The Erie & Kalamazoo Rail Road was the first railroad completed west of the Allegheny Mountains.
In 1832, the territorial government of Michigan authorized a railroad to be built from Port Lawrence, Michigan, which is now Toledo, Ohio, to the mouth of the Kalamazoo River at Lake Michigan. The name of the railroad was to be the Erie and Kalamazoo Railroad since the line would essentially connect Lake Erie with the Kalamazoo River. Construction began in 1835, and in late 1836 the first portion of the line, thirty-three miles in length, opened. This first segment connected Toledo with Adrian, Michigan. Initially, horses pulled freight and passenger cars on the line, but in 1837 the first steam engine began service. The steam engine allowed passengers to make the trip between these two communities in approximately three hours.
The Erie and Kalamazoo is a corporation of the States of Michigan and Ohio, having its principal office at Adrian, Mich. No accounting records of the Erie and Kalamazoo were obtained. Therefore, no information can be given from its accounts regarding its financial dealings, corporate operations or investments. However, certain data indicated hereinafter were obtained from the report filed by the company with this commission, as of date of valuation, from the accounting records of The Michigan Southern Rail Road Company and from other sources. The records reviewed do not indicate that the Erie and Kalamazoo is controlled by any individual or corporation, nor, on the other hand, that it controls any common-carrier corporation.
The records reviewed do not indicate how the property of this company was operated from the date it was opened for operation, about 1837, to August 1, 1849. From the latter date, to date of valuation, it has been operated under lease, as follows:
Operated by—From—To—
The Michigan Southern Rail Road Company. Aug. 1, 1849 - May 19, 1855
The Michigan Southern and Northern Indiana Rail Road Company. May 19, 1855 - June 2, 1869
Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway Company. June 2, 1869 - Aug. 16, 1869
The Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway Company. Aug. 16, 1869 - Dec. 23, 1914
New York Central. Dec. 23, 1914(1)