Railroading & The Winter Of 1855/56.

As we have written elsewhere, the Mississippi & Missouri (M&M) Railroad – which began its trek westward from Davenport toward Iowa City in the fall of 1855 – ran into several factors during their first year that slowed the construction to a snail’s pace. First, there were nagging money problems that plagued the company’s forward progress. Secondly, the M&M business plan to build three lines (one from Davenport west to Council Bluffs, the second, from Muscatine north to Minnesota, and the third, from Muscatine south to Missouri) was simply too complicated for a smaller, under-financed company to accomplish. And thirdly, the Winter of 1855-1856 made travel nearly impossible during the months of December, January and February. As a matter of fact, the Winter of 55/56 became known to most Iowa pioneers as one of the harshest winters the Midwest experienced during the entire 19th century!

*This report (below) on the Winter of 1855-1856 comes from Freeport, Ohio, but according to weather records, the entire Midwest – including Iowa – was hit with similar situations…*

*“American Railroad Scene” A Currier & Ives lithograph. American-Rails.com collection.*

The M&M Railroad had originally hoped to complete their line from Davenport to Iowa City by December 1, 1855, but because of the early arrival of wintry weather in Iowa, they were fortunate to make it into Iowa City by year’s end.

You can read the full story here of how the M&M construction crew – working alongside the good citizens of Iowa City – were able to complete the line before the strike of midnight on December 31st – New Year’s Eve – 1855.

**The Railroad Arrives** – an oil painting by Iowa City artist Mildred Pelzer (1934). Notice **LeGrand Byington** (hand raised) and **Peter A. Dey** of Iowa City are depicted – cheering on the M&M workers. Click here to read more about Mildred Pelzer’s amazing mural.

In what became Iowa City’s biggest celebration in its short 17-year history, M&M Railroad – alongside the Iowa City City Council – planned a huge event for January 3, 1856 – bringing seven passenger car-loads of Easterners into town for one Grand Railroad Festival. While attended by hundreds of out-of-towners, it was Old Man Winter who got the most attention…

Attending that ice-cold festival in Iowa City on January 3, 1856, were a handful of Easterners who had gathered in Detroit, with round-trip tickets to Iowa City via Chicago, riding first on the Michigan Central Railroad. From the Windy City, they would board the Chicago & Rock Island Railroad, traveling on a free pass to Rock Island where they would, then, ferry across the Mississippi, joining with many others on the M&M for the final 55-mile leg of their long journey into Iowa City on January 3.

Under normal circumstances, a trip like this could take nearly a week or more, but with the holidays and the inclement December weather, this particular trip from Detroit nearly cost this traveling party their lives. The veteran railroad man – George P. Floyd – who served as conductor on this fateful trip from Detroit to Chicago, retold the story to the Old Settlers of Johnson County Association in 1909. We’ve reprinted most of his story here…

**George P. Floyd** was a hotel proprietor, railroad conductor, and an acquaintance of Abraham Lincoln. In 1856, Floyd leased the Quincy House in Quincy, Illinois, and he employed Lincoln to draw up and execute the lease. Below – Floyd tells us more about the early days of railroading, including the details of the fateful snowy departure of the Michigan Central passenger train from Detroit on **December 19, 1855**. In truth, Floyd’s 158 passengers – including those who planned to travel to Iowa City – were in for a train ride they would never forget…

As we mentioned earlier, some of those who made that fateful trip from Detroit to Chicago were on their way to Iowa City to participate in the Grand Railroad Festival held on January 3, 1956. Below, is a sample of the announcement flyer that was sent back East, recruiting investors and others to come visit Iowa City on the M&M Railroad…

Read about one man’s bone-chilling experience at the January 3, 1856 Grand Rail Road Festival – **Thomas S. Carson.**

While the Winter of 1855-1856 was historic in nature, the previous winter wasn’t a picnic either. Here, from the February 3, 1855 edition of The Rock Island Daily Republican is this wintry story of the Chicago & Rock Island passenger train trying to go from Rock Island to Chicago…

***The Railroad and Old Man Winter – not a friendly combination!***

***This photograph of Rock Island railroaders “bucking” snow “in the years of early railroading” comes from the March 1921 edition of The Rock Island Employee’s Magazine.***

Click here for a complete index of pages dedicated to Iowa Railroads

Click here for a M&M Railroad Timetable

On July 1, 1976, The Iowa City Press-Citizen published a special 76-page Bicentennial edition. In that edition there were articles and pictures related to stories found on this page. You can read more here.