The Milwaukee Railroad Abandons Columbia River Electrification
Supply chain issues and shifting fuel costs force the Milwaukee Railroad to prioritize the Coast division over the local line.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Electrification crews of the Milwaukee railroad which were working on the line between Othello and South Cle Elum have been ordered to change from the Columbia to the Coast division. Material which was being unloaded at Othello and other points, preparatory to beginning actual construction of pole lines, was ordered loaded back on the cars and shipped to South Cle Elum. Railroad officials have decided to electrify the Coast division between Seattle and Tacoma and South Cle Elum first, instead of the Columbia division. Several reasons are given for the change. The first is that the Milwaukee’s fuel oil contract with the Standard Oil company expires within 80 days and the company has refused to renew it for longer than 90-day periods at twice the old rate. It is impossible to use coal burners through the forest reserves in the mountains, while coal burners can be used between South Cle Elum and Othello without danger. Another reason is that power plants on the Sound will be ready to transmit electric power for the Sound division before the hydro-electric plant north of Spokane will be ready for the Columbia division.
“It is impossible to use coal burners through the forest reserves in the mountains, while coal burners can be used between South Cle Elum and Othello without danger.”
This infrastructure pivot highlights the region's long history as a theater for large-scale energy projects. The tension between local agricultural development and the broader logistical needs of transcontinental rail corporations remains a recurring theme in Eastern Washington's economic history.
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