Wikipedia:WikiProject Trains/ICC valuations/St. Louis and Illinois Belt Railway

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The St. Louis and Illinois Belt Railway, herein called the St. Louis and Illinois Belt, whose entire common-carrier property is leased to and operated by the carrier, owns a single-track line extending southerly from Edwardsville Junction to a connection with the road of The Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad Company near Formosa, 6.939 miles.

CORPORATE HISTORY

The St. Louis and Illinois Belt was incorporated October 4, 1905, under the general laws of the State of Illinois, for the purpose of constructing a railroad from a point at or near Alton, Ill., in a southerly direction to the Mississippi River near the St. Clair-Monroe County line. The date of organization has not been ascertainable from the records reviewed.

DEVELOPMENT OF FIXED PHYSICAL PROPERTY

The owned mileage, extending from Edwardsville Junction to a connection with the railroad of The Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad Company, near Formosa, Ill., 6.939 miles, was acquired by construction. The construction work was begun by the St. Louis and Illinois Belt under the supervision of its own forces and was completed by the Syndicate Construction Company, under contract dated December 1, 1908.

The company states in its corporate history return that the road was constructed during the period from October 1, 1905, to June 1, 1908. However, the carrier states in its annual report for the year ended June 30, 1909, that construction was not completed until December, 1908, and that rental payments under lease dated October 27, 1908, were waived until construction had been completed. The first rental payment recorded by the carrier is for the seven months ended June 30, 1910. What portion of the road was completed or in operation prior to December 1, 1909, is not determinable from the records reviewed.

HISTORY OF CORPORATE FINANCING