Iron Range and Huron Bay Railroad

Rich iron ore deposits were first discovered in the Upper Peninsula in the 1840s, and remain a significant source of wealth for the state.

The builder, Wallace Dingman of Battle Creek, Michigan, ran out of money in August and abandoned work, leaving the IR&HB with unpaid bills and swamping Marquette County's limited poor relief resources.

The completion of the line coincided with the Panic of 1893, which reduced the demand for iron ore. Additionally, the ore mines around Lake Michigamme – which the IR&HB had intended to serve – began to play out.

There were richer mines in Ishpeming to the east, but the IR&HB lacked the wherewithal to construct such a line, which would have spanned 15 to 20 miles (24 to 32 km).

A fair use quote of the 2 M ride page from Sam Beck, a railroad watchman: “As the last eleven miles of the road were downgrade, we decided the uphill run from Huron Bay would be a good test.

Additional bonds worth $600,000 were sold to cover construction overruns and keep the railroad afloat, but its debts mounted.

[15][16] Milo H. Davis, the chief engineer, was reported (by a few newspaper articles) to have fled to Mexico to escape allegations of fraud.

[18][19] According to the New York Times, the state took possession of the right-of-way[20] and other property as compensation for unpaid taxes; Marquette County purchased the section within its borders in 1902 for $1,600 and converted it into a roadway.

[16][21] In 1905 the Lake Superior Southern Railway[22] proposed to construct a new line from Huron Bay to Madison, Wisconsin; the company failed to attract financing and dissolved in 1908.

[23] Local historians are investigating the possibility of linking a predecessor operation (only the first mile or so) to the IR&HB Railroad, Huron Bay Terminus Railway.