website watertownhistory.org
ebook History of Watertown, Wisconsin
C. M. & St. Paul Railway
Purchased Milwaukee and Watertown Railroad
1855
RAILROAD FINISHED
The Milwaukee and Watertown Railroad
(single track), later the C. M. & St. Paul, was begun in 1851, and finished
by 1855. The funds were raised by
subscriptions, and each contributed in his particular line, such as carts from
the wagon makers, harnesses from the harness makers, cattle, horses, pork,
oats, etc. from the farmers. This was given to the contractors in payment for
the work. Some people even mortgaged their farms to aid in the construction of
the railroad which at times was in great financial trouble, but pulled out of
bankruptcy. The east-bound track was
constructed in 1902.
1864
03 31 NEW BLACKSMITH SHOP
The
Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad Company are now laying the foundation of an
extensive blacksmith shop on the west side of the river. The new building will be brick, 100 feet
long, 35 feet wide and a story and a half high. WD
1875
05 19 N.
W. Pierce, ticket agent at the Junction
WR
1876
WATERTOWN IN 1876
Watertown
is beautifully situated on both sides of Rock river, in the northern part of
Jefferson county and the southern part of Dodge county. It is on the line of the La Crosse division
of the C. M. & St. Paul Railway, 43 miles from Milwaukee and 152 from La
Crosse. A branch of this line extends
from Watertown to Madison, the Capitol of the state, distant 37 miles. The Chicago
& North Western Railway passes through here, terminating at Green Bay,
112 miles north.
Watertown
was laid out about the year 1836. In
1840 a part of the town was laid out in blocks and town lots, Milo Jones of
Fort Atkinson being the surveyor. After
that the town took a fresh start, and the surrounding country began to settle
up with farmers.
The
streets are laid out at right angles, and are broad and pleasant. One of the crowning glories of the city is
the profusion of shrubbery everywhere prevalent, lining the streets on either
side, and in the door [house] yards, forest and ornamental trees vie with each
other in giving a home-like appearance, and in the spring and summer there is
such a wilderness of foliage as to almost obscure the houses.
The
streets are well provided with substantial side-walks, usually kept in good
repair, and afford many attractive promenades and drives.
The principal streets are Main on the east, and West Avenue on the west
of Rock river, upon either side of which are fine business houses and blocks,
and many of them of beautiful design and finish. Madison City Directory, 1875-6.
1887
07 01 The most extensive conflagration that
ever visited Watertown occurred last Thursday night at 11:30 o'clock, by the burning of the rail mill, machine shop, carpenter shop
and blacksmith shop of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul railway
situated at the junction in the Third ward.
1888
07 20 Jonas Sleeper 1939-1888. In 1860 he
came to Watertown; agent of C. M. & St. Paul Railway. Co.
WG
1890
04 03 COMPA
NY PREPARING FOR SOMETHING
If reports are true, the Chicago, Milwaukee &
St. Paul Railway Co. mean business in their movements here. Surveyors were running lines yesterday on
both sides of the river, and it is given out that the company has bought the
right of way across the Rogan water reserve in the Third ward, and has
purchased the Jesse Bennett lots near the Junction, transactions quite
significant and suggestive in connection with some other matters of a like
import, all going to show that something is going to be done here very soon to
facilitate shipping freight and the better accommodations of our manufacturing
of our establishments. WR
1900
04 03 HEADQUARTERS
FOR A NUMBER OF WORK TRAINS
It is
expected that the Chicago Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Company will again
the coming season make this city the headquarters for a number of work trains
which will be employed at further improving the roadbed both east and west of
here. At present a force of men is
engaged in distributing heavy new steel rails which will be laid from this city
westward as soon as the ground is settled.
The Chicago & Northwestern Company, it is reported, will also
improve its roadbed between Janesville and Fond du Lac this season by laying
new rails. The demands made by these two
companies, as well as the contemplated street improvements here, will render
the season a very busy one for the Watertown laboring man.
