Wikipedia:WikiProject Trains/ICC valuations/Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf Railroad

Interstate Commerce Commission, Valuation Reports, Volume 24

Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf Railroad

Location and General Description of Property

The railroad of Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf Railroad Company, herein called the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf, is a single-track, standard-gauge, steam railroad, of which the main line extends from Hopefield, Ark., a point on the Mississippi River opposite Memphis, Tenn., westwardly through the States of Arkansas and Oklahoma, to the Texas-Oklahoma boundary at Texola, Okla. Branch lines extend from Benton to Hot Springs and Malvern, Ark.; Branch Junction to Ardmore, Okla.; Tecumseh Junction to Asher, Okla.; and Geary, Okla., to Anthony, Kans. Besides the above-described property, the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf owns certain track other than main track located at Memphis, Tenn. All of the carrier property of the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf is leased to and operated by the carrier. The wholly owned mileage of the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf embraces the following:

	Main track Miles	All tracks Miles
In Arkansas	322.239	454.210
In Kansas	14.695	16.793
In Oklahoma	639.291	848.762
In Tennessee	......	4.295
Total	976.225	1,324.060

The Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf also owns jointly with other carriers 3.067 miles of track other than main track located at various terminals along its line.

Corporate History

The Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf was incorporated under act of Congress, approved August 24, 1894, for the purpose of acquiring the property, rights, and franchises of the Choctaw Coal and Railway Company, which had been sold under foreclosure, on September 8, 1894, to a reorganization committee. This property, embracing approximately 98 miles of main line, was conveyed to the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf on October 3, 1894. The Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf subsequently, on the dates indicated below, acquired the property, rights, and franchises of the following companies, the main-line mileage acquired being also given in the table below:

Date of acquisition	Name	Miles of main line acquired
June 30, 1900	Choctaw and Memphis Railroad Company	282
Oct. 12, 1900	Tecumseh Railway Company	5
Sept. 14, 1901	The White River, Lonoke & Western Railroad Company	10
May 1, 1902	Western Oklahoma Railroad Company	158
May 3, 1902	Choctaw Northern Railroad Company	136
May 10, 1902	Hot Springs Railroad Company	40
	Total	631

The Choctaw and Memphis Railroad Company was preceded by five antecedent companies. None of the other companies, the property of which was acquired by the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf, acquired any of its property from predecessors.

Development of Fixed Physical Property

The owned mileage of the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf was acquired as follows:

		Mileage
In reorganization:
Property of the Choctaw Coal and Railway Company—
Wister to South McAlester, Okla.	67
Oklahoma City to Fort Reno, Okla.	31
		98
By purchase:
Property of the Choctaw and Memphis Railroad Company—
Hopefield, Ark., to Arkansas-Oklahoma boundary.		282
Property of the Tecumseh Railway Company—
Tecumseh to Tecumseh Junction, Okla.		5
Property of The White River, Lonoke & Western Railroad Company—
Lonoke to Wobley No. 2, Ark.		10
Property of the Western Oklahoma Railroad Company—
Haileyville to Ardmore, Okla.	118
Elk City, Okla., to Texas-Oklahoma boundary.	40
		158
Property of the Choctaw Northern Railroad Company—
Geary, Okla., to Anthony, Kans.	121
Ingersoll to Alva, Okla.	15
		136
Property of the Hot Springs Railroad Company—
Hot Springs to Benton, Ark.	35
Butterfield to Malvern, Ark.	5
		40
		631
By construction:
1895, South McAlester to Oklahoma City.	120
1898, Fort Reno to Weatherford.	45
1898, Wister to Howe.	6
1899, Howe to Arkansas State line.	11
1902, Weatherford to Elk City.	48
1902, Tecumseh to Asher.	20
1902, Wilburton to Haileyville (South Line).	16
		266
Grand total of line acquired in reorganization, by purchase and construction.		995
Line abandoned:
In 1904 the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf took up the rails and abandoned about 10 miles of line between Lonoke and Wobley No. 2, Ark., purchased from The White River, Lonoke & Western Railroad Company.	10
The line between Wilburton and Haileyville, known as the North Line, was used principally as a coal mining track. About 7 miles of this track was abandoned at various times, leaving approximately 14 miles in use, as of June 30, 1915.	7
		17
Mileage owned on June 30, 1915.		978

Leased Railway Property

The entire property of the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf, except its coal mining property and unsold land-grant lands, is leased for a period of 999 years to the carrier for sole operation, under agreement dated March 24, 1904. Under the terms of this lease, the carrier pays as rental a sum equal to the interest on the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf's funded debt obligations. Such interest amounted to $729,850 for the year ended June 30, 1915. The carrier is also obligated to pay all taxes on the property.

Provision is made in the lease that the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf shall, at the termination of the lease, reimburse the carrier for all additions and betterments made to the property by the carrier at the then value, and will assume any mortgage on the property created to improve it, the amount of which shall be applied to reduce the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf's liability to the carrier. To date, the carrier has expended $4,420,175.24 in additions and betterments to the property of the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf.

Provision is also made in the lease for the assumption by the carrier of the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf lease of the property of the White & Black River Valley Railway dated June 30, 1900. The terms of this lease are discussed in the report on the carrier.