One positive note: the depot in Mitchell has been restored and is now a very nice restaurant called, "The Depot". Interesting atmosphere and good food when I was there a couple years ago. Had to wait a while to be seated, so must be a popular place, at least during the tourist season.
My dad (and I for one summer) worked that line till the Milwaukee went under. 32 years pops worked in Mitchell. Mitchell to Murdo and later the Murdo to Rapid City. Brakeman and conductor. I worked the Mitchell to Chamberlain Section gang for a summer.
I worked with Bob for about 3 years. I was a young brakeman and worked the guys vacations from Rapid City to Mason City. My dad was a depot agent on that same part of the railroad for 35 years. We lived in the depots at Scenic, Okaton, and Draper. I quit in June 1975 to take work elsewhere.
When the Milwaukee Road abandoned the So Dakota mainline many grain farms along the route and many towns closed up or fell on hard times. We explored that line last year and lodged in Murdo. While the Dakota Southern is doing the best that they can to restore service it has been slow in coming. I do believe that one day the tracks will be rehabbed to Kadoka but the portion that goes on to Rapid City through the Badlands may not be active again as there are few potential customers along that portion of the old line.
Thank you for the pics. Man you can see the poor up keep of the track. Those poor guys out there were thrown to the wolves when the Milwaukee pulled stakes.
Update. The Dakota Southern is slowly working its way west and restoring service on this old Milwaukee main line. They now go as far West across the state as Presho that is about 30 miles from Murdo the halfway point. Plans eventually call for extending the line to Kadoka which is just before the Badlands route through Interior and Scenic to Rapid City. The tracks are all there to Kadoka and can be rehabbed. The ROW portion through the Badlands is rail banked as Kurt noted.
It's going to need a ton of ballast and numerous ties. I was just along this line near Murdo, and it is in really bad shape, turn of the century 65# rail, no tie plates, and ties dry rotted and dirt ballast.
@@rossbryan6102 yes I read that. WATCO is a larger operation than what the Dakota Southern was and they have pledged a few million for line restoration in the next few years. We lodged in Murdo 3 years ago and yes the track needs a sizeable amount of repair and upgrading. There were also grain silos there so there might be business if service is restored there. The line West of Murdo is in really bad shape and even paved over in a couple of former crossing areas. I've surveyed the line and I believe it has great potential if it ever gets as far as Rapid City. There is plenty of land along that railroad for ranching and agriculture but also several ghost towns created when the Milwaukee road originally stopped service. when they lost the US mail contracts
@@dlagrua A FEW YEARS AGO I READ ABOUT A 20 MILE STRETCH ON THAT LINE THAT HAD VERY UNSTABLE GROUND WITH MEGA PROBLEMS KEEPING IT UP! THIS SUMMER I ALSO DELIVERED A HI RAIL TRUCK TO PLANKINTON FOR WATCO! I AM A BIT FAMILIAR OF THE LINE!
If the Dakota Southern gets the funds and finishes restoring the line to Kadoka (the tracks are still in place), I can visualize a resurgence of agriculture that was once along the route. We've explored the line and the tracks have been rehabbed as far as Presho within about 20 miles of Murdo. In Murdo there is a large grain elevator that was once used by farms in the area but when the railroad closed so did they. If SD wants and economic revival this RR line will spark it.
Yep, the state of South Dakota has it landbanked for future use, possibly for Canadian Pacific, the railroad that now has the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern.
Dakota Southern operates the line from Mitchell to Kadoka. Track rehabilitation has taken place from Mitchell to Chamberlain. From what I was able to gather, the line will be rehabilitated from Chamberlain to Kennebec. Though this has not been confirmed, plans may be in place to rehabilitate all the way to Kadoka.
They've been working on the Missouri River crossing bridge they have sprayed weed killing on the tracks west of that. Bnsf has to much traffic on there main lines out West so there looking for new west rails
The Milwaukee line is mostly gone but I believe that there still is a freight line that runs West from Sioux Falls across SD to Rapid city. It might be the old C&NW line .
Actually, to keep it available for trains again and the Rails To Trails record of NOT giving back right of ways for train use again, the Stage of SD DOT now owns the right of way. There is a movement to put the line slowly back in, as both a switching railroad, tourist railroad & transportation museum. You will hear more soon (good or bad news will be posted).
