Iowa Traction Railroad

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Iowa Traction

Network of the IATR and its ancestors
Reporting marks	IATR
Locale	Mason City, Iowa
Dates of operation	July 4, 1897–present
Track gauge	4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm) (standard gauge)
Headquarters	Mason City, Iowa

Locomotive 60 at Ag Processing Inc in Mason City, Iowa.

The Iowa Traction can trace its roots back to the Mason City and Clear Lake Railway which was founded in 1896. The shops were situated in Emery, the midpoint between the two namesake towns. Passenger service began on July 4th, 1897. Freight has been the major source of income since the beginning and has been the only source since the charter for trolley service in Mason City expired August 30th, 1936. The Mason City and Clear Lake Railway's name was changed to Mason City and Clear Lake Railroad in 1950 when new owners took over.

The name was changed to Iowa Terminal Railroad in 1961 when new owners from Michigan took over. They acquired the Charles City Western on December 31, 1963. The Charles City Division was dieselized after a tornado destroyed much of the overhead on May 15, 1968. Several years later the remaining trackage at Charles City was abandoned. Meanwhile, the Mason City Division continued to operate as usual. The Charles City equipment was transferred to Mason City to replace equipment burned in the November 24, 1967 shop fire. They ran the Iowa Terminal until April 13, 1987 when it was sold to Dave Johnson and renamed to Iowa Traction.

Today the Iowa Traction continues to actively operate the track between their Emery headquarters and the Clear Lake Junction with Union Pacific Railroad. Though track exists beyond Emery to Interstate 35 in the west and from Clear Lake Junction to 15th st southeast in Mason City to the east, the active portion is Emery to Clear Lake Jct.