Utah Southern

Company History: The roots of the USR go back to 2006 when Palladon Iron leased Union Pacific’s Comstock Subdivision which runs from Iron Mountain to a connection with UP at Iron Springs on their Cedar City Branch (off of the former LA&SL mainline in Utah.) A new operator for the line was established by the owner of the Albany Eastern Railroad (in Oregon.) At first, the new shortline was to be called Iron Bull Railroad but the name was changed to Utah Southern before operations were set to begin in 2008. A pair of SD40-2’s and 150 rapid discharge hoppers were acquired to move iron ore. The ore was destined for export via the port of Richmond, California. A test train was run in October of 2008 but before the operation got any further, the financial crisis caused Palladon Iron to suspend development of the mine. It would be July of 2010 before the first revenue trains would run. The 14 mile line had maximum grades of 3% so loaded hoppers were moved from the mine in blocks of 25 cars. Three of these blocks were assembled into a 75 car train for interchange to Union Pacific. In December of 2011, CML Metals who succeeded Palladon Iron got into a contract dispute with USR, canceled the contract, and took over operation themselves as “CML Railroad.” Utah Southern was an operating railroad for just 17 months. The Utah Southern paint scheme is a glimpse at what Union Pacific’s paint scheme would look like had they not replaced brown with Harbor Mist Gray back in 1939.

Successor/Parent History: CMLR launched in 2012 to take over operation of the line from Iron Mountain to a connection with Union Pacific’s Cedar City Branch at Iron Springs, Utah. The previous operator had been the Utah Southern Railroad. The iron deposit in this area is known as the Comstock Mountain Lion from which the CML Railroad takes its name. CMLR typically loaded three 92-car unit trains per week for delivery to UP. UP then forwarded the trains to the Port of Long Beach, California (replacing trains to Stockton, California, the original destination.) The locomotive fleet consisted of four SD40-3’s leased from Helm Financial. In the autumn of 2014, falling ore prices caused the shutdown of the mine and railroad. The parent company CML Metals has since been sold to Gilbert Development Corporation.

Brief History: The U.S. is a country of 50 states covering a vast swath of North America, with Alaska in the northwest and Hawaii extending the nation’s presence into the Pacific Ocean. Major Atlantic Coast cities are New York, a global finance and culture center, and capital Washington, DC. Midwestern metropolis Chicago is known for influential architecture and on the west coast, Los Angeles' Hollywood is famed for filmmaking.