Nostalgia & History > When did the GR&I (Grand Rapids and Indiana) disappear?

Various sources tell me that the GR&I was merged into the Pennsylvania between 1918 and 1953. Does anyone have the actual dates? And could it be possible that the Pennsylvania bought the railroad on one date, merged operations on another date, and finally "dissolve" the railroad from paper railroad status to non-entity on another date?

Thanks for any help.
>Ed

I don't have any dates handy, but the GR&I was basically Pennsy controlled from the very start. I'm not sure it ever really truly independent operationally, at least once the entire line was completed, and I'm thinking the Pennsy may have provided some financing for the Indiana portion, which was NOT on land grants like much of the Michigan portion was. I believe you are right that it existed as "paper company for quite some time.

The line was still referred to as the "GR&I Secondary" after conveyance to Conrail in 1976. As far as I'm aware, it never operated independently and was always part of the PRR system.

It began disappearing for good in the late 1970s, as pieces here and there were progressively abandoned. The last bits went in the late 1980s.

Actually, the last bit of GR&I is still in service between Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids, as the Grand Elk Railroad, which was sold or leased by NS only a few years ago.

Carl Shaver
Lombard, IL

There are two smaller bits still run on also;
Kendallville Terminal Railway runs on 1.07 miles of it in Kendallville, IN and
Michigan Southern runs on 5 miles of it from Sturgis, MI south to the state line.

Roland
WP805D
(Conductor Kendallville Terminal/Elkhart & Western/Michigan Southern)

I wrote about this in my "Rails Around Michigan" book in 2010. Research for it said that the PRR purchased the GR&I from the bancruptcy receiver in 1895 and operated it as the GR&I until after WW1.

> could it be
> possible that the Pennsylvania bought the railroad
> on one date, merged operations on another date,
> and finally "dissolve" the railroad from paper
> railroad status to non-entity on another date?

That seems like the usual pattern. PRR was
operating the GR&I by 1925; I'll see if
Moody's tells about its paper status.

PRR started operating it 1922. Looks like
its corporate end was the merge into
Penndel Co. 1 Jan 1954.

thanks for all the input everyone!

Bill Edson wrote in his "Railroad Names" book that the GR&I ended its independent existence in March, 1921, when it became a part of the Pennsy RR.

Before 1921 locomotives and rolling stock were lettered for the Grand Rapids & Indiana. I have a collection of GR&I locomotive photos. I posted a photo of a wreck at Rome City, Indiana here some time ago that shows a caboose lettered for the GR&I. The caboose looks very much like the Big Four wooden center cupola cars.

Many, but not all, of the GR&I locos were hand-me-downs from the Pennsylvania. There were models from quite a few builders. I think the largest GR&I passenger engine was a 4-6-0. I have a roster of GR&I locos somewhere that I need to dig up some day. It is interesting to note that the GR&I operated a few Russian Decapods and some USRA Mikes. The Mikes were your standard USRA fair as did not have Belpaire fireboxes. I have a photo one of the USRA Mikes in Cincinnati lettered for the Pennsylvania. I am not a Pennsy expert and do not know if they were captive to the GR&I.It appears the biggest steam engines that operated on the former GR&I were the Pennsy's M-1 4-8-2s. I believe the biggest diesels were Baldwin six axle passenger units (sharks).



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/11/12 13:50 by wabash2800.

Siouxcounty Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Bill Edson wrote in his "Railroad Names" book that
> the GR&I ended its independent existence in March,
> 1921, when it became a part of the Pennsy RR.

He couldn't put all the details into a book like that.
Offhand guess is it wasn't entirely independent
in 1920, and the corporation continued to exist
in some form until the end of 1953.

In 1911 GR&I's status in the ICC book
looks the same as PCC&StL, PB&W, etc--
subsidiary road, Penn Co. owns majority
of stock.