Operated in 1849, the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad (CB&Q) was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Wyoming, and also in New Mexico and Texas through subsidiaries Colorado and Southern Railway, Fort Worth and Denver Railway, and Burlington-Rock Island Railroad.

Its primary connections included Chicago, Minneapolis–Saint Paul, St. Louis, Kansas City, and Denver. Because of this extensive trackage in the midwest and mountain states, the railroad used the advertising slogans “Everywhere West”, “Way of the Zephyrs”, and “The Way West”.
In 1967, it reported 19,565 million net ton-miles of revenue freight and 723 million passenger miles; corresponding totals for C&S were 1,100 and 10 and for FW&D were 1,466 and 13. At the end of the year, CB&Q operated 8,538 route-miles, C&S operated 708, and FW&D operated 1362 (these totals may or may not include the former Burlington-Rock Island Railroad).

In 1970, it merged with the Northern Pacific Railway and the Great Northern Railway to form the Burlington Northern Railroad.

Here below is an amazing photo collection from Chuck Zeiler that shows the interiors of CB&Q passenger rolling stock in the 1930s and 1940s.