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TABLE OF CONTENTS


Overview

Agency History

Scope and Contents of the Records

Arrangement of the Records

Restrictions

Index Terms

Related Material

Administrative Information

Texas State Library and Archives Commission

Railroad Commission of Texas, Rail Division:

An Inventory of Annual reports of railroad companies at the Texas State Archives, 1859-1867, 1873-1885, 1890-1996



Overview

Creator:Railroad Commission of Texas. Rail Divison.
Title:Annual reports of railroad companies
Dates:1859-1867, 1873-1885, 1890-1996
Abstract:These are annual reports of railroad companies. Dates covered are 1859-1867, 1873-1885, 1890-1996. Initially, the railroad companies submitted these reports to the Comptroller's Office. Upon creation of the Railroad Commission in 1891, the reports were submitted to the Railroad Commission. Reports continued to be submitted to the Comptroller's Office as well through 1894. Each report details the company's organization, operation, and financial condition.
Quantity:380.24 cubic ft.
LanguageEnglish.

Agency History

The Texas Railroad Commission had its origin in the demands of the shipping public in the late 1880s that insisted that railroads be subject to regulation based on public interest. An advocate for government regulation, Attorney General James Stephen Hogg, ran for Governor in 1890 with the issue of railroad regulation as the focal point of the campaign. Hogg was elected Governor in the general election and the voters also approved an amendment to Article X, Section 2 of the Texas Constitution that empowered the Legislature to enact statutes creating regulatory agencies. These elections paved the way for the Legislature to enact on April 3, 1891 "An Act to Establish a Railroad Commission of the State of Texas," that later was placed in the Texas Revised Civil Statutes under article 6444 et seq. (House Bills 1, 3, and 58, 22nd Legislature, Regular Session).

The Commission originally consisted of three members appointed by the Governor for three year terms. Governor Hogg appointed the first three Commissioners in 1891 including John H. Reagan, who resigned as U.S. Senator from Texas to serve as the first Chairman. The Texas Constitution, Article XIX, Section 30 was amended in 1894 to provide for elective six year overlapping terms for the Commissioners. John H. Reagan was elected the same year and served until his retirement in 1903.

The Texas Railroad Commission was the first regulatory agency created in the State of Texas and originally had jurisdiction over the rates and operations of railroads, terminals, wharves and express companies. The legal focus was on intrastate passenger and freight activities. Interstate jurisdiction fell under the U.S. Interstate Commerce Commission. For the first twenty-five years of its existence, the Railroad Commission was largely concerned with regulating railroads, setting rates, receiving complaints, and making investigations. As other controversies arose where the Legislature deemed that the public interest could best be served by regulation, additional duties were assigned to the Railroad Commission.

The Commission's authority over railroads diminished over the latter half of the twentieth century. The Federal Railroad Safety Act of 1970 vested rail safety responsibilities in the Federal Railroad Administration. In 1980, the Federal Staggers Rail Act largely eliminated the Commission's responsibility for setting rates for intrastate railroads. By 1984, the Commission ceased its role in the economic regulation of the Texas rail industry. Regulatory powers over rail safety were granted to the agency in 1985 when the 69th Legislature authorized the Commission to implement a rail safety program in conjunction with the Federal Railroad Administration Act of 1970 (Senate Bill 444, Regular Session).

The Railroad Commission today regulates the oil and gas industry to prevent the waste of resources and to protect property rights and the environment. It oversees hazardous materials pipelines and natural gas pipelines and distribution systems as well as propane, butane, compressed natural gas, and liquefied natural gas. The Commission licenses and conducts seminars for dealers and their employees. It also oversees railroad safety and rail planning; surface mining for coal, uranium, and iron ore gravel; and land reclamation when mining is complete.

Four divisions have regulatory functions: the Gas Services Division, the Oil and Gas Division, the Surface Mining and Reclamation Division, and the Rail Division. The Office of the General Counsel's Enforcement Section has enforcement powers, and the Alternative Fuels Research and Education Division has research and education functions. Support divisions include the Public Information Office, Personnel, Finance and Administration, Information Technology Services, Intergovernmental Affairs, and the Office of Internal Audit. The three Commissioners direct the operations of the agency.

Legal authority for the Railroad Commission is the Texas Constitution, Article X, Sec. 2 and Article XVI, Sec. 30; and the V.T.C.A., Natural Resources Code, Chapter 81.

The Rail Division is responsible for checking equipment and track, railroad and signal operations, and hazardous material handling; conducting investigations of accidents and complaints concerning railroads; and securing federal funds to improve branch lines and preserve rail service to rural areas. The Division enforces rules aimed at removing obstructions on railroad rights-of-way and operates a crossing safety education program. There are two main sections in this division - Rail Safety and Rail Planning.

