NORTHERN PACIFIC RAILWAY COMPANY:

An Inventory of Its Corporate Records at the Minnesota Historical Society

Manuscripts Collection

OVERVIEW


	Creator:	Northern Pacific Railway Company, creator.
	Title:	Northern Pacific Railway corporate records.
	Dates:	1861-1970.
	Language:	Materials in English.
	Abstract:	Corporate records of the St. Paul-based Northern Pacific, its predecessors, and its subsidiaries and affiliates, documenting their operations across the northern tier of western states for more than one hundred years, until its 1970 merger with the Great Northern, the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy, and the Spokane, Portland and Seattle that formed the Burlington Northern.
	Quantity:	10,600 cubic feet.
	Location:	See Detailed Description for shelf locations.

The Northern Pacific charter was signed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1864. Construction of the railroad began in 1870 with ground breaking ceremonies near Duluth, Minnesota. Headquartered first in Brainerd, Minnesota and later in St. Paul, Minnesota the railroad was given grants of land from the government that equaled close to 47,000,000 acres and spanned the distance from the Great Lakes to Puget Sound. In the early years the Northern Pacific was backed by the firm of Jay Cooke & Company until the financial panic of 1873 when the railroad went bankrupt and was reorganized.

In 1883 the railroad was completed at Gold Creek, Hellgate Canyon, Montana. Former president Ulysses S. Grant attended the ceremony and drove in the “golden spike” to commemorate the occasion. In 1893 a financial panic caused a second bankruptcy. By the early 1900s the railroad was again reorganized by James J. Hill, President of the Great Northern, and others. The railroad became part of the federal government transportation network during World War I and pioneered the first national park connection with the Yellowstone Park line. On March 2, 1970 the Northern Pacific was merged with the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, Great Northern, and Spokane, Portland and Seattle and their subsidiaries to become the Burlington Northern.

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SCOPE AND CONTENTS

Records include minutes, reports, correspondence and subject files, financial and accounting records, photographs, engineering drawings, land records, engineering and valuation records, advertising literature, timetables, publications, and many other materials documenting the principal staff and operating departments. Those include the offices of the president, secretary, treasurer, and comptroller; the law and land departments; mechanical and chief engineers; public relations and personnel officers; and general managers and other operating officials.

Of special importance are the President's Office subject files, comprising 1,100 feet of executive correspondence, reports, statistical data, maps, drawings, and printed matter compiled to keep top officials informed on important current and past activities. They provide the best summary available of the company's experience over time.

In addition to the main line records are records of more than 200 branch lines, subsidiaries, and related companies. They include rail and highway transport, oil and mineral, land and townsite, power, irrigation, steamship, lumbering, and stockholding firms dispersed geographically from the Great Lakes to Puget Sound.

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ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Availability:

The collection is open for research use.

Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. Northern Pacific Railway Corporate Records. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples.

Accession Information:

Accession number: Many, see individual series inventories.

Processing Information:

Catalog ID number: 990017351410104294

Work on the Northern Pacific Railway Company records was supported with funds granted by the Northwest Area Foundation, the Grotto Foundation, and the Jerome Foundation.

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DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following listings link to detailed finding aids for each of the collection's 23 series:


		Advertising and Publicity Department Records, 1875-1970. 44 cubic feet.
			Correspondence, subject files, photograph files, timetables and miscellaneous advertising samples documenting the Northern Pacific administrative unit responsible for managing corporate advertising and public relations work.


		Agriculture Department records, 1910-1963. 0.3 cubic feet.
			Correspondence and memoranda, speeches, reports, pamphlets, and other material relating to agricultural development activities of the Northern Pacific Railway Company in the territories served by its lines.


		Chief of Labor Relations records, 1908-1969. 82 cubic feet.
			General files, negotiation and agreement files, and mediation and arbitration files created by the Northern Pacific administrative unit responsible for managing the company's employee relations.


		Chief of Special Agents records, 1909-1957. 18 cubic feet.
			Registers of investigations and files on Mexican laborers kept by the Northern Pacific administrative unit primarily responsible for investigating accidental and criminal damage to railroad property and to persons on railroad property.


		Comptroller's records, 1867-1970. 375 cubic feet.
			Correspondence and subject files (1870-1951), annual reports to regulatory agencies (1883-1967), corporate accounting records (1867-1970), and other miscellaneous records created or compiled by the Northern Pacific administrative unit responsible for the accounting, auditing, and statistical analysis functions of the railway company.


		Engineering Department records, 1867-1970. 706 cubic feet.
			Subject files (1867-1970); accounting records (1879-1921); standard plans for buildings, bridges, and other structures ([188-]-[196-]); track profile maps (1890-1927); and bridge records (1892-1960) created or compiled by the Northern Pacific administrative unit responsible for locating, surveying, constructing, and maintaining roadways and structures.


		General Claims Department records, 1883-1938. 3.3 cubic feet (5 boxes).
			Register of injuries sustained, annual summaries of claims, and case files of the General Claims Department.


