Sometime back I asked what early tie set the stage for cooperation in
operating the Zephyr-Rocket and the one answer was a good one: John
Farrington, the Rock's greatest Pres., came to them from the Q. But
even before that, there was an even closer tie. For 23 years (1879-
1901), the Q & Rock jointly-owned, 50-50, the BCR&N (Burlington Cedar
Rapids & Northern) which ran diagonally from Burl to Albert Lea with
a long branch to Watertown, SD & other smaller branches. It became a
major part of the ultimate Rock Island when the Q sold it's half.
Even though the shared ownership was an equal one, the Q, as was true
in so many interline matters, was the 'big dog' as witnessed by the
fact that for the 23 years, BCR&N listed their cabooses in the
Official Equipment Registers as "waycars", reverting back to the far
more common "caboose" term as soon as the Q have up its 1/2. Also
the 2nd & 3rd (& final) Pres. of the BCR&N got their start on the Q.
The line from Burlington to Albert Lea, with the Q's own tracks south
to St. Louis & the Rock's from Albert Lea to TWin Cities, began a
long time pattern of coordinated service on the route even after the
Q sold it's 1/2 (for a very tidy profit per Overton). Indeed there
was a very early predecessor to the Zephyr-Rocket, the "St Louis Ltd"
which was jointly operated. And of course C&S & RI had their joint
ownership of the B-RI in south Texas.
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