Ann Arbor Railroad

The Ann Arbor Railroad is a regional shortline railroad operating mostly in Michigan. It is the remnant of a 260 mile line that included trackage in Ohio, Michigan, the Upper Peninsula, and Wisconsin, and a trans-Lake Michigan ferry service.

History

In October 1869, a group of Michigan capitalists incorporated the Toledo, Ann Arbor and Northern Railroad Company (TAA&N) to build a railroad between Ann Arbor, Michigan, and the Michigan-Ohio state line aiming towards Toledo. They bought franchise rights and began construction. This prompted a connecting effort between the state line and downtown Toledo. The franchise rights for this segment were eventually acquired by the Pennsylvania Railroad. The State Line Railroad was chartered in June 1872 to build a connection between the downtown Toledo, Ohio, at Elm Street to the Michigan-Ohio state line about 5½ miles to the north.

By 1873, however, with little progress and mounting obligations, the line fell victim to the Panic of 1873.

Ashley and the TAA&N

In 1877, James M. Ashley bought the TAA&N unfinished grade and reorganized the company as the Toledo and Ann Arbor Railroad Company (T&AA). With fresh money and ambition, Ashley completed the line to Ann Arbor in 1877. Ashley also in 1877 purchased the State Line Railroad. Ashley, then began an aggressive campaign of pushing the line further north. Aiming to connect with Pontiac, Michigan, Ashley incorporated the Toledo, Ann Arbor and North Eastern Railroad Company in 1880. However, Ashley was able to build only to South Lyon, Michigan, and graded to Pontiac before the project was abandoned. Ashley sold the graded portion to the Grand Trunk Railway in 1881 which incorporated the section into its Michigan Air Line Division

About this time, Ashley began reorganizing his railroad holdings. He incorporated the Toledo, Ann Arbor and North Railroad Company in 1884 and folded into it the T&AA and TAANE. The TAA&N also began construction, in 1885, of the line south from St. Louis, Michigan, to Owosso. Ashley continued construction south to Leland (1886) and South Lyon. In 1891, Ashley abandoned the road between Leland and South Lyon, apparently relying on connections to carry bridge traffic. In 1896, Ashley constructed a new line between Ann Arbor and Leland through Whitmore Lake. The spur to South Lyon was shortly thereafter abandoned.

By 1891, the road had consolidated lines reaching to Frankfort and Elberta. These northern termini were chosen because of the natural harbor of Betsie Lake. In 1892, the T&AA became the first railroad to transit Lake Michigan with a fleet of car ferries.

In 1925, the Wabash Railroad gained control of the Ann Arbor and operated the line until 1963 when it sold its holdings to the Detroit, Toledo, & Ironton Railroad. In 1973, the Ann Arbor defaulted on its bonds and went into receivership. In 1974, it joined other Northeastern and Midwest railroads in the massive reorganization under the Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976. The United States Railway Administration (USRA) deemed that the southern portion of the line, between Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Toledo was reorganizeable and included it in the Final System Plan. The State of Michigan, however, deemed that the entire line was important to the state's economy and communities and arranged to purchased the entire line from the USRA. For a while, Conrail was the Designated Operator (DO) of the line.

In October 1977, a new entity, the Michigan Interstate Railway Company ("Michigan Interstate") became the DO of the line. In 1983, however, Michigan Interstate entered receivership. This receivership led to the eventual break-up of the railroad. In 1985, the southern portion was purchased by a trustee and was again sold, in 1988, to the Ann Arbor Acquisition Corporation. The northern section was purchased by the Tuscola & Saginaw Bay Railway Co., Inc. (TSBY). North of Cadillac, Michigan, the line was abandoned.