Heritage | Rail Talk Blog | BNSF

Highlighting our commitment to safety, service, innovation, people, communities and our heritage.

Rails and roots: BNSF’s start in Aurora, Illinois

Aurora, Illinois, a western neighbor to Chicago, is where BNSF got its start 175 years ago. A short stretch of track set BNSF’s destiny into ‘loco-motion’ and grew over many decades into a network spanning 32,500 miles. 

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Amory, Mississippi: Recovering town comes together to celebrate community and history

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100 years and counting, Topeka Santa Fe Band plays on

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Legend and legacy: 175 years of BNSF and counting

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Lincoln, Nebraska: The junction of trains and tradition

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Cari-ing on a railroad family tradition

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Galesburg: Rails of history, wheels of progress

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Umpire finds railroading career is home base

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Spokane, Washington: The Imperial City

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San Bernardino central to California’s Inland Empire

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Building the West by rail at Clovis, New Mexico

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Railfans cross an ocean to photograph BNSF trains

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A family tradition: BNSF family has 223 years of service

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Gallup, New Mexico: a place full of surprises

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Belen and BNSF: Railroading in the land of enchantment

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Needles, California: A railroading oasis

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James J. Hill: The original “Empire Builder”

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Pioneer spirit brought Lubbock and BNSF predecessor lines together

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Old friends: Retired BNSF engineer restores locomotive he operated for 41 years

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BNSF retiree devotes his time to preserving railroad history

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From trading post to bustling marketplace: How rail transformed La Crosse

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Aberdeen, South Dakota: Where railroading roots run deep

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Recipes on the rail: Apple Pan Dowdy, a tasty Great Northern Railway treat

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Taking a look at Winslow, Arizona: Railroad town is rich in heritage

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The railway to success in Enid

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In the blood: BNSF employee’s railroad heritage goes back six generations

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Wayzata section foreman house from Great Northern days to be restored with support from BNSF

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Bridging the gap: New Sandpoint bridge project completed

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Connecting the Past and Present in Newton, Kansas

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Cyrus K. Holliday played instrumental role in founding of Topeka

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St. Paul: The great Midwest nexus

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History brought back to life: A Northern Pacific passenger car to become a home

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An American family’s story is intertwined with the railroad’s

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We’re going ‘loco’ for these unique locomotives

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Mandan and Bismarck share a long history with BNSF

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Blast from the past: Santa Fe 5704 is back in bicentennial paint scheme

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Turntables have been a ‘round’ since the 1830s – and they’re still in rotation

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Know your railroad ABCs

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Going west: How BNSF predecessors helped shape America’s national parks

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Recipes on the Rail: Try this French toast cook-off for you and your butter half

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Recipes on the Rail: This wintry treat won’t leave you out in the cold

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Recipes on the rail: An autumnal dish from days gone by

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The railroad for tomorrow: How two great lines combined their strengths to create BNSF

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Freight wonders of the world: How BNSF solved five big engineering challenges

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Recipes on the Rail: La Fonda Pudding, a delicious treat from a famous Harvey House

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Making their mark: Women, art and the West

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Recipes on the Rail: Something Sweet to Enjoy with Your Valentine

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Track of fame: Where Hollywood and BNSF intersect

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Rocky is our goat – and among the greatest of all time!

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Brush with history: BNSF’s art collection tells the story of a railroad and a country

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Warren Buffett’s Berkyville: BNSF train layout brings big-time fun in small-scale way

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Presidents, Patents and Passengers: How the West was Populated

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There's a Map for that at BNSF

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Heritage Community Award celebrates BNSF's relationship with railroad towns

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BNSF’s Galesburg, Illinois, yard has a rich history that extends back to the 1860s. Through the years, one family has accompanied the facility almost every step of the way. Today, Tim Worrell, assistant superintendent at the Galesburg terminal, represents the sixth generation of Worrell/Leahy family members to work here.

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