Editing Two Harbors, Minnesota (section)

===Railroad===
[[File:2-8-8-4 Yellowstone.jpg|thumb|[[Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range Railway]] [[2-8-8-4]] "Yellowstone" preserved at [[Two Harbors station]]]]

Had it not been for the discovery of nearby iron ore, Two Harbors would not exist. The Minnesota Iron Company bought {{convert|17000|acre|km2}} of land in order to build their railroad. In Agate Bay (Two Harbors) most of the land was bought from Sexton, who by that time had owned the land for 20 years.

Various locations were considered for the railroad terminus and shipping port, but Agate Bay was chosen because it was closer to the iron ore site and had a clay bottom bay, while most others were rocky.

As the track was being developed, the main transportation route was Lake Superior. This proved difficult when heavy loads such as railroad engines nearly sank the scows or tugs that carried them. The contractor John. S. Wolfe was told he would receive a bonus of $50,000 if the railroad was completed by August 1, 1884. Because that was a Friday, and construction workers had strong superstitions about Fridays, it became important that the construction be completed by July 31. On that day, the first iron ore cars left Agate Bay early in the morning, along with a caboose for President Tower to ride in on the return trip. The railway between Duluth and Two Harbors was completed in 1886.

The [[North Shore Scenic Railroad]] operates a six-hour excursion starting in Duluth that has a two-hour break in Two Harbors.

A 2-6-0 Mogul class steam locomotive with the first style of ore cars and caboose is on display by the historic Duluth and Iron Range depot.

A 2-8-8-4 Yellowstone class steam locomotive is on display at Two Harbors.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.steamlocomotive.com/yellowstone/ |title=The Yellowstone Type Locomotive |access-date=February 8, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030203053537/http://www.steamlocomotive.com/yellowstone/ |archive-date=February 3, 2003}}</ref> It ranks among the largest steam locomotives ever built.