Fifty Years In The Northwest
of Wisconsin, to which were consigned the lands and franchises granted
by the government for the purpose of building the road. The lands and
franchises passed through several organized companies. Impediments to
construction arising, extension of time was asked and obtained from
the United States and Wisconsin governments, complications arose,
delaying the construction still further, other companies claimed part
of the indemnity lands, and litigation ensued. The state legislature
upheld the chartered right, and appointed agents to watch the timber
and protect the interests of the company. A sum amounting to $200,000
was collected from trespassers and at once applied to the building of
the roads in 1879.
The St. Paul, Stillwater & Taylor's Falls Company in 1872 had built a
line of railroad from Hudson to New Richmond. In 1874 the St. Croix,
Superior & Bayfield Company obtained possession of this line of road
and continued it in the direction of Superior, completing it in 1883
to Superior City, Bayfield, Washburn, and Ashland. The company have
built a road from Hudson by River Falls to Ellsworth in Pierce county.
The main line to Lake Superior passes through a rich agricultural and
immense pine region. The company have constructed at Washburn, on
Chequamegon bay, extensive docks, elevators, warehouses and shops.
There are on the main line 20 wooden bridges from 25 to 100 feet long,
10 from 100 to 300 feet, 10 from 300 to 500 feet, one of them on a
branch of White river being 90 feet high. The amount of logs and
lumber carried over this road amounts (1888) to 1,240,000,000 feet,
and 1,500,000,000 feet remain. There are few trips more enjoyable to
the tourist than the one over this road, terminating as it does on the
north, in a region attractive for its beautiful scenery, including the
lovely bays of Ashland, Washburn and Bayfield, with their picturesque
shores, hills green with spruce pine and balsam, and the Apostle
islands, favorite haunts of summer travelers. The road is splendidly
equipped and well officered.
THE ST. PAUL & DULUTH RAILROAD (FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE LAKE SUPERIOR &
MISSISSIPPI).
The first land grant for Minnesota was made in 1854, for a road from
St. Paul to Lake Superior. This bill gave twenty sections per mile to
the company building. While the bill was in the hands of the enrolling
committee, some fraudulent changes were made in its provisions, as a
consequence of which, after it had passed both houses and was in the
hands of the president, it was recalled by the house of
representatives, which had originated it, the fraudulent passages were
pointed out, and the further consideration of the bill was
indefinitely postponed.
Railroad enterprise received a check from which it did not recover in
many years. May 5, 1864, Congress gave ten alternate sections on each
side of lands to aid in building the Lake Superior & Mississippi
railroad. This grant was increased to twenty sections per mile, and
indemnity lands were given. The state of Minnesota has also given
seven sections of swamp land per mile. The city of St. Paul also gave
a bonus of $250,000 in city bonds, to run twenty years, and St. Louis
county gave $150,000 in bonds for a like period. From the proceeds of
these lands and bonds an excellent thoroughfare has been built and
maintained. The franchises pertaining to this road changed holders
many times before the road was completed.
The original incorporators were mostly citizens of Philadelphia who,
under the name and title of the "Nebraska & Lake Superior Company,"
obtained their charter from the territorial legislature May 25, 1857.
Their chartered rights were amended and their name changed to that of
"Lake Superior & Mississippi Railroad Company." The times for building
were extended by Congress and the state legislature from time to time,
as asked for by the company. The road was commenced in 1867 and
completed to Duluth in 1870, and the name changed to "St. Paul &
Duluth" in 1875. The first cost of building was $7,700,000. The
company have in addition built branch roads from White Bear to
Minneapolis, from White Bear to Stillwater, from Wyoming to Taylor's
Falls, from Rush City to Grantsburg, from North Pacific Junction to
Cloquet, and a branch in Pine county to Sandstone City. The Taylor's
Falls & Lake Superior branch road received seven sections per mile of
swamp lands from the State, $10,000 in ten per cent bonds from the
town of Chisago Lake, $5,000 from the town of Shafer, and $18,600 from
the town of Taylor's Falls.
Presidents of the St. Paul & Duluth railroad: Lyman Dayton, W. L.
Banning, Frank Clark, John P. Illsley, H. H. Porter, James Smith, Jr.,
and Wm. H. Fisher.
MINNESOTA & MANITOBA RAILROAD.
Under the land grant of 1857 a road was projected between St. Paul and
St. Anthony Falls, and completed in 1862, the first railroad in
Minnesota, though others had been projected at an earlier period. This
road was afterward extended to Breckenridge on Red river, and branches
were built to St. Cloud, and from St. Cloud via Fergus Falls and
Crookston to the national boundary at St. Vincent, and from
Brekenridge through Dakota to the Great Falls in Montana. Subordinate
branches to various points in Northern Minnesota, Dakota and Montana
were also built. The roads from Minneapolis to St. Cloud and
Breckenridge were built with German capital.
After the completion of the main lines a financial depression
occurred, the bonds were sold at a low figure and subsequently passed
into the hands of J. J. Hill and others. The aggregate mileage of this
road and its branches amount to 2,685 miles. It traverses a wheat
growing region not surpassed on the continent. The present terminus,
the Great Falls of Missouri, is a mining centre for gold and silver.
The country tributary to the road can not fail to make it one of the
most important highways of commerce in the great West, and thus far
the energy and ability of its managers has made it equal to the
immense demands upon it.
