Maps
Drawings
Valuations, Joint Facilities, & Bridges
Authorizations for Expenditure
Track Charts & Station Lists
Depot Photos and Info
Maps of NP rights-of-way.
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These maps show the right-of-way in the context of property purchases and leases. Currently the title plats are from the Tacoma Division and Rocky Mountain Division (with one from the Idaho Division). Note: The map title blocks have been removed from these scans. To see that info, an in-person visit to the PNRA is rquired. This work was done by Jim Mattson. |
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GIF |
These images come from a set of aperture cards prepared by the Burlington Northern from original NP maps. The quality is not ideal but nevertheless can be a useful resource. |
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List |
Comprehensive listing of NP right-of-way maps, mostly 1" = 100' station plat maps, but some other types as well, held by the NPRHA. Compiled by Randy Hammond. Note: Scans of all of these maps are available in the Vista Dome Package 2025. Individual scans may be purchased through the NPRHA Company Store. |
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A series of system-wide maps that visualize the evolution of NP divisions and their boundaries, based on the work of J. B. Klassen and Jim Fredrickson. Maps created by Jan Taylor. |
Note: The Vista Dome Package 2025 provides access to thousands of scanned NP mechanical drawings. At this time, we do not have an index of those drawings on this site nor a large amount of them available for download. The items below are a small sample.
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Part 2 of this 2018 presentation by Dean O'Neill provides an overview of NP standard plan books, track standards, Signal Dept. drawings, bridge drawings, and more-specialized drawings such as track tools, all of which were produced by NP's Mechanical Dept. (See also Part 1.) |
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NP standard plans for structures built by the railroad. Note: The VDP 2025 also has editions from 1911, 1953, and 1970. |
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NP standard plans for track work, including ballasting. |
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NP standard plans for tools used for track work. |
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BN-era Physical Plant and Structure Drawings (Railroad Archives Online) |
GIF |
These images come from a set of aperture cards prepared by the Burlington Northern from original NP drawings. The quality is not ideal but nevertheless can be a useful resource. Use the left nav on Railroad Archives Online to filter to a specific subset topic. |
Detailed breakdowns of NP facilities.
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Description |
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Instructions for inspecting NP bridges, culverts, and waterways. Contributed by Gary Tarbox. |
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Instructions for field maintenance painting of NP steel bridges. |
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Specifications on all NP bridges in the Tacoma Division, organized geographically by subdivision. |
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Specifications on all NP bridges, organized geographically by division and subdivision, contributed by Jerry Masters. |
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Handbook of rules and standard practices for NP trackwork, contributed by Tim Peterson. |
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Handbook of rules and standard practices for NP trackwork, contributed by Jerry Masters. |
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Documents prepared as a precursor to the 1917 ICC Valuation. |
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Valuation reports and index maps from the 1917 Interstate Commerce Commission's valuation of the NP. Also included are lists of NP joint facilities, joint lines, ticket offices not on NP property, principle terminals and connections to other railroads, and the character of soil throughout the NP system. Note: The reports are not strictly organized by NP divisions and subdivisions but rather by valuation sections, so usage of the accompanying index maps is important for locating areas of interest. |
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Distances between major stations and terminals for each NP subdivision, circa 1945-53. |
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Diagrams of lines that were used jointly by the NP and other railroads. |
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Diagrams of lines that were jointly owned by the NP and other railroads |
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Index and scans of over 50,000 corporate AFEs stored on microfilm, covering the entire NP system. This is an ongoing project and is currently at the beginning of 1932. The earliest items in this collection are from 1895. Many people have worked on this project over the years. The current crew is Hudson Leighton, Craig Ringgenberg, and Jim Hansen. |
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Table |
Index of almost 14,000 AFE files covering the Yellowstone, Rocky Mountain, Idaho, and Tacoma Divisions. These paper files are stored at the PNRA in Burien and have not been scanned, so an in-person visit is required to explore them. This index is the result of 5 separate indexing projects done over the years, primarily by Chuck Morrison, Bill Petryk, Randy Hammond, and Kurt Armbruster. Update 2026-02: Indexing of the Idaho Division files from one of the contributing collections is in progress. |
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An index of AFEs for many of the NP stations in the Tacoma, Idaho, Rocky Mountain, and Yellowstone Divisions, compiled from at least three separate sources. Missing are those stations which were part of the BN's Portland Division and areas of Montana not operated by MRL. |
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Pocket-sized profiles of each subdivision in the NP system. Main line scans are from 1969 (VDP 2025). Branchline scans are from 1970 and were contributed by Alan Eisenberg. |
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Diagrams showing the general layout of the major yard facilities of the NP in the 1960s, contributed by Alan Eisenberg. |
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Table |
List of active NP stations as documented in Circular No. 21 of January, 1899. Contributed by Paul Curtiss. |
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List of all stations from an NP Freight Conductor's Record (Form 1451), dated September 23, 1901, complied by Jim Fredrickson. |
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Table |
List of stations on the NP from the April, 1922 Officers, Agents, & Stations Book, prepared by Paul Curtiss. |
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Table |
List of stations on the NP from the July, 1947 Officers, Agents, & Stations Book, prepared by Peter Thompson. |
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This official list of stations (Form 3553 Condensed) is unfortunately undated but appears to be from 1960s. |
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JPEG |
NP depot photos taken by different photographers across the NP system. |
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Website |
Info about the NP North Yakima depot's striking design on the Cass Gilbert Society website. |