Minnesota Railroading and Railfanning In "The North Star State"

Minnesota railroading has historically been known as the gateway to Chicago and the Pacific Northwest for Northwestern railroads such as the Northern Pacific, Great Northern and Milwaukee Road as all three’s main lines operated through the state. That aside, however, the North Star State is also known for its vast amounts of iron ore to the north and agriculture to the south (such as corn and grain). Today, the Minnesota is still home to several Class Is, Regionals and shortlines which operate about half of the route mileage that was once in place.

Minnesota railroading has its beginnings dating back to the St. Paul & Pacific Railroad, which completed its main line between St. Paul and then-St. Anthony (now Minneapolis) in the summer of 1862, a distance of about 10 miles. The railroad eventually became part of the Great Northern system. In the succeeding years, aside from the GN, NP and Milwaukee Road, Minnesota would be home to a number of other celebrated railroads including the Illinois Central; Chicago, Burlington & Quincy; Rock Island; Chicago & North Western; Chicago Great Western; and the ore specialist, Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range.

Of these railroads it is perhaps the Great Northern and Northern Pacific most remembered in the North Star State. For instance, both railroads were headquartered in St. Paul, both had a significant presence in Minnesota (which, along with the allying Chicago, Burlington & Quincy they both also reached Chicago) and both began their trek westward towards Puget Sound from the Twin Cities.

The Northern Pacific has its roots dating to the summer of 1864 when President Lincoln signed the railroad’s creation by an Act of Congress and the Northern Pacific Railroad Company was born. Construction on the new company began seven years later in 1870 and would roughly follow the expedition of Lewis and Clark who originally chartered the western territory in the early 19th century.

By the late summer of 1883 the main line from Minnesota to Puget Sound, nearly 2,000 miles in length, had been completed and a lavish ceremony marked the occasion. While completed, the line did have future gaps to close in the way of many tunnels that had been put off as the railroad was on a schedule to be finished by no later than 1883. Until the tunnels were completed, in their place stood switchbacks to scale mountain summits with torturous grades of occasionally over 5%!

After the Northern Pacific had completed its main line across the northwest it worked to build numerous branch lines and while overall it remained essentially a direct route between the Great Lakes and Pacific Northwest it did stretch out across Minnesota, Washington and other Northwestern states to some extent.

Of all the railroads James J. Hill owned or controlled in some way, the Great Northern Railway is by far his greatest masterpiece earning him the legendary nickname of Empire Builder. Under his tenor the railroad would stretch from the Midwest to Pacific Coast and of all the Northwestern roads the GN was by far the strongest and most respected. Even after 30+ years of being gone the railroad still holds strong influences and memories from its Empire Builder passenger train and prominent dark green, orange, and yellow livery to its beloved mascot and emblem, Rocky the mountain goat (a common animal to the Rocky Mountains).

A significant reason why the Great Northern Railway was so successful and respected throughout its life was the excellent presidents who oversaw the railroad. Following Hill’s death Ralph Budd, the renowned leader of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, took the helm and led the railroad through significant growth allowing it to weather the Great Depression relatively well.

After Budd gave up the presidency in 1951 to his son John, the Great Northern Railway continued to prosper and grow as the younger Budd looked to increase efficiencies and add additional customers and traffic where possible.

Both the NP and GN, however, were destined to be joined with their allying roads the SP&S and CB&Q it was simply a matter of time as many had speculated for years (it was also something Hill had always wished to accomplish but could never complete before his death). While trying for years this did not come to fruition until 1970 when the ICC finally granted permission to do so thus forming the then Burlington Northern. The BN, however, would last only 25 years before merging with the Santa Fe to become the Burlington Northern Santa Fe, today known as simply the BNSF Railway.

Today, Minnesota railroading is operated by four Class I systems which include BNSF, Union Pacific, Canadian National and Canadian Pacific. The rest is operated by Regionals Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern, sister DM&E road Iowa, Chicago & Eastern (both of which are in the process of being purchased by Canadian Pacific) and the Iowa Interstate. Shortlines include the Cloquet Terminal Railroad, Minnesota Commercial Railway, Minnesota, Dakota & Western Railway, Twin Cities & Western Railroad, and the Wisconsin Northern Railroad.

In total, these railroads operate around 4,500 miles of track and at one time Minnesota was home to about twice that. For a more in-depth look at Minnesota railroading, in terms of route mileage over the decades please take a look at the chart below.

Even though Minnesota railroading has never featured a large number of famous passenger trains two distinctly stand out, Great Northern's legendary Empire Builder and Northern Pacific's North Coast Limited. While today the Great Northern may no longer operate the legendary Empire Builder it carries on under the Amtrak banner still holding much of the prestige it once did. Today the train makes stops at Winona, Red Wing, St. Paul, St. Cloud, Staples and Detroit Lakes. Also, while Minnesota currently operates a short 12-mile section of light rail between Minneapolis and the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport the state has much bigger plans. In 2009 it hopes to open the highly anticipated Northstar Commuter Rail service which will operate between Minneapolis and St. Cloud.

Aside from freight and passenger trains Minnesota railroading also features several museums and historic railroad equipment, like the famous Milwaukee Road 4-8-4 #261, whose home base is in Minneapolis. Owned and operated by the Friends of the 261 it sees action at least once every year and is a true sight to behold. Other interesting places and excursion trains in Minnesota include the Como-Harriet Streetcar Line, End-O-Line Railroad Park and Museum, Jackson Street Roundhouse, Kandiyohi County Historical Society Depot, Lake County Historical Society Railroad and Depot Museum, Lake Superior & Mississippi Railroad, Lake Superior Railroad Museum and North Shore Scenic Railroad, Minnehaha Depot, Minnesota Zephyr, North Shore Scenic Railroad.

All in all, Minnesota railroading offers an interesting mix of railroading not often found in other parts of the country, such as its unique iron ore operations near the Great Lakes. And, if you tire of watching the ore or main line operations, take a ride on the popular and picturesque North Shore Scenic Railroad!