Rai ailro lroad ads s & Mi & Mining ing on the he Cuy - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Ba Bay y La Lake ke Ar Area ea Hi History tory: : Rai ailro lroad ads s & Mi & Mining ing on the he Cuy uyun una a Ran ange ge

This is is is a s story y of rail ilroads, ds, min inin ing, im immig igration ion and entreprene preneurs urs . It in includ udes es vis isio ionari ries, es, gutsy sy men makin ing ris isky, hig igh stakes es in investments, ments, boom a and bust towns s and workers, rs, many of them m im immig igrants, nts, toil ilin ing in in a a dir irty and dangerous rous envir ironment ment . A At best, it it is is s summa mary ry. . It only covers rs a a few of the ke key char aracte cters rs an and events.

• ts. If it

it s spar arks ks an an in interest, st, lear arn where e an and how you can buy t the Cuyuna na Country ry His istorical ical Preserv ervatio tion n Socie iety ty books by goin ing to the His istory

• ry Proje

ject ct page on BayLake.o e.org rg. .

Cre redit it goes to to all of th f the re real his isto toria rians and auth thors rs who have writ ritten ten a about t our a r are

• rea. See th

the la last t slid ide for the sources. The accuracy of the details isn’t guaranteed, but the basics are true. Questi tions or c r comments ts : C Conta tact t Pa Paul Eric rickson at t eric ricksonpaulsue@ao aol.c .com Du Dura rati tion: Ab About t 10 m min inutes tes. Clic ick or r scro roll to to advan ance th the sl slid ides.

Bay Lake is is only a f few mil iles from the southern ern edge of the Cuyuna Iron Range. e.

Keep eep Th These ese Peo eople, ple, Dat ates es & & Facts acts In In Mi Mind

1852: Cuyler Adams was born in Canton, Il. 1861: George Crosby was born in Hastings, Mn. Other than logging, our area was an undeveloped frontier until 1871. 1860: The Civil War 1858: Minnesota Statehood

Ra Railro lroad ad Ex Expa pans nsio ion n & & Im Immi migrat gration ion

In 1871, the Northern Pacific Railroad reached Withington (later renamed Deerwood) paving the way for immigration.

1870

For the next 40 years, the NPRR was the only railroad in this area.

Cuy Cuyler ler Ad Adam ams

In In 1878, 8, he used ed some me of his fortune tune to purch chas ase e prime me timber er land south uth of Deer eerwood wood and to build a home me on Reno

• Lake.

e. In In 1870, 0, Cuyler ler Adams, ms, 18, who came e from m a “well to do” family, went to NE Minnesota to “trade & trap”. While there he learned about mining ing from

• m men seek

eking ng iron ore on what later became me the Vermil million ion Range. e. When he heard about the NP’s expansion plans he bought t large e quantities tities of NP stock ck which ch he later er exchan hanged ged for 100,000 ,000 acres es of North th Dako kota ta farml mlan and d (that t the US Govern ernme ment t had given n to the NP as an incenti tive ve to build their eir transconti continen nenta tal l line). e). He then moved ved to Nor

• rth

th Dakot

• ta

a wher ere he sold d his holdin ings gs to new farmers mers at a substa tantial ntial profit. fit.

Geo George rge Cr Cros

• sby

by

Whi hile le on the Mesab abi Range, e, he felt the living conditi tions

• ns of the miner

ers s was deplora plorable le . In In 1886, 6, Geor

• rge

ge Cros

• sby,

, 25, went to the Hibbing area to search arch for iron n ore. e. He was highly ly succe cessful ful and became me wealt lthy hy by selling ling and leasing ng his claims ms to mining ing compan panie ies. s.

Cuyler’s Discovery

In 1888, (t (two years s after r George ge Crosby went to look for

• re on the Mesabi

i Range) e) whil ile surveyin eying g his is land SW of Deerwood, Cuyler’s compass moved erratically and, based on what at he had ad lear arned ed on the Vermillio illion n Ran ange, e, he suspec ecte ted that t there e was ir iron ore . He spent the next two years s explori ring ng the area , learnin ing g about min inin ing and securi ring ng the most promisi ising g sit ites. . He concluded there was a “north range” north of Serpent Lake and a “south range” south of Deerwood. Unlike the Mesabi Range, ge, the ore was well below the surface. ce. In 1901 (a (after r 13 years s of secrecy) recy), he told W. C. Whit ite, e, a well established and connected Duluth lawyer (who he’d known n whil ile in in N North h Dakota) who owned a s summer mer home near r him im on Reno Lake. Whit ite e would become his is partner er and prim imary ry connect ectio ion n to in investors

• rs.

