Oregon, Pacific and Eastern Railway
| Reporting mark | OPE |
|---|---|
| Locale | Oregon |
| Dates of operation | 1904–Current |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
| Headquarters | Roseburg, Oregon |
The Oregon, Pacific and Eastern Railway (reporting mark OPE) is a short line railroad that began in 1904 as the Oregon and Southeastern Railroad (O&SE). The line ran 18 miles (29 km) between the towns of Cottage Grove and Disston. The Oregon, Pacific & Eastern Railway Company incorporated in 1912, and purchased the physical assets of the O&SE two years later. The OP&E's operations ran some 16.6 miles (26.7 km) from an interchange with the Southern Pacific Railroad at Cottage Grove, then east to Culp Creek. The last of the track was closed and scrapped in 1994. A successor corporation now operates a narrow-gauge line at Wildlife Safari.
The company reorganized in 1940 under the same name, and was purchased by the Booth-Kelly Lumber Company in 1947. Georgia-Pacific subsequently purchased Booth-Kelly (including the OP&E) in 1959, and in turn sold it in 1970 to Willis Kyle, who formed the Row River Investment Company (jointly owned by Kyle Railways and Bohemia, Inc.). The line operated passenger excursions from 1972 until 1987. At that time the train used a self-propelled Budd Rail Diesel Car originally built for Southern Pacific, which had spent most of its life on the Southern Pacific subsidiary Northwestern Pacific. On OP&E it was known as "The Goose".
The 1973 motion picture Emperor of the North Pole, starring Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, and Keith Carradine was filmed along the railroad's right-of-way and using some of the company's equipment. The film was released on DVD as Emperor of the North. In 1985, Stand By Me, a Rob Reiner motion picture of a Stephen King novelette, was filmed along the railroad as well.
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