1901
11 08 ACCIDENT
AT THE JUNCTION
At
about 3 o’clock last Sunday morning passenger train No. 56 going east on the
C.M.&St.P.Ry. ran into a freight train on the
C.&M.W.R. going south at the junction of the two roads in this city. The engine and the baggage car of the St.
Paul train, and two freight cars on the C.&M.W. train were very badly
damaged. Art. J. Moulding
was the conductor on the passenger train, and James Carroll, was engineer. Carroll and his fireman jumped before the
train struck, the engine landing in a cinder pit, and the fireman on a C.
&N. Ry. box car. Neither one was
injured and the passengers in the coaches escaped unhurt, not knowing for some
time what had happened. The accident
occurred by the failure of the air brakes to work as the passenger train was
nearing the crossing. The morning was
wet and the rails somewhat icy and slippery.
Wrecking trains arrived on the scene from Milwaukee and Janesville, and
the track was open for traffic in a short time. WG
1904
03 13 REMINISCENCES
OF OLD RAILROAD DAYS IN WATERTOWN
From Watertown
Gazette, Friday March 13, 1908
E.
R. Maxwell of Portage visited our city recently. ‘Zeke’ is an old-time railroad machinist and
worked in the shops here in early wood-burning days, when it was “up high” and
“bark side down.” His coming reminded us
of a letter we received from Jas. Nellins, Jr.,
several years ago, the substance of which is as follows:
Minneapolis,
Nov. 3rd, 1904
FIRST SEVEN ENGINES
Friend
James: -- You recall a talk we had when I was in Watertown last August
concerning the first seven engines owned by what is now the C.M. & St. P.
Ry. Co. I saw Mr. J. O. Pattee and he is quite positive that the locomotives on the
Milwaukee & Western were arranged as follows:
L. A. Cole, No. 1
Oconomowoc, No. 2
Watertown, No. 3
Columbus, No. 4
Hercules, No. 5
Nebraska, No. 6
Fowler, No. 7
Mr.
Pattee claims that although thirty-five years have
passed, yet those matters are quite clear to his mind at the present day,
1904. He readily recalled the names of
the men who handled those engines, and during our talk he became quite
reminiscent of his early days in Watertown, and the following engineers: Chas. Sanborn, Pat Lyons, Luther Sanborn, J.
K. Tremaine, George Buck, O. J. C. Hammond and O. W. Washburn, appeared right
before him at this day, just as they looked in their young manhood. It was during the winter of 1859-60 that Mr. Pattee and Henry Sage were promoted to take the places of
George Buck and O. J. C. Hammond. Mr. Pattee says that the “Oconomowoc” No. 2, was changed and
named “S. L. Rose” when the Rose and Jackson crowd got control of the road,
also that the S. L. Rose and the Fowler were small “14x20” engines built by the
Niles Loco. Works and the other five were “Menomonee’s” built in Milwaukee.
As
you know the original road ran from Brookfield Junction to Watertown, and then
extended to Columbus, and in the year 1858 the Rose Jackson crowd got control
and changed the name to Milwaukee, Watertown and Baraboo Valley, and started to
build to Sun Prairie and this big piece of work was finished late in 1859. In 1860 cuts were changed and the line got in
shape to run trains over it at 15 miles per hour. Baraboo was the objective point, but was
never reached. Owing to the Civil War so
disturbing the financial condition of the country, all this worked
stopped. Some of the old-timers think
that three of the engines were from the old “Niles” shops also that the “Rose
and Jackson gang” stole the road. The
locomotives were fired up on Sunday, each and every one were run out of the
“shed” manned by the engineers and fireman who were protected by squads of a
German Military Co. known as the “Schwartzer Jaegers”
of Watertown. Each engine was loaded
with a dozen or more soldiers, with their big hats and muskets very prominent from
all points of view.
I
well remember when an engine No. 80 was built in the Watertown railroad shops,
and named E. M. Hall, he who was master mechanic of the road and shops. The family lived in the house now occupied by
Wm. Quentmeyer.