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Scope and Contents of the Records

These are annual reports of railroad companies. Dates covered are 1859-1867, 1873-1885, 1890-1996. Railroad companies operating in the State of Texas were required by law to prepare annual reports concerning their activities beginning in 1853. Legislation approved February 7, 1853, entitled, "An Act to Regulate Railroad Companies," designated the Comptroller of Public Accounts as the receiver of such reports. Railroad companies continued to file annual reports with the Comptroller until 1894. The act creating the Railroad Commission in 1891 gave the Commission authority to elicit information in the form of a report. Comprehensive annual reports encompassing a wide range of subjects were soon required of all companies operating lines within the State. The first reports filed with the Railroad Commission, known as the Circular Number 22 reports, were filed in 1891.

Each report details the company's organization, operation, and financial condition. Data present may include the names of officers, directors, and stockholders; incorporation and organizational structure; capital stock; funded debt; property owned or leased; cost of road, equipment, and permanent improvements; operating expenses; income account; stocks and bonds owned; earnings from operations; rentals received; employees and salaries; number of passengers; amount of freight transported; mileage of track operated; and injuries to persons or other accidents. Most of the reports cover the company's operations for the calendar year. A few of the earlier reports cover partial year operations.

In later years, the large Class I railroads began submitting copies of their reports prepared for the Interstate Commerce Commission to the Railroad Commission to fulfill the reporting requirements. These ICC reports generally include a separate statistical report compiled by the company for the Railroad Commission, titled State Statistics. The smaller (Classes II and III) railroads annual reports were prepared primarily on RRC forms, though some companies used the ICC reporting forms instead. Recent changes in federal law removed the requirement that rail companies file the annual reports with the Railroad Commission. Staff at the Railroad Commission believe the larger companies will continue to file reports.

These records have been appraised and processed. A list of the railroad company reports is in a database accessible through the website of the Library and Archives Commission at http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/arc/findingaids/rrannualintro.html. A printed list in alphabetical order and one in chronological order is also available in the search room of the Archives and Information Services Division.

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Arrangement of the Records

These records are arranged into four groups. Reports within the first three groups are arranged alphabetically by the name of the railroad company then chronologically for each company. Reports in the last group are arranged chronologically, then grouped by railroad class, in two groups - Class I, and Classes II and III, and arranged alphabetically within each group.
Reports sent to the Comptroller, 1859-1867, 1873-1885, 1890-1894, 0.94 cubic ft.
Reports sent to the Railroad Commission, 1891-1967, 351.57 cubic ft.
Reports sent to the Railroad Commission, 1968-1978, 15.04 cubic ft.
Reports sent to the Railroad Commission, 1979-1996, 12.69 cubic ft.

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Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

None

Restrictions on Use

The large bound volume containing reports to the Comptroller for 1891 is in fragile condition and cannot be photocopied.

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Index Terms

The terms listed here were used to catalog the records. The terms can be used to find similar or related records.
Corporate Names:
Texas. Comptroller's Office.
Subjects:
Railroad companies--Texas.
Railroads and state--Texas.
Document Types:
Annual reports--Texas--Railroad companies--1859-1996.
Functions:
Regulating railroads.

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Related Material

Texas State ArchivesCorrespondence and reports relating to railroads from the Comptroller's Office, 1842-1939, 9.4 cubic ft. (There are scattered reports of companies present throughout this series.)

T.L.L. Temple Memorial Archives, T.L.L. Temple Memorial Library and Archives, Diboll.Texas Southeastern Railroad records and records of a few other small railroads in the east Texas area.

DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University, Dallas.Railroad companies records and papers are present in several collections, including the Muskogee Collection; the Everette Lee DeGolyer, Jr. Railroad Photographs; and the Baldwin Locomotive Collection.

Southwest Collection, Texas Tech University, Lubbock.Railroad companies records and papers, including the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company records; and the Roscoe, Synder, and Pacific Railway Company papers.

Special Collections Division, University of Texas at Arlington Libraries, Arlington.Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Records.

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation:

Annual reports of railroad companies, Rail Division, Railroad Commission of Texas. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Accession Information

Accession numbers: 1936/002, 1941/007, 1961/046, 1963/173, 1971/152, 1971/165, 1990/141, 2000/078, 2000/139, 2001/024, and 2001/025

These records were transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Governor's Office on October 8, 1936; by the Comptroller's Office on March 19, 1942; and by the Railroad Commission on May 9, 1962; May 1964; August 6 and 23, 1971; May 24, 1990; December 16, 1999; and April 12, 2000. Accession numbers were also assigned for purposes of control on October 9, 2000.

Processing Information

Paul Beck, July 1986

Tony Black, October 1990

Laura K. Saegert, October 2000

Accruals

The Railroad Commission is expected to continue transfering the annual reports of railroad companies every 3-4 years.

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