Iron Will (1994) A Disney movie about a dogsled race sponsored by the president of the Great Northern. What equipment/railroads were used in the filming of this one? Although this is a typical cheesy Disney "animal interest" story, I recommend it because it has some great footage of steam in the snow. The Movie Database lists locations, but not specific railroads.

wallis@netdoor.com

> Iron Will (1994) A Disney movie about a
> dogsled race sponsored by the president of
> the Great Northern. What equipment/railroads
> were used in the filming of this one?
> Although this is a typical cheesy Disney
> "animal interest" story, I
> recommend it because it has some great
> footage of steam in the snow. The Movie
> Database lists locations, but not specific
> railroads.
I don't know much about the equipment, but the funny looking depot built for the movie is at "This Old Farm" a private museum east of Brainerd MN.
He loaned them some old tractors and other props and in return he got the depot. There is a couple of old box cars next to it with RR displays inside them. The filming was near Duluth.


2rivers@upstel.net

> I don't know much about the equipment, but
> the funny looking depot built for the movie
> is at "This Old Farm" a private
> museum east of Brainerd MN.
> He loaned them some old tractors and other
> props and in return he got the depot. There
> is a couple of old box cars next to it with
> RR displays inside them. The filming was
> near Duluth.

The locomotive was Duluth and Northern Minnesota 2-8-2 #14 which is owned by the Lake Superior Railroad Museum in Duluth, MN. Their webpage has photos of the locomotive.

Don C.



milw261@sbcglobal.net

If memory serves me correctly, there was more than one locomtive used.

The locomotive was Duluth and Northern
> Minnesota 2-8-2 #14 which is owned by the
> Lake Superior Railroad Museum in Duluth, MN.
> Their webpage has photos of the locomotive.

> Don C.


wallis@netdoor.com

There were two different locomotives in the story, but D&NM 14 was used to represent both of them. I was in college in Duluth around the time this movie was filmed, and I remember it well. One of my roommates was cast as an extra and actually had one small line in the film, but his scene was cut. The locomotive was withdrawn from service in 1998.

> If memory serves me correctly, there was
> more than one locomtive used.


rjenkins@railfan.net

> There were two different locomotives in the
> story, but D&NM 14 was used to represent
> both of them. I was in college in Duluth
> around the time this movie was filmed, and I
> remember it well. One of my roommates was
> cast as an extra and actually had one small
> line in the film, but his scene was cut. The
> locomotive was withdrawn from service in
> 1998.

I just happened to be looking at this locomotive on Saturday 5/22/04. It doesn't look like anything has been done to it since it was withdrawn from service. I've visited the museum 3 times in the last 5 years, and to my knowledge, it hasn't moved. It is outside but under the cover of the parking structure for "The Depot" museum complex in Duluth. There are several years of dust and dirt covering it now and doesn't look like anything has been lubed or cleaned in some time. It was getting wet as it was pouring at the time and the roof is not completely weather tight. I don't know what the plans are for it but it is starting to get that look of neglect.

Their inside displays are great! The DM&IR 2-8-8-4 # 227 is on a display that moves the running gear every 20 minutes in a mock run. The cab is open and the equipment is intact and in good condition. If there was ever a large locomotive that has the look of a little warm water and it would run, this is it. My children were very impressed with it. There are also many great displays inside like the "William Crooks" and others. Lots of cars and plows to tour and the fact that it is in a real train shed really adds to the feel of a museum. I highly recomend that anyone who is in the area to place a visit to the museum on their agenda. There is also a 2-8-8-4 on outdoor display in Proctor Minnesota a few miles to the west of Duluth and also one at Two Harbors, (35 miles north east of Duluth) I have not visited the Two Harbors one, but the one is Proctor is not too bad for an outdoor display.

We were staying in Ashland Wisconsin, 65 miles southeast of Duluth. The Soo Line 2-10-0 #950 is on display in a great covered outdoor display accross from the old Soo Line Depot. The locomotive is well kept and lighted at night. As for the depot, it doesn't look like too much going on for it's restoration. The roof has been repaired and from the outside the building looks very good. All of the windows are covered for now and I hope that someone can come in there to complete the interior restoration. For those of you not aware, the depot suffered a major fire and roof colapse a few years ago. There had been a very nice upscale restruant and also a nice bar & grill in there as well as some professional offices in the depot prior to the fire. I don't know what the plans are now.

As as side to this, my 5 year old was looking through a magazine latter that night and ran up to me to show me a photo of a "Yellowstone like the one that we saw today". It's pretty cool, he can identify over 25 different steam locomotives.
Steve

lead_sled7@hotmail.com

Folks:

One of our long-time MTM members was intimately involved with the Iron Will project and the operation of 2-8-0 No. 14. He told me that most of the "cross country" dog sled race shots were done out in Montana. While the Iron Range region of northern Minnesota has it's beauty and scenery (and its snow) at the time of the filming the snow was better out in Montana and you're not going to find the dramatic mountainous scenery seen in the movie in northern Minn.

The fictitious end point of the race was the Great Northern's Como Park station, supposedly located in St. Paul. For the film this is actually the Two Harbors station of DM&IR, nee-D&IR. There was no GN, or NP, etc., Como-Park station in St. Paul, at least not for a steam railroad.

Jim Vaitkunas
Traction Division
Minnesota Transportation Museum



Minnesota Transportation Museum
jvaitkunas@msn.com