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Minnesota Transportation Museum

The Minnesota Transportation Museum is located in the Jackson Street Roundhouse in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Jackson Street Roundhouse is on the National Register of Historic Places and a large collection of railroad memorabilia and active railcar restorations are on display. As one of the last operating roundhouses built by James J. Hill to serve the Great Northern Railway, … [Read more...] about Minnesota Transportation Museum

RGS Ophir Loop

Scale: On3 The inspiration for this layout originates back to the 1990s and the layout owner seeing photographs of the Rio Grande Southern railroad. With the help from both Sundance Publications' 'RGS Series' of books and multiple family vacation visits to Southwest Colorado, the layout owner selected 'The Loop' at Ophir, Colorado for his latest layout project. The first … [Read more...] about RGS Ophir Loop

The Bona Vista Railroad

Scale: HO The well known Bona Vista Railroad is a freelanced railroad depicting a mid-50s shortline in rural Minnesota and Wisconsin. This point-to-point double-deck layout occupies a purpose-built room and features a four-turn helix and over four scale miles of mainline. Scenery on this 6-year-old layout is approximately 75% completed featuring open spaces … [Read more...] about The Bona Vista Railroad

From Minnesota Digital Library:

“The growth of Minnesota can be tied directly to the growth of railroads. The railroads supported farmers, millers, miners, and loggers by moving the raw materials they produced to sell at markets. In turn, the railroads brought other goods and products to the people to build their homes, businesses, and towns. Railroads also brought immigrants to settle the land and provided jobs and income to laborers and investors.

Three of Minnesota’s major railroads were the Northern Pacific, the Great Northern, and the Soo Line. While these three were not the only railroads that operated in Minnesota, they had a major impact on the state.

The U.S. Congress chartered the Northern Pacific Railway in 1864 to build a transcontinental railroad from Lake Superior to the Pacific coast. When it was completed in 1883, the railroad had laid nearly 6,800 miles of track through Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Its headquarters were in St. Paul, Minnesota.”

From ThievesRiver.com:

1) Uff da

Background: A Scandinavian import, particularly from Norwegian, “uff da” is widely used to express dismay, exhaustion or sometimes even relief. It embodies the stoic yet expressive nature of Minnesotans.

Example: “Uff da! I forgot my wallet at the cabin. Now I can’t pay for the meat raffle tickets, gosh darn it!”

2) You Betcha

Background: This phrase epitomizes the friendly and positive attitude of Minnesotans. It’s often said with enthusiasm and is used to mean “absolutely” or “you can count on it.”

Example: “Do you want to come to the hockey game this weekend? Grain Belts are on me!” – “You betcha!”

Minnesota Transportation Museum

RGS Ophir Loop

The Bona Vista Railroad

2026 NNGC FAQs

Minnesota’s Three Major Railroads

Minnesota Lingo

1) Uff da

2) You Betcha

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2026 NNGC FAQs

Minnesota’s Three Major Railroads

Minnesota Lingo

1) Uff da

2) You Betcha