Monday, October 3, 2022

Minneapolis, MN: BNSF/GN Minneapolis Junction and Bunge Grain Elevator

(Satellite)

67 photos associated with this junction and GN Union Yard.
 
Henry Overzet posted
Perhaps this may come across the right person. This fell out of a calendar I was given today and my curiosity has me needing to know where this is/was. I can't make out any logos or text on the locomotive or the cars. Any help identifying would be greatly appreciated.
Daniel C Carroll Jr. shared
 
Jeff Braun commented on Henry's post
Here's an aerial view of the site in Henry's photo today. The footprint of the roundhouse is visible, but it's gone as is the yard except for a few tracks. The only building remaining is the 1960s era diesel shop used by Friends of 261 (not yet built in Henry's photo). Today this station is Harrison Street on the BNSF, but in the GN era it was Minneapolis Junction and a busy yard and primary facility for servicing GN freight power. It's the junction of the mainlines from Wilmar to the west, St Cloud to the north (timetable west) and St Paul to the east. The photographer in Henry's photo is standing on probably the coal tower which would have been to the upper left in the aerial view. The roundhouse was down to about six stalls by the 1990s and leased to Chicago and North Western when it was completely destroyed by fire. The turntable was moved to the Minnesota Transportation Museum's Jackson Street Roundhouse facility in St Paul in the early 2000s and restored to operation where it's used almost daily. Jackson Street Roundhouse is where GN serviced their passenger power until the roundhouse was closed in the early 1960s and passenger power servicing was moved to the St Paul Union Depot (SPUD) roundhouse.
Jeff commented earlier:
I am going to say this looks A LOT like it’s Minneapolis Junction on the Great Northern Railway and that’s a Great Northern C-3 class 0-8-0 on the turntable. We’re looking timetable east here. GN would have had coal and oil facilities here. The roundhouse is in the middle of a wye here. Behind the photographer is timetable west and leads to joint track with the Northern Pacific past Northtown Yard and the other leg of the wye out of view to the right is also timetable west as it leads to the Wayzata sub and Willmar, passing the GN Minneapolis depot on its way about a mile from here. The east leg of the wye goes to Union Yard and the mainline to St Paul.

Sam Carlson posted
At Minneapolis Jct during August 1973.
Tom Lyman: Mpls. Jct. Power is on Mainline #4 east of the Roundhouse. The S on the switchstand was for the spring switch coming out of the Roundhouse. The 2 shiny tracks are the East Leg of the Wye on the Willmar/Wayzata Sub. The tall building in the background was the Bunge(sp) elevator near CNW East Mpls. Yard.

Dennis DeBruler commented on Sam's post
Remnants of the roundhouse foundation and of the turntable still exist.
https://www.google.com/maps/@44.9945593,-93.2458958,549m/data=!3m1!1e3

Dennis DeBruler commented on Sam's post
This was the resource that let me find the location.
https://digital.library.cornell.edu/catalog/ss:20864960

The roundhouse used to be 180 degrees.
1951 and 1952 Quadrangles

Only the turntable was still standing in 1995.

Actually, part of the roundhouse was still standing in 2002.
Dennis DeBruler commented on Sam's post
Part of the roundhouse was still standing in Dec 2002. Global Earth

Dennis DeBruler commented on Tom's comment
Was (is?) this the Bunge elevator?
https://www.google.com/maps/@44.998593,-93.2494721,235a,35y,39.36t/data=!3m1!1e3
I still haven't figured out where the "CNW East Mpls. Yard" was.

Update: To answer my question: No. The headhouse of the Bunge elevator now appears to be part of a housing project.
https://www.google.com/.../data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4...
Global Earth, Nov 2004

Cornell via search
Bunge Corp. Grain Elevator

EarthExplorer: Nov 28, 1966 @ 24,000, AR1VBOX00010246

Jerry Johnson posted
Great Northern Minneapolis Junction Turntable  Minneapolis MN
Jordan Palmer: Also for a time in the 1980s Chicago Northwestern leased Minneapolis Junction roundhouse from BN as a service hub after tearing down the Minneapolis & St Louis shops that were on the west side of the Twin Cities.
The Minneapolis Junction turntable survives and was donated to Minnesota Transportation Museum and relocated to their location at Great Northern’s Jackson Street Roundhouse in St Paul.
Dean Sauvola: Burned down in 1993, after the C&NW had vacated it. https://www.flickr.com/photos/view2share/8453992028

Evan Smith commented on Jerry's post
1938 aerial. Also of interest in it is the line that curves and ran east. You can find a small trace of it just to the east of the yard in current photos.
Jeff Braun: Evan Smith the line curving off to the east is an NP line, if you look close at the photo, you’ll see the diamond where the NP crosses the GN and continues into that manufacturing complex to the left.


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