EXHIBITS
The Utah-Idaho Central Railroad: Northern Utah’s Interurban Experience: Plans for Expansion in the Roaring Twenties
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Plans for Expansion in the Roaring Twenties
As World War I came to an end, an economic slump halted the need for the exportation of agricultural products. Tariffs further slowed the farmers’ outputs and a depression hit many regions, including the areas serviced by the U.I.C.[1] Discussions began to be made about changes to the operations of the U.I.C. One of the key services provided by the O.R.T., L.R.T., O.L.I., and U.I.C. since their inception was city transit systems in Ogden, Logan, and Brigham City. With the downturn of the economy, the loss of profits, and dreams of continued expansion in Idaho, the company decided to cut the city streetcar systems from the U.I.C. to reduce future costs and maintenance needs.[2] At the end of 1923 and the beginning of 1924, the U.I.C. disbanded the Brigham City streetcar lines. The Ogden lines were sold to a new company known as the Utah Rapid Transit Company.[3] To prevent outside interference and competition with local transportation, in 1924 the U.I.C. established its own bus line to transport passengers within the cities and as an alternative option from Ogden to Preston. Three intercity buses were initially purchased and their route was similar to the railroad, except that they traveled from Brigham City to Logan by way of Mantua within the canyon, “eliminating about 16 miles and enabling them to better the interurban’s time by 17 minutes between Brigham and Wellsville.”[4]
U.I.C. Buses Begin Service
Despite the selling and abandonment of some of the city streetcar lines, the revenue of the U.I.C. continued to decline until 1926, when the company entered receivership.[5] With receivership, reincorporation was necessary once again and the management of the company left the hands of many of those individuals who had previously been affiliated with David Eccles. Instead of being based in Utah, the new headquarters of the company was located in Delaware. New management introduced more changes to cut the costs of the company, including the dissolution of Logan City’s streetcar line and increasing the use of the company’s bus system. Debt and interest were reduced and the company began to make profits once more.[6] A new feeling of optimism entered the company, and plans began to be made for further expansion to bring in additional revenue.
Optimism Ends for the U.I.C.
In 1928 J. G. Gwyn, an engineering surveyor hired by the Utah-Idaho Railroad Company, submitted a survey report consisting of eighty-seven pages of information regarding the costs, benefits, opportunities, and obstacles of extending the U.I.C. lines from Brigham City into Idaho, through the Kelton Pass, ending with the Gooding area near Bliss and Mountain Home. Gwyn believed that a railroad line in the Snake River region would provide access to new agricultural areas and eventually provide means for connecting Ogden and Logan with Boise.[7] In the concluding pages, Gwyn describes an estimated amount of revenue that the U.I.C. might expect from this line, the expenses of maintaining the line, and his recommendations of action that the company should take regarding the prospective expansion.[8] “Seemingly an unusually favorable opportunity is presented to construct a branch line which will almost or quite maintain itself from time of completion and become of immediate and permanent value both to The Utah Idaho Central Railroad and its connections . . . It is therefore recommended that an application be made as promptly to the Interstate Commerce Commission for its permission to construct the line as the affairs of the company will permit.”[9] In 1932 the company expended $4,754 on engineering expenses related to the survey work provided by Gwyn. Despite the optimism and seeming opportunities and benefits of expanding the lines, no such extensions were undertaken by the U.I.C.[10] The effects of the Great Depression ended the optimism and permanently undermined the growth and operation of the Utah-Idaho Central Railroad.
Additional Samples of J. G. Gwyn’s Survey Report
