North Argentine Railway
| Company type | Government-owned company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Railway transport |
| Founded | January 1, 1898 |
| Defunct | October 11, 1909 |
| Fate | Merged into Ferrocarril Central Norte |
| Headquarters | Argentina |
Area served | Catamarca and Córdoba provinces, Argentina |
The North Argentine Railway (Ferrocarril Argentino del Norte) was a government-operated railway enterprise that constructed a metre-gauge rail system spanning the Argentine provinces of Catamarca and Córdoba. In 1909, it was incorporated into the state-owned Ferrocarril Central Norte.
On 8 June 1889, the state-run company "Ferrocarril Chumbicha a Catamarca" inaugurated a railway connecting Chumbicha with Catamarca. Another state entity, "Ferrocarril Deán Funes a Chilecito," finished the track from Deán Funes to Paso Viejo on 29 March 1890, subsequently extending the line to Patquia and La Rioja by 1897.
Both enterprises were unified under the name "North Argentine Railway" (NAR) as of 1 January 1898. The segment from Patquia to Chilecito commenced operations on 23 June 1898. Later, on 27 July 1904, President Julio Argentino Roca officially opened expansions reaching into the Andes mountains, connecting to Andagala and Tinogasta, thereby enhancing the network's strategic coverage.
The railway section linking Chumbicha and La Rioja was launched in 1907. After the formation of the Argentine State Railway ("Ferrocarriles del Estado"), NAR was merged with the Central Northern Railway on 11 October 1909, uniting Argentina’s state-managed rail systems.