Nostalgia & History > Oops! Minor Soo Line Passenger Train Derailment

This photograph and caption are from the Minnesota Historical Society's Online Collection.

A Soo Line passenger train headed for the Milwaukee Road depot has derailed just north of Third Street South in Minneapolis.
ID Number: 104906
Created: 08/09/1953


Enjoy,
Marty Bernard

---

Sure looks like a split switch to me.

"OK. Who was the last crew through here?"

-John

I don't know John. Look at the mess in the foreground. Maybe something was dragging and the switch finalized the problem! The left rail under the last car looks like it might be rolling.

Marty

Opinion is the train pictured was going away from us, therefore could not 'split the switch'. It was derailing before it got to this switch and the second car is on the ground too. Wheels are leaving the rails to the left.

The building with the "Gold Medal Flour" sign is still with us. In fact, the sign has been restored and lighted at night. The :Ceresota" building and hand painted sign is also still standing and occupied by offices.

Not much else in the photo still exists...

Steve Mitchell
http://www.yardgoatimages.com



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/25/14 08:21 by YG.

dcfbalcoS1 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Opinion is the train pictured was going away from
> us, therefore could not 'split the switch'. It was
> derailing before it got to this switch and the
> second car is on the ground too. Wheels are
> leaving the rails to the left.

I think we're both right. A departing Soo Line train would have backed out of the depot to clear the crossover marked "2" below. Then he would have headed onto the Minneapolis Eastern to make connection with the Soo's own track. When he backed out of the Depot the rear two or three cars of the train ran the switch of crossover "1". It appears a previous crew left this mainline crossover wrong. We see the results after he pulled ahead toward the ME.

The photographer was standing at "X". I suspect there was at least one more car that has been removed from the crossing, as there are no markers visible on what's left.

-John

-John

---