Hardcover with dust jacket, 241 pages, B&W and Color photographs, illustrations, 2 separate 15 x 21 in. color maps of the Soo Line (before the Milwaukee Road purchase) and the new Soo Transportation System.
The third and final volume in the series. Offers an account of the history of the Soo Line Railroad and its Chicago Division- The Wisconsin central Railroad- with emphasis on their relation to the Canadian Pacific Railway. This volume features descriptions of the Soo's lines in Wisconsin, Illinois and Michigan, complementing the material in Saga of the Soo Volume II (which covered the lines in Minnesota, the Dakotas and Montana).
The East referenced the title stands for the initial effort of the Soo's founders to develop the Minneapolis, Sault Ste. Marie and Atlantic Railway that reached east to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. There it connected with the great Canadian Pacific Railway at Sault Ste. Marie. East also Stands for the great contribution that the Wisconsin Central made to Soo Line's fortunes after it was leased by the Soo in 1909.
West stands for the Soo's westward trackage through Minnesota and the Dakotas, all the way to eastern Montana, where the railroad garnered wheat and other agricultural produce that fed the milling industries and other commerce in Minneapolis and Saint Paul.
North references the Soo's benefactor and present owner-the Canadian Pacific Railway, which has played a key role in the overall history of this valiant line.
Contents:
Capsule History of the Soo, pp. 5-46,
Wisconsin Central's main line, pp. 47-72,
MStP&SSM's Original main line Through Wisconsin, pp. 73-85,
The Long and Difficult Bankruptcy of the Wisconsin Central, pp. 86-87,
Crossing the Saint Croix River, pp. 88-92,
Southeast Wisconsin, pp. 93-100,
Christmas and the Soo, pp. 101-104,
Extra 400 West and the Dragout (by George A. Forero, Jr.), pp. 105-112,
Grain and Agriculture, pp. 113-118,
A Short History of the Canadian Pacific Railway, pp. 121-132,
Passenger Services, pp. 133-186,
Love Those locomotives, pp. 187-196,
Intermodal Services, pp. 197-200,
Michigan, pp. 201-210,
Train Dispatching (by Stuart J. Nelson), pp. 211-217,
The Soo Line and Labor, pp. 218-222,
Safety First, pp. 223-230,
Acknowledgments and Afterword, pp. 231-241.
