KATY Trail

A Portion of the KATY Railroad is Completed: March 15, 1893

Work was completed on the KATY railroad between St. Charles and New Franklin. Now it is a beautiful bicycle trail all across the state.


Missouri History Today December 27, 1893: Bellefontaine Bluffs Railroad Bridge Passes Key Test

Missouri History Today December 27, 1893: Bellefontaine Bluffs Railroad Bridge Passes Key Test


Missouri History Today September 24, 1987: Consultant Revives State’s Fast-Track Dreams

Missouri History Today September 24, 1987: Consultant Revives State’s Fast-Track Dreams


May 3, 1870

On this day the railroad was welcomed into Springfield, Missouri. This effectively removed the Ozarks as a barrier to Springfield's connection with the east.


July 27, 1866

The Atlantic and Pacific Railroad, predecessor of the St. Louis and San Francisco Railroad (known as The Frisco), was incorporated on this date.


May 1, 1958

The last KATY passenger train made its run across Missouri on this day. Prior to this there were 115 trains per day using Union Station in St. Louis. Other passenger lines soon followed suit as travelers moved toward interstate highways and aviation.


February 13, 1859

The first railroad across the state was completed between Hannibal and St. Joseph. On this date the eastbound section was joined with the westbound section at Chillicothe.


July 30, 1877

Days after the conclusion of the St. Louis general strike by the St. Louis Workingman's Party, the first general strike in the United States, the St. Louis County Council required all able-bodied males between the ages of twenty-one and fifty to work on the roads for six days each year. That day they also made another change; they raised the drinking age from sixteen to eighteen.