STILLWATER, WHITE BEAR & ST. PAUL RAILROAD.
Under the grant of 1857, a road from Stillwater to St. Paul was
projected, the road to commence at Stillwater and to proceed via St.
Paul and Minneapolis to the western boundary of the State. The company
holding the grant, through legislative action effected a change in the
conditions of the grant allowing them to commence at St. Paul,
building west and northwest, as a result of which the road from
Stillwater to St. Paul was not built. After ten years of inactivity
upon this portion of the road, the Stillwater people demanded, through
their representatives in the legislature of 1867, legislation
compelling the building of the road as originally devised. At this
session Hon. John McKusick, not then a member of the legislature, but
still an influential man, and representing public sentiment,
importuned the company holding the franchises, through the president,
Hon. Edmund Rice, either to build the road or to transfer the
franchises to some responsible company who would build it. Hon. Henry
A. Jackman and the writer, members of the ninth legislature, after
conference with the president of the company, introduced a bill
conveying the franchises from the original company to a company of St.
Croix valley men, to be organized forthwith, with the conditions that
they at once proceed to build the road from Stillwater to White Bear,
connecting with the St. Paul & Duluth at that point. A section was
placed in the bill locating the railroad lands near Kandiyohi lake.
These lands were among the most valuable in the grant and were to
inure to the new company at the completion of the road. The bill was
passed and approved by the governor. The road was completed to
Stillwater Dec. 20, 1869.
The legislature of 1869 transferred 44,246 acres, or one-half of the
Kandiyohi lands, to the St. Paul, Stillwater & Taylor's Falls
railroad.
THE ST. PAUL, STILLWATER & TAYLOR'S FALLS RAILROAD.
Part of the lands originally granted to the Stillwater, White Bear &
St. Paul railroad were transferred by the legislature of 1869 to the
St. Paul, Stillwater & Taylor's Falls railroad. The proceeds of the
sale were to be applied to the construction of the above named road.
The company was organized under the general laws of the State and
incorporated Sept. 23, 1869. The route of the road defined in the
articles of incorporation is between St. Paul and Taylor's Falls by
way of Stillwater, passing through or near Marine, with a branch road
to Hudson, Wisconsin. Length of main line from St. Paul to Stillwater
is seventeen and fifty-four one hundredths miles. Hudson branch line
from Stillwater junction to Lake St. Croix, three and one-fourth.
South Stillwater branch line from Stillwater to South Stillwater,
three miles. The first train by this line reached Stillwater from St.
Paul Feb. 9, 1872. The capital stock, $1,000,000, may be increased at
pleasure. The number of shares of capital stock is 10,000 of $100
each, limit of indebtedness, $1,500,000.
That part of the road to be built from Stillwater to Taylor's Falls up
to the present date has not been completed.
THE WISCONSIN CENTRAL (BRANCH) RAILROAD.
In 1884 the Wisconsin Central built a branch road from Chippewa Falls
via New Richmond to St. Paul, passing into Ramsey county east and
south of White Bear. The bridge over the St. Croix river about four
miles above Stillwater, belonging to this road, is a fine piece of
workmanship, built entirely of iron and resting on solid stone piers.
The total length of the structure is 2,400 feet, there being ten
spans, each 160 feet long, and a viaduct, 800 feet long, on the
Wisconsin side.
The track is 87 feet above low water mark. The entire cost of the
bridge was about $197,000. It was damaged by a cyclone in 1885 to the
amount of $10,000.
TAYLOR'S FALLS & LAKE SUPERIOR RAILROAD.
The franchises and swamp land grant of the Lake Superior & Mississippi
railroad pertaining to the Taylor's Falls branch were in 1875, by
legislative enactment, transferred to the Taylor's Falls & Lake
Superior Company. In 1879 these franchises and lands were transferred
to the Minneapolis & St. Louis Railroad Company. In the fall of 1879
the St. Paul & Duluth Company built a branch road to Centre City. In
the spring of 1880 the Minneapolis & St. Louis Company built three
miles of road southward from Taylor's Falls, accomplishing in that
distance as difficult and expensive work of its kind as had been done
in the State, the grading being made through the trap rock ledges of
the Dalles, and along the face of the nearly perpendicular bluffs
overlooking the river. In the summer of 1880 they transferred their
franchises and one-half their swamp land grant to the St. Paul &
Duluth Company, by whom the road was completed from Centre City to the
road already built at Taylor's Falls, Oct. 29, 1880.
CHICAGO, MILWAUKEE & ST. PAUL RAILROAD--RIVER DIVISION.
The river division of this road follows the west bank of the river
from Dubuque to Hastings, passing through all the river towns.
Crossing the river at Hastings it passes through the towns of Newport,
Cottage Grove and Denmark, and the cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis,
terminal stations. The line from St. Paul to Hastings was built in
1869, by the Chicago & St. Paul Railway Company, under charter granted
to the Minnesota & Pacific Railroad Company in 1857. The present
management obtained control of the line in 1872. The bridge across the
Mississippi at Hastings was constructed in 1878, and was the first
iron railroad bridge in the State. In respect to cost and workmanship
it ranked with the important structures of the Northwest. The total
length of the river bridge is 706 feet, and consists of an iron draw