The author’s best photographs of operations on the Milwaukee’s famous Pacific Extension. A wonderful look back at the former electrified territory, almost all of which is now hiking trails or returned to nature.

Interested in learning more about the history of the Milwaukee Road routes in Washington that have been turned into trails? Follow our virtual tours: This tour extends from the westernmost trailhead at Cedar Falls, WA (near North Bend) to the end of the trail at the Washington/Idaho border and beyond to Plummer, ID. Timeline of significant dates.

3 days ago · In 1912, the Milwaukee Road began to electrify much of the Pacific Expansion and by 1916 electric operation was in place from Harlowton, Montana to Avery, Idaho, a distance of 212 miles.

For nearly six decades, smooth, silent hydroelectric power was used to power both passenger & freight trains through the Rocky & Cascade mountains of Montana, Idaho and Washington – with a fleet of 116 electric locomotives of five different types ultimately placed into service.

Jul 3, 2017 · When the Milwaukee Road crossed the Bitterroot Range of the Rocky Mountains between Montana and Idaho on their march towards the Pacific Northwest, they spanned numerous small chasms with large steel viaducts.

Soon an agreement was reached with the westward building Milwaukee Road, which built a branch from St. Maries on its mainline to a connection with the WI&M Railway, and on to the new town of Elk River, where the Potlatch Lumber Company constructed a second sawmill.

Oct 11, 2013 · The Milwaukee Road was the third railroad connecting the Midwest with the Northwest, following the Northern Pacific (completed in 1884, going over Stampede Pass to Tacoma) and the Great Northern (completed in 1893, going over Stevens Pass into Seattle).

Today, what's left of the Milwaukee Road is cut up among different railroads and the best engineered route through the rugged Rockies and Cascades is but weeds and trails, a vital transportation artery no longer available to shippers and the American economy.