Originally a subsidiary of Western Electric used to switch their Hawthorne Works, after the plants were phased out it was sold to OmniTRAX, a company offering railroad management and other services.
[5] In 1992 OmniTRAX bought the railroad and a large part of the Hawthorne Works property, intending to make a business center with rail access.
In 2022 OmniTrax's site advertises owning and operating 6 miles (9.66 km) of track but only mentions "rail customer candidates".
[6][7] The Manufacturers' Junction's primary interchange when built was with the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad (now BNSF Railway)'s Clyde (Cicero) yard.
the line continued north over a single-track bridge to switch customers on 46th Ct. between 16th and 19th St.[9] From the servicing area a line continued east under the Belt Railway (the Chicago city limits) and curved north to switch storage areas and the Western Electric cable plant on Cermak Rd.
The Western Electric property in Chicago, east of the Belt Railway, is zoned or pending as light industry with potential rail service.