OSL Paris Branch

The Paris Branch of the Oregon Short Line was only 9.6 miles long, leaving the main line of the railroad at Montpelier, Idaho, and going south to Paris. It wasn't built until 1911, after many years of urging by local residents who were upset that the Oregon Short Line had built their line through Montpelier instead of Paris, which had been the business and religious center of the area. The purpose of the line was to transport agricultural products and livestock as well as the local residents.[1] The line only lasted 33 years, and in 1943 the Paris Branch was one of the first rail lines in Idaho to be abandoned due to the small amount of business. It had a unique passenger train for a short period of time, the "Ping-Pong", which ran between Paris and McCammon to that the local residents could connect with the main line passenger trains.

The need for a railroad from Montpelier on the main line of the Oregon Short Line to Paris was obvious, because the road went through marshy bottom lands. One traveler wrote the following about his trip from Montpelier to Paris :[2]

"…I noticed my driver was making for what seemed to me to be a lake six or eight miles wide: on asking the name of the lake, imagine my surprise and horror to find that this was the overflow from sloughs and rivers which we must drive through to reach out destination. Pointing to a black speck far out in the water, my driver informed me that ity was the bridge over Ovid Creek, and if he could reach it in safety he thought the water was lower on the other side. So, with the water running over the dashboard and with out feet on a level with our heads, we made for the bridge, which had the appearance of being the gable end of a house floating in the water. After considerable trouble we reached the bridge in safety and left it in sorrow, for in making the descent our horse went out of sight…. and the next instant found my companion in water up to this arms, holding on to the horse with no small amount of fright…..I caught sight of another object which seemed to be a large ferry boat, and was given to understand that 'that was the Bear River bridge and if would only find some way of telling where the banks of the river were we would reach it.'….the bridge was reached in safety….Only 300 yards more of water lay between us and the dry ground, but deeper than any we had yet passed through….the tug broke at a point where the water ran over the horse's back, the driver shouted that the horse was drowning and told me to jump…..we had cut the horse loose and got his head above water, after which we waded and finally got horse, buggy, and ourselves to shore just as the shades of darkness began to cover things up….The best way to go from Paris to Montpelier is via Evanston and Granger. The brethren think the roads will passable by the first of January, 1886, if they have an early freeze; otherwise the next time I have occasion to travel this road I won't travel it."

The roads and bridges were slowly improved over the years, but hampered by the lack of fund. The railroad, not anxious to build what it felt would be a money-losing line, reluctantly agreed to build a branch line from Montpelier through Ovid to Paris as long as it obtained the right-of-way and land for the stockyards in Paris and Ovid at no cost. Apparently the railroad agreed to build the branch line to Paris as early as 1907,[3] following a proposal by the local landowners to provide free land for the right-of-way and stockyards, but no work was done at this time.

In July 1910 the Oregon Short Line announced it was going to build a line from Montpelier 11 miles southwest to Paris.[4] A recommendation for the route of the Paris Branch was submitted to the Board of Directors of the Oregon Short Line on September 2, 1910, and it was approved on September 8, 1910. The new line was to go 5 miles southwest to Ovid and then 4-1/2 miles south to Paris. The maximum grade was to be 0.3 percent and the maximum curvature 6 degrees. There were to be 6 or 7 trestles across the Bear River.

The railroad estimated the construction costs at $136,311 for the 9 miles of line, as detailed in Table 1. There was to be one through plate girder bridge, and several wood and frame trestles, although it appears a girder bridge was not built. The line used untreated ties and second hand 70# rail, manufactured in 1898, a common practice at the time for branch lines. Some of the yard track was 52# rail dating back to 1883. There were to be two passenger depots, 2 coal houses, 1 section house, a coal house, and 1 stock yard. A Jap house was provided by the railroad for the Japanese section workers, men who were hired by the railroad to maintain the right-of-way.

Construction was reported to be in progress in October by the Utah Construction Company of Ogden. As of June 30, 1911, the railroad reported it had laid tracks on the entire 9.50 miles of line.[5] At the time the Railway Age Gazette referred to the line as the Bear Lake Branch. [6]

When the first train arrived at Paris on July 24, 1911, it was greeted by a crowd of 1000, along with railroad officials, civic officials, and the Paris municipal band, who were supported by musicians from other parts of the valley. The train was operated by railroad workers from Montpelier, and had a private car, carrying A. B. Stevenson, Superintendent of the Idaho Division of the Oregon Short Line, Joel Gray of Salt Lake City, D.R. Priest, a railroad official from Wyoming, and other railroad officials. The engineer was Clarence Vance, the fireman was Bob Hack, and the conductor was F.N. Sands, assisted by Bill Hughart.

