Cascade & Pacific Railway Historical Overview

The Cascade & Pacific Railway was incorporated in 1911 and chartered to build a standard gauge railway from Spokane to Seattle. Known as the "Glacier Peak Route", close ties were made with the Spokane International (UP) and agreements were struck with the Northern Pacific Railway on joint usage/maintenance agreements on certain routes within Washington State. C&P ran jointly over NP track west to Coulee City and then began the task of constructing its own mainline to the Puget Sound Basin. C&P crosses the Columbia River at Entiat, WA and then follows the Entiat, Mad and Chiwawa rivers crossing the Cascade divide at Buck Pass. Nearby Kennedy Hot Springs is reached via a short branch line west of Buck Pass. Glacier Peak is the prominent landmark in the Buck Pass area. The Suiattle river is followed west of Buck Pass and connection is again made with the NP at Darrington, WA. North Marysville Yard is the western terminus of the C&P. Running rights into the city of Seattle were negotiated with the NP via Snohomish, Bellevue and Renton and with the UP via Black River. Seattle-bound C&P trains terminate at UP's Argo Yard. Over the years C&P has upgraded its routes and signaling systems to accommodate more traffic. The mainline  over the Cascades received a CTC signaling system in 1968 and a welded rail program begun in 1972.  With the BN merger and the demise of the Milwaukee Road, C&P obtained additional running agreements with BN and also purchased portions of the ex-Milwaukee Road.  Additional running rights were granted to Seattle via Everett and Edmonds along Puget Sound and north to Bellingham via Stanwood, Mt. Vernon and Burlington. The Bellingham Division was purchased from the bankrupt Milwaukee Road and many improvements followed including CTC signaling and upgrades in track and structure. The steam years at C&P saw a mix of UP and NP power used on mainline trains. C&P stabled a modest fleet of 2-8-2s, 2-8-0s and 0-6-0s in its roster. Quickly realizing the advantages of the diesel electric locomotive,  C&P made the transition early to the new type of power.  ALCO RS2/3 and EMD GP7/9 made up most of the diesel fleet for many years. The Alco's are all gone now and C&P is an all EMD railroad with a variety of second-hand power purchased over the years. In 1971, new EMD SD38s  and SD40s were purchased to replace the retiring Alco's. Recent years have seen rebuilt and second-hand GP38s and GP40s arrive on the C&P. UP power is often seen operating on C&P trains and occasionally a BN unit makes an appearance. Cabooses have virtually disappeared on the C&P except for local freight trains.