Nice video. Sad to see the demise of the Milwaukee Road. As I understand it, government accountants found huge irregularities in the books of Milwaukee Road as they folded up. For example, Harlowtown, Montana was the division point between the east and west branches of Milwaukee Road. Government accountants found all expenses for the western half of the road has been double entered, taking a railroad that should have shown profit to a loss level. Just a guess here on my part, but suspect there was some big embezzlement going on that was funneling money away from the railroad. Follow US 12 NW from Forsyth, Montana and you run along the old mainline roadbed of Milwaukee Road almost all the way. Sad to see the results of this area loosing rail traffic. Abandoned roadbed, bridges gone, ghost towns where there had once been small towns along the line. A real waste.
Mitchell was the hub of the Iowa Dakota Division, but the mainline ran from Chicago to Milwaukee to St. Paul to Aberdeen to Lemmon and on out to Seattle.
From Rapid City to Kadoka, the DOT has pulled most of the tracks. I understand that the first 5 miles out of Rapid City, the tracks are still in; but the rest, they have been pulled.
Yep, they had their hearts set on merger with the North Western, but you know that it was the "corrupt" Union Pacific that had the CNW as its poster child that always got in the Milwaukee's way. They had their hearts set on merger and not on improving the railroad and enhancing the electrification.
The reporting marks for the "Milwaukee Road", were, I believe: C,M, St.P.&P. If I am correct, I know where are three diesels and one steam loco with those letters on them. Unfortunately, none of the four are any where near where the Milwaukee Road ever ran. The closest railroad on which those four loco could have run down was the Missouri Pacific. Kind of makes one wonder what those four are doing so far from home, and how they got there.
That was the abbreviation for the corporate name Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific. "Milwaukee" for short and less confusion with C&NW, CRI&P, and CB&Q AAR reporting mark on revenue cars was MILW. Non-Rev were MILZ
WATCO JUST BOUGHT THE REMAINING TRACK BED FROM KADOKA TO RAPID CITY , FROM THE STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA . PLUS THE MILWAUKEE YARD AT RAPID CITY 13 MILLION DOLLARS . ITS A DONE DEAL . RECONSTRUCTION WILL BEGIN NEXT SPRING .
As business declined the amount of track a section gang had to maintain went from 7 miles to about 27 miles. They just couldn't get more than basic maintenance done. That is trying to keep the track level and fixing a broken rail, in addition to traveling over the track in their motor cars to visually inspect. I road that track as a brakeman from 1972 to mid 1975. From Murdo to Rapid City, half was slow-ordered to 20 mph, the other half to 25 mph.
How many people would volunteer if a railroad took over the line from Rapid City to Kadoka and began tourist runs and a working rail museum? The tracks would need to be put back in; and volunteers needed to run, maintain and restore the locos and railcars. A railroad is in talks with DOT; with the hopes that the tourist/museum operation will help reinstall at least some of the 98.5 miles. With grain mills rail service having been abandoned; and the possibility of coal (thanks to President Trump authorizing coal production again), there may end up being enough shipment in/out, plus the tourist and museum trade to reopen the line. I know that used trackage on other abandoned lines is being looked at, for removal and movement to the Rapid City to Kadoka portion of the line. That also would give the Dakota Southern an option to ship Westward shipments; instead of all having to go East to Mitchell. Post what you think about this. I know that talks with DOT have begun.
That would be a really nifty idea for a Durango & Silverton-like tourist operation through South Dakota's Badlands. And here's another idea - having the Black Hills Central Railroad to connect with this line at Rapid City and therefore allowing tourists who visit South Dakota the best of both worlds. The two working railroads would link the Black Hills and the Badlands directly, therefore giving tourists the better option instead of taking their car to these two tourism hotspots.
Another option in the operation of trains freight wise is to have the Genesee & Wyoming purchase the line for the Rapid City, Pierre & Eastern and turn it into a line for freight car storage. Looking at the views from up above via Google Earth along State Highway 44, the track is still there although there's no maintenance on that track for at least 60 years. The problem is however that there are roads that have been paved over the ROW and many grade crossings have been removed.
