Chapter 24

CHIPPEWA FALLS & WESTERN

In 1873 a group of Chippewa Falls and Eau Claire business men under charter, incorporated the Chippewa Falls & Western Railway, and built a line 9.71 miles long, extending from the village of Eau Claire in a northeasterly direction to a point called Omaha Junction, near the village of Chippewa Falls.   The line was placed in operation early in 1874. In 1884 the C.F.&W. RR had acquired an additional 3.67 miles of line extending from Chippewa Junction to Omaha Junction, and sold a half interest in 1.62 miles to the C.M.&St.P. RR In 1884, the C.F.&W.R.R, was sold to the Minnesota, St. Croix & Wisconsin Railway, one of the constituents of the Wisconsin Central, and from that year has been operated by the "Central, with certain trackage rights extended to the Milwaukee road”.

The old C.F.&W. RR occupied a strategic position as a transfer line, and during the first ten years of its career was operated under the dominion of the North Wisconsin Railway and the West Wisconsin Railway, both of which became a part of the "Omaha" -- C.&N.W. System. The records indicate that the C.F.&W. owned one locomotive, one passenger car, and four freight cars.