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RE: (erielack) What shoulda been

Actually, the EL asked for inclusion Jan. 9,1975.

Santa Fe Industries released it's "Proposal for Acquisition" May 30,1975. In the end, Greg Maxwell stated that "We were too far along with our commitment to Conrail."

The Chessie/N&W purchases were the USRA's idea to maintain competition in the northeast. The "Three Systems East concept". 

Mike Spinelli

Paul Brezicki wrote: 
> Mike, your chronology is a bit off. ATSF did consider the possibility of acquiring EL in 1974, before EL's trustees considered becoming a part of Conrail. The ATSF expressed interest while the MARC-EL proposal was on the table. Prior to the onset of the severe recession in the second half of 1974, EL was still contemplating reorganization as an independent entity. Also around this time, the Milwaukee Road, struggling financially and disadvantaged by the 1970 BN merger, proposed to acquire the ex-PRR Panhandle (Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago & St Louis) route between Chicago and Pittsburgh. The PC bankruptcy was a cataclysmic event in the RR world, and there was lots of uncertainty about how the Northeast RR map would eventually be carved up. Railroads consider lots of proposals that are never implemented, and the Santa Fe abandoned the idea of acquiring EL when it became apparent that a trans-Chicago merger would still have an icicle's chance in hell
 of getting through the ICC. However, the interest did lead to more coordination at Chicago including revival of the ATSF-100 symbol and Croxton origination of ATSF-99 in July, 1974. In early 1975 EL requested inclusion in the Final System Plan, then late that year Chessie proposed to acquire most of EL east of Akron. The scuttling of this plan in early 1976 led to EL's last-minute inclusion in Conrail.
> Paul B
> From: Mike Spinelli <idrsspin_@_yahoo.com>
> Subject: RE: (erielack) What shoulda been
> Santa Fe made inroads toward an offer, and even looked at buying a short road that would connect the two bypassing Chicago. But the EL trustees had already got in bed with Conrail and didn't want to back out. Some wonder how serious ATSF really was.
> Mike Spinelli
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