Here’sHowItHappened

ByJohnOngaro LakeSuperiorRailroadMuseum BoardofDirectors

Iwas thereatthe beginning.

The North ShoreScenic Railroad operatestodayon tracks once owned by the Duluth Missabe&Iron Range Railway,asuccessor of the D&IR, which built theLakefront line. After the last freight trainran on it in 1982, the DM&IR sought to abandon the tracks and tear up the rails and ties.

Don Shank wasthe just retired vice president and general manager of the DM&IR and recognized the potential of operating tourist trains along the shore of the greatest of the Great Lakes. With help from Leo McDonnell, whowithMr. Shank, FrankKing, Wayne Olson and Shirley Swain wereinstrumental in founding the Lake Superior Railroad Museum and the preservation of the historic Union Depot, they nowset out to save thetracks to.

To do that something new had to be invented. It wasMS398A.01, legislation allowing countiesin Minnesota to createRegional Rail Authoritiesto save tracks frombeing tornup. Both St. Louisand Lakecountiesimmediately filed to form aJoint Powers Boardand become the state’sfirst RRA. Immediately thereafter,1986, Iwas appointed as acting director of the St. Louis &LakeCounties Regional Rail Authority.Myfirst task wasgetting the money to buythe line fromthe DM&IR.

We had TwoHarbors State RepresentativeDavid Battaglia as chief author of the bill.David worked his way through collegeasaGandy Dancer,a person who does track work on the railroad.

A year later, with support fromDuluth State Senator Sam Solon, the legislatureapproved$1.7million to buythe 26 miles of track. Butyou know nothing is that easy.

The DM&IR sent their top real estate person from Pittsburgh to Duluthtowringthe most money possibleout of the property. His name wasDrew