The special train was greeted by Paris Mayor Amasa Rich and Judge Alfred Budge. There was a special ceremony at the Bear Lake Tabernacle, along with a baseball game between Paris and Montpelier, a picnic dinner, and a dance, followed by the last train returning to Montpelier. There had been three train that day between the two cities.[7] Free ice cream was provided for those waiting at the train station. The line was officially opened to traffic in August 15, 1911.[8]

In 1913 OSL reported it had spent $792.38 on the line from Montpelier to Paris, presumably the final improvements needed complete the line. [9]

Passenger Service

When the railroad began operations it ran a train between Paris and McCammon, but it was discontinued after only 52 days of operation due to the lack of business. Costing 85 cents a mile to operate, the railroad only earned 35 cents a mile in passenger revenue. The railroad did not run a passenger train for three years, but finally agreed to run a mixed train, and operations began on July 24, 1914, "Pioneer Day."[10],[11]

Initially the railroad ran one mixed train each day between Montpelier and Paris with a station stop at Ovid. The locomotive used in the first year was in the 1000 series. The schedule was improved over the next few years so that at one point there were two trains a day in each direction. There were only three stations on the line, at Transfer (MP 3.0), Ovid (MP 5.3), and Paris, the end of the line at MP 9.6. The Transfer "station" was not a scheduled or flag stop. The principal commodity of the line was agricultural products, although some mine products were shipped out over the line in later years. There was a turntable at Montpelier used to turn the locomotive and Paris had a wye.

The train made enough money to support its operations for the first five years. However, improved highways resulted in the decline of the railroad, as the freight traffic went to trucks. Students from Montpelier stopped riding the train to the Fielding Academy in Paris after the Academy burned down in 1929, and they began attending the new Montpelier High School.

The train running between Paris, Montpelier and McCammon was known for many years as the "Ping Pong" or the "Farmers Friend". The railroad officials preferred the name of "Farmer's Friend".[12] Connections were made at McCammon for trains to the West to Pocatello, Boise, and other points, south to Salt Lake City, and when the train to McCammon was discontinued connections were made at Montpelier with the eastbound and westbound trains. A picture of the train shows that, for a period of time at least, it had a baggage car. According to local legend, since the right-of-way was through unfenced ranchland, the locomotive had a special shrill whistle used to scare away any livestock.

The "official" name "Farmer's Friend" was reportedly recommended by OSL Richard Olmstead, a superintendent. According to one legend, Olmstead was at a railroad dance at Montpelier and had several drinks. When he heard someone call "his" train the "Ping-Pong", he got into a fight, getting a black eye in the altercation. The train was immediately discontinued. The official reason given was that the train was losing money.

The timetable for June 14, 1914, showed one mixed train a day in each direction, as follows:

Train No. 81	Distance from Montpelier	Station	Train No. 82
8:10 am	0.0	Montpelier	3:35 pm
-----	3.0	Transfer	-----
7:48 am	5.3	Ovid	3:55 pm
7:30 am	9.6	Paris	4:15 pm

Train No. 81	Distance from Montpelier	Station	Train No. 82
4:15 PM	0.0	Montpelier	8:10 AM
4:35 PM	5.3	Ovid	7:48 AM
4:55 PM	9.6	Paris	7:30 AM

As can be seen, the train was scheduled for Paris residents who needed to spend the day in Montpelier or else needed to catch a long distance train.

In 1915 the Oregon Short Line stated it had lost $224.06 on passenger service on the Paris Branch, a common issue for most branch line passenger services. This was part of an attempt by the railroad to raise the fares, and it met with the expected opposition.[13] The schedule was improved over the next few years so that there were two mixed trains a day in each direction by 1920, and in 1926 the daily train service was as shown below:

Train No. 399	Train No. 397	Mileage from Montpelier	Station	Train No. 396	Train No. 398
4:20 pm	9:00 am	0.0	Montpelier	8:00 am	2:45 pm
4:35 pm	9:20 am	5	Ovid	7:42 am	2:25 pm
4:50 pm	9:40 am	10	Paris	7:30 am	2:10 pm

Effective November 15, 1930. the baggage cars on trains 396/397 and 398/399 were removed from the trains, which ran daily-except-Sunday. In later years the railroad apparently ran a motor car between Montpelier and McCammon for a period of time in lieu of a train to Paris.

