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WSOR Story, the Wisconsin & Southern Railroad 1980-2010 w/ dust jacket
Wisconsin & Southern Railroad The WSOR Story 1980-2010
WSOR Story 1980-2010
Hard Cover w/ dust jacket (has minor damage)
285 pages
Copyright 2010 First edition
CONTENTS
Preface6
Introduction 10
Chapter 1 Wisconsin's Railroading Backstory 16
Chapter 2 WSOR Is Born 1980-198836
Chapter 3 Bill Gardner Arrives 1988-199262
Chapter 4 Growing Pains 1992-200274
Chapter 5 WSOR Matures 2002-2010118
Chapter 6 The Locomotives152
Chapter 7 WSOR's Freight Equipment190
Chapter 8 WSOR's Passenger Trains200
Chapter 9 Infrastructure Initiatives222
Chapter 10 WSOR's Obligation To Safety & Training 240
Chapter 11 Then and Now250
Chapter 12 What If266
Acknowledgements280
Bibliography 281
Index283
DUST JACKET INTRODUCTION
THE PASSING OF THREE DECADES may not seem like a long time. In the first thirty years of most of our lives, we grow, learn, mature, settle down. The same could be said for a Class Il regional railroad that is based in and operating throughout southern Wisconsin.
But for the little 147-mile 27-employee three-locomotive Wisconsin & Southern Railroad Co.-more commonly known simply for its AAR reporting marks "WSOR"-thirty years has also meant an incredible transformation. Out of mud, weeds, and the rusty rails of the bankrupt Chicago Milwaukee St. Paul & Pacific Road rose a phoenix in the form of a flying goose. On July 1, 1980, the fledgling Wisconsin & Southern Railroad began serving customers in southern Wisconsin the best way it knew how: with attention to personal service by whatever means available.
In 1988, Milwaukee businessman Bill Gardner purchased the company and expanded WSOR over the years. Customers have been added, more miles of track acquired. Thirty years later the WSOR operates over 700 miles of tracks with 200 employees and 43 locomotives. Comparing photographs from thirty years ago aptly demonstrates just how far the Wisconsin & Southern has come.
The WSOR Story serves as a tribute to all the people and institutions that have built the WSOR into the award-winning organization that it is today. Not just a corporate entity, the WSOR can also be seen as a transportation engine that serves the people, communities, and businesses of Wisconsin. WSOR supports the local economy, saves taxpayers money, and is beneficial to the environment.
The WSOR of today would not have been possible without the business leaders, the planning commissions, legislators, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, and local rail transit commissions, who fought hard to keep the tracks. WSOR would not be here today without the hard work and devotion of its hundreds of employees over the last thirty years. And it would not have grown to its present form without the leadership of Bill Gardner.
From an initial idea by WSOR's own president and CEO Bill Gardner, this book has been produced through a team effort, entirely by WSOR's employees. From research, writing, interviews, and photographs (supplemented with more from WSOR's legion of dedicated fans), to scanning of film, designing the layout, and production, The WSOR Story is just as much a product of the Wisconsin & Southern Railroad Co. as the next grain train led by red-and-gray locomotives you may see coming down the tracks. Enjoy. "WSOR, you have permission to proceed."
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