 Throughout the 1830s and 1840s, rail transportation saw significant expansion throughout the Great Lakes region.In 1833, the Erie and Kalamazoo Railroad was chartered as part of the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway, running from former Port Lawrence, Michigan (now Toledo, Ohio), to the mouth of the Kalamazoo River at Lake Michigan.Trains were at first pulled by horse until the first steam locomotive was installed in 1837.