Living on Railroad Island / All Aboard!

Living on Railroad Island, also, All Aboard!. . , Living on Railroad Island , The small residential neighborhood immediately to the east of here is known as "Railroad Island," named so because it was at one time entirely surrounded by railroads. Railroad Island has long been home to many Swedish, Italian and Mexican immigrants who settled in St. Paul. Most of these families started out in Swede Hollow, located on the other side of Railroad Island. Once they had saved enough to "move up," they moved out of Swede Hollow, where the small houses lacked plumbing and electricity, and the streets were dirt paths leading out of the deep ravine. Still, many of the former residents of the ravines of Swede Hollow and the shores of Railroad Island fondly remember their roots and continue to benefit from the tight social bonds that were first established there., The Barilla family at Christmas,

"He had been one of the first immigrants to settle in Swede Hollow. It was therefore his obligation to see to it that these people should have a play to stay and a place to settle for a while. By pinching and scrimping, in a year or two, when they had saved enough money, they, too, would move to better living quarters - Up on the Street. This was Railroad Island, just left of the Hollow, and surrounded by railroad tracks. This move would be a sign of prosperity, of accomplishment. Here there were sidewalks, running water, inside toilets, electric lights, and in many houses, furnaces, the modern conveniences of America." , -Gentille Yarusso, , long-time Railroad Island resident referring to the experiences of his grandfather

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"We children would sit high up on the bank above and watch [the trains] go by. The giant locomotives would come puffing up the track, their headlights glowing like the eyes of a serpent, winding around the curves of the Hollow. What noise, what thunder as the engines passed us! Cinders and sparks fell all around us, on our heads, on our shoulders. Windows in the homes would rattle. Mothers would call for their children. Some of the smaller kids would become frightened and start to cry. Fathers would be cursing the whole spectacle in general. After the freight train was out of sight, we would slowly walk back home. Stillness would settle over the Hollow. Occasionally one might hear the barking of a dog." , -Gentille Yarusso

, Wedding of Rafaela Cortez and Carlos Garay, St. Ambrose Church, All Aboard! , Cycle to Railroad Sites in the Twin Cities, ① Saint Paul Union Depot and the Lowertown Historic District , Lowertown, St. Paul , Lowertown took its name from the nearby steamboat stop of Lower Landing. Industries and warehouses were concentrated in this area to store the goods that were shipped by steamboat. When trains replaced the steamboats as the main form of transportation, railroad companies built extensive railyards in this section of St. Paul. This location was also a logical site for the construction of the Saint Paul Union Depot. With the increased railroad traffic, additional warehouses soon sprung up, many of which remain. Built between 1880 and 1910, this dense collection of massive brick and stone buildings now comprises the Lowertown Historic District., ② St. Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railway Company Shops and Great Northern Railway Roundhouse (Minnesota Transportation Museum) , Jackson Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, St. Paul , Built in 1882 of Platteville limestone, this National Register of Historic Places property consists of the St. Paul, Minneapolis, and Manitoba Railway's storehouse, machine shop and pattern shop. These buildings are all that remain of a 36-acre complex known as the Jackson Street Shops, which served James J. Hill's St. Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railway, later becoming the Great Northern Railway. The roundhouse is now home to the Minnesota Transportation Museum. Numerous examples of railroad locomotives and passenger cars are on display., ③ James J. Hill House , 240 Summit Avenue, St. Paul , Completed in 1891, this red stone estate housed the family of James J. Hill, builder of the Great Northern Railway. The home is now a historic house museum with guided tours about life in the Gilded Age., ④ Como Park Streetcar Station , Lexington Parkway and Horton Avenue, Como Park, St. Paul , This restored 1905 station built of fieldstone and mortar is open to the public and features displays where visitors can learn about St. Paul's historical streetcar lines and area parks., ⑤ Northern Pacific Railway Company Como Shops Historic District (Bandana Square) , Energy Park Drive, St. Paul , Northern Pacific's former maintenance sheds have been converted into commercial and office space known as Bandana Square. Steam and diesel locomotives, a transfer table and several railroad cars can be seen on the grounds. Bandana Square is also home to the Twin City Model Railroad Museum., ⑥ Minnehaha Depot , Minnehaha Park near Hwy 55 and Minnehaha Parkway, Minneapolis , Built in 1875, Milwaukee Road employees called the Minnehaha Depot the "Princess" because of its delicate gingerbread canopy. The depot is open to the public and managed by the Minnesota Transportation Museum., ⑦ Stone Arch Bridge and North Star Woolen Mill , St. Anthony Falls, Minneapolis , Built by James J. Hill for the Great Northern Railway, the Stone Arch Bridge carried rail traffic from the late 1800s through the 1980s. Today the bridge, which is open to bikes and pedestrians, is a popular destination along the St. Anthony Falls Heritage Trail. From the bridge, the North Star Woolen Mill can be seen on the west bank of the river. The North Star was the sole supplier of wool blankets for the sleeping cars of the Pullman Palace Car Company., ⑧ Milwaukee Road Depot and Train Shed , 3rd and Washington Avenues, Minneapolis , The restored passenger train station and train shed were once home to the Milwaukee Road's legendary streamlined Hiawatha passenger train. Today they contains hotels, cafes and an indoor ice rink., ⑨ Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad Grade Separation Project (Midtown Greenway) , Parallel to 29th Street, from Hennepin to Hiawatha Avenues, Minneapolis , In an effort to make the railroad street crossings safer for a rapidly expanding city, the City of Minneapolis required the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad Company to build its rail corridor below street level between Hennepin and Cedar Avenues. The massive project, completed in 1916, involved the construction of 37 street bridges spanning the wide trench in which the railroad tracks were located. A ride along the corridor, now converted to the Midtown Greenway bicycle trail, offers a glimpse into the industrial past of Minneapolis., ⑩ Como-Harriet Streetcar Line and Trolley and Linden Hills Station Lake Calhoun platform at Richfield Road south of W. 36th St., Minneapolis , Ride a historic streetcar! The Como-Harriet Streetcar Line runs between the Lake Calhoun platform and the Linden Hills Station near the Lake Harriet pavilion. The beautifully restored streetcar is operated by the Minnesota Transportation Museum., Historic Railroad Bridges

🅐 Chicago, Great Western Railroad Lift Bridge, 1893 , 🅑 Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Railroad Swing Span Bridge, 1915 , 🅒 Short Line Railroad Bridge, 1901 , 🅓 Northern Pacific Railway, Bridge No. 9, 1922 , 🅔 Soo Line Railroad Bridge