Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad

The Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad was formed in 1877 through the consolidation of three predecessor lines, connecting Chicago's southern suburbs and Terre Haute, Indiana through Danville, Illinois, and later building a line to the Mississippi River at Thebes in southern Illinois, with its Chicago passenger terminal at Dearborn Station. Classified as a Class I railroad, it survived the Great Depression and both World Wars despite entering bankruptcy in 1933. It was purchased jointly by the Missouri Pacific Railroad and the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, with Missouri Pacific assuming control in 1967 and formally merging the C&EI into its own system in 1976.