When MRHA (Milwaukee Road Historical Association) selected Winona as the site for their annual convention, they had an expert with local routes available to help plan a tour of the depots of Fillmore and Houston County. President of MRHA Jeff Goutcher hails from Preston originally. A tour was planned of depots remaining along the route of the Milwaukee Road.
On June 28, three buses filled with 140 members of MRHA rolled into Rushford from Winona for their first stop at the Rushford Depot. At Rushford, they saw the only two-story depot of the day. The railroad had added a second story to provide living quarters for the agent and his family.
Mayor and RAHS (Rushford Area Historical Society) President Terri Benson greeted the members and shared information about the depot’s upcoming renovation project of the foundation of the depot which has significantly settled since the flood of 2007. Numerous grants including one from MRHA will be used for the project.
Sally Ryman of RAHS shared her family history in railroading with the group. Her father, grandfather and two uncles were engineers while one uncle was a fireman and another was a conductor.
The tour continued to the Peterson depot; while on the bus, leaders gave brief histories of the Milwaukee Road in the area and answered questions. The tour group consisted of a wide assortment of people – some were long-time railroad employees, some just had a great interest in railroading. Some had brought spouses and have made a point to attend the national convention each year as it meets in different locations and some were first time attendees. Many also had an interest in model railroading. There was a plethora of information shared – including the fact that Winona at one time had a total of six railroads, that over time the Milwaukee Road bought over 200 other railroads and that there were two gauges of railroads originally built in the area – narrow and standard.
In Peterson, the group toured the 1877 Peterson Station Museum. John Erickson, former curator of the museum had begged the Milwaukee Road to allow him to purchase the depot; eventually he was able to purchase it for $1 with the condition he have it moved from the original location. Today the old depot is just a few blocks away and has had several annexes to accommodate its collection.
One of the tour attendees was particularly interested in Peterson. Terry Warner of St. Louis Park shared that his cousins, the Kunze family, had run a grocery store in the 1970s in the current Burdey’s Cafe building. After perusing the museum, some of the tour headed up the street to check out the new Tiger Trail Lefse Chip Company. The overwhelming consensus of the group was that the novelty was a great treat.
The tour headed west to Lanesboro where local author Steve Harris met the group at the rebuilt depot and shared some of Lanesboro’s history. According to Harris, when officials of the railroad saw the Root River cutting through the gorge at Lanesboro they decided it was a great place for the railroad. With the coming of the railroad, Lanesboro became a booming town.
Harris related the story of the Phoenix Hotel which was considered a five star hotel, the nicest one between Chicago and San Francisco. For several decades, the hotel also served as a depot. When the hotel burned to the ground; a depot was built with a railroad line on either side of the depot.
After the railroad was abandoned in 1979, the original depot was demolished: a replica was later built in the same location.
The railroad experts quickly noticed an error on the DNR explanatory signage at Lanesboro. In explaining the tell tales (ropes which hang down over tracks to warn of low clearances), the DNR used a photo of an East Coast train which was never actually used in the Midwest.
The tour moved up the road to Preston. While the Preston Depot is gone, a grain elevator and caboose with the Milwaukee Road logo greeted the tour from MRHA. The United Methodist Church prepared box lunches for the group, and Jeff Goutcher’s parents Shirley and John greeted the visiting guests. Following lunch, the entire group went back to the Preston Trailhead for a picture which will be featured in their magazine.
Before snapping that picture, Margie Bahr popped into the caboose to correct the hanging Milwaukee Road logo. The rectangular logo is supposed to be cantered with the wording parallel to the ground. The Rushford Depot also had needed such a correction. Details such as these are important; the historical societies appreciated the expert input.
Big hits at the shop in Preston were the t-shirts and the Milwaukee Road model bird houses. The bird houses quickly sold out. Robert Day was sorely disappointed when he missed out on getting a birdhouse, but was totally thrilled when Sheila Craig, president of the Preston Historical Society, found several more at a shop in Preston and drove to the next tour stop in the Harmony to bring one to him!
Harmony’s old depot is now a well-stocked gift shop; many of the wives suddenly had a newfound interest at that depot as they enjoyed a shopping break! Others on the tour found the ice cream shop and enjoyed checking out a hybrid car. Modes of transportation are always an attraction for this group!
The last stop of the day was at the newly restored depot in Canton. This depot was built in the same design as the Harmony Depot. It had been in serious disrepair before renovation. A visitor to Canton saw that the roof had collapsed; he arranged to have repairs made by the Amish and promised to give the depot to Canton if they got a tax shelter.
Canton not only got a tax shelter, the little town of 300 residents managed to raise $30,000 to restore the depot. New maple floors perfectly match the original floors, all the windows were replaced and joists were cut by the Amish in the community. Depots were set on mudsills when they were originally built, this led to undulating foundations that eventually need repairs.
At Canton, Jeff Goutcher presented LeRoy Haynes a ledger of LCL (less than a carload) shipments from the Canton depot from 1906 to the time the depot closed. Goutcher had purchased the ledger from the estate of George Post. Post had been instrumental in Goutcher’s decision to go into railroading. The ledger will be on display at the depot.
Soon it was time to leave Canton and return to Winona for the MRHA tour. On the bus ride, members of MRHA enthused that they were pleased that so many towns had decided to save their depots and the railroading history. They thoroughly enjoyed touring the depots and towns of Fillmore and Houston County. Many plan to return to explore the area more fully.
On the bus, Robert Day from Pendleton, Ind., shared his own hope to open his own railroad museum when he retires. “I have creosote in my veins,” Day exclaimed. Day’s great-grandfather, grandfather, and father had all held the same job as section foreman, maintaining the tracks. Robert actually lived in a camper at the end of the freight house and rode his big wheel up and down the freight dock.
Day has an entire 25’ by 25’ room of his home filled with Milwaukee Road artifacts; his wife began collecting dining car dishes as well. Although he was too young to actually work on the Milwaukee Road, he strives to preserve its history.
Both MRHA members and the local historical societies are working to preserve the rich history of railroading in the area. According to Jon DeVries of Preston Historical Society and member of MRHA, the attendees were “thrilled” with the depot tour!
Jeff Goutcher says
On behalf of MRHA, a big thank you to Jon DeVries, Sheila Craig, my parents and all the other volunteers that made the group feel so welcome during the visit. It was a pleasure to share Fillmore County’s historical treasures with others and the local team made that possible! And thank you Wanda for putting up with my rambling stories!
Wanda Hanson says
You are welcome, Jeff! Thank you for all the great information—I learned a lot throughout the day from you and all the tour participants. You planned a great activity for your group!