Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Montana Public Service Commission, Transportation Division records, 1907-1981
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Montana Public Service Commission, Transportation Division
- Title
- Montana Public Service Commission, Transportation Division records
- Dates
- 1907-1981 (inclusive)19071980
- Quantity
- 33 linear feet of shelf space
- Collection Number
- RS 107
- Summary
- These records consist of annual reports (1907-1980) and accident reports (1958-1974) made by railroads and express companies to the Montana Public Service Commission and its predecessor the Montana Board of Railroad Commissioners. There are also annual reports (1975) of motor carriers.
- Repository
-
Montana Historical Society, Library & Archives
Montana Historical Society Research Center Archives
225 North Roberts
PO Box 201201
Helena MT
59620-1201
Telephone: 4064442681
Fax: 4064445297
mhslibrary@mt.gov - Access Restrictions
-
Collection is open for research.
- Languages
- English
- Sponsor
- Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
The Montana Board of Railroad Commissioners was established by the Montana legislature in 1907. The board, consisting of three members elected statewide, was given the authority to set rates and establish regulations governing freight and passenger transportation within the state. All railroads owning, operating, or having any rail line in Montana were required to file annual reports. In addition the companies were required to report any accident, including time, place, names of injured and killed persons, and the value of property destroyed.
In 1913 the Board of Railroad Commissioners was made ex officio the newly created Montana Public Service Commission. In 1919 the Board also was made ex officio the Montana Trade Commission and the Montana Irrigation Commission. In 1971 the Montana Board of Railroad Commissioners was abolished and its work was taken over directly by the Public Service Commission.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
These records consist predominantly of annual reports (1907-1980) made by railroads and express companies to the Montana Public Service Commission and its predecessor the Montana Board of Railroad Commissioners. The reports include a vast amount of data on the history, financing, corporate ownership, track mileage, freight shipment statistics, and other nationwide information of railroads doing business in Montana. Many of the reports are copies of the reports made to the federal Interstate Commerce Commission. For most companies there are two reports for 1916 (when they switched from a July-June reporting year to a January to December reporting year) and for 1918-1919 (when there was a report by the railroad and a report of World War I federal operations).
In addition there are railroad accident reports (1958-1974, predominantly 1969-1974). Included also are annual reports (1975) for motor carrier companies, including trucks, buses, taxies, etc. Two special reports are an engineering report (1919) of the Butte Electric Railway Company; and a report (1960) on railroad grade crossing elimination in Billings.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Restrictions on Use
The Montana Historical Society is the owner of the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from the Research Library before any reproduction use. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from the copyright owners.
Preferred Citation
Item description and date. Name of Collection. Collection Number. (box and folder number). Montana Historical Society Research Center. Archives. Helena, Montana.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Annual ReportsReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1 / 1-10 | Adams Express Company (operated on Chicago, Burlington
and Quincy lines) |
1909-1918 |
| 1 / 11-20 | American Express Company (operated on Butte, Anaconda
and Pacific lines) |
1910-1918 |
| 1 / 21-23 | American Railway Express Company (successor to
American Express Company) |
1918-1920 |
| 2 / 1-9 | American Railway Express Company |
1921-1929 |
| 2 / 10 | Anaconda Copper Mining Company Street Railway Dept.,
Butte (formerly Butte Electric Railway Company) |
1936-1937 |
| 2 / 11-13 | Anaconda Copper Mining Company Street Railway Dept.,
Anaconda (formerly Butte) |
1937-1951 |
| 2 / 14-16 | Big Blackfoot Railway Company (Bonner to
Potomac) |
1914-1916 |
| 2 / 17-24 | Burlington Northern Inc. (merger of Great Northern
Railway, Northern Pacific Railway, and Chicago, Burlington and Quincy and Pacific
Coast Railroad) |
1970-1977 |
| 3 / 1-3 | Burlington Northern Inc. |
1978-1980 |
| 3 / 4-32 | Butte, Anaconda and Pacific Railway Company |
1907-1935 |
| 4 / 1-19 | Butte, Anaconda and Pacific Railway Company |
1936-1971 |
| 4 / 20 | Butte Electric Railway Company (succeeded by Anaconda
Copper Mining Company, Street Railway Dept.) |
1931-1936 |
| 4 / 21-24 | Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railway Company (only
track in Montana from |
1907-1910 |
| 5 / 1-23 | Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railway Company |
1911-1933 |
| 6 / 1-19 | Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railway Company |
1934-1952 |
| 7 / 1-17 | Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railway Company |
1953-1969 |
| 7 / 18-19 | Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railway Company of
Montana |
1907-1908 |
| 7 / 20-22 | Chicago, Milwaukee, and Puget Sound Railway
Company |
1909-1911 |
| 8 / 1 | Chicago, Milwaukee, and Puget Sound Railway
Company |
1912 |
| 8 / 2-17 | Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railway
Company |
1913-1928 |
| 8 / 18-20 | Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
Company |
1928-1930 |
