News - Mid-Continent Railway Museum

Help Mid-Continent Complete Our Track Relay!

Posted on November 8, 2024 by RebeccaNovember 8, 2024

Members, Friends, and Supporters of the Mid-Continent Railway Museum

We are looking to complete the major overhaul of our rail line by the opening of the 2025 season. As you may recall, we have changed our worn out 60 lb. rail on the major curves and installed many truckloads of ties and raised the roadbed. This work is now completed and will allow many years of service by heavy engines like the #1001 and #1385. Then we purchased enough 90 lb. rail to do the rest of the line and laid it out along the main line.

We have obtained two bids. I will refer to them as Bid Package #1 and Bid Package #2.

Bid Package #1 will relay all rails not already replaced on the main line from the restoration building to the end of the track at the quarry. It will include increasing the runaround area at the quarry so we can run the #1385 around the train and operate as normal. It will include the installation of 12,470 track feet (2.36 miles) of relay rail and On-Track-Materials (OTM) on the main track and sidings areas (includes farm crossings, culvert, and all work tasks). Furnish and install 2,069 new cross ties on the main track and sidings. Add ballast and perform 12,847 track feet (2.36 miles) of machine surfacing on the main track and sidings. Construct new end of track earth berm using materials available on site.

Bid Package #2 will relay only rails on the main line from Ulrich Road to the last switch at the quarry (Project Areas 3-5). It will not repair and extend our run around track for the #1385, meaning we will have to push the train back to the station. It will include the installation of 11,472 track feet (2.17 miles) relay rail and OTM on main track and sidings. Install 1,600 new cross ties, add ballast, and perform 12,786 track feet (2.42 miles) of machine track surfacing on the main track and sidings in Areas 3 and 5.

After using all our unrestricted cash on hand, we are short $316,858.82 to do bid package #1 and short $79,080.92 to do bid package #2. We would like to do the whole project but unless we come up with the funds, we will not be able to do any of this work. I am asking all our members, friends, and supporters to help fund and spread the word about this project. We can start this work in December and have it completed by opening season 2025. With 1385 coming back in the summer of 2025 it will give us nice heavy rail supported by new ties to operate on. This work will give us many years of headache free operation regarding our rail line.

In this time of need no donation is too small. Please consider a donation and passing the word to all your friends, family, and fans of history and railroading. I want to thank you for your past support of the Mid-Content Railway Museum. If anyone would like more detailed information on this project, please contact me.

Sincerely,

Andy Spinelli

President

Mid-Continent Railway Museum

Donate Online Here!

Donations can also be made by phone or mail. For assistance, contact our office staff at 608-522-4261.

Ties to the Future: A 1385 Project

Posted on August 28, 2024 by RebeccaOctober 11, 2024

*The current state of our interchange rail ties.* *Notice the absent and deteriorating ties.*

We’re thrilled to announce a challenge grant of $5,000 from an anonymous donor for new railroad ties. Now we need your help to match the challenge so we can claim the $5,000 grant and get the new ties installed in the coming months.

This isn’t just any track maintenance project. As the Chicago & North Western #1385 steam locomotive restoration project nears completion, one of the major tasks still ahead is transporting the restored locomotive back home to Mid-Continent. Shipping the 1385 home by railroad flat car is the preferred option, but there’s a snag: Mid-Continent’s interchange track is rarely used and many of the ties on that portion of the line are rotted and can’t support the weight of 1385. About 275 new ties are needed to make the interchange safe for use.

If you are interested in helping us renew our rail connection to the outside world, bringing 1385 home, and taking a step towards exciting new possibilities, please click the link: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=DB9BNRE2VMTPL

Donations can also be made by phone or mail. For assistance, contact our office staff at 608-522-4261.

Our webpage will be frequently updated with current donation totals so check back to follow our progress! 🚂🌟

Raised amount is accurate as of 3:35 PM on 9/4/2024.

*C&NW #1385 on an excursion in Rochelle, IL. on September 7th, 1983. Jeff Kneipper photo.*

Update Oct. 10, 2024

Thanks to the success of this fundraiser, 275 new railroad ties have been delivered! Installation of the ties is expected to occur in November 2024.

A Huge Success – All Hands on Deck Progress Report

Posted on July 3, 2024 by RebeccaJuly 4, 2024

The 5-day long “All Hands on Deck” session held by the MCRM Restoration Department was very successful. The volunteers really did an outstanding job and performed an immense amount of work in a matter of a few days.

The tremendously successful “All Hands on Deck” Session was held during June 26th to the 30th and we had a total of 32 different volunteers participating in the event, with an average of 20 volunteers per day. In total the volunteers put in over 800 hours of work during this session.

Anyone walking in the MCRM Car Shop after this event will notice a significant difference in the appearance of the cars that were worked on. The progress made during this session exceeded the expectations and this was achieved due to the support, commitment and hard work of the volunteers. Progress made during the 5-day All Hands on Deck Session is summarized below. Note that several of the photos capture the status of the projects before and after the All Hands on Deck session.

