The Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri Inter-Urban Railway Company was incorporated September 26, 1908 in Oklahoma, for the purpose of constructing a line from Miami, Oklahoma by way of Hattonville (later known as Commerce, Oklahoma) to Baxter Springs, Kansas, about 22 miles.[1] The Miami-to-Commerce segment was actually built in the 1908-1909 timeframe, about 4.2 miles.[1] In 1916, the line was extended from Commerce through Cardin and Picher to the mining camp of Century, Oklahoma, a/k/a Douthat, about 7.6 miles.[1][2] This gave the route an upside-down “fishhook” shape, extending north from Miami to Cardin, easterly to Picher, and then south to Century.[3] The railroad changed its name to the Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri Railway Company on May 8, 1917.[1] This was purchased on December 1, 1919, by the Northeast Oklahoma Traction Co., which had been incorporated July 25 of that year.[1] The assets were then moved to the Northeast Oklahoma Railroad Co., which was incorporated December 29, 1919.[1] While the tracks had been operated by steam locomotion or by two gas-electric railcars up to this point, the new owner electrified the line on June 30, 1921, although some steam operations continued.[1][3] At its maximum extent, this NEO segment had not only the Miami-to-Century route, but also a branch north to a local settlement known as Westville, Kansas added in 1922, and a branch north to Columbus, Kansas added in 1923, producing total trackage of about 24.1 miles, together with 27 miles of sidings.[1][3]
Another NEO forerunner, the Southwest Missouri Railroad (“SMRR”), was incorporated August 16, 1906 in Missouri.[4] On August 23, 1906, it acquired two streetcar lines known as the Webb City Northern Electric Railroad and the Southwest Missouri Electric Railway, which both had trackage in the Tri-state mining district.[5] However, SMRR itself was organized as a common carrier railroad, and it proceeded to build a regular-gauge electrified line from Carthage, Missouri through Webb City, Missouri and Baxter Springs, Kansas to Picher, Oklahoma, about 77 miles, in the 1906-1907 timeframe.[1] At its absolute maximum, the line had about 94 miles of track.[6] But receivers were appointed for the railroad in 1926,[1] and on April 27, 1939, the Baxter Springs-to-Picher segment was sold to NEO, with the tracks east of Baxter Springs abandoned and torn up.[1][7] NEO got 5.556 miles of mainline and 4.17 miles of sidetracks, for a total of 9.726 miles of track.[7]
NEO itself was purchased by Eagle-Picher, then a lead and zinc mining company in the Tri-state district, in 1938.[1] NEO was subsequently sold by Eagle-Picher to the Frisco effective in 1964.[8] NEO continued operating under its own name until 1967 when it was dissolved and its assets absorbed by the Frisco.[3]