Minnesota Transportation Museum
This tour featured a visit to two popular Minnesota Transportation Museum
locations. First was a visit to the Como Harriet streetcar line which is the last
remnant of the Twin Cities Rapid Transit Company which ran from St. Paul to
Stillwater. Attendees were able to ride a variety of streetcars. PCC No. 322
was built by the St. Louis Streetcar Company in 1946. This car ran on several
different streetcar lines before being returned to the Twin Cities in 2001 as
the museum's fourth restored streetcar. Car No. 1300 was built for St. Paul in
1908 and was frequently used on the Como-Harriet Line in its 46 years of
service (the interior of the car is shown in the photo below). The car has been restored to its original 1930s appearance after being
when it was rebuilt for one or two man operation. The last car conventioneers were able to
ride was car No. 265. This car was built in 1915 for the TCRT. It later served the
Duluth Street Railway Company. After recovering the trolley from Winconson, the
museum restored the car to its 1929 appearance where it serves the museum in
one man operation. In 1982, No. 265 was the second streetcar placed in service
on the Como-Harriet streetcar operation.
After touring the Como Harriet Streetcar Line, the group headed off to the
Minnesota Transportation Museum's Jackson Street Roundhouse. For several hours,
attendees were permitted access to the entire museum. The highlight of the
afternoon was the recently acquired No. 400, the Hustle Muscle, an ex-Great Northern
SD45 (see photo below). Built in 1966, No. 400 was the first production SD45. The museum was
giving cab rides on the Hustle Muscle which proved to be the most popular
attraction at the museum. Also featured were several steam locomotives
including No. 328 which is currently in the shop for an extensive rebuild. The
MTM also owns a very unique piece of equipment from the Dan patch Electric Lines.
Built in 1913, this piece was one of the first variable gas electric
locomotives produced.
Report by Jeffrey Smith
