A fallen flag, in United States railroader's and railfan's terminology, is a railroad company no longer in existence due to bankruptcy or merger. This is the top-level page of WikiProject trains Rail tracks Rail transport refers to the land transport of passengers and goods along railways or railroads. ... Railfans practicing their hobby at Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin. ... Bankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of an individual or organization to pay their creditors. ... The phrase mergers and acquisitions or M&A refers to the aspect of corporate finance strategy and management dealing with the merging and acquiring of different companies as well as assets. ...

Background

The US railroad industry has been consolidating since the 1950s, and almost every year sees the list of operating roads shrink. Most railroad companies that once existed have either closed, been assimilated by a larger company, or participated in a "merger of equals" in which neither company's name survived unaltered (an example of the latter being the Burlington Northern / Santa Fe merger, which produced the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway or BNSF). // Events and trends The 1950s in Western society was marked with a sharp rise in the economy for the first time in almost 30 years and return to the 1920s-type consumer society built on credit and boom-times, as well as the height of the baby-boom from returning... The phrase mergers and acquisitions or M&A refers to the aspect of corporate finance strategy and management dealing with the merging and acquiring of different companies as well as assets. ... Categories: Rail stubs | Defunct railroad companies of the United States | California railroads | Colorado railroads | Idaho railroads | Illinois railroads | Iowa railroads | Kansas railroads | Kentucky railroads | Minnesota railroads | Missouri railroads | Montana railroads | Nebraska railroads | North Dakota railroads | Oregon railroads | South Dakota railroads | Washington railroads | Wisconsin railroads | Wyoming railroads ... The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (AAR reporting mark ATSF), often abbreviated as Santa Fe, was one of the largest railroads in the United States. ... Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... The Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company (AAR reporting mark BNSF) (NYSE: BNI), headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, and established as a result of a 1995 merger between the parent companies of the Burlington Northern Railroad and the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, is one of the largest...

As an indication of the level of consolidation that has taken place, only five Class I railroads (then, railroads with over a million dollars in income per year) from before the Great Depression still exist under their original names, these being the: A Class I railroad (also called a Class 1 railroad) is a member of the largest class of railroads in North America. ... The Great Depression was a massive global economic recession (or depression) that ran from 1929 to 1941. ...

• Union Pacific Railroad
• Kansas City Southern Railway
• Florida East Coast Railway (although now rated as a Class II railroad by AAR)
• Canadian National Railway
• Canadian Pacific Railway

However, as railroads merge or buy each other, duplicate and less profitable rights of way often are sold to new short line railroad companies. Yet, even these short lines themselves merge and buy each other, creating even more fallen flags. For example, many of the former Milwaukee Road branch lines in southern Wisconsin were sold to a railroad called the Wisconsin and Calumet Railroad (WICT). The WICT is now itself a fallen flag, its rights of way now operated by the Wisconsin and Southern. The Union Pacific Railroad (NYSE: UNP) is the largest railroad in the United States. ... The Kansas City Southern Railway (AAR reporting mark KCS) is a United States-based Class I railroad operating over 3,130 track miles in 10 central and southeastern states. ... The Florida East Coast Railway (AAR reporting mark FEC) is a Class II railroad operating in the US state of Florida; in the past, it has been a Class I railroad. ... A Class II railroad, as defined by the American Association of Railroads, is a railroad with an annual operating revenue between $10 million (1978 dollars) and $50 million (1978 dollars). ... Categories: Organization stubs | Rail transport | Industry trade groups ... Missing image Canadian National Railways logo or herald (used pre-1960) Missing image Network Map of Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway (CN; AAR reporting marks CN, CNA, CNIS), known as Canadian National Railways (CNR) between 1918 and 1960, and Canadian National/Canadien National (CN) from 1960 to present... The Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR; AAR reporting marks CP, CPAA, CPI), known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a Canadian Class I railway operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited. ... The Milwaukee Road, officially the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. ... One of the periods of glaciation was also termed the Wisconsin glaciation. ... Categories: Rail stubs | Railway companies of the United States | Illinois railroads | Wisconsin railroads ...

Historic trademarks

In the case of a merged or purchased railway, the new owner sometimes attempts to enforce the trademarks of the old name in order to collect royalties from model railroad manufacturers. However, this violates trademark law, which requires that marks actually be used by the owner in order to remain protected and not fall into the public domain. For the band, see The Police. ... Trademark - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Royalty may refer to either: the royal family of a country with a monarchy the payment made to the owner of a copyright, patent, or trademark, for the use thereof This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... This article needs cleanup. ... Manufacturing is the transformation of raw materials into finished goods for sale, or intermediate processes involving the production or finishing of semi-manufactures. ... Corruption Jurisprudence Philosophy of law Law (principle) List of legal abbreviations Legal code Intent Letter versus Spirit Natural Justice Natural law Religious law Witness intimidation Legal research External links Wikibooks Wikiversity has more about this subject: School of Law Look up law in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Law, Legal Definitions... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ...

In order to prove that the historic trademarks are still enforceable, some railroads have begun painting pieces of rolling stock in the liveries of their constituent railroads. Whether this is sufficient to prove that the marks have not been abandoned has yet to be decided in court.

Two railroads, specifically Union Pacific and CSX Transportation, have filed suits in US court to prevent the use of their trademarks or their historic trademarks by model manufacturers without first obtaining a license to reproduce the marks. The licensing agreements that the railroads offer include conditions that many model manufacturers feel are excessive in scope or monetary value. Some model manufacturers have signed licensing agreements while others have refused on principle or simply closed their business. Model manufacturers argue that the historic trademarks have been out of use so long that they are abandoned and therefore available to use freely. Courts have yet to decide on these issues. The Union Pacific Railroad (NYSE: UNP) is the largest railroad in the United States. ... CSX Transportation (AAR reporting mark CSXT) is a Class I railroad in the United States, owned by CSX Corporation. ...

See also

• List of defunct United States railroads

This is an incomplete list. ...

External links

• Fallen Flag Railroad Photos
• Fallen Flag Rosters