Timetable: Milwaukee Road - Iron River Sub - Kelso Junction to Iron River

This was the branch line to Crystal Falls and Iron River, leaving the Ontonagon Branch at Kelso Junction just west of Channing yard. Station hours and siding capacity is as of 1938. The line had a 3 mile branch into Crystal Falls, as well as mine spurs to the Kimball Mine (1907), Lee Peck Mine (1900), McDonald Mine (1908), Crystal Falls Mine (1900), Great Western Mine (1900), Chicagon Mine (1909), Carpenter Mine (1900), Monongahela Mine (1914), Genesee Mine (1901), Bates Mine (1914), Spies Mine (1917), Virgil Mine (1914), Tully Mine (1914) and the Blue Bell Mine (1915). The branch operated until 1969 when it was abandoned.

Station MP from Kelso Jct Notes
Kelso Junction J-MILW O&B branch 0.0 J Y TC=KO 
Lee Peck Junction J-Mine Branch 1.8 J
Great Western Junction J-Mine branch 3.4 J
Spur F5  5.0   
(Crossing) xCNW Amasa Branch ~4.8 X
Crystal Falls Junction J-CF branch 5.6  J W P-10 TC=FA 
Ravenna Prickett Mine Junction J-RM branch 1.4 miles 6.4 
Fortune Lake Mine Track  J-FL Mine branch 7.5
Carpenter Jct. J-MILW Carpenter Mine spur 8.4 J
Fortune Lake  9.4  P39 TC=FO 
Sunn spur 14.7  
Chicagon xCNW Chicagoan Mine spur 16.3 X I D
Richards  17.9 TC=RH 
Bates Junction J-MILW Bates Mine spur 22.9 J P Y
Bates Crossing  xCNW Bates Mine branch 22.9  X I
Bates Interchange 23.5 Yard
Worthing 24.3  
Tully Mine Crossing xCNW Bengal Mine spur 23.7  X I D
(Junction) J-MILW Tully Mine spur 24.7  
Stambaugh x-Interurban 25.3  X D P33 TC=SM 
(Bridge) Over CNW Iron River Mine spur 26.1  
(Bridge) Over CNW Main line 26.2  
Junction J-CNW Chatham Mine spur 26.3 J
Hiawatha Mine Junction J-Hiawatha Mine 26.4 
Iron River  26.7  D Y Yard TC=RO 
     
Crystal Falls connection    
Crystal Falls Junction J-Iron River branch 21.0 J W TC=FA
Crystal Falls 22.2 P15 TC=CF
     
Shafer Branch (Crystal Falls)    
Crystal Falls Junction 5.0 J-C&NW
Highway US-2 6.9  
Kimball Mine spur 7.5 J-Mine spur
Odgers Mine spur   J-Mine spur
Yard south of Odgers Yard   Yard
Genesee Mine spur 8.3 J-Mine spur
Tobin Mine ~9.0 J-Mine spur
Shafer Mine ~9.3  
(Junction) J-Carpenter Branch ~10.1 J-MILW
(Bridge) over MILW Monongalia Br. ~10.8  
(Bridge) over MILW Carpenter Mine spur ~11.2  
C&NW Connection to Dunn Br. ~11.7 J-C&NW
     
Bates Mine Spur (Iron River) From Bates Jct.  
Bates Junction 0  
(Crossing) x-C&NW Bates Mine branch 0.5 X
Bates Mine 2.7  
(Junction) J-MILW Spies Mine spur 3.5 J
(Junction) J-MILW Virgil Mine spur 3.7 J
(Junction) J-C&NW Bates Mine branch 4.0 J
(Junction) J-C&NW Connecting spur to mines 4.1 J
     

Key: C=Coal | D=Open > Day | DN=Open Day and night | EH=Engine house | F=Diesel Fuel | HI=Half Interlocked Crossing | I=Interlocked Crossing | J=Junction | N=Open at night | P=Passing Track w/40' car capacity | Q=Quarry | RH=Roundhouse # stalls | S=Scales | T=Turntable | TC=Telegraph call | W=Water | X=Crossing | Y=Wye | Yard=Yard


Notes

Kelso Junction: This was originally a wye.

Crystal Falls Junction: This was on the north side of Crystal Falls. A short branch line left the MILW here to the depot downtown. This was also a connection with the C&NW and other mines in the area.

Iron River: The MILW reached their depot via a tall viaduct going over the river valley and the C&NW.

The MILW had two bridges north of Stambaugh, crossing over the CNW main line at milepost 26.1 and 26.2. [MRL]

[REF] = MILW timetable, [MRL] and other sources.

On the Iron River Branch, between Crystal Falls and Iron River, the MILW had three interlocking towers at one time or another, at Chicagoan, Bates and Tully Mine.