Duluth South Shore & Atlantic Sleeping car DULUTH: Installed new veneer pieces under the windows in the smoking room and one in the sleeping compartment, installed the new window header (veneer with marquetry) in the smoking room, installed the headliner trim on the west side of the smoking room, applied canvas and painted to the two headliners for the smoking room (east side), installed filler pieces in the sleeping compartment lamp openings, installed cleats along the edge of the original veneer ceiling panels in the sleeping compartment, installed one new piece of bending plywood in the sleeping compartment ceiling, removed the remaining clerestory window frames from the car, primed and cut new car siding to length, installed a portion of the car siding on the east and west sides (approximately 30%) and took delivery of three new interior doors, two mirror frames and four vestibule end windows.

*Duluth sleeping compartment ceiling BEFORE AHOD*.

*Duluth smoking room east wall BEFORE AHOD*.

Removing clerestory windows in the Duluth during the AHOD

East Jordan & Southern #2: Painted the entire exterior of the car with the EJ&S green, sanded and varnished the interior the entire passenger section of the car as well as the saloon (multiple coats), installed the lower inner window stops, painted the brake beams, trimmed bolts to length under the car, sanded the seat footrests and cleaned and painted the car body end rails.

Lake Superior & Ishpeming #64: Reconstructed the car framing for the two oval windows, installed the car siding around the two oval windows, installed the last of the straight battens on the car, primed the entire exterior of the car, cut and fit the window frames on the east side of the car, primed ten of the window frames, sanded much of the interior woodwork, cleaned and painted the car body end rails and cleaned up springs for the window frames.

*The LS&I #64 east side oval window BEFORE the AHOD*.

*Priming the LS&I #64 during the AHOD session*.

Rock Island #1094: Removed the last of the cabinets and sink in the baggage room, scraped and painted the north half of the baggage room including the clerestory area, the water tanks and the side walls. Reconstructed the south doorway in the bunk area, replaced missing and deteriorated headliner boards in the bunk area and baggage room and made a mockup of the bunk side rails.

*The status in the Rock Island baggage room BEFORE the AHOD*.

I’d like to thank all of the amazing volunteers who put in a tremendous amount of work during the past 5 days! Special thanks are also extended to the volunteers that prepared all of the meals for the entire crew during the session as well as the MCRM operating crew that took the group on the Pizza Train ride.

Volunteers participating in the event included: Peter, Jeff Ha., Owen, Judy, Darryl, Larry S. Jack, Jerry F., Fred, Bob R., David P., Gregg, Jane, Steven M., Larry T., Steve W., Bob B., Dean, Jerry M., Marty, Thomas, Altha, Kelly, Nate, Jay, Steve P., Dan P., Colton, Jeff Hu., David M., John T. and I. Please accept my apologies if I omitted the name(s) any of the volunteers that participated.

*Some of the 32 volunteers that participated in the AHOD session*.

*MCRM Volunteers on an evening excursion to the R&GN*.

Thanks again to everyone that participated in the session and helped to make it a huge success. Our next volunteer work session is scheduled for July 13, 14 and 15.

New Exhibit at Mid-Continent

Posted on June 20, 2024 by RebeccaJune 20, 2024

Lake States Railway Historical Association and Mid-Continent Railway Museum are teaming up to present a new photo exhibition “Clinton Jones, Jr. (1944-2024): An Upper Midwest Icon of Shortline Railroading” beginning June 22 at MCRM’s Coach Shed #2 at North Freedom, Wisconsin. This exhibit will run through Labor Day (September 2nd, 2024).

Clint Jones was a well-known force in the railroad shortline and preservation world for many years. He was involved with both organizations from their early days. Clint served as a board trustee at Lake States for many years and was the second person to ever donate personal collections, in 2007. At Mid-Continent, he was instrumental in bringing several historic pieces of equipment to the museum, including Copper Range steam locomotive #29, Copper Range wooden coach #60 (now fully restored and on display), and rare Milwaukee Road ALCO RSC-2 #988.

Over the years, Clint assembled a personal collection of photographs (many taken by himself starting in 1961) and paper documents, mostly focusing upon railroads of the Michigan Upper Peninsula. He has donated many of these to Lake States, with most of his photography now viewable on-line at www.lakestatesarchive.org. The new exhibit at Mid-Continent features more than 50 photographs of and taken by him, plus additional documents and ephemera that tell the story of his railroading career.

Originally born and raised in the Milwaukee area, his interest in railroading began with trips to the Upper Peninsula via the C&NW and Milwaukee Road to visit relatives in his teen years. After a brief stint studying business at Michigan Technological University, he hired out as a diesel locomotive electrician’s apprentice for the Milwaukee Road at their Milwaukee shops. But his passion and pluck led him to form his own company Trans Northern, Inc. to operate a steam passenger tourist railroad in Michigan and act as a dealer of vintage railroad equipment. Clint later worked for the C&NW in train service and also served as a trainmaster for Wisconsin Central Railway from 1987 to 1997, supervising train operations and train crews from Marquette, Michigan. His most recent project was the Mineral Range, Inc., a railway equipment, industry switching, and transportation consulting firm that operated a railroad between Humboldt and Ishpeming, Michigan. Never retiring and active in day-to-day operations into 2024, Clint passed away in April after a brief illness.

