Ames once had a Chicago & North Western Railway (C&NW) mainline, a C&NW secondary line and a Fort Dodge, Des Moines & Southern Railway (FDDM&S) branch to serve Iowa State University. Today, the former C&NW mainline and former C&NW secondary line heading north are owned by Union Pacific Railroad, while the former C&NW secondary line heading south and the former FDDM&S branch have been abandoned.