Great Northern History

This page will entail more research on my part, and hopefully on your part as well. Any contributions that can be made to the history page would be GREAT.

 

Many thanks to Leo Robin for these wonderful old photos of the GN.

Photo #1, upper left shows trestle with 750' section destroyed by wind. Caption reads, "Length 1610 Feet, Height 110, Part blown down 750 Feet, Aug 13, 1898, J.W.Rode, Jeweler, Minot N.D."

Photo #2, above shows temporary detour around damaged trestle. Caption reads,"Quarters Pro. Tem., After the Cyclone, By J.W.Rode, Jeweler, Minot N.D."

Photo #3, Left. Caption Reads, " Wreck of G.N. Oriental trains No.1 and 2, at Columbia Falls, Mont., on Jan. 29, 1906. Arthur Mattice, Photographer"


Leo provided a little background on how he came to have these pictures: "My Great-Grandfather, Edward Pearl, was a railroader his whole life. He worked on the Deleware & Hudson, the New Haven, the CRI&P, the Great Northern, and the Northern Pacific. During the period that these were taken, he lived and worked in the Minot/Williston areas of North Dakota. After he passed away my grandmother received his effects, which were given to me when she passed."

Thank again Leo for contributing!

Below : Headline from Wenatchee Daily World of March 2, 1910 describing the Wellington Disaster.

This picture was provided by Skip Lien of La Conner, WA. He sent this caption with the photo:

I grew up along the Seattle to Vancouver line of the Great Northern and
was a big fan of the railroad in the 1940's..  Attached is a picture of
Wellington taken by my father sometime before 1927..  Date of the
picture is unknown.  

Skip Lien
La Conner, WA.