The line has ben renovated as far a Presho and sees regular service as far as Kennebec. However, the rails are completely gone from Kadoka to Rapid City. DSRC only operated one train to Kadoka, but only to say that they had done it. The problem is that between Murdo and Rapid City there is not enough potential for grain traffic to justify fixing the line or to pay for maintaining it - there is simply not enough grain production in that area for it to work logistically speaking. With I-90 so close and accessible, the possibility of a tourist operation is extremely slim. I too would love to see these things happen but having lived in the area and documenting the line extensively, I just don't see it happening.
Coal is effectively dead to the market. Politicians on either side of the spectrum cannot change that fact. Moreover, other railroads have substantially better infrastructure for those kinds of movements. It was a neat line to see weaving across the landscape, when I did my cross country road in 2016.
One positive note: the depot in Mitchell has been restored and is now a very nice restaurant called, "The Depot". Interesting atmosphere and good food when I was there a couple years ago. Had to wait a while to be seated, so must be a popular place, at least during the tourist season.
My dad (and I for one summer) worked that line till the Milwaukee went under. 32 years pops worked in Mitchell. Mitchell to Murdo and later the Murdo to Rapid City. Brakeman and conductor. I worked the Mitchell to Chamberlain Section gang for a summer.
I worked with Bob for about 3 years. I was a young brakeman and worked the guys vacations from Rapid City to Mason City. My dad was a depot agent on that same part of the railroad for 35 years. We lived in the depots at Scenic, Okaton, and Draper. I quit in June 1975 to take work elsewhere.
When the Milwaukee Road abandoned the So Dakota mainline many grain farms along the route and many towns closed up or fell on hard times. We explored that line last year and lodged in Murdo. While the Dakota Southern is doing the best that they can to restore service it has been slow in coming. I do believe that one day the tracks will be rehabbed to Kadoka but the portion that goes on to Rapid City through the Badlands may not be active again as there are few potential customers along that portion of the old line.
beautiful fotos and beautiful music !!!
Thank you for the pics. Man you can see the poor up keep of the track. Those poor guys out there were thrown to the wolves when the Milwaukee pulled stakes.
Update. The Dakota Southern is slowly working its way west and restoring service on this old Milwaukee main line. They now go as far West across the state as Presho that is about 30 miles from Murdo the halfway point. Plans eventually call for extending the line to Kadoka which is just before the Badlands route through Interior and Scenic to Rapid City. The tracks are all there to Kadoka and can be rehabbed. The ROW portion through the Badlands is rail banked as Kurt noted.
dlagrua Thanks for the information!
It's going to need a ton of ballast and numerous ties. I was just along this line near Murdo, and it is in really bad shape, turn of the century 65# rail, no tie plates, and ties dry rotted and dirt ballast.
DENNIS LAGRUA
THE DAKOTA SOUTHERN WAS SOLD TO THE WATCO RR GROUP,
SUMMER 2021
@@rossbryan6102 yes I read that. WATCO is a larger operation than what the Dakota Southern was and they have pledged a few million for line restoration in the next few years. We lodged in Murdo 3 years ago and yes the track needs a sizeable amount of repair and upgrading. There were also grain silos there so there might be business if service is restored there. The line West of Murdo is in really bad shape and even paved over in a couple of former crossing areas. I've surveyed the line and I believe it has great potential if it ever gets as far as Rapid City. There is plenty of land along that railroad for ranching and agriculture but also several ghost towns created when the Milwaukee road originally stopped service. when they lost the US mail contracts
@@dlagrua A FEW YEARS AGO I READ ABOUT A 20 MILE STRETCH ON THAT LINE THAT HAD VERY UNSTABLE GROUND WITH MEGA PROBLEMS KEEPING IT UP!
THIS SUMMER I ALSO DELIVERED A HI RAIL TRUCK TO PLANKINTON FOR WATCO!
I AM A BIT FAMILIAR OF THE LINE!
Some great pictures of stuff not seen that often.
If the Dakota Southern gets the funds and finishes restoring the line to Kadoka (the tracks are still in place), I can visualize a resurgence of agriculture that was once along the route. We've explored the line and the tracks have been rehabbed as far as Presho within about 20 miles of Murdo. In Murdo there is a large grain elevator that was once used by farms in the area but when the railroad closed so did they. If SD wants and economic revival this RR line will spark it.
