End of the Railroad in Star Lake
The Milwaukee Road ended passenger operations beyond Star Lake (to Boulder Junction and beyond) in the first decade of the 20th Century, when a direct rail line was opened between Arbor Vitae and Boulder Junction. Logging operations continued north of Star Lake.
Main operations beyond Star Lake were conducted by the A. H. Stange Lumber Company. Sasse, Stange Lumber Co. Operations ended and the tracks beyond Star Lake were removed in 1937. [Charles Forbes personal note: my uncle, Joseph Aldous, owned Lowwood Cottage on Star Lake and the rails ran along the front of his property by the lake. In 1938 he planted rows of red pine (Norway pine) along the right of way. The trees still stand (2021) and make a magnificent walk along the lake.]
The Milwaukee Road ceased all operations in Star Lake in 1944 and the tracks were removed.
In 1981 the Interstate Commerce Commission gave the Northwestern permission to abandon its 126.7 mile Rhinelander-Woodruff-Ashland-Washburn line. [Backward Glances, Vilas County News-Review, July 28, 2021, 40 years ago.]
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