IRON RANGE HISTORICAL SOCIETY

GILBERT, MN

Last Light at Aurora With the midwest getting a blanket of snow and frigid temperatures this weekend, it feels appropriate to flash back to my long weekend at the DMIR a year ago. These ex-UP, nee-CNW, C40-8s are mostly, if not entirely, removed from the iron range last I heard. I'm certainly glad we had a chance to shoot them. Dash 8s dominated the Iron Range sub, the former Duluth & Iron Range Railroad, on our weekend there. Had we longer, we may have explored farther along the D&IR trackage, but we certainly got our fill of these units. They look sharp in CN paint, and remarkably clean considering how the railroad treats much of its other older power. At Aurora, MN, we caught a triplet of C40-8s - 2020, 2116, 2033 - hauling empties back west. As we neared golden hour, some fine sunlight illuminated our trio. We would follow these back to Iron Junction before scurrying down to Fairlane to catch our BLE/IC/CN trio pull fresh tac out at sunset. Boy, that was a fun evening.
Last Light at Aurora Credit: Leo Blackwelder

The Iron Range Historical Society (IRHS) is an educational and cultural organization dedicated to preserving the history and heritage of the Iron Range region of Minnesota. The IRHS was founded in 1972 and is located in the city of Gilbert, Minnesota. The IRHS collects and preserves records, artifacts, and photographs of the Iron Range region. The IRHS works to promote a greater understanding of the history and culture of the area.

The IRHS maintains a museum and library in Gilbert, Minnesota. The museum houses a collection of artifacts that document the history of the Iron Range region, including mining and logging. The library contains a variety of books, journals, and other resources related to the Iron Range region.

The IRHS also hosts a variety of events and programs throughout the year, such as lectures, workshops, and other special programs. The IRHS also sponsors educational field trips and other activities to help students learn more about the history and culture of the Iron Range region.

The IRHS also offers membership opportunities to individuals who are interested in supporting the organization’s mission. Members receive discounts on museum admissions, invitations to special events, and other benefits. The IRHS is a great resource for those interested in learning more about the Iron Range region and its history.

IRON RANGE HISTORICAL SOCIETY is a Historical Societies, Historic Preservation in GILBERT MN. US MID #8402700188

The museum is classed as HSC (Historical Societies, Historic Preservation). It comes under American Alliance of Museums (AAM) region: Midwest (Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Wisconsin).

Last Light at Aurora With the midwest getting a blanket of snow and frigid temperatures this weekend, it feels appropriate to flash back to my long weekend at the DMIR a year ago. These ex-UP, nee-CNW, C40-8s are mostly, if not entirely, removed from the iron range last I heard. I'm certainly glad we had a chance to shoot them. Dash 8s dominated the Iron Range sub, the former Duluth & Iron Range Railroad, on our weekend there. Had we longer, we may have explored farther along the D&IR trackage, but we certainly got our fill of these units. They look sharp in CN paint, and remarkably clean considering how the railroad treats much of its other older power. At Aurora, MN, we caught a triplet of C40-8s - 2020, 2116, 2033 - hauling empties back west. As we neared golden hour, some fine sunlight illuminated our trio. We would follow these back to Iron Junction before scurrying down to Fairlane to catch our BLE/IC/CN trio pull fresh tac out at sunset. Boy, that was a fun evening.
Smoking Sparta's Signals With this weeks forecast looking (and feeling) pretty damn hot, it's nice to look back a few months during the wintry period. When my buddy Jake and I ventured up to the ex-DMIR CN Iron Range, we were greeted with hefty amounts of snow and some fairly frigid temperatures at times. Although I'm from a state that sees its fair share of snow and low temps, I've found myself becoming pretty weak to them. Yet, as this weeks shapes up to be in the high 90s, humid, and I'll be stuck in a warehouse that only makes all that worse... I'm starting to wish for those cold temps back. For now. Back on the CN Iron Range sub, former CNW C40-8s power empty ore cars from Two Harbors to the taconite plants farther inland, and farther uphill. We'd shot all up and down the Iron Range and were getting tired of the drive, but we had the opportunity to nab a quick shot at Sparta, MN. Well, why not? A little stroke of luck - melting snow from slowly warming temperatures made a nice puddle to catch a reflection, while one of the old C40-8s started to really smoke it up. Man, they do look and sound good. It's a shame the C6Ms and GEVOs are starting to replace the power sets up there already. Man, I wish I had more time to shoot this place. And for non-extreme temperatures. Wishful thinking, I suppose.
Farewell Fairlane The wait was long, but when I remoted into ATCS and saw Fairlane start flashing green to request access south, I knew we had timed things very right. The sun was beginning to dip ever closer towards the horizon and granting us our first bit of golden light as CN U717 led by BLE909 / IC6260 / DMIR408 began to depart Fairlane. The taconite was as fresh as can be, steaming away happily as the orange leader led into golden light. Truly, how much more perfect could it get? This was our final train of the day, our first full day on the range, and we had the opportunity to do some southbound pacing thanks to the sun setting before long. That was our main goal, so a simple wedge right at the crossing outside the plant was all we got. Looking back, we certainly could have gotten a fine curve shot just a touch to our west, but we wanted to be in the position to pace quickly and didn't want to miss anything. You live and learn. I have a good chunk of range content to go, but I think I'll keep it tucked away for later. I'm hoping to return to the range this summer if I'm lucky, so maybe I can snag some more golden power and light together! Or I can get that damn white silled SD40 leading in the day. Maybe. Anyway, off to another adventure...
The Artificial Valley One of the things that really stuck out to me about driving through the Iron Range Sub were the tailings piles. Hardly any of the mountains and hills in the region formed naturally. No, many of them have been built over the last 140 years as the Mesabi range has had its iron and taconite exploited. Biwabik sits between artificial and real mountains alike, creating a truly stunning scene with its roundhouse remains and small yard. It was a location we had completely missed the day prior, and we knew we had to shoot it. Former CNW C40-8s, bought from UP nearly a decade ago, power all ore movements on CNs Iron Range sub. No EMDs run ore or empty cars between Iron Junction and Two Harbors, only the MRF local. We found ourselves viewing the C40-8s of the range more often than planned, but they were surprisingly active on our trip out there. They boasted wonderful GE chug, nice horns, and friendly crews - what more could you ask for? Especially when the light was just right... It was a little wait here at Biwabik as the westbound empty train came to meet the eastbound loads, but once the empties were gone, CN 2027 led the C40-8 three-pack out of the South Biwabik siding, and they were off. We rarely went farther east than this, figuring road access was tricky, but later looks on maps suggested that we could do more, though we'd be unable to return to the Mesabi if anything lit up over there. Another trip will have to cover that!
Paul Wellstone Memorial and Historic Site Eveleth, Minnesota

Contact IRON RANGE HISTORICAL SOCIETY

IRON RANGE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
PO BOX 786
GILBERT
MN
55741

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IRON RANGE HISTORICAL SOCIETY Information

MID # 8402700188
Name IRON RANGE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Alternate Name
Classification Historical Societies, Historic Preservation, , Midwest
Federal Employer Identification Number (EIN) 237449684
NTEECC A82
Tax period of the latest return filed (YYYYMM)
INCOME 0
REVENUE 0
LAT/LONG 47.488545, -92.461422
CODES FIPS State Code: 27
FIPS County Code: 137
US Census Tract: 013500
US Census Block: 3039