructed connecting the two existing roads, and this third roadway became Orgs main business district, at one time boasting several businesses. In its heyday, the town had a post office, a station, a grain elevator, a general store, a lumber company, a coal company. Orgs decline, The Sioux Falls spur line of the Chicago & Northwestern Railway was never used, and by the 1950s. The grain elevator and railroad station closed, the general store and the filling station followed. By the 1970s, the town consisted of just a few homes, an abandoned grain elevator
