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<p>In 1893, John N. Faithorn, a railroad tycoon from Chicago, began to plan a railroad in northeastern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. To construct his railroad network, Faithorn incorporated the Wisconsin & Michigan Railway (W&M). In 1893, the W&M constructed 33 miles between Peshtigo, Wisconsin and the Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie Railway (Soo Line) mainline at Faithorn Junction, Michigan. The following year, the W&M would acquire two railroads which had previously constructed trackage in the area, and convert them to standard gauge. The Peshtigo Lumber Company (PLC) had constructed a 6-mile narrow gauge line extending from Peshtigo, Wisconsin to nearby Lake Michigan in 1862. The Ingalls, White Rapids & Northern Railroad (IWR&N) had constructed a narrow gauge line extending 15 miles from Ingalls, Michigan to Koss, Michigan in 1887. In 1905, the W&M would acquire two additional lines. The Miscauno & North Western Railway (M&NW) had constructed 25 miles between Miscauno Island and Constine, Wisconsin in 1894. In 1904, the Quinnesec & Western Railway (Q&W) had constructed 7 miles between the W&M mainline and Miscauno Island. </p><p>In the early 20th Century, additional extensions would be constructed, including 17 miles between Faithorn Junction and Quinnesec, Michigan in 1903; 2 miles from Quinnesec to Cundy, Michigan in 1904 and 9 miles of additional trackage in the Iron Mountain, Michigan area in 1908. The railroad mainly operated logging branches and iron mine spurs, and owned a car ferry to supply iron ore to the steel mills at South Chicago, Illinois. In the 1910s, the railroad was financial trouble, with the ownership owing significant back taxes. By 1918, the W&M had decided to discontinue operations, and was searching for freight cars scattered across the United States. Operations continued for the railroad into the 1930s, when the financial condition became more dire. In 1938, the Interstate Commerce Commission authorized the W&M to abandon its entire railroad, and the last operations were made in August of that year. Portions of the line were sold to larger railroads, mainly to serve local industries. Today, little remains of the W&M, and most of the railroad grade is long abandoned.</p>
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