Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad.—The Hastings and Dakota division of the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad was extended westward to Bristol by October 15, 1880, but no trains were run over this extension until May 15 of the following year because the cuts were filled with snow throughout the winter. The country being so sparely settled there would have been no business had the tracks been cleared. The road was completed to Aberdeen July 10, 1881. In constructing this road the grade was run the easiest and cheapest possible route, resembling a snake trail and only sixty pound iron rails were used. By August of this year the company ran one passenger and one local freight each way, daily. The locomotives at that time had a pulling capacity of twenty cars, 20,000 pounds capacity. Often this proved to be too large a load on a grade, especially in the winter.

By 1914 the coast extension had been completed to Seattle, Washington. This created a large increase in the amount of traffic over the line, which brought about congestion on the track east of Aberdeen. To relieve this situation the company straightened and widened the road bed, and laid double track between Aberdeen and Minneapolis. At this time they used ninety pound steel rail. The new Mogul locomotives now pull from seventy-five to one hundred loaded cars with a capacity each of from forty to a hundred thousand pounds.

On this coast to coast road the company runs two palace fliers, the Columbian and Olympian, giving Day county two fliers each way, daily, which carry from ten to twelve, all steel, palace passenger coaches. Besides this we have two local trains each way, daily, between Aberdeen and Minneapolis.

In 1887 the company built the Madison and Bristol line and the Andover and Harlem line. This gives the county railroads east and west, and north and south.

In 1907 the Minneapolis and St. Louis Railroad Company built their railroad from Watertown to Aberdeen, thus coming into the southwest corner of the county for about three miles. They located the town of Crandall in Oak Gulch township.

In 1914 Mr. Rosholt built the Fairmont and Veblin line to Roslyn and Grenville. Old Frank which was located one mile south of the county line in Nutley township, was moved to Eden, which the company located three miles north in Marshall county. In 1916 this line was taken over by the Soo Line and is now operated by them. This county is well supplied with railroads.