History of Soo Line Railroad & A

History of Soo Line Railroad & Annandale Train Depot
Presentation to the Annandale History Club
October 2, 2006
Don Hausken

Annandale Depot Personnel Assigned

Adolph Hausken, Don’s father, was the Annandale Depot agent from 1944 to 1956. Previous to that, he ran the depot at Mantador, North Dakota, a small town of about 50 people. There were seven children in the family and four graduated from Hankinson, North Dakota, High School. When a position opened at Annandale, Adolph Hausken had enough seniority to get the position. He came to Annandale in 1944 and died on the job at the depot in 1956 from a stroke.

Don was in fifth grade when the Hausken family moved to Annandale. The agent that Adolph Hausken succeeded was Mr. Seeger. The family rented the Seeger’s big white house by the tracks. The Annandale agent following Don’s father was Ben Norell. The depot was moved to Pioneer Park 1972. (more)

Don Hausken donated an old typewriter and plans to donate an old adding machine to the depot display in Pioneer Park.

Adolph Hausken loved working for the Soo Line Railway. It was kind of like a fraternity; everyone looked out for one another. His son Owen was a depot agent in South Dakota. Another son Bud was an engineer for Soo Line, and a brother, Olaf Hausken of Glenwood, was also a Soo Line engineer. A cousin by Outing worked for the railroad.

The Soo Line (short for Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railway) was organized in 1884. The Soo Line is now part of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Don said that freight trains still have a few cars labeled Soo Line. The first trains rolled though Annandale in 1886.

There were once three tracks through Annandale. Now there is one track. There was a main track and a track south of the main track for passing trains. The track on the north side was where things were hauled for unloading. When Don was young, Lyman Lumber paid him to help unload lumber, concrete, etc. Coal was delivered on this side, and gas barrels were loaded on trucks to sell and deliver.

The Annandale Depot was located on Highway 55 north of the tracks between the grain elevators (now Veteran’s Park) and Lyman Lumber. The depot was one story. The telegraph was behind the ticket counter. A big potbelly stove heated the depot. The station agent would fill it with coal when he went home at night. There were two outside platforms, one on the east side and one facing the tracks on the south side. A large waiting room with benches around the sides and the depot agent’s office were on the east end of the depot. The west end had a large storage area for bulky items waiting for delivery. There were two large wagons with wheels three feet in diameter and a body 5 x 10 ft. or so. The wagons were kept in the storage area, which had large double doors. Ray Rice’s dad used the wagons to get goods off the train. The wagons were easy to move and had a curved handle. There was a nice picnic area with park benches and picnic tables next to the depot.

Ray Rice and his dad, William “Lafe” Rice, took care of all the freight. Some things were never claimed and went to an unclaimed freight sale where they could be bought for a reasonable price.

Ray Rice ran a dray service. He would pick up rail deliveries and deliver them around town. He would also bring freight to the train in a big wagon. Items brought to the box car for loading included cream cans and pets in cages.

Morse code was transmitted throughout the railroad system. Adolph Hausken was a good teacher and taught Morse code to young men interested in railroading. Doug Schnackenberg, nicknamed “Choo Choo,” was down at the depot all the time. Doug collected railroad seals, which signified where trains originated. He had boxes of seals. His dad, Dean Schnackenberg, owned the Candy Castle years ago.

The War Department sent Western Union telegrams when servicemen were injured or killed, and these came to the depot. The mail also came to the depot. There was a stop in the morning and in the evening, the outgoing mail was hung on an arm (a device on which to secure the mail sacks) and the “Flyer” picked it up at night as it rolled through Annandale.

There was a time when the passenger trains stopped at every little town. The Soo Line nearly went bankrupt during the Depression. Later, the trains didn’t stop in Annandale. They stopped in South Haven instead where there was coal and water supply for the steam engines. Glenwood was where people would eat. A little cafe had especially good hot beef sandwiches. The passenger service faded out, and it became mostly a mail and freight train.

A big event for Annandale each year was the Soo Line picnic. Special trains brought Soo Line employees and their families. The trains waited on the north side tracks for the return trip. Soo Line families would come in a rush off of pullman cars and walk to the picnic area byPleasant Lake. It seemed that there was almost a parade of people. Fishing boats were available for rent from Harry Lano. The picnics ended in the 1957.

There were a number of train wrecks in Annandale. In August 1922, ten men were killed and 32 injured. An oil truck driver was watching an east-bound freight train, which was on the siding, and drove directly in front of a passenger train (the Flyer) approaching from the west. The train threw the oil truck into the switch stand, opening the switch and causing a day coach to run on the siding and pile on the freight engine.

Another accident happened when light poles on a flat bed were released into the east side of the depot and went right under the depot agent’s desk. That accident took the front part right off the depot. Fortunately, the accident happened in the early morning before Adolph Hausken got to work. [see account in 1949 Advocate]

In another accident, Dot’s Café and a small motel near the tracks were damaged when a train derailed in the evening.

There were stockyards behind the Skelly station. Chutes were used to get the cattle up into the box car. Jim Rudolph’s grandfather ran the stockyards for awhile until truckers took over the stock transport business in the early 1930s. Stock buyers rode the passenger trains to South St. Paul. Grain was shipped by rail from the Dakotas to northern Minnesota. In the early days, passengers traveled to Annandale by train and stayed at the hotel (built in 1888) to await transportation to area resorts.

Don often took the Soo Line for visits to Mantador and Glenwood, and he and his dad took the train to the Cities for ball games at NicolletPark and Lexington Park. The passenger trains weren’t crowded. Carole Hausken said her Annandale High school class went by train to Dayton’s in downtown Minneapolis.

There are steam locomotives on display in Dilworth and Thief River Falls. Dilworth’s sports teams are called the Locomotives.

Don said that he thought briefly about becoming a depot agent. Don and Carole (Andrews) graduated from Annandale High School and attended Gustavus. Don played football in high school and college. Don retired after teaching Science and Physical Education in Annandalefor 25 years. He also taught in Elbow Lake for 12 years.

Irene Rice and Linda (Ray Rice’s wife and daughter) were in attendance for Don’s talk.

Notes by Secretary
Annandale History Club

For more Soo Line history, visit the website of the Soo Line Historical and Technical Society: www.sooline.org

See the Annandale Depot at Annandale's Minnesota Pioneer Park.

See Carol Weir's presentation to History Club on Annandale Depot and Train Wrecks

See Account: Depot Damage