In the late 70s I helped put up a grain bin in Draper ,what a depressing place it was.
That was a great video I love the Milwaukee Road Thanks for a great job.
Charlie/MN
It's truly sad how these older RR's died.
Yep, the state of South Dakota has it landbanked for future use, possibly for Canadian Pacific, the railroad that now has the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern.
Nice job on this video. Some lonely country out there in SD. I saw the Kadoka and McMurdo depots last summer. Good tune too.
great to see there putting this line back in service see dm&e on it and bnsf
Dakota Southern operates the line from Mitchell to Kadoka. Track rehabilitation has taken place from Mitchell to Chamberlain. From what I was able to gather, the line will be rehabilitated from Chamberlain to Kennebec. Though this has not been confirmed, plans may be in place to rehabilitate all the way to Kadoka.
They've been working on the Missouri River crossing bridge they have sprayed weed killing on the tracks west of that. Bnsf has to much traffic on there main lines out West so there looking for new west rails
The Milwaukee line is mostly gone but I believe that there still is a freight line that runs West from Sioux Falls across SD to Rapid city. It might be the old C&NW line .
532, she is at the WHITEWATER VALLEY RAILROAD, still running
Light rail...poorly maintained track...slow speeds..most memorable facets from my train-riding hobo days.
The SD's made "Great Lash-Ups" on the Freight Trains.Also including the Bay Window Cabooses bring up the rear.
The Kadoka-Rapid City line is now Railbanked.
May become a RAIL-to-TRAIL later on.
Actually, to keep it available for trains again and the Rails To Trails record of NOT giving back right of ways for train use again, the Stage of SD DOT now owns the right of way. There is a movement to put the line slowly back in, as both a switching railroad, tourist railroad & transportation museum. You will hear more soon (good or bad news will be posted).
yes, its a great vid with great sounds, you did very well old boy. jeff . London
The Orange & Black Paint schemes on the Diesels were commonly known as "Pumpkins" for years of MILW 's existance.
@railstoruin Insturmental version of Martina McBride's 1994 hit Independence Day.
Thanks! :D haha
Nice video. Sad to see the demise of the Milwaukee Road. As I understand it, government accountants found huge irregularities in the books of Milwaukee Road as they folded up. For example, Harlowtown, Montana was the division point between the east and west branches of Milwaukee Road. Government accountants found all expenses for the western half of the road has been double entered, taking a railroad that should have shown profit to a loss level. Just a guess here on my part, but suspect there was some big embezzlement going on that was funneling money away from the railroad. Follow US 12 NW from Forsyth, Montana and you run along the old mainline roadbed of Milwaukee Road almost all the way. Sad to see the results of this area loosing rail traffic. Abandoned roadbed, bridges gone, ghost towns where there had once been small towns along the line. A real waste.
In Milwaukee days however,Mitchell was the hub of the R.R. It ran in 4 directions.
Mitchell was the hub of the Iowa Dakota Division, but the mainline ran from Chicago to Milwaukee to St. Paul to Aberdeen to Lemmon and on out to Seattle.
IF I had the money I would have a new loco in this Milwaukee Road scheme & have 1980 as the loco number
Great video !
Indeed there T H!,There was very plenty of time to include it all before the line went history since 3/1/1980.
SW's,F Units,Geeps & SD's appeared in this,MP15's were not.Also the Bay Window Cabooses & the Rib Sided Boxcars,etc by the way would appear.
Man the ROW is in BAD SHAPE, shows what deferred maintenance will do for you.
From Rapid City to Kadoka, the DOT has pulled most of the tracks. I understand that the first 5 miles out of Rapid City, the tracks are still in; but the rest, they have been pulled.
Yep, they had their hearts set on merger with the North Western, but you know that it was the "corrupt" Union Pacific that had the CNW as its poster child that always got in the Milwaukee's way. They had their hearts set on merger and not on improving the railroad and enhancing the electrification.