| 9 / 1-19 | Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
Company |
1931-1949 |
| 10 / 1-17 | Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
Company |
1950-1966 |
| 11 / 1-14 | Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
Company (under bankruptcy, 1980; succeeded by Burlington Northern Inc.) |
1967-1980 |
| 11 / 15-24 | Gallatin Valley Railway Company (Three Forks to
Bozeman, with branches to Salesville, Bozeman Hot Springs, and Belgrade) |
1911-1919 |
| 11 / 25-28 | Gilmore and Pittsburgh Railroad Company (Armstead,
Montana, to mines at Gilmore, Idaho) |
1913-1916 |
| 12 / 1-21 | Gilmore and Pittsburgh Railroad Company |
1918-1938 |
| 12 / 22-23 | Great Northern Express Company (subsidiary of Lake
Superior Company, 1919-1910; subsidiary of Great Northern Railway beginning in 1911) |
1909-1913 |
| 13 / 1-5 | Great Northern Express Company |
1914-1918 |
| 13 / 6-23 | Great Northern Railway Company |
1907-1924 |
| 14 / 1-20 | Great Northern Railway Company |
1925-1945 |
| 15 / 1-18 | Great Northern Railway Company |
1946-1963 |
| 16 / 1-6 | Great Northern Railway Company (merged into Burlington
Northern Inc.) |
1964-1969 |
| 16 / 7-24 | Milwaukee, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railway
Company (only line in Montana was branch line from Whitetail to North Dakota state
line) |
1914-1931 |
| 17 / 1-19 | Milwaukee, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railway
Company |
1932-1950 |
| 18 / 1-10 | Milwaukee, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railway
Company (name changed to Soo Line Railroad Company, January 1, 1961) |
1951-1960 |
| 18 / 11 | Missoula Street Railway Dept. of Montana Power Company |
1931 |
| 18 / 12-22 | Montana Western Railway Company (Conrad to Valier) |
1907-1934 |
| 19 / 1-7 | Montana Western Railway Company |
1935-1969 |
| 19 / 8-24 | Montana, Wyoming and Southern Railroad Company
(Bridger to Washoe; previously Yellowstone Park Railroad Company) |
1910-1927 |
| 20 / 1-21 | Montana, Wyoming and Southern Railroad Company |
1928-1948 |
| 21 / 1-3 | Montana, Wyoming and Southern Railroad Company |
1949-1952 |
| 21 / 4-8 | Northern Express Company |
1909-1918 |
| 21 / 9-20 | Northern Pacific Railway Company |
1907-1918 |
| 22 / 1-21 | Northern Pacific Railway Company |
1919-1939 |
| 23 / 1-18 | Northern Pacific Railway Company |
1940-1957 |
| 24 / 1-12 | Northern Pacific Railway Company (merged into
Burlington Northern Inc.) |
1958-1969 |
| 24 / 13-21 | Oregon Short Line Railroad Company (owned by Union
Pacific Railroad Company) |
1907-1915 |
| 25 / 1-20 | Oregon Short Line Railroad Company |
1916-1935 |
| 25 / 21 | Pacific Express Company |
1909 |
| 26 / 1-6 | Pullman Company |
1951-1968 |
| 26 / 7-18 | Railway Express Agency (successor to American Railway
Express Company; includes complete list of railroads on which they operated) |
1929-1941 |
| 27 / 1-25 | Railway Express Agency |
1941-1969 |
| 27 / 26 | REA Express (formerly Railway Express Agency) |
1970-1971 |
| 27 / 27 | REA Express (in bankruptcy) |
1980-1981 |
| 27 / 28 | St. Paul, Minneapolis, and Manitoba Railway Company
(leased to Great Northern Railway Company) |
1907 |
| 27 / 29-31 | Soo Line Railroad Company (formerly Minneapolis, St.
Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad Company) |
1961-1963 |
| 28 / 1-17 | Soo Line Railroad Company |
1964-1980 |
| 28 / 18-24 | Union Pacific Railroad Company (includes line from
Garrison to Meaderville leased to Northern Pacific Railway Company) |
1936-1942 |
| 29 / 1-17 | Union Pacific Railroad Company |
1943-1959 |
| 30 / 1-20 | Union Pacific Railroad Company |
1960-1980 |
| 30 / 21-25 | Wells Fargo and Company |
1910-1914 |
| 31 / 1-4 | Wells Fargo and Company |
1915-1918 |
| 31 / 5-8 | Western Express Company |
1915-1918 |
| 31 / 9-21 | White Sulphur Springs and Yellowstone Park Railway
Company |
1916-1978 |
| 32 / 1-3 | Yellowstone Park Railroad Company (Bridger to Washoe;
succeeded by Montana, Wyoming and Southern Railroad Company) |
1908-1909 |
Accident ReportsReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 32 / 4-17 | Burlington Northern Inc. |
1970-1974 |
| 32 / 18 | Butte, Anaconda and Pacific Railway
Company |
1969-1974 |
| 32 / 19 | Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railway
Company |
1969-1970 |
| 32 / 20-24 | Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railway
Company (1963-1967 are telegrams only) |
1963-1974 |
| 32 / 25 | Great Northern Railway Company (reports,
investigations etc.) |
1958-1959 |
| 33 / 1-2 | Great Northern Railway Company (reports, telegrams,
investigation etc.; includes head-on collision of two passenger trains near Chester,
March 7, 1966) |
1960-1966 |
| 33 / 3 | Great Northern Railway Company |
1969-1970 |
| 33 / 4 | Montana Western Railway Company |
1969 |
| 33 / 5 | Northern Pacific Railway Company |
1969-1970 |
| 33 / 6 | Soo Line Railroad Company |
1969-1974 |
| 33 / 7 | Union Pacific Railroad Company |
1969-1974 |
| 33 / 8 | White Sulphur Springs and Yellowstone Park Railway
Company |
1970-1974 |
Motor Carrier Annual ReportsReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 33 / 9-29 | A-Z |
1975 |
Other ReportsReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 33 / 30 | Butte Electric Railway Company engineering report by
John H. Bonner |
1919 |
| 33 / 31 | Report on railroad grade crossing elimination,
Billings, Montana, by DeLeuw, Cather and Company |
1960 |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Express companies--Montana
- Railroad accidents--Montana
- Railroads--Montana
- Transportation--Montana
Geographical Names
- Montana--Commerce
Other Creators
-
Corporate Names
- Montana Board of Railroad Commissioners
Finding aid prepared by Ellie Arguimbau, 2007
2007
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
