WINONA, Minn. – Since the Canadian Pacific phased out the name Soo Line for its main U.S. subsidiary, the railroad’s mainline trains through Winona have carried the CP logo and name – big, red and macho. That’s changing. Keith Creel, CP president, exuberant over the acquisition of Kansas City Southern and a through route into Mexico from Canada, said the railroad will adopt a new name, a new logo, and make a lot of other changes:
> New name: It will become Canadian Pacific Kansas City “to protect both companies’ proud histories,” Creel said.
> New livery. Expect something that integrates Kansas City’s classy red, gold and black refined striping with CP’s deadpan red.
> Beaver returneth. The beaver in CP’s historic logo, abandoned decades ago, will be integrated in a new CPKS logo. “The beaver is near and dear to our hearts,” Creel said.
> More north-south traffic. The two railroads currently meet only in Kansas City with only two through freights a day 960 miles to Laredo on the Mexico border. New three-nation through trains will now pass directly through Kansas City.
> Better tracks. A priority is beefing up the 480-mile CP line connecting Kansa City and Chicago to accommodate 60-mph seeds, Creel said.
> Faster trains. Tracks also will be upgraded for 60 mph trains between Kansas City and KCS’s operational hub at Shreveport, Louisiana.
Big, bold, red. You’ll be seeing less of this.
1881 heritage. Until recent decades the beaver was part of CP’s logo 140 years. It’ll be back.
Creel. Architect of the CP and Kansas City rail merger. Holds Progressive Railroading magazine’s Railroad Innovator Award for 2014.
Many years, many names
The Milwaukee. The mainline railroad through Winona, connecting Chicago and Minneapolis, was owned by the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific until the company dissolved in bankruptcy in 1986. The Milwaukee Road, as it was called, operated the flashy Hiawatha Olympian passenger train to the West Coast and back to Chicago.
The Soo. The line was acquired by the Canadian Pacific, which folded it into its Soo Line subsidiary. The Soo also had several other routes from Winnipeg through Minnesota and Wisconsin to Chicago.
> CP. In 1987 the Canadian Pacific sold its central Wisconsin Soo routes and began repainting locomotives on its remaining Soo routes with the CP
name.
> Next CPKS. The historic merger of CP and Kansas Cty Southern, in 2021, means new colors and logos. These will be introduced gradually on the mainline through Winona and also on the former Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern branch from Winona to South Dakota. Meanwhile, a yellow Union Pacific daily freight will continue into Winona from LaCrosse through a trackage agreement with CP. Also. the national passenger service Amtrak will continue daily roundtrips through Winona on CP tracks, err, CPKC tracks.