(Adams wasn’t the first person to believe there was iron ore in this area. At least three unsucce uccessful sful attempts mpts were made to fin ind ore deposits its between 1862 and 1883.)

Cu Cuy y & Un & Una

As s he explore lored d the area a Cu Cuyle ler was s consiste nsistentl tly accompan mpanied ied by his St. Ber ernar ard, d, Una. Eventua entually ly, , the area a became me known wn as the Cuyun yuna Range. e.

The “Iron Ore Rush”

From19 1900 00 to 1910, events s unfolded ded dramatica tically lly and rapid idly. . Explo loration ration was extensiv ensive.

• e. Land

nd values s rose and fell on rumors. rs. Adams ms & Whit ite formed ed Oreland nd Min inin ing Company y wit ith plans to min ine southw hwes est t of Deerw rwood

• d and south

h of Rabbit it L Lake. George ge Crosby came to the area and secure ured d land near Rabbit it Lake e in in 1905. Rememb mberin ing g the deplora rable e condit ition ions s on the Mesabi i Range, e, Crosby founded ed the town of Crosby whic ich he desig igned ned to hig igher stan anda dards. ds. Drilling Rig After er dis isappoin inting ting results ts SW of Deerwoo wood, , Adams ms found hig igh qualit ity y ore on his is Rabbit it Lake sit ite in in 1909. Overni night ht the town of Cuyuna na became a boom t town and the new town of Crosby grew to a p populatio tion n of 3,000 by 1910. Knowi

• wing

g many of the min iners s would be im immig igrants nts (t (that t had been recruit uited ed on the docks in in D Duluth) th), Crosb sby buil ilt afforda dable housin ing g on lots large e enough gh for vegetable gardens

• ns. Many of his

is “Honeymoon Row” houses are still in use today.

Ra Rail ilro road ad Ser Servic vice

Recogniz cognizin ing that the mines es would ld need d rail trans nspo portati rtation

• n for outbound

und iron ore e and inbound nd suppli plies es, Cu Cuyle ler Adams ms began negoti

• tiat

ations ions with the Northe thern n Pacific c rega garding ding rates es and the 4 miles es of connecti ecting ng track ck that would ld be requi quired red between en Deer eerwood wood and the Rabbit Lake e site. e. The Northern Pacific wouldn’t give Adams what t he wanted ed so he began secr cret discuss cussions ions with Soo Line Preside esident, nt, Ed

• Pennington. Although the Soo Line didn’t

have ve track k in the area, a, they needed ded a direc rect t route

• ute from
• m North

th Dakota

• ta to Duluth

uth for wheat eat shipm pments ts. . They hey soon n struck uck a deal .

Railroad “End Run”

But then the Soo Lin ine suddenl enly y announced nced and buil ilt a n new northern ern lin ine down through gh

• McGregor. Adam’s kept laying track beyond Aitkin to connect with the new line at what

would become Lawler ……..and then sold the Cuyuna Iron Range Railroad to the Soo Line. Every ryon

• ne

e , in includin ing g the NP, the town of Ait itkin in and land specula ulato tors rs, thought ht the new rai ailroa

• ad

d would connec ect t wit ith the NP an and that at Ait itki kin would be t the hub. As part of his is agreeme ement nt wit ith the Soo Lin ine, Adams s formed ed the Cuyuna na Iron Range e Rail ilro road, d, and began buil ildin ing track from the Rabbit it L Lake sit ite toward rd Ait itkin in.

Rabbit Lake Site

Mo More re Mi Mine nes, s, Mo More re Rai Railr lroads

• ads

As more min ines were opened, d, more rail il connect ectio ions ns were e needed ed. . Havin ing sold the Cuyuna Iron n Range Rail ilroad d to the Soo Lin ine, Adams s then formed ed the Cuyuna Northern hern Rail ilroad d to serve e the new location ions s . This is tim ime he connecte cted d his is rail ilroad d to the NP. I In1914, 4, he sold it it to the Northern hern Pacif ific ic .

