Railroads in Ashland’s History
By Sharon Manthei
Ashland’s
earliest railroad construction was by the Wisconsin Central Railroad Company
in 1872. This railroad went south from Ashland as far as Penokee, which was
located between Mellen and Cayuga. It wasn’t until 1877 that Ashland was
linked by rail all the way to Milwaukee. 1887 also brought the construction
of the first Wisconsin Central ore dock and construction of rail lines
connecting Ashland to the Gogebic Range cities of Montreal, Hurley, Ironwood
and Bessemer. Iron ore was transported from the Gogebic Range cities by rail
to Ashland ore docks for shipment on the Great Lakes. In 1916 the steel and
concrete ore dock was erected. This ore dock remains on the waterfront
today. It is a giant reminder of Ashland’s rich shipping past. The iron ore
shipping continued until 1965, when the last mine closed down. The Wisconsin
Central Railroad Company consolidated with the parent Minneapolis, St. Paul
& Sault Ste. Marie Railroad Company and the Duluth, South Shore and Atlantic
Railroad Company to form the Soo Line Railroad Company in 1961.
The Wisconsin
Central Railroad built its first Depot in 1871 near the present corner of
Stuntz Avenue and Lakeshore Drive. A diorama of this first Depot is on
display at the Ashland Historical Museum at 509 West Main Street in Ashland.
This Depot was used until the Union Depot was built in 1889 by the Wisconsin
Central Railroad. The Depot stands empty today at 3rd Avenue West
and 4th Street. It was built in the Richardsonian Romanesque
Style of native, random rock-faced Brownstone by Frank Houle at an estimated
total cost of $50,000. The roof was shingled with Lake Superior Cedar and
indulged in galvanized iron trimmings. It operated as a passenger and
freight depot until about 1960. When the passenger service ceased, the
building began to deteriorate and soon after it was boarded up and “left for
dead”. The Depot was revived in 1988 (100 years after it first opened its
doors) when Michael Ryan purchased and restored the building. It was honored
as the top restoration project of the year by the Wisconsin Historical
Society as well as being honored by the U. S. Department of Transportation
for excellence in restoration and placed on the Federal Register of
Historical Places. In 1989 it was opened as a fine dining restaurant known
as “The Depot”. A fire in 1997 closed The Depot for 3 months. Another fire
in 2000 closed it down completely. The Depot is presently being renovated
again.
The
construction of a rail line from Ashland west to Ashland Junction where
connection was made with the line of the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and
Omaha Railway Company in 1883, gave Ashland a connection with the cities of
Minneapolis & St. Paul and a connection to Madison. This line later became
Chicago and North Western transportation Company. The Chicago and North
Western Depot was located in the 400 block of what is now Chapple Avenue.
Passenger service was phased out in 1970. The depot has been renovated into
a health club. It operates today as the Chequamegon Health & Fitness Center.
The Mulwaukee, Lake Shore and Western Rail Road built the first Ashland
oredock in in 1886, Chicago and Northwestern took over this line and
subsequent docks were built. Eventually Chicago and North Western had three
oredocks at Ashland, all of timber construction. Dock #1 burned in 1936, #2
was dismantled in 1948 and #3 was used until 1957 and removed in 1960.
During the period from 1957 until the cessation of mining in 1965, Chicago
and North Western utilized a portion of the Soo Line dock.
A branch line
from Superior to Ashland was completed in 1884 by the Northern Pacific
Railroad Company, predecessor of Burlington Northern Inc. This connection
made travel from Duluth to Chicago, via Ashland possible. A depot was
erected in Ashland, but was dismantled and moved to South Superior in 1892.
Thereafter, Northern Pacific used the Wisconsin Central Station.
The City of
Ashland supported a street railway system for a period of 46 years. A horse
car service was established in 1887 by the Ashland Street Railway Company.
The company was consolidated with the local power company in 1892 to form
the Ashland Light, Power and Street Railway Company and the horse car
service was replaced with electric cars in 1893. In 1922 the company was
merged into the Lake Superior District Power Company. Automobile competition
was already being felt and service was gradually cut back as patronage
declined. The service came to an end in 1933. This railway ran from the
Cemetery on the far west side of Ashland to Lake Park on the far east side.
Many families would regularly ride the street car out to the cemetery on
Sunday afternoons for a family picnic. The Ashland Historical Museum has on
display a stove which was used to heat the streetcars in the winter and also
has streetcar tokens for sale. |
