Railroad: Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad
Location: Mystic, South Dakota, looking northwest at milepost 74
Date: c. 1880
Credit: South Dakota State Historical Society, South Dakota Digital Archives, H2009-101, R.C. Lathrop Collection, Box 5642
Passengers wait at the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad platform in Mystic, South Dakota, c. 1880. The small town of Mystic developed around mining activity in the early 1880s, and the booming industry influenced the railroad to make it an unlikely station stop.
After mining activity began to wane, Mystic’s sawmill and logging businesses continued to support the town and produce rail traffic. The community survived the Depression but went into decline following World War II with diminishing timber and coal reserves. The last passenger train stopped at Mystic in July 1947, and the last freight train left in November 1983.
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Trail: George S. Mickelson Trail
Trail length: 109 miles
Location: Mystic Trailhead, milepost 74.7 (left)
Southwest portal of Tunnel B, milepost 73 (right)
Date: October 18, 2021
Credit: Wayne Kemp, courtesy of the photographer
Inspired by a railroad crossing sign, the Mystic Trailhead marker for the George S. Mickelson Trail rests in the snow on October 18, 2021. Less than two miles away is the entrance to Tunnel B, one of four tunnels along the trail.
The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy became part of the Burlington Northern Railroad in 1970, which abandoned the line in the mid-1980s. In 1989, a campaign by former state governor George S. Mickelson encouraged the Burlington Northern to donate the right-of-way to the state. The line opened as a multi-use trail in September 1998, stretching over 100 miles while navigating four tunnels, a national forest, and several bridges. Another part of the line continues to operate as the 1880 Train heritage railroad.