A boilermaker, Thomas Tong tried to kick a lot of small boys off the
flat cars that made up an excursion train to Waterloo when this celebrated
locomotive made its first trip, but the boys got out there in spite of his
watchfulness. I remember that I squatted
down and hid right under the seat where Judge H. S. Orton was speaking to the
crowd. They had “oceans of beer” on the
shop grounds that day, a thing that if any one tried to do now, would result in
his being kicked off the premises. We
all got to Waterloo safely and I recollect how Mr. Pattee
and Andrew McElroy were marching right behind the Watertown Brass Band. Mr. Wm. Quentmeyer
was blowing the big bass horn and Mr. Pattee spied a
small pumpkin alongside of a fence in the field. He said to McElroy what a joke it would be to
toss that pumpkin into the big end of Quentmeyer’s
horn. McElroy said “I will do it” and do
you believe he did. They jumped over the
fence, picked the pumpkin and dumped it into the horn, much to the chagrin of
Mr. Quentmeyer, but it created lots of fun for all of
us who were looking on.
There
are so many incidents of early days that come to my mind at times, that I often
wish I had an old Watertown man to talk with about them, and on a day like
this, while writing this letter, I must admit that I am just a little homesick
to have a few hours in the good old town and talk over the days of “Jint ahid and Sinder
Back!”
Yours very respectfully,
James Nellins
*No.
89 was not the only locomotive built in the railway shops here. They also constructed Nos. 40, 42, 60 and 80,
and rebuilt engines by the dozen. Of the
old engineers mentioned by Mr. Pattee before his
death in conversation with friend Nellins — C. W. Washburn
and James K. Tremaine are the only ones now living. Mr. T. visited relatives in Watertown a few
years ago, and Mr. Washburn is frequently welcomed here.
1905
12 08 TRAMP SEVERLY INJURED
He was
brought to the city hall and taken into the office of Chief of police Block and
Dr. F. C. Moulding, the surgeon of the road summoned,
who upon examination found two of the bones in his right foot badly crushed,
which would in his judgment, necessitate an amputation of the foot. He dressed
the wound and made the poor fellow as comfortable as possible under the
circumstances and at 7 o'clock in the evening he was taken to the Northwestern
depot enroute to the poor farm at Jefferson.
The
unfortunate is a Norwegian and speaks but little of the English language and
through an interpreter it was learned his name, residence and the name of his
son Carl Olson 1102 Camdem Place, Minneapolis, also
that in a small town near Chicago he was robbed of his watch and five dollars
in money by two negro roughs and was trying to beat his way back to his home.
It was
quite probable that he had ridden for a long distance and being cold and
stiffened got off the train to exercise and get his blood into circulation and was
injured in his endeavor to get upon the train again. As the poor fellow had no
money with which to buy smoking tobacco, Dr. Moulding
generously gave him the money with which to buy a supply.
1906
07 26 BUS LINE MEETS ALL REGULAR TRAINS
Emil Pehl, proprietor of the Commercial Bus Line says that this
statement is not true, as his bus line meets all regular trains. On Saturday there was a special train at
12:10 p.m., on which several passengers arrived, but that was not known in time
for the bus driver to make it. Mr. Pehl says if those
who make the statements will inform him in what time special trains are due
here he will meet them as well as all regular trains.
- The
Bus Driver
1906
11 09 St. P. Ry. ESTABLISHES WORKS HERE
The C.M&St.P. Ry. Co. is building a carpenter shop on the
site of the old rolling mill near the junction, which in time may develop to
large proportions.
The
company has also established temporary bridge repair works south of the depot,
and the Dornfeld-Kunert Co.
has contracted to repair bridges that the company brings into the city for
repairs. One bridge was recently brought
here on eight flat cars. The paint is
taken from the iron work by means of a sand blast, and when removed the iron
looks like polished steel. It is quite
interesting to watch the work being done.
WG
1907 Is the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul
road discriminating against Watertown?
1908 Chicago, Milwaukee& St. Paul road took over the entire chain of hotels and
eating houses, together with the new distribution system, along its line.