Crosby Rabbit Lake Sites Deerwood Riverton Thrommald Ironton

NP/ P/Soo

• o Li

Line ne Jo Joint nt Ope peratin ing g Ag Agree eeme ment nt

In In 1925, 5, the Soo Line determi termined ned that their ir ore e dock k in Duluth uth neede ded d extens tensive ve repai airs s and, rather her than inves est more e money, ey, they negotia iated ted a Joint nt Operating ating Agree eeme ment nt that allowed wed their ir cars to unload ad at the NP

• re

re dock k in 1928. 8. A year later the two railroad

• ads

s agreed eed to merge ge their ir Cuyun una a Range e

• perations

erations leading ing to the remo moval l of tracka ckage ge and depots

• ts that were

e no longe ger r neede ded. d.

Mi Mine nes s & Mi & Mine ners rs

It is is hard for us to im imagin ine what the buil ildin ings and landsca scape e looked lik ike 100 years s ago. Wit ith the excep eption tion of the Oreland nd Min ine, these e pic ictures es were all taken wit ithin in 2 m mil iles of Crosby. (N (Note e Serpent nt Lake in in t the background nd of the pic icture e of the Portsmouth smouth Open Pit it Min ine.)

Mi Mine nes s & Mi & Mine ners rs (Co Cont ntinued) inued)

Mil ilford rd Min iners s

The he Milfor

• rd and Kennedy

nedy mines es requ quire ire speci ecial al mentio tion: n:

In 1924, the Mil ilford rd Min ine, a shaft ft min ine (v (vs.

• pen pit

it), f flooded ed ki killin ing 41 m min iners. s. The Kennedy edy Min ine near r Rabbit it L Lake (t (the

• rig

igin inal l dis iscovery ery sit ite

• f hig

igh grade e ore and lik ikely the most successfu ccessful l of the sit ites) s) was a shaft t min ine. But when deman and d for

• re peaked durin

ing WW2, 2, the east t half

• f Rabbit

it L Lake was drain ined ed and replaced ced by an an open pit it m min ine.

Mi Mine ne Lo Locati cations

• ns

This is aeria ial pic icture e was taken aim imin ing southwest.

• thwest. The Portsmou

tsmouth th open pit it min ine (# (#2 in in t the pic icture) e) was on the northw hweste estern rn edge of Crosby and the Croft t shaft t min ine (n (not shown wn) was on the northern hern edge of the town. .

Oreland Rabbit Lake Sites

North Cuyuna Range

Milford

Crosby

Deerwood

The Rabbit it L Lake sit ites s and the town

• f Cuyuna

na ar are off to the left of the photo

• and the

Riv iverton ton and Thrommald

• mmald areas

s are below the photo…….so this is ju just a p portio ion of the Cuyuna una Range. e. The dark blue lakes were e min ines.

Co Cons nstruction truction Ch Chal allenges lenges

In 1871, when their new line reached Deerwood, the NP had 1200 men working. Ties were cut by axe from local

• timber. 50 ties per day per man.

In 1910, the Cuyuna Iron Range Railroad and the Soo Line Railroad laid track at an average rate of one mile per day.

Pa Passe ssenger nger Se Serv rvic ice

The train ins s moved more than ore and supplies.

• ies. Passeng

ssenger er service ice began 6 months s prio ior to the ore ship ipments. ents. Immig migrants rants landin ing g in in D Duluth h were recruit ruited ed on the docks and then transpo sported rted west to work k in in t the min

• ines. The trai

ain left Duluth th at at 7:20 AM M an and ar arriv ived d in in Crosby at at Noon . By 1912, the train ins s in included ed Parlor r Cars and passeng engers ers from the Iron Range e could make day trips to Duluth and Duluth area residents could travel to the “resort areas” and passengers from either end could connect at Moose Lake to travel to Min inneapo polis. lis.

Crosb

• sby

y De Depo pot & Sidin ing

The Cro rosby Soo Lin ine depot t is is lo located ted behin ind Super r Value. It t is is now a wonderfu rful

• museum. T

The build ildin ing was 100 y years rs old in in 2010. 2010.

