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<p>In 1886, the Minnesota & Northwestern Railroad (M&NW) constructed a 121-mile railroad line, extending from Hayfield, Minnesota; through Oelwein, Iowa, to Thorpe, Iowa. The following year, the line was extended an additional 50 miles to Dubuque, Iowa. At Dubuque, the line used the Illinois Central Railroad (IC) bridge across the Mississippi River to reach another railroad in Illinois, which reached Chicago. At the end of 1887, the M&NW was merged with the Chicago, St. Paul & Kansas City Railway (CStP&KC), which was sold to the Chicago Great Western Railway (CGW) in 1893. The CGW would be reorganized as the Chicago Great Western Railroad in 1909. The CGW had acquired and constructed a modest railroad network throughout Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and Missouri; connecting major cities in these states. The CGW was one of the smaller railroads in the area, and was late to develop lines. As a result, the railroad never saw the fortunes of other railroads in the area. This line served as a principal mainline for the CGW, proving a connection between Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota and Chicago, Illinois. </p><p>In the early 20th Century, the CGW was often surviving on razor-thin profit margins. In 1940, the CGW entered bankruptcy, and was again reorganized as the Chicago Great Western Railway. At this time, the MC&FD was formally merged into the CGW. After the bankruptcy, the CGW became an innovative railroad, pioneering intermodal service and becoming one of the first railroads to completely switch to diesel locomotives. A capital improvement program was launched in 1949, which sought to rebuild and rehabilitate deteriorated infrastructure. In 1968, the CGW was purchased by the Chicago & North Western Railway (C&NW). Much of this line was parallel to existing C&NW lines, which were better constructed. The segment between Oelwein and Dubuque was abandoned in 1980, followed by the segment between Hayfield and Oelwein in 1981. Today, a portion of the former railroad in Oelwein is owned by Iowa Northern Railway, while the segment between Dyersville, Iowa and Dubuque is used as part of the Heritage Trail. Some other small sections of right-of-way have been reused as trails as well. The remainder of the line has been abandoned and reverted to adjacent landowners.</p>
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