10 23 TRAIN WRECK AT THE JUNCTION
C.&N.W. Ry. and
C.M.&St.P. Ry. freight trains
At 1 o'clock last
Saturday afternoon a double-header freight train on the C.&N.W. Ry. going
north ran into a C.M.&St.P. Ry. freight going
east at the railway crossing at the Junction (Union
Depot). No one was injured, but one
of the C.&N.W. engines and a number of coaches were badly wrecked. Conductor W. F. Clasen
and Engineer Chas. Burmaster had charge of the C.M.&St.P.
freight, and D. F. Harrison and C. F. Dunwiddie had
charge of the Northwestern. WG
1909
03 26 Wells Fargo took charge of the express
business on the C.M.&St. Paul lines WG
06 04 James Mortenson, 33 year employee, died WG
1910
12 31 EXHIBIT
CAR
-- -- OFFICIAL
WATCH INSPECTORS FOR THE CHICAGO, MILWAUKEE & ST. PAUL RAILWAY
1912
07 11 CHAS.
MCLAUGHLIN PROMOTED
Chas.
McLaughlin, son of John McLaughlin of this city, has recently been promoted
from freight to passenger conductor on the C. M. & St. P. Ry. Charley is one of the best and most faithful
men in the employ of that road, and has served the company well for over 22 years,
hence has well earned his promotion. His
host of friends in Watertown and elsewhere extend to him most hearty
congratulations. WG
1926
11 25 Death
of Herman Block, detective for C.M.&St. Paul
Ry. Co, former Watertown Chief of Police
WG
1976
12 13 TRAINS JUST PASS WATERTOWN BY
The
following article about train service in Watertown, appeared in Sunday's issue
of the Wisconsin State Journal.
The article was written by Charles Fulkerson of the State Journal
staff and was accented with three pictures in the Journal.
WATERTOWN
- Richard Seivert pushed the frigid switch handle
with his padded mittens, spreading a snow crusted rail.
A
hopper car rolled through the switch, its screeching wheels drowning out the
bleating horn of a diesel.
It
was 1 p.m. and Seivert, 26, was nearing the end of
his work day on a four-man switch engine crew operating out of Watertown.
He
trudged to the station to meet engineer Brian Reynolds, 27. The two joked about a beer commercial
featuring a railroad crew, and then Seivert turned
momentarily serious. "My own
feeling is the railroads aren't going downhill.
Some day the United States is going to realize
the railroad is the only way to go," he said earnestly.
But
for Watertown, a manufacturing city of 15,000 on the Jefferson-Dodge County
line, the railroad stopped being the only way to go years ago, and for
passengers it became no way to go in 1972 when the last passenger train stopped
here.
In 1855,
when the predecessor of the Milwaukee Road arrived here, Watertown was the
second largest city in Wisconsin and according to local historian, James Rothschadl, city fathers had "really grandiose
plans" for turning Watertown into the capital and metropolis of the state.
In
1859, the North Western Railway reached Watertown from Chicago, and the city's
bustling future as a rail hub seemed assured.
But
in their rush to get the railroads to Watertown, city fathers had underwritten
bonds for the Milwaukee Road's predecessors and when the early railroads went
broke, the creditors turned to the town officials for their money.
"For
many years,"Rothschadl explained,
"Watertown didn't have a functioning city government." The public officials the town did have
meetings seldom and in secret to dodge the creditors and their warrants. The lack of stewardship- probably hurt the
growth of the town, Rothschadl speculated.
The
Milwaukee Road established a variety of railroad shops and rail mills employing
more than 100, but by the turn of the century the railroad had moved the shops
elsewhere, and Watertown's importance as a rail center was on the decline.
Today,
trains are still numerous in Watertown. But, explained Jim Scribbins
of the Milwaukee Road's corporate communications department, few of them
stop. "Practically all of the
trains that pass through Watertown do exactly that. They pass through.
However,
Scribbins called Watertown, "a relatively
important place on our railroad."
The
L-shaped, stucco station at the junction of the Milwaukee Road and North
Western Railway tracks is manned around the clock by a train operator who
forwards written instructions to passing train crews and handles initial
billing for freight customers in Watertown.
