Minnesota 400

The Minnesota 400 was a streamlined passenger train operated by the Chicago and North Western Railway on its southern Minnesota line between Mankato, Minnesota and Wyeville, Wisconsin. It began running in 1936. In 1950 it was extended to run between Chicago, Illinois and Huron, South Dakota and renamed the Dakota 400. It would be further extended to Rapid City, South Dakota, before being cut back to Mankato, in 1960. This final iteration was named the Rochester 400 and it ceased operation in 1963.

Minnesota 400 Dakota 400 Rochester 400
A streamlined C&NW class E-4 Hudson steam locomotive appears in Chicago in 1942 (right). Class ES Pacific engines used for the Minnesota 400 had almost identical shrouding.
Overview
Service type	Inter-city rail
Status	Discontinued
Locale	Mid-West
First service	June 14, 1936 (1936-06-14)
Last service	July 23, 1963 (1963-07-23)
Former operator(s)	Chicago and North Western Railway
Route
Termini	Chicago, Illinois Rapid City, South Dakota
Service frequency	Daily
Train number(s)	418 (eastbound) 419 (westbound)
On-board services
Seating arrangements	Coaches (1956)
Sleeping arrangements	Open sections and double bedrooms
Catering facilities	Dining car, tap lounge car
Observation facilities	Lounge car, parlor car
Route map Legend Minnesota & Black Hills Express 444.5 mi 715.4 km Mankato 415.4 mi 668.5 km Waseca 401 mi 645 km Owatonna 389.2 mi 626.4 km Claremont 381.7 mi 614.3 km Dodge Center 362.3 mi 583.1 km Rochester 341.4 mi 549.4 km St. Charles 313.3 mi 504.2 km Winona Mississippi River Minnesota Wisconsin 287.3 mi 462.4 km Onalaska 263.9 mi 424.7 km Sparta 256.1 mi 412.2 km Camp McCoy Twin Cities 400 to Minneapolis 240.4 mi 386.9 km Wyeville Twin Cities 400 to Chicago 231.1 mi 371.9 km Camp Douglas 217.9 mi 350.7 km Elroy 211.1 mi 339.7 km Wonewoc 196.2 mi 315.8 km Reedsburg 180.6 mi 290.6 km Baraboo Wisconsin River 163.1 mi 262.5 km Lodi 143.7 mi 231.3 km Madison 121.3 mi 195.2 km Evansville 105.1 mi 169.1 km Janesville 78.5 mi 126.3 km Clinton Junction 70.9 mi 114.1 km Sharon 91.4 mi 147.1 km Beloit Wisconsin Illinois 63.1 mi 101.5 km Harvard 51.6 mi 83 km Woodstock 43.2 mi 69.5 km Crystal Lake 17.1 mi 27.5 km Des Plaines 0.0 mi 0 km Chicago This diagram: view talk edit Legend 940 mi 1513 km Rapid City terminus 1955–1960 920 mi 1481 km New Underwood 906 mi 1458 km Owanka 896 mi 1442 km Wasta 882 mi 1419 km Wall 875 mi 1408 km Quinn 864 mi 1390 km Cottonwood 850 mi 1368 km Philip 824 mi 1326 km Midland 775 mi 1247 km Ft. Pierre Missouri River 773 mi 1244 km Pierre 743 mi 1196 km Blunt 731 mi 1176 km Harrold 724 mi 1165 km Holabird 716 mi 1152 km Highmore 704 mi 1133 km Ree Heights 694 mi 1117 km Miller 691 mi 1112 km St. Lawrence 684 mi 1101 km Vayland 678 mi 1091 km Wessington 667 mi 1073 km Wolsey 653 mi 1051 km Huron terminus 1950–1955 620 mi 998 km De Smet 599 mi 964 km Arlington 581 mi 935 km Brookings South Dakota Minnesota 552 mi 888 km Lake Benton 517 mi 832 km Tracy 484 mi 779 km Springfield 470 mi 756 km Sleepy Eye 456 mi 734 km New Ulm 445 mi 716 km Mankato 415 mi 668 km Waseca 401 mi 645 km Owatonna 382 mi 615 km Dodge Center 362 mi 583 km Rochester 341 mi 549 km St. Charles 313 mi 504 km Winona Mississippi River Minnesota Wisconsin 287 mi 462 km Onalaska 264 mi 425 km Sparta 256 mi 412 km Camp McCoy Twin Cities 400 to Minneapolis 240 mi 386 km Wyeville Twin Cities 400 to Chicago 231 mi 372 km Camp Douglas 218 mi 351 km Elroy 211 mi 340 km Wonewoc 196 mi 315 km Reedsburg 181 mi 291 km Baraboo Wisconsin River 163 mi 262 km Lodi 144 mi 232 km Madison 121 mi 195 km Evansville 105 mi 169 km Janesville 1937–1938 Minnesota 400 route Clinton Junction Sharon 91 mi 146 km Beloit Wisconsin Illinois 63 mi 101 km Harvard 52 mi 84 km Woodstock 43 mi 69 km Crystal Lake 17 mi 27 km Des Plaines Twin Cities 400 to Minneapolis Peninsula 400 to Ishpeming Twin Cities 400, Peninsula 400, Flambeau 400 to Milwaukee and beyond Other CNW services to Milwaukee and beyond 0 mi 0 km Chicago This diagram: view talk edit

