Washington & Idaho

Company History: The WIL was launched in 2007 to takeover as operator of a line from the west side of Spokane, Washington south through Spangle, Oakesdale, Palouse and Pullman. At Pullman, the line heads east to Moscow, Idaho. There is also a branch from Palouse east to Potlatch and Harvard, Idaho. WIL replaced Watco’s Palouse River & Coulee City Railroad as operator of these lines. Originally they belonged to Northern Pacific and Washington Idaho & Montana Railway. The locomotive fleet included a former Polouse River & Coulee City GP30M, a former Dakota Missouri Valley & Western GP16 (both patched,) and a former Canadian National F9Au painted in Southern Pacific black widow colors. In 2019 their operating agreement expired and the WIL was replaced with the new Spokane Spangle & Palouse Railway.

Successor/Parent History: The SSPR was established in 2019 to be the new designated operator of 103 miles of state owned railroad in eastern Washington. They include routes from Colfax to Pullman and on to the Idaho state line, Palouse to the state line, and Pullman to Marshall. At last check, only the 66 miles from Palouse to Marshall was actually in operation. The company is a subsidiary of Omaha Track Inc. The locomotive fleet includes a pair of GP39-2’s and a pair of GP39-2M’s.

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.