An
ancient brick freight house south of the station once served as headquarters
for a freight agent and three clerks.
But the freight house has been abandoned; its windows are shattered and
trees are growing in the tracks behind the building.
STATION
OPERATOR
Lewis
R. Manthey has worked in Watertown since 1955 and for
many years he sold tickets to the Hiawathas bound for
Minneapolis and Seattle.
But
the last Hiawatha passed through Watertown more than five years ago. Now Manthey's only contact with passengers and passenger trains
is a cursory inspection of the wheels on the four daily Amtrak trains that roar
through Watertown, leaving only swirling snow behind.
The
Milwaukee Road station built in 1926 is headquarters for Manthey,
signal maintainer, Ken Bornitzke and two switch
engine crews that work out of Watertown.
In activity, it is a Grand Central
compared
to the sleepy North Western station a quarter mile away.
Last spring
the North Western removed the station agent from Watertown and 23 other
stations in Wisconsin. The North Western
division manager concluded that the small town agent was excess baggage for the
railroad. "We just don't need
people to do work in those stations anymore," he said.
William
Konitzer, the agent forced to leave Watertown,
sympathized with the railroad which claimed to be losing money. "But the personal touch is lost this
way, and who could put a price on the personal touch?" Konitzer
asked.
The
Northwestern still sends a train down to Watertown five days a week from Fond
du Lac, but the tracks south of the city to Johnson Creek are snow covered and
no longer used.
The
North Western's Chicago connection from Watertown via Fort Atkinson and
Janesville, once thought to be a boom for the town, was torn up last year. The railroad has no plans, however, to tear
up the tracks between Watertown and Johnson Creek, said James McDonald of the NorthWestern's public affairs office.
Manthey
estimated that an average of 25 freight cars daily are dropped off and picked
up in Watertown by the Milwaukee Road.
The city also is a junction point between the mainline and a branch that
runs west to Waterloo, Sun Prairie and Madison.
Many
cars dropped off in Watertown contain feed and corn syrup. A malt company in Waterloo is a big rail
customer. A Watertown scrap dealer ships
his product by rail and a furnace manufacturing company occasionally sends
oversized furnaces out on rail flatcars.
Scribbins said
the-railroad has no plans to centralize further the duties done by station
operators and agents and apparently the jobs in the Watertown station are
secure. He ranked Watertown in
importance as a mainline station behind La Crosse and Portage.
"The
railroad is damn important to the community," said Paul Kehrer, president of First State Savings and Loan
Association and active in a drive to get passenger service restored. In terms of the city's economy, he said,
"the future of Watertown being on the mainline of the Milwaukee Road has
to be real important." WDT
12/13/1976
1977
06 23 Junction of Chicago and North Western with
Milwaukee Road tracks removed WDT
Cross
References:
No 2: “When the St Paul Railroad came here it was
so poor that Daniel Jones couldn’t pay for the wood it needed to run its
engines. “Alexander Mitchell was a great
friend of mine and he told me that if I would pay for the wood he would see
that I didn't lose by it. For two years
I bought the wood for it. When the Chicago & Northwestern got this far it
couldn’t get its iron, which was in bond. With several others I signed the bond
that released the rails and permitted the road to go on. These acts cost me dear.”
No 3: 1861, Amos Bennett
was chief carpenter of the C. M. & St. Paul; came to Watertown in May, 1848
No 4: 1865, John Booney
employed by C. M. & St. Paul
No 5: John Ford, seven years was in the office of
the Chief Engineer of the Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Company.
No
6: 1879, N C Daniels,
Superintendent of the C. M. & St. Paul’s Railmill,
Machine and Blacksmith Shops
No 7: Station Agent George W. Webb, 48 years
continuous railway service with the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul railroad is
a record.
No 8: George Wilder, Assistant Purchasing Agent,
1850 – 1923
Depot and train image, WHS_006_335
George Reason,
1856–1912, Employed by the C.M.&St.P. Ry. as a
carpenter.
History of Watertown,
Wisconsin