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Soo Line 6022, an EMD SD60 , pulls a train through Wisconsin Dells, WI, June 20 2004. The Soo Line railroad ( AAR designation SOO), officially known as the Minneapolis, St Paul and Sault Ste Marie railroad, is an American railroad that operates in Wisconsin and surrounding states.

In 1985 the Soo Line purchased the Milwaukee Road railroad and attempted to operate it as a wholly-owned subsidiary, the Lake States Transportation Division . This plan didn't work out too well for the Soo; most of LSTD and most of the original Wisconsin Central was sold in 1987 to the newly formed Wisconsin Central Transportation Corporation.

The Soo Line is a part of the Canadian Pacific railroad system. As time passes, more and more Soo Line equipment is being repainted into the Canadian Pacific's current paint scheme, slowly erasing the Soo's identity as a subsidiary railroad.

1 Timeline

• September 29September 29 is the 272nd day of the year (273rd in leap years). There are 93 days remaining. Events 61 BC Pompey the Great celebrates his third triumph, for victories over the pirates and the end of the Mithridatic Wars. 855 Pope Benedict III becomes Pop 1883: A consortium of flour mill owners in Minneapolis form the Minneapolis, Sault Ste. Marie and Atlantic Railway (soon to be called the Soo Line) to build a railroad between its two namesake cities to avoid sending shipments through Chicago, IL.
• 18881888 is a leap year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar). In Germany, 1888 is known as the 1888 Year of Three Emperors. Events January 3 91cm telescope first used at Lick Observatory January 12 ? Blizzards in Dakota and Montana, Minnesota, Nebr: The Canadian Pacific acquires control of the Soo Line, renaming it to the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad.
• 19081908 is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). Events January-February January 1 A ball signifying New Year's Day drops in New York City's Times Square for the first time January 8 A train collision occurs in the Park Avenue T: The Soo Line acquires a majority interest in the Wisconsin Central Railway.
• 1960: A new Soo Line railroad is formed through a merger of the original Soo Line, Wisconsin Central Railway and the Duluth, South Shore and Atlantic .
• February 21, 1985: The Soo Line obtains a controlling interest in the Milwaukee Road railroad.
• January 1, 1986: The Milwaukee Road railroad is merged into the Soo Line.
• April 4, 1987: The Soo Line railroad announces the sale of its Lake States Transportation Division to private investors, forming the new Wisconsin Central Transportation Corporation.