The reporting marks for the "Milwaukee Road", were, I believe: C,M, St.P.&P. If I am correct, I know where are three diesels and one steam loco with those letters on them. Unfortunately, none of the four are any where near where the Milwaukee Road ever ran. The closest railroad on which those four loco could have run down was the Missouri Pacific. Kind of makes one wonder what those four are doing so far from home, and how they got there.
That was the abbreviation for the corporate name Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific. "Milwaukee" for short and less confusion with C&NW, CRI&P, and CB&Q
AAR reporting mark on revenue cars was MILW. Non-Rev were MILZ
MILW
❤❤❤
The Milwaukee Road
WATCO JUST BOUGHT THE REMAINING TRACK BED FROM KADOKA TO RAPID CITY , FROM THE STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA . PLUS THE MILWAUKEE YARD AT RAPID CITY 13 MILLION DOLLARS . ITS A DONE DEAL . RECONSTRUCTION WILL BEGIN NEXT SPRING .
I guess they don't call the scenery out there the Badlands for nothing.
They didn't believe in maintenance.
Milwaukee RR blew all their $$ on other ventures. Nothing to the tracks. They let it die. The bosses were just bad businessmen.
As business declined the amount of track a section gang had to maintain went from 7 miles to about 27 miles. They just couldn't get more than basic maintenance done. That is trying to keep the track level and fixing a broken rail, in addition to traveling over the track in their motor cars to visually inspect. I road that track as a brakeman from 1972 to mid 1975. From Murdo to Rapid City, half was slow-ordered to 20 mph, the other half to 25 mph.
How many people would volunteer if a railroad took over the line from Rapid City to Kadoka and began tourist runs and a working rail museum? The tracks would need to be put back in; and volunteers needed to run, maintain and restore the locos and railcars. A railroad is in talks with DOT; with the hopes that the tourist/museum operation will help reinstall at least some of the 98.5 miles. With grain mills rail service having been abandoned; and the possibility of coal (thanks to President Trump authorizing coal production again), there may end up being enough shipment in/out, plus the tourist and museum trade to reopen the line. I know that used trackage on other abandoned lines is being looked at, for removal and movement to the Rapid City to Kadoka portion of the line. That also would give the Dakota Southern an option to ship Westward shipments; instead of all having to go East to Mitchell. Post what you think about this. I know that talks with DOT have begun.
That would be a really nifty idea for a Durango & Silverton-like tourist operation through South Dakota's Badlands. And here's another idea - having the Black Hills Central Railroad to connect with this line at Rapid City and therefore allowing tourists who visit South Dakota the best of both worlds. The two working railroads would link the Black Hills and the Badlands directly, therefore giving tourists the better option instead of taking their car to these two tourism hotspots.
Another option in the operation of trains freight wise is to have the Genesee & Wyoming purchase the line for the Rapid City, Pierre & Eastern and turn it into a line for freight car storage. Looking at the views from up above via Google Earth along State Highway 44, the track is still there although there's no maintenance on that track for at least 60 years. The problem is however that there are roads that have been paved over the ROW and many grade crossings have been removed.
The line has ben renovated as far a Presho and sees regular service as far as Kennebec. However, the rails are completely gone from Kadoka to Rapid City. DSRC only operated one train to Kadoka, but only to say that they had done it. The problem is that between Murdo and Rapid City there is not enough potential for grain traffic to justify fixing the line or to pay for maintaining it - there is simply not enough grain production in that area for it to work logistically speaking. With I-90 so close and accessible, the possibility of a tourist operation is extremely slim. I too would love to see these things happen but having lived in the area and documenting the line extensively, I just don't see it happening.
Which bridge is at 1:05 to 1:07?
Boyd W Chamberlain South Dakota Missouri River Bridge. It's a mile or so long I believe.
@@SCP344 little less than a mile.
This would be ideal rail expansion for coal! the grade is there
With President Trump saying coal production will begin again, this would be a great line for that movement.
And all the new steel he promised would be rolled and forged too, perhaps the new rail will be supporting his coal return.
Coal is effectively dead to the market. Politicians on either side of the spectrum cannot change that fact. Moreover, other railroads have substantially better infrastructure for those kinds of movements. It was a neat line to see weaving across the landscape, when I did my cross country road in 2016.
No coal will ever move over this old line. it is too late for that.
The line is still there