Galena and Southern Wisconsin Railroad

As for the railroad itself, a Galena Gazette story dated April 9, 1874 indicates that the first of two engines was delivered.[1] It was named the Platteville and numbered as No.1. The description tells that the Platteville had 35,000 W.W.O., 6 drivers (drive wheels) each 3 feet (0.91 m) in diameter, and one pony truck in front. This makes it a Mogul-type engine, with a 2-6-0 configuration. Furthermore, the Platteville had 11-by-16-inch (280 by 410 mm) cylinders and tender water tank capacity of 1,100 US gallons (4,200 l). The tender had a pair of four-wheeled trucks. The Platteville was estimated to be able to pull 800 tons on a level grade, and at 75 feet per mile (1.42%), to draw 100 tons.

The Platteville 3 ft (914 mm) gauge locomotive was manufactured in Connellsville, Pennsylvania, at the National Locomotive Works[4]. It cost $7,000 and would be used in the extension and construction of the line to Platteville, Wisconsin, which would eventually be completed on 1 January 1875. The article also mentions a second locomotive, The Galena, which would be delivered sometime in September 1874.

One interesting story from 6 November 1874[1] mentions an accident that involved the Platteville locomotive. "Mr. Geo W. Mortimer from the Steam Engine Works at Connellsville, Pa. where the Platteville was made" was slightly injured in a minor steam escape as he was overhauling the boiler.

Unlike The Platteville locomotive, The Galena was a 4-4-0 American-type engine. The Galena had 44-inch (1.1 m) drivers and a similar tender to that of the Platteville but which could hold 1,000 US gallons (3,800 l) of water, (100 less than the Platteville's tender) yet still more than enough for the 31 mile trip along the full length of the line, and the locomotive is reported to have had similar traction power to No. 1.

The rolling stock of the G&SWRR came mostly from the Litchfield Car Works, originally in Litchfield, Illinois. In 1889 this company moved to Mount Vernon, Illinois and changed its name to the Mount Vernon Car Company. The company had earlier built rolling stock for several railroads, such as the Gulf, California and Santa Fe Railway[5]

The Galena Gazette article of 27 November 1874[1] mentions a passenger car costing $1,500 being the first such added to the line. By this time the line reached well into Wisconsin, as far up as Cuba City, Wisconsin, and passenger service was vital to the operation of the G&SWRR. The passenger car was reported as 40 feet (12 m) long, with 10 feet (3.0 m) of its length dedicated to baggage, express & post office use, whilst the other 30 feet (9.1 m) had a 28-seat passenger compartment. There was a report of a minor incident involving the passenger coach, whereby it left the tracks near the tunnel close to Buncombe P.O. and sustained a few scratches, but was quickly returned to service.

A "comfortable caboose" was also added for freight service. Most of the freight service seems to have been mainly livestock, although Wisconsin cheese and dairy as well as lead and zinc mined in the region would have been an important source of income. There are also mentions in the Galena Gazette of "hay, flour, and other goods" being transported along the line. With connections to the Illinois Central in Galena, local goods reached Chicago and beyond. In later years, goods and passengers could ride from Platteville and Ipswich, Wisconsin, (located southeast of Platteville), all the way to Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Before the G&SWRR ceased to exist independently, General and President Grant and his wife rode the train from Galena to Platteville, as described in a Galena Gazette article.

During the late 1870s, the railroad began losing revenue as flooding and snow storms were regularly stopping all traffic along the line.