F.M.& M.V. and the B.&M.R.R. through Harvard

Harvard was served by two railroads 125 years ago. Most will recognize the B. & M. R. R. as the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad. The F. E. & M. V. road is less well known. 

The F.E. & M.V. railroad, “The Elkhorn” was the Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railroad. It’s main route went from Omaha through Northern Nebraska to Chadron and on to Casper and Rapid CIty. 

Charles Henry King made his fortune establishing banks and freight services in towns he founded including Chadron and Casper. His son Leslie Lynch King was born in Chadron and later the family moved to Omaha where Leslie Lynch King, Jr. was born on July 14, 1913. The younger Leslie King played football at the University of Michigan, became a member of the House of Representatives, and the 38^th president of the United States. He did that using the name given him by his mother’s second husband, Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr.

The F.E. & M.V. constructed several lines in Nebraska including a long east-west route from Omaha across northern Nebraska to Chadron, a track that later became known as the "Cowboy Line."