In the 1850s Helena businessmen planned a railroad linking the city with Little Rock, but money was diverted to a line connecting Memphis and Little Rock. Railroad construction in Arkansas was costly and risky, and many efforts failed. When the Civil War began in 1861, the state's only operating track was a 38-mile section in Crittenden County connecting West Memphis and Madison. After the war, many railroad companies were incorporated, but track laying advanced slowly. Helena finally gained a rail connection in 1871 through the Iron Mountain & Helena, which ran to Forrest City for passenger and freight transfers. Two years later, the Arkansas Central Railroad built track between Helena and Clarendon. Helena businessman Sidney H. Hornor purchased the Arkansas Central, renamed it the Arkansas Midland Railroad, abandoned plans for a line to Little Rock, and developed a regional Delta network whose business grew with the cotton and timber industries. Eastbound rail traffic from Helena had long crossed the Mississippi River at Memphis, where freight paid extra tolls and switching fees to continue east, but in 1889 the Louisville, New Orleans & Texas Railroad ended that disadvantage by using a transfer boat to carry train cars from Helena Crossing to Lula, Mississippi, creating greatly expanded freight and passenger connections from Helena.