“Hitch a ride” on the South Shore Railroad through Douglas County during this month’s Archive Dive podcast. Brian Paulson, local historian and member of the Old Brule Heritage Society, joins us again to explore the vanished communities that sprang up along the tracks of what was officially known as the Duluth, South Shore and Atlantic Railway in the early 1900s.

“These were not actually towns. They were not incorporated towns. They were all smaller hamlets or settlements that were located within the large town of Brule,” said Paulson. "The town of Brule at the time, the boundaries were from the Superior city limits all the way eastward to the Bayfield County line and on the north-south line, from the shores of Lake Superior to what is now Highway B. So the township of Brule at the time covered about the northern third of Douglas County and all of these settlements that we are going to be talking about were located within that expansive town of Brule.”

A number of these communities changed names multiple times, depending on who held more money or influence in the area. Hop aboard the Limited in Superior's East End with us to visit Rock Crusher, Andersonville and other communities that have been lost to time. Paulson also shares a story of the South Shore Railroad fixing up their railroad from Superior to Winneboujou in order to look good for President Calvin Coolidge, who spent time in northwest Wisconsin in 1928.

“It’s always a pleasure to share a bit of our local history with the folks,” said Paulson.

New episodes of Archive Dive are published monthly. Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts. If you have an idea for a topic you’d like to see covered, email Maria Lockwood at [email protected].