Abandonment

The line was not profitable, and in 1939 the Union Pacific Railroad began to publicize the fact that it was losing money on the line. The railroad tried to encourage passenger travel on the line by offering unlimited rides with a monthly ticket, but this only increased its losses. The railroad stated it lost $7,400 in 1939, and that the railroad had not made any money on its passenger service since 1936. By 1941 the two daily trips had been decreased to a single trip, but during World War II the second trip was reinstated due to gas rationing, However, by the end of 1942 the railroad announced it was going to abandon the line and petitioned the Interstate Commerce Commission to abandon it. Local residents protested and appealed to various government agencies, to no avail. On January 12, 1943, the ICC granted the Oregon Short Line Railroad Company permission to abandon the line.[14] In 1943 the U.S. District Court ruled that the line could be abandoned, subject to 30 days notification. The last trip was made 30 days later, on December 1, 1943, with a large number of passengers. The 9.49 miles of track were torn up starting the next week[15].

Along the Line

There were only three stations on the line, at Transfer (MP 3.0), Ovid (MP 5.3), and Paris, the end of the line at MP 9.6. The Transfer "station" was not a scheduled or flag stop and was gone from the timetable by 1930. The train left the Idaho First Subdivision at Montpelier in southeastern Idaho. Montpelier was a crew change point with a roundhouse, turntable, and other facilities used to support operations.

Ovid (MP 5.3): Ovid was first settled as North Creek in the spring of 1864 by Danes who were Mormon pioneers. It was named for Ovid, New York, which is associated with early Mormon history[16] by Charles Rich. The post office opened 1873.[17]

Ovid had a one story depot, built in 1911, 24' x 48', and a frame and cinder platform.

Paris (MP 9.6): The first settlers at Paris were Mormons led by Charles C. Rich. They came from Utah in the fall of 1863 and built dugouts for temporary shelters until they could build houses. Frederick Perris came to survey a townsite on the north side of the creek. Despite the harsh winter weather he surveyed the area, but he hated the cold weather, preferring the warmer weather in California, where he had spent some time. Following his survey he departed on a wagon train headed West as soon as he could, despite the fact it was April and the weather was warming up. The townspeople appreciated his work. Although they had planned to name the new community Richland or Richville for their leader, Charles Rich, they chose to name it for the surveyor. Documents were handwritten at the time, and "Perris" was mistaken for "Paris", and the spelling was soon changed accordingly.[18] This has been disputed. Another story states it was named for Paris, France, while other say it was named for a trapper named Paris.[19] Another story states Brigham Young visited the new settlement in June 1864 and named it "Paris." It became the county seat when Bear County was established in 1875[20] even though it was not on the main line of the railroad and was the business and religious center of the Bear Lake Valley area. Paris was incorporated as a village in 1897 and as a town in 1907. In 1910 the population was 1038, [21] in 1960 it was 746 and in 2020 it was 541. The post office opened in 1873.[22]

Paris had a two story depot 24' x 26', with a 24' x 31' wing for freight and baggage, built in 1911. The agent lived in the second story. There was a frame and cinder platform. The depot was located at 2nd East and Center Street, 2 blocks from the center of town. The ticket office and waiting room were on the north end, and the freight and baggage room was on the south end. Paris also had a bunk house using an 8' x 37' car body, installed in 1914 and a 4" water column, and there was a wye to turn the locomotive. The wye was to the north of town, where the branch line entered the village.

Livestock was an important commodity shipped from Paris. The stockyard was built in 1911. In 1930 Paris had five stockpens with one single deck loading chute and a capacity of 21 head of livestock in the immediate loading deck. In 1936 Paris had 5 stockpens with 1 single deck loading chute and a capacity of 28 head of livestock in the immediate loading deck.[23]

Construction Costs

The Oregon Short Line Railroad Company prepared a cost estimate for the construction of the Bear Lake Branch from Montpelier to Paris, MP 0.0 to MP 9.5. The estimate was not dated, but may have been prepared after the construction of the line. The details are listed in Table 1.

Cross ties were untreated, at $.80 each, 29,750 ties. Switch ties and bridge ties separate.

References and Further Reading

Hawley, James H. editor, History of Idaho. Chicago: Clarke Publishing Company, 1920.

Kramer, Fritz L. "Idaho Town Names." Twenty-Third Biennial Report of the Idaho State Historical Society, 1931-32.

Randall, Art. A Short History and Postal Record of Idaho Towns.Self-published, 1994

Rich, A. McKay. The History of Montpelier, Idaho from 1864 to 1925. Montpelier: Bear Lake Publishing Company. 1957, 2003 edition.

Corporate History of Oregon Short Line Railroad Company as of June 30, 1916, Prepared in accordance with ICC Valuation Order No. 2.

Footnotes

[23] Official Freight Shippers Guide and Directory,Union Pacific Railroad, p. 41