Prospecting

Title: Railroads Helping the Iron Range
Type: Book
Date: 1927
Source: Minnesota Historical Society

Description: This is a section from a book on the Duluth & Iron Range railroad Company.
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Activities:

1. Why were railroads important to the mining industry on the Mesabi Range?
   
   
   
   
   Answer: The mines needed a way to move the ore, and railroads were an ideal way to transport the ore to the nearest water route.
2. Why might the ore shipping season only run from May to November?
   
   
   
   
   Answer: December through April would have been winter months. There would be heavy snowfalls covering the tracks, and the ports on the Great Lakes would be covered with ice.
3. Using the information in the table, can you figure out about how much ore could be carried by a single ore car in a train?
   
   
   
   
   Answer: Since the average number of loaded cars per train was 51.9 and the average amount of ore carried was 51.4 tons, that would be a little under one ton for each car.
4. Why couldn't the ore be hauled by carts instead of by train?
   
   
   
   
   Answer: It would take many animals and many carts to carry the same amount that one train engine could easily haul. Also, the roads were not sturdy enough to handle the heavy hauling that the rails could take.