Paragould and Buffalo Island Railway The city of Paragould was in a lumbering area, and the need was for a rail line to bring logs to the mills located there. It acquired the tramway that month, and in 1888 extended it about 4 miles to Bertig, Arkansas.
Name change and extension Because of foreclosure on a local mill in 1888, the line was inactive for a time. In 1893, due to a charter amendment, the name of the railroad was changed to the Paragould Southeastern Railway, the tracks were widened to
standard-gauge, and the line was extended to
Cardwell, Missouri, about 2 additional miles. A charter amendment dated August 12, 1897, allowed extension of the line to
Hornersville, Missouri, about 11 miles, which was done by October 25, 1897. A charter change on December 11, 1901, authorized a final extension to Blytheville, Arkansas. However, the line was not actually extended from Hornersville to Chickasawba, Arkansas, about 15 miles, until April 5, 1903; and, the final mile from Chickasawba to Blytheville was not completed until January 27, 1907. At that point, the railroad had a single-track mainline totaling 37.335 miles.
Cotton Belt The Cotton Belt had obtained control of the PSR back on May 27, 1893. However, the PSR continued to operate independently until leased to the Cotton Belt on January 1, 1914, after which it was operated as just another part of the Cotton Belt. ==References==