History

The Minnesota 400 began service in a similar way to the original Twin Cities to Chicago 400, with heavyweight passenger cars pulled by an ordinary, non-streamlined steam locomotive. These were originally C&NW class D 4-4-2 Atlantics, already more than 30 years old. In 1938, more passenger cars were added to the trains, so the locomotives were replaced by class E-S 4-6-2 Pacifics, with streamlined shrouds. These were still about 25 years old, but were better able to handle the heavier load. The train still primarily ran with heavyweight passenger cars until after World War II, finally receiving a full consist of streamlined cars in 1946. It was still another four years before the first EMD E8 diesel locomotives began pulling the train in 1950. At that time, the service was expanded to South Dakota and renamed the Dakota 400.

As the line served Rochester and its famous Mayo Clinic, there was at least one car on each train with wider doors for allowing patients on stretchers and other accommodations. By the end of rail service in the 1960s, Mayo stated that 25 to 30 percent of their out-of-town patients still came by train.

Much of the track used in Wisconsin has now been abandoned. The line in Minnesota and South Dakota is now owned by the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad (Canadian Pacific subsidiary), while parts near Chicago are now owned by the Union Pacific Railroad. The Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern railroad was purchased by Canadian Pacific and the last D M & E train traveled in 2008.

Route

The original Minnesota 400 operated between Mankato, Minnesota and Wyeville, Wisconsin. At Wyeville passengers transferred to the Twin Cities 400 for connections to Chicago. Heretofore that train had not stopped in Wyeville.^[1] On August 8, 1937, the C&NW extended the Minnesota 400 south to Chicago via Madison and Janesville, Wisconsin. The southbound train bypassed Wyeville on the Elroy-Sparta cutoff; Milwaukee passengers connected at Madison. This experiment proved short-lived: the train reverted to its original route through Milwaukee on June 26, 1938.^[2]

The Dakota 400 followed much the same route to Chicago, save that it was rerouted westward back to the route through Beloit, Wisconsin Janesville and Madison.^[3] Its original western terminus was Huron, South Dakota. North of Elroy, the northbound train took the Elroy-Sparta cutoff while the southbound train stopped at Wyeville.^[4] Through coach service to Rapid City, South Dakota began on April 27, 1952; this service began carrying the "Dakota 400" name in October 1955, effectively extending the train to Rapid City.^[5]

The Rochester 400 operated between Mankato and Chicago; east of Mankato its routing was unchanged from the Dakota 400.^[6]

Principal stops

In late 1951, these were the principal stops on the Dakota 400:^[7]

• Chicago (Chicago & North Western Terminal)
• Janesville
• Madison (Chicago & North Western Station)
• Elroy
• Sparta
• Winona, Minnesota
• Rochester
• Mankato

• Brookings, South Dakota
• Huron (At Huron, the sleeping car would be carried directly onto the connecting #515 from Huron to Rapid City; eastbound, the connecting #534 performed the same function from Rapid City to Huron.)^[8]
• Pierre
• Rapid City

Notes

1. Scribbins 2008, p. 81
2. Scribbins 2008, pp. 84–85
3. "Chicago and Northwestern Railway, Table 67". Official Guide of the Railways. 84 (7). National Railway Publication Company. December 1951.
4. Scribbins 2008, p. 102
5. Scribbins 2008, pp. 105, 111–113
6. Scribbins 2008, p. 119
7. "Chicago and Northwestern Railway, Table 67". Official Guide of the Railways. 84 (7). National Railway Publication Company. December 1951.
8. "Chicago and Northwestern Railway, Table 20". Official Guide of the Railways. 89 (5). National Railway Publication Company. October 1956.

References

• Scribbins, Jim (2008) [1982]. The 400 Story. Minneapolis, Minnesota: University of Minnesota Press. ISBN 978-0-8166-5449-9.