		General Manager's records, 1875-1960s. 266 cubic feet.
			Correspondence and subject files, and other miscellaneous records, created or compiled by the Northern Pacific administrative unit responsible for operating the physical properties of the Northern Pacific rail system.


		Industrial Development Department records, 1902-1912, 1967. 1.4 cubic feet (3 boxes).
			Real estate records and reports of the Industrial Development Department.


		Land Department records, 1869-1973. 1,640 cubic feet.
			Many series of records created by the NP administrative unit responsible for the company’s extensive land holdings, and documenting in great detail the acquisition, surveying and platting, ongoing management, resource usage, and disposition of the lands.


		Law Department records, 1864-1973. 1,016 cubic feet.
			Docket and case files (1882-1973), correspondence and subject files (1864-1969), letterpress books (1873-1949), printed court case reports (1879-1935), and a variety of miscellaneous records documenting the legal affairs of the Northern Pacific and the activities of its law department.


		Maps and Atlases, circa 1853-1984.
			Maps, atlases and related material of the Northern Pacific Railway Company.


		Mechanical Department records, 1880s-1969. 274 cubic feet.
			Mechanical drawings, subject files, and miscellaneous records relating to the NP fleet of cars, locomotives, and work equipment.


		Operating Department records, 1910-1954. 0.1 cubic feet.
			Statistics, graphs and related materials of the Operating Department of the Northern Pacific Railway Company.


		Passenger and Station Accounting Department records, 1898-1941. 1 cubic foot.
			Annual passenger earning statements of the Passenger and Station Accounting Department of the Nothern Pacific Railway Company.


		Personnel Department records, circa 1909-1960s. 1,527 cubic feet; 3 microfilm reels.
			Personnel files, indexes, and reference files from the Northern Pacific Personnel Department.


		President's records, 1872-1970. 1,222 cubic feet.
			Correspondence and subject files, letterpress books, and miscellaneous records created by the Northern Pacific president’s office.


		President's Subject Files, 1890s-1970. 916 cubic feet and 6 microfilm reels.
			Subject files, the principal series of correspondence and related records, of the Northern Pacific president’s office. The files are split into two finding aids and linked below.
			Nos. 1-728.
			Nos. 729-2981.


		Property Tax Department records, 1879-1949. 13.6 cubic feet.
			Annual reports, descriptions of right of ways and distribution of track, and property and tax records of the Property Tax Department of the Northern Pacific Railway Company.


		Secretary's records, 1840-1970 [bulk 1869-1890]. 702 cubic feet.
			Correspondence and subject files (1864-1968), minute books and related records (1864-1970), annual reports to stockholders (1870-1968), stock and bond records (1865-1968), and miscellaneous records created or compiled by the office of the Northern Pacific corporate secretary.


		Statistical Department records, 1950-1966. 4.0 cubic feet (4 boxes).
			Statistical reports, correspondence, stenographers' minutes, reports, working papers, and research projects of the Statistical Dept. of the Northern Pacific Railway Company.


		Treasurer's records, 1869-1948 [bulk 1869-1890]. 29.25 cubic feet.
			Letterpress books (1869-1897), correspondence and subject files, cash statements (1885-1909), newspaper clippings scrapbooks (1871-1896), and miscellaneous materials created or collected by the Northern Pacific administrative office responsible for managing corporate financing monies and related activities.


		Valuation Engineer's records, 1882-1991. 140.2 cubic feet.
			Architectural drawings (1882-1919), station plat maps (1917), track profile drawings (1917), mechanical valuation records, annual reports to the ICC Bureau of Valuation (1939-1947) and the Minnesota Railroad and Warehouse Commission (1954-1962), and miscellaneous valuation reports and worksheets produced or maintained by the NP administrative unit responsible for tracking and reporting on the monetary value (cost of reproduction) of the Northern Pacific’s physical properties and those of its subsidiaries.


		Branch Lines.
			The branch lines and their records are described in our library catalog.
			Fuller inventories are available at the Minnesota Historical Society library.

RELATED MATERIALS

Records of the Great Northern Railway Company are also available at the Minnesota Historical Society.

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CATALOG HEADINGS

This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the Minnesota Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.

Topics:: Railroads -- Northwestern States -- Design and construction.; Railroads -- Northwestern States -- Finance.; Railroads -- Northwestern States -- Management.; Railroads -- Northwestern States -- Rolling-stock.; Railroad land grants.; Railroads and state.; Railroads -- Mergers -- Northwestern States.; Railroads -- Valuation -- Northwestern States.; Railroads -- Freight -- Rates -- Northwestern States.

Organizations:: Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company.; Great Northern Railway Company (U.S.).; Minnesota and International Railway Company.; Northern Pacific Railway Company.; Northern Pacific Railway Company -- Records and correspondence.; Northwestern Improvement Company.; St. Paul and Duluth Railroad Company.; Spokane, Portland, and Seattle Railway.

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NORTHERN PACIFIC RAILWAY COMPANY:

OVERVIEW

HISTORICAL NOTE

SCOPE AND CONTENTS

ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

RELATED MATERIALS

CATALOG HEADINGS