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<p>Between 1869 and 1870, the Decatur and East St. Louis Railroad (D&EStL) constructed 109 miles of new railroad, extending from Decatur, Illinois to East St. Louis, Illinois. At East St. Louis, the railroad connected with several other railroads. After completion in 1870, the railroad was merged into the Toledo, Wabash & Western Railway (TW&W), which had constructed and acquired a mainline extending from Toledo, Ohio to Hannibal, Missouri via Decatur. The TW&W was merged into the Wabash Railway in 1876. The Wabash was merged into the Wabash, St. Louis and Pacific Railway (WStL&P) in 1886. This railroad entered bankruptcy in 1886, and was partitioned and sold in 1889. The line between Decatur and East St. Louis was sold to the Wabash Eastern Railway, which promptly was consolidated into the Wabash Railroad. <br></p><p>The Wabash would become a respected railroad network in the Midwest, connecting Detroit with Kansas City. This line served as a principal mainline to St. Louis, where the line connected to another Wabash Line towards Kansas City. Because of the heavy use, the line was double tracked between Decatur and East St. Louis between 1905 and 1914. The Wabash Railroad was reorganized as the Wabash Railway in 1915. The railroad would again be reorganized as the Wabash Railroad in 1941, and would be controlled by the Pennsylvania Railroad. In 1964, the railroad was leased to the Norfolk & Western Railway (N&W), and would be entirely acquired in 1970. In 1982, the N&W would merge with the Southern Railway to form Norfolk Southern Railway. Today, Norfolk Southern operates the Brooklyn District between Decatur and East St. Louis. Portions of the second track have been removed, primarily on the northern end of this line.<br></p>
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