Time Line

1900. Branch built from Kelso Jct. to Crystal Falls Junction and the city of Crystal Falls, 5.6 miles. [MRL]

1906. The survey for the St. Paul road west from (Crystal Falls) to Ion River and on to Star Lake will be commenced shortly. One of the head men of the survey crops was in the city last week and engaged a cook to take charge of the camp for the gang when it arrives here, about January 7. The cutting of ore at the Baker property of the Corrigan-McKinney company makes it necessary that the St. Paul get a hustle on itself if it is to be in at the opening of this property. The Baker is a Corrigan-McKinney property and that concern is very friendly to the St. Paul, dividing its business here in the Falls between it and the C&NW. [DD-1906-1229]

1907. The country between Fortune and Chicogon Lake was found to be a very difficult one for the Milwaukee road and work on that piece was probably the hardest that will be encountered between Crystal Falls and Iron River. The country is badly broken and hills are very steep. It was found that the waters of Chicagon Lake are 60 feet higher than those of Fortune Lake and this rise is a distance of about 1¼ miles. [DD-1907-0302]

1909. Branch extended about 11 miles from Crystal Falls Junction to approximately Fortune Lake. [MRL]

1910. Surveying for the Iron River extension continues. The route surveyed about three years ago went south of Chicagon Lake and then parallel to the C&NW from Saunders to Iron River. With the development of the Chicagon mine and a new area in Bates Township, the railroad is now looking at building their line north of the lake. [DD-1910-0514]

1912. Surveyors are arriving daily for work upon the Iron River extension of the Milwaukee road. It is the intention to put three gangs of surveyors at work on the line, one gang working from Crystal Falls; one from Iron River, and the third in the middle of the line, working to meet the other two. The reason for this work is the desire to change the line from that established by the second survey. That survey established a line that is very crooked. A big reverse curve in the vicinity of Trout Lake is the worst feature of the entire survey and it is hoped that the bad feature may be eliminated.

In general the line will keep closer to the valley of Briar Hill creek as far as Fortune Lake when it will work along south of the old line to the Chicagon mine. The west end of the line needs to be changed also because of the establishment of the Northwestern line to the mines in the Bates district. The first line established by the Milwaukee road for the Iron River extension ran south of Chicagon lake. The second line was established away to the north of Chicagon lake territory but it was necessary to get south far enough to tap the Chicagon mine. Since that time, considerable mineral development has been in evidence on the west side and it is necessary to change the west end of the line so as to run close to the iron formation.

All kinds of rumors are in circulation regarding the building of the extension. One is that an appropriation of a half million dollars has been made by the directors for the purpose of making the extension. At any rate, as if the building of the line is a sure go this time and it further looks as if the opening of the branch is to be times so as to get in on the big ore shipments when things take a turn in the iron business and from present appearances the Milwaukee will not be in position to haul much ore from Iron River until the season of 1913. [DD-1912-0302]

1912, The St. Paul is handling the output of all of the mines in the Crystal Falls region excepting the Mansfield at the present time. [DD-1912-0504]

1914. March. The Milwaukee Road branch is completed from the Chicagon area west to Iron River. [MRL]

1914. The MILW completes a 4 mile spur from Bates Junction north to the Bates Mine. In 1947 the line is cut back to the C&NW crossing near Bates Mine, and then in 1956 the entire line is abandoned. [MRL]

1930's. Prior to the pooling agreement with C&NW, the MILW handled ore traffic between Champion and Channing, and from Iron River, Crystal Falls and Channing. They then used trackage rights on the E&LS to reach their two docks between Wells and Escanaba. [LSIOR]

1937. The MILW purchased the Shafer Branch from the C&NW. The C&NW maintains trackage rights on the branch. [MRL] Speculation in newspapers suggests that this may have been due to the C&NW not maintaining the branch to the level needed by the MILW for ore operations. By this time, the ore pooling agreement was in effect and the MILW may have been serving the bulk of the mines southwest of Crystal Falls on this branch.

1939. Workmen for the contracting firm of Morrison and Dougherty, of St. Paul, have begun building a new roadbed for the Milwaukee Road where it passes near the Bengal mine in Stambaugh city. The Vernona Mining Co., operators of the Bengal, has served notice that developments at the mine make it necessary for the tracks to be moved. The new line will turn south at a point east of the Bengal, make a sort of semi-circle near the Tully location and then connect with the present track near the overhead bridge just east of the St. Paul depot. It will require two or three weeks to builds the track, but there will be no interruption in service. [IDG-1939-0526]

1943. Only telegraph office open on this line was Iron River during the day. [ETT-1943]

1943. SNAPSHOT. The Milwaukee Road provides one round trip mixed passenger and freight train daily between Channing (via Kelso Jct.), Crystal Falls, and Iron River. Fortune Lake was a flag stop. The trip took one hour and forty minutes each way. These were trains #709 and #714. At Crystal Falls Jct. #709 was instructed to leave the main track switch for the CF branch, with #714 restoring it to normal position upon return. These two scheduled trains appear to be the same train set, leaving Channing about 5:00 am, arriving at Iron River at 7:00 am, turning, and leaving back for Channing at 8:00 am. [ETT-1943]

1969. Entire branch abandoned from Kelso Junction to Iron River, including Crystal Falls. [MRL]

Bibliography

The following sources are utilized in this website. [SOURCE-YEAR-MMDD-PG]:

  • [AAB| = All Aboard!, by Willis Dunbar, Eerdmans Publishing, Grand Rapids ©1969.
  • [AAN] = Alpena Argus newspaper.
  • [AARQJ] = American Association of Railroads Quiz Jr. pamphlet. © 1956
  • [AATHA] = Ann Arbor Railroad Technical and Historical Association newsletter "The Double A"
  • [AB] = Information provided at Michigan History Conference from Andrew Bailey, Port Huron, MI

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