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1 Wisconsin Central Railway

The Wisconsin Central Railway's tracks reached Ashland, WI in 1877, St. Paul, MN in 1884, Chicago, IL in 1886 and Superior, WI in 1908.

In 1932, the railroad entered bankruptcy. It became a part of the Soo Line in a 1960 merger.

2 Wisconsin Central Ltd.

At one time, Wisconsin Central Ltd. ( AAR designation WCL) owned or operated railroads in America, CanadaCanada historically the Dominion of Canada is the second-largest, and northernmost, country in the world. It is a decentralized federation of 10 provinces and 3 territories, governed as a constitutional monarchy, and formed in 1867 through an act of Confe (the Algoma Central), United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a state in Western Europe, usually known simply as the United Kingdom the UK Britain or less accurately as Great Britain . The UK was formed by a series of Acts of Union which united the formerly (the English, Welsh and Scottish Railway) and New ZealandFor alternative meanings, see New Zealand (disambiguation). New Zealand is a country formed of two major islands and a number of smaller islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. A common Mori name for New Zealand is Aotearoa popularly translated as Land ( Tranz Rail Ltd. ).

2.1 Timeline

• April 3, 1987: The Soo Line railroad announces the sale of its Lake States Transportation Division to private investors, forming the new Wisconsin Central Transportation Corporation.
• October 11, 1987: The first Wisconsin Central train ran from Stevens Point, WI to North Fond Du Lac, WI .
• May 1991: Wisconsin Central shares begin trading under the ticker symbol WCTC , raising $36.2 million.
• 1992: Railway Age Magazine names Wisconsin Central "regional railroad of the year."
• 1993: Wisconsin Central acquires both the Fox River Valley and the Green Bay and Western railroads through a new subsidiary, Fox Valley & Western Ltd.
• 1993: Wisconsin Central acquires New Zealand Rail Ltd. and renames it Tranz Rail Ltd. through a new subsidiary, Wisconsin Central International.
• 1995: Wisconsin Central acquires the Algoma Central Railway through a new subsidiary, Wisconsin Central Canada Holdings.
• 1995: A Wisconsin Central led consortium acquires Rail Express Systems Limited in the United Kingdom.
• 1996: Wisconsin Central partners with Canadian National and CSX inaugurating a new intermodal shipping corridor between the west and east coasts of North America.
• 1996: The three trainload freight railways in the United Kingdom are united under a new Wisconsin Central subsidiary, English Welsh and Scottish Railway Holdings Limited .
• 1997: Wisconsin Central subsidiary, English Welsh and Scottish Railway acquires two more freight railways in the United Kingdom.
• 1997: Another Wisconsin Central subsidiary, the Sault Ste. Marie Bridge Company acquired 207 miles of track from Union Pacific forming a Wisconsin Central connection between Green Bay, WI and Ishpeming, MI.
• 1997: A new Wisconsin Central subsidiary, the Australian Transport Network Limited acquires a one-third ownership and an operating interest Tasrail in Tasmania.
• 1997: Six months after acquiring an interest in Tasrail , Wisconsin Central subsidiary Australian Transport Network acquires the Emu Bay Railway in Tasmania.
• January 30, 2001: Wisconsin Central and Canadian National announce plans for CN to purchase WC.
• September 7, 2001: The Surface Transportation Board approves the sale of Wisconsin Central to Canadian National.
• October 9, 2001: Wisconsin Central is acquired by Canadian National.