Caledonia, Mississippi & Western Railroad Boxcar No. 321

The Caledonia, Mississippi and Western Railroad Boxcar No. 321 is probably the oldest boxcar in the state of Minnesota. Its ancestry has been traced to 1879, and thus would share geriatric honors with the St. Paul and Pacific boxcar that is part of the WILLIAM CROOKS train display. It operated between Reno, Minnesota on the Mississippi River to Preston via Caledonia, a distance of 57.7 miles. The line was acquired by the Milwaukee Railroad in 1880 and converted to standard gauge in 1901. The narrow gauge car was then transferred to the Wabasha, Zumbrota lines, which were also acquired by the Milwaukee. The boxcar was retired from railroad service in 1903 when the Wabasha narrow gauge line was converted to standard gauge.