Central Argentine Railway

The Central Argentine Railway (CA) (in Spanish: Ferrocarril Central Argentino) was one of the "Big Four" broad gauge, RailGauge|5'6"|al=off|lk=on, British-owned companies that built and operated railway networks in Argentina. The company was established in the 19th century, to serve the provinces of Santa Fe and Córdoba, in the east-central region of the country.Asociación Rosarina Amigos del Riel. [http://www.arar.org.ar/CT_HTFC.html "Historia de los Ferrocarriles de Rosario"] (History of Rosario's Railways).]

Origins

In 1863, the government of Argentina granted the company, led by engineer William Wheelwright, a concession to build and exploit a railway line between the cities of Rosario (a major port in southern Santa Fe, on the Paraná River) and Córdoba (a large city near the geographical center of Argentina, and the capital of the province of the same name). The grant included a clause to populate the lands along and around the railway that were given to the company by the national state.

The construction works started in April 1863 with the establishment of the terminus in Rosario, at Rosario Central Station. The line, a RailGauge|5'6"|al=off|lk=on broad gauge railway, progressed westward, reaching Córdoba in 1870, covering a total of 396 km. It was the longest in Argentina at the time, and the first to join two provinces.

The company sent a commissioner to Europe to bring immigrants to form agricultural colonies, as required by the concession contract. They were settled first in Roldán, the first stop after Rosario, and then in San Lorenzo, Carcarañá, Cañada de Gómez and Tortugas.

Progress

In 1891 the CA opened Fisherton Station in the west of Rosario, as well as new branch entering Rosario from the southwest and a stop on said line (Eloy Palacios Station).

The CA absorbed a local company, Ferrocarril Oeste Santafesino (F.C.O.S), in 1900. The lines handled by F.C.O.S., which served the southwest of Santa Fe Province and the south of Córdoba (up to the city of Cruz Alta), were merged with those of the larger company, and the passenger services handled by Rosario Oeste Santafesino Station were transferred to Rosario Central Station, while the former was renamed Rosario Este.

In 1908, CA was merged with another company, Buenos Aires and Rosario Railway, which served the Buenos Aires–Rosario line. The passenger services were unified and optimized: Rosario Central Station was left in charge of short and mid-distance services, while Rosario Norte Station was set aside for long-distance and express services. The fused company opened two new stops in Rosario, Parada Cruce Alberdi (present-day Patio Parada) in the north-center of the city, and Parada Golf (or Parada Links), in the western limit of the municipality, near today's Rosario Golf Club.

The company continued to expand. Between 1935 and 1940, already past the "golden age" of Argentine railways, Rosario Central Station managed seventy daily train services, with an annual average of 438,000 passengers. [La Capital, 10 April 2005. [http://www.lacapital.com.ar/2005/04/10/seniales/noticia_185404.shtml "Rieles que corren sobre la memoria y el porvenir"] .]

Nationalisation

British railway companies operating in Argentina, including CA, were nationalised in 1948 by the Juan Perón administration. Ferrocarril Central Argentino, took over the northern section of Ferrocarril Rosario y Puerto Belgrano and then became part of the state-owned Ferrocarril General Bartolomé Mitre. The railway system as a whole was reconfigured and this meant the closure of many stations; in the case of the Ferrocarril Mitre, only the original Rosario Central Station was left to handle passengers.

References

* Colin M. Lewis, "British Railways in Argentina 1857-1914: A Case Study of Foreign Investment", Athlone Press (for the Institute of Latin American Studies, University of London), 1983.