The collection of Copper Country railroads which eventually became the Duluth South Shore & Atlantic connected the mines and communities of the area to the rest of the country. They transported ore and materials from mines along the Keweenaw to their mills along Torch Lake and Portage Lake. They connected scattered mining camps, populous towns, and lakeside mill towns all across the peninsula. By 1899, however, the DSS&A had found itself ignoring an entire range of opportunity – the South Range.

While most of the major copper producers had been established and operating for years by the turn of the century, there was one area that had just gotten started. Before 1898 the only copper producing mine south of Houghton was the Atlantic Mine, which used its own short line railroad (the Atlantic and Lake Superior) to transport ore to its mill at Redridge. This all changed when in 1897 the Baltic Amygdaloid lode was discovered, prompting a second copper rush to the peninsula. Within a few years a collection of mines along the lode had been rushed into production. The DSS&A line ran too far east to be any good to these mines, but the newly formed Copper Range Railroad was poised to move in.

The Copper Range Railroad was formed in March of 1899, and by December of that same year had completed over 41 miles of track between it’s yard in Houghton and the line’s terminus in Mass City. The opening of Baltic, Trimountain and Champion mines just a few dozen miles east of the current main line prompted the railroad to build a branch to service those mines and beat DSS&A to the punch.

The Copper Range railroad grew by leaps in bounds for the next decade, adding branch lines north to Calumet via Lake Linden and west to the mills at Redridge and Freda. The Painesdale “branch” had become the new mainline as new branches were added at Senter and Dollar Bay. In 1917 the line grew yet again with the addition of almost 30 miles of track when it received the contract to haul ore for the Wolverine and Mohawk mines. In order to fulfill the contract, Copper Range built a new line from Calumet Junction north to the Mohawk Mine (stopping along the way at the Wolverine) and then bought the existing short line track running from the Mohawk Mine over to it’s mill at Gay. The Copper Range Railroad was complete.

Before the addition of the Mohawk line, the Copper Range primarily stayed south of the Portage waterway. It’s route along Torch Lake served no mills (most of the mills here were already served by the Mineral Range) and was ran primarily for freight and passengers between Calumet and the port cities. Even when it added the Mohawk and Gay branches the line served only a select number of mines along the way – mostly the Wolverine and Mohawk. The railroad did serve the Atlas Powder Company by means of a Senter branch, and a group of industries on Dollar Bay through a short spur. North of the bridge trains for the most part ran straight through.

South of the Portage is another story. Sitting along the lakefront stood the rather impressive rail-yard complete with ore docks, coal handling facilities, a 10 locomotive roundhouse, and an impressive 2-story depot building. From there trains would head south along the old Painesdale branch to pick up copper rock from the mines and deliver them to a the line of waiting mills along its Lakeshore branch. Finished copper from the mills would then be brought back north to the companies own smelter complex located at Coles Creek (the Michigan smelter). Lastly, the line would bring copper ingots down from the smelter to the docks at Houghton to await delivery to the world.

This part of the Copper Range’s route also highlights a few unique services the railroad provided. For many years passengers could climb about Copper Range cars at Houghton, Calumet and all stations in between for a rail excursion to Freda park at the end of the railroads Lakeshore branch. This day use park was built and maintained by Copper Range, providing a day of fun and recreation for thousands of Copper Country residents. The company also ran daily school trains up and down its line, bringing students from across the south range to the school at Painesdale. This service was free to students, and lasted over 40 years starting in 1900. The DSS&A provided neither of these extra services.

While the DSS&A served the mines north of the Portage canal, the Copper Range primarily served those mines of south of it. Together these railroads probably accounted for most of the rail service in the Copper Country. But there was one more contender along the Keweenaw. While this railroad was not large or expansive by any means, its formation would be a financial blow to all the other railroads in the area. This was the Calumet & Hecla Railroad.

A great resource for the Copper Range Railroad is, of course, the Copper Range Railroad and Copper Country Historical Page by Kevin Musser. It has lots of photos, articles, and more information then you ever thought you would need to know about Copper Country railroads. An excellent site, check it out…

Read More on the Railroads of the Copper Country Series:
DSS&A RR | Copper Range RR | C&H RR | HCTC | Keweenaw Central RR