Working on the Railroad
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On Dec. 4, 1932, the Wisconsin Central Railway declared bankruptcy. Despite a $5 million emergency advance from the federal Reconstruction Finance Corporation, the company was poised to default on $44 million in bonds.
It was the ninth railroad to seek reorganization since 1929, and its troubles were symptomatic of a once-mighty industry that had failed to adapt to a changing economy, and now faced a crisis as the Great Depression deepened.