Morris tribune., 1922-07-07
THE RAILROADS IN AND
THROUGH STEVENS COUNTY
Continued from Page u

(COnJlnueQ from rage II
was heavily in debt for funds Dor
rowed for construction work and
equipment, and the mortgages Sc
curing the payment thereof were due
and unpaid. The First Division Com
pany passed through an entirely new
country, sparseIy settled, and railroad
traffic was extremely light. There
were then no long cattle trains con-
veying stock from the western prair-
les to the Chicago, Kansas City, or
Omaha stock yards; no trains bring
ing in large quantities of lumber
from the far west; passenger traffic
was light, and freight trains from
St. Paul and Minneapolis with sup
plies for the frontier were few and
far between. The revenues of the
company were thus limited to min
imum, and at times the companies
were barely able to defray the or
binary operating expenses, let alone
the payment of interest on their
bonded debts. AS a result both COM
panies fell into the hands of Mr.. J.
P. Farley, as receiver about the year
1879. At that time Mr.. James J.
Hill of St. Paul turned his attention
to both lines with view of taking
them over" on behalf of himself and
several capitalists of st. Paul, and
Montreal, Canada. He had long been
interested in the western Canadian
trade and sought line of railroad to
Winnipeg in lieu of his Red River
Ox-cart route which he had used for
a number of years. Both roads had
been defaulted in the payment of in
terest on the bonded debts and the
mortgages given to secure the pay
ment thereof we're fOreclosed in 1880.
The sale in the foreclosure proceed
ings in the case of the First Division
company was to John S. Barnes, he
being the highest and best bidder.
At about this time Mr. Hill organ
lied the St. Paul, Minneapolis and
Manitoba Railroad Company, and to
that company Mr. Barnes transferred
all rights acquired by him as such
purchaser. The sale in the fore
closure as to the St. Paul & Pacific
Company took place a little later and
the Manitoba Company was the sue
cessful bidder. Thus Mr.. Hill &C
quired both lines of the road and
he at once assumed the control and
management of each. The Brecken-
ridge line was extended through Will
kin county to GAINESVILLE, there to
connect with the St. Cloud or main
line, with a single line from that
point to Winnipeg. The prosperity Of
the roads dates from the appearance
of Mr.. Hill with his Manitoba Com
pany. He improved the road bed of
each line, the equipment, rolling
stock, and systemitized the operation
of the new company with great skill
and foresight, placing the company
upon a sound, financial foundation
which the company and it's successor
the Great Northern, thereafter main
tanned. The Manitoba company con-
tinued the owner and to operate the
railroad until 1890, when on the or
ganizatiOn of the Great Northern
Company, the line and all the prop
erty and effects of the Manitoba Com
pany were leased to that company
for the period of 999 years.
We may pause here to submit a
question to the person who perchance
may read this paper; namely Who
will have the foresight to foretell,
yes, even conjecture, the conditions
surrounding those two railroad
companies, or the conditions of
life around Morris, or in Mime
sofa, or elsewhere on this continent
at the expiration of the term of that
lease, years hence? Perhaps
some one will volunteer to remain
over, and report the situation when
he shall in that far away future
answer the dread summons of eter-
nifty.
THE LITTLE FALLS & DAKOTA
RAILROAD
This railroad came along in 1882
IT was Oripina 11V DrOipctod &c n limo