Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States.
To create a demand for its services, the railroad set up real estate offices and sold farm land from the land grants that it was awarded by Congress. Despite the name, its main line never served Santa Fe, New Mexico, as the terrain was too difficult; the town ultimately was reached by a branch line from Lamy.
The Santa Fe was a pioneer in intermodal freight transport, an enterprise that (at one time or another) included a tugboat fleet and an airline (the short-lived Santa Fe Skyway). Its bus line extended passenger transportation to areas not accessible by rail, and ferryboats on the San Francisco Bay allowed travelers to complete their westward journeys to the Pacific Ocean.
The railroad officially ceased operations on December 31, 1996, when it merged with the Burlington Northern Railroad to form the Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway.
Trivia[]
- Chartered in February 1859, the railroad reached the Kansas-Colorado border in 1873 and Pueblo, Colorado, in 1876.
- It set up real estate offices in the area and promoted settlement across Kansas on the land that was granted to it by Congress in 1863.
- There are all types of engines that still exist from this Railroad like: Steam Engines, and Diesel Engines.
- The Mojave Mainline was seen in Pentrex's Santa Fe's Mojave Mainline - The Needles Subdivision.
- AT&SF was widely known for its passenger train service in the first half of the 20th century.
- An engine on the Disneyland Railroad shares its name with one of the former chairmen, Fred Gurley.
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