railroad blacksmith
Replies: 1
Re: railroad blacksmith
| E Engstrom (View posts) | Posted: 7 Nov 2005 3:49PM GMT |
Classification: Query
Yes, there was a railroad line in Crookston, MN. Below is some info I found while searching for information on my great great grandfather who worked as a blacksmith for the Duluth Mesabi & Iron Range Railroad. Hope it helps!
E Engstrom
"Crookston - Minnesota - History
Immigration to the area that is now Crookston began when the St. Paul & Pacific announced in 1872 that a railroad route was to extend to the Canadian border and would cross the Red Lake River where the city now stands. In 1879 the existing settlement was incorporated and named Crookston, after Colonel William Crooks, chief engineer of the railroad. After service on several railroads, Crooks came to Minnesota in 1857 at age 25, drove the first spike of the St. Paul & Pacific Railroad, the first railroad in Minnesota, and eventually became its chief engineer. The line, which was later renamed the Great Northern Railway, was constructed in 1872 from Glyndon, Minn., to Crookston. Crooks died in 1907, still a railroad man, with ties to the Oregon Railroad & Navigation Company in Portland, Ore.
The Great Northern Railway played a major role in the history of Crookston after its arrival in the early 1870s. Once the line was completed between St. Paul and Winnipeg, Crookston was on the main route. Other GN lines would radiate from Crookston, first to Fisher, Minn., and later Grand Forks. The east-west line would be extended to Fosston, Minn., and later to Duluth. Another GN line would be built in a southwesterly direction from Crookston to Moorhead. Later, the Northern Pacific Railway would build a line northward from its main line near Lake Park to Red Lake Falls, Minn., and then onto Crookston before heading to East Grand Forks and finally northward to Winnipeg. The Crookston business community would attempt to build its own railroad from Crookston to Duluth. The line only got as far as Fertile, Minn., before it was acquired by the NP for shortening its route to Winnipeg. "
E Engstrom
"Crookston - Minnesota - History
Immigration to the area that is now Crookston began when the St. Paul & Pacific announced in 1872 that a railroad route was to extend to the Canadian border and would cross the Red Lake River where the city now stands. In 1879 the existing settlement was incorporated and named Crookston, after Colonel William Crooks, chief engineer of the railroad. After service on several railroads, Crooks came to Minnesota in 1857 at age 25, drove the first spike of the St. Paul & Pacific Railroad, the first railroad in Minnesota, and eventually became its chief engineer. The line, which was later renamed the Great Northern Railway, was constructed in 1872 from Glyndon, Minn., to Crookston. Crooks died in 1907, still a railroad man, with ties to the Oregon Railroad & Navigation Company in Portland, Ore.
The Great Northern Railway played a major role in the history of Crookston after its arrival in the early 1870s. Once the line was completed between St. Paul and Winnipeg, Crookston was on the main route. Other GN lines would radiate from Crookston, first to Fisher, Minn., and later Grand Forks. The east-west line would be extended to Fosston, Minn., and later to Duluth. Another GN line would be built in a southwesterly direction from Crookston to Moorhead. Later, the Northern Pacific Railway would build a line northward from its main line near Lake Park to Red Lake Falls, Minn., and then onto Crookston before heading to East Grand Forks and finally northward to Winnipeg. The Crookston business community would attempt to build its own railroad from Crookston to Duluth. The line only got as far as Fertile, Minn., before it was acquired by the NP for shortening its route to Winnipeg. "