The Clint Jones exhibit will be open to the public during Mid-Continent’s normal hours (www.midcontinent.org), and will run through Labor Day weekend.

The track ahead is under the watchful eye of Clinton Jones, Jr. from the cab of Copper Range steam locomotive #29. The CR had kept the locomotive in storage from 1953 until 1967. With Clint’s connections with CR management, he saved the engine from scrapping, purchasing it for his new Keweenaw Central tourist railroad. It last ran in 1971. In 2003, Clint donated #29 to Mid-Continent Railway Museum at North Freedom, Wisconsin where it resides today on static display. George Forero photograph.

Looking the part of an astute engineer from the steam era, Clint is at the controls of Copper Range #29 during the Keweenaw Central days. He was in his mid-20s at the time of this photo about 1970. George Forero photograph.

October 27, 1972, was a sad day at McKeever, Michigan when the crew posed for the very last Copper Range freight train to interchange with the Milwaukee Road. Clint made up the sign to commemorate the historical event. He saved it for posterity. Today it is preserved at Lake States Railway Historical Association and is on display as part of the “Clinton Jones, Jr. (1944-2024): An Upper Midwest Icon of Shortline Railroading” exhibit at Mid-Continent Railway Museum, North Freedom, WI. LSRHA Collection 2021.008.4.256 (4×5 neg)

Clint Jones’ crowning career achievement was his creation and expansion of the Mineral Range railroad. Its primary shipper is the Humboldt mill where ore concentrate is loaded into a fleet of gondolas for the Mineral Range to pick up and move over 20 miles to an interchange with the Canadian National at Ishpeming. Clint was comfortable in his natural habitat: the cab of a locomotive. This time, it’s the Mineral Range of the 2000’s. Clint adopted DSS&A’s offset parallelograms logo years before Lake States unknowingly did the same. George Forero photograph.

Rail Relay Phase 2: Preparing for Installation

Posted on April 25, 2024 by Jeffrey LentzMay 7, 2024

Mid-Continent Railway Museum’s trains have traveled the rails at North Freedom for 60 years… rails which are themselves often over 100 years old. Mid-Continent’s railroad track is a critical piece of infrastructure that makes possible our museum’s signature experience – the train rides! Now we are asking for your help to make sure Mid-Continent’s rail line remains safe to operate for another 60 years and beyond.

MCRY Rail Relay Phase 2 is the next crucial step in addressing old, worn, and fatigued rail along Mid-Continent’s rail line on which its demonstration passenger trains are operated. Phase 2 involves replacing 11,431 track feet (2.16 miles) of rails, joint bars, tie plates, rail anchors, track bolts, and spikes, known as On-Track-Material, or OTM. That is enough rail to replace over half of Mid-Continent’s entire railroad!

Rail Relay Progress Made So Far

Thanks in large part to the generosity of donors who have given so far, Mid-Continent was able to place a winning bid on 502 tons of rail and 138 tons of OTM at a total cost of $203,000. The rail was recently removed from the Wisconsin & Southern Railroad’s Prairie Subdivision as they upgraded that line. This has provided enough rail to allow Mid-Continent to complete all of Phase 2. Although the rail being purchased comes used, it is newer and heavier-duty rail than what exists on Mid-Continent’s current line and will be good for many decades in service for the museum. The purchased rail was transported to the museum in November and early December 2023.

Next Steps

In April 2024, crews began sorting the rail in preparation for placing (but not yet installing) the rails along Mid-Continent’s line. In summer 2024, Mid-Continent will prepare a bid package, requesting bids from railroad construction contractors for swapping out the old rail with the new rail.

Your Help is Needed for the Rail Relay Phase 2 Project!

Now that Mid-Continent has acquired the rail, it is time to install it. Although Mid-Continent’s volunteers accomplish a great deal, the scale of the work to be performed can only be achieved with the help of a railroad construction contractor. This means donations are needed to bring the project to completion. Depending on contractor availability, the target is for this to happen during fall/winter 2024.

Your donation to the Rail Relay Phase 2 project directly supports Mid-Continent’s core mission of providing an immersive museum experience of riding aboard historic railcars on an authentic, rural branchline route. Join Mid-Continent today in preserving America’s railroading legacy for tomorrow.

How to Make Your Donation

Mid-Continent Railway Museum is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit, educational entity. All donations are tax-deductible.

You can make your donation in one of several ways:

Click the Donate Now button to be taken to the project’s PayPal donation page. This method accepts credit and debit cards, as well as PayPal payments.

Donate Now

Send a check to with “Rail Relay Project” written in the memo line to
Mid-Continent Railway Museum
PO Box 358
North Freedom, WI 53951-0358

Speak to one of our office staff by phone at 608-522-4261 or 800-930-1385 to make a payment by phone or if you have any questions.

Tips for Maximizing Your Impact

Consider asking your employer if they match donations to 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations. If you’re retired, ask your financial advisor if donating a portion of your retirement account’s required minimum distribution (RMD) is right for you.