Soo Line Depot

The sid idin ing was desig igned to to be a “Y” allowing trains to turn aro round. .

Note Old Rail Bed Portsmouth Mine Site Serpent Lake Honeymoon Row

Dee eerw rwood

• od Dep

epots & S & Sidings ngs

In n 1910, the Soo Line ne built t a line ne SE of f De Deerwo wood d to supply ly coal l to the ne new Cuyuna na Power r Company

• any. A

depot was built t south theas ast t of f the current t inte ters rsect ction ion of f highwa ways 6 & 10 . It was mov

• ved

d to Rive verto rton n in n 1922 becaus ause the powe wer plant t was replaced laced by dams in n Sylv lvan an and nd Pillag ager, r, passeng nger r traff ffic c was down n due to ne new roads and nd lumber r was down n because the area a had been n logg gged off ff.

Soo Line Depot

Soo Line

Northern Pacific Depot

The NP depot was built t in1

• n1871. It was locat

ated d where re the park is today

• ay. It was destr

troyed by fi fire re in n 1915. A brick replacem lacement t was built lt in n 1917 and nd demolis lished d in n 1987. In n about t 1914, the NP built t a line that at ran n behind nd the current t locatio ation n of f Magnu gnum Machin ining ng to servic vice the Oreland land site te 4 mile les SW of f De Deerwo rwood.

NP Line to Oreland Site

The Soo Line ne depot was cut int nto sectio tions ns fo for the move ve to Riverto verton. n.

In1911 11, , the Cuyuna na Range e began ship ippin ing g ir iron ore. Wit ithin in 7 y years, s, the volume e reached ched 2,588,106 06 tones. s. That’s approximately 40,000 carload

• ads

s ship ipped ed durin ing g the 8 m months hs that the Great t Lakes s are open

• r about 2 t

train ins s of 85 cars s per day, 7 days a week. . A substantial ntial logis istica tical l and commercial ercial accomplishment ……at a tim ime when n lit ittle else was goin ing on in in t this is area. In 1919, employment yment peaked at 2,747 men.

Year Tons Shipped Men Employed Active Mines 1911 147,431 1 1912 305,112 1 1913 452,450 1327 2 1914 674,516 1054 5 1915 968,495 1242 8 1916 1,429,178 1622 5 1917 1,930,422 2099 5 1918 2,588,106 2120 8 1919 2,262,576 2747 25 1920 2,058,957 1746 28 1921 1,530,987 1303 38 1923 2,220,474 1336 29 1224 1,421,052 1321 30 1925 1,511,232 1215 33 1226 2,097,427 1364 27 1927 1,921,760 1080 27 1928 2,103,620 1162 22 1929 2,693,440 1200 22 1930

1,929,145

1010 22 1931 904,649 780 25 1932 98,858 594

30

1933 741,134 529 26 1934 532,511 312 29 1935 812,881 305 30

Th The e Ri Rise e & Fal all Of Of An n Ind ndus ustr try

Volume ume and employm yment ent declin ined ed dramat matica ically lly durin ing the depressio ssion n and then ramped ped up to record rd levels s durin ing World d War r 2 when the demand d for steel l was exce ceptio ptionally nally strong ng. . After er that the Cuyuna na Range e gradua ually ly went

• ut of busin

iness.

• s. The las

ast ship ipmen ent t was as in in 1984. 1984. Mother er Nature re fil illed the open pit it min ines wit ith water.

• er. Today they are lakes and the Cuyuna

na Lakes es Trail il Associ

• ciatio

tion n has in install lled ed scenic ic lookouts uts and a w wonderfu erful l networ

• rk of bik

ike trails. ils.

Th The e Ri Rise e & Fal all Of Of An n Ind ndus ustr try y (Conti ntinued) nued)

So Sour urces ces

Th The co contents nts of thi his presentati entation

• n

ca came from an in interview view wit ith h Jim im Nels lson, n, a BayLaker aker wit ith h a passio ion n for railr ilroad ad hi history y (a (approp propri riately ately seated ed in in the he orig igin inal al Crosby Soo Lin ine Depot!) t!) and the hese bo books ks.

See how w and wh where to buy uy the Cu Cuyun una Co Coun untry y books on th the His History Proje ject t page ge at BayL yLake.o ake.org rg .

Th The e En End