The Iron Horse Reaches Aberdeen
After much anticipation, the first regular passenger train pulls into the city, marking a new era of connectivity.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Regular passenger trains are now running into Aberdeen. Wednesday morning, the shrill tooting of engine and steamboat whistles welcomed the advent into the city limits of the first passenger train, and the people turned out en masse to give it a welcome. The transfer made two trips loaded with sightseers, who again and again cheered the long-looked-for passenger cars. The train was backed down from Montesano to the depot and then was backed out on the wharf. The people went through the cars and examined the engine with as much curiosity as though they had never before seen such contrivances, and when 'all aboard' was shouted at 10:45, many jumped on and went to Montesano.
“The people turned out en masse to give it a welcome... and examined the engine with as much curiosity as though they had never before seen such contrivances.”
The arrival of the Northern Pacific line in 1892 transformed Aberdeen from a remote mill town into a hub of commerce. Today, the rail lines have largely been repurposed or diminished, but they laid the infrastructure for the city's eventual growth as a deep-water port.
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