Founded in 1872 by Neil and Archibald Currie, Currie, Minnesota was thought to be the most beautiful country with the Des Moines River moving across the prairie and Lake Shetek in the west. The village of Currie was the first organized town in Murray County, but it lacked rail service for nearly thirty years. Finally, in 1900, the Des Moines Valley Railway Company completed a thirty-eight-mile bra
nch line extending from Bingham Lake to Currie. Rumors that the railway would extend westward proved untrue, and Currie remained the terminus of the line known as the Currie Branch; hence the name end of the line. A hand-operated turntable was constructed on the site 1901 in order to more easily turn the steam engines around and return them east to Bingham Lake. In the mid-1920s, the passenger train to Currie was discontinued. Limited passenger service was provided by allowing people to ride in the cabooses of freight trains. In the 1950s, diesel engines began to replace steam locomotives, rendering the turntable largely unnecessary. By the mid-1950s, an agent no longer staffed the Currie depot, and the depot closed permanently in 1968. The last train left Currie in April 1977, and the Currie Branch line was officially abandoned in January 1980. However, even before the Chicago & North Western officially abandoned the Currie line, local residents took the initiative to preserve the community’s railway heritage and its historic turntable. In 1972, the local 4-H Club, launched a project to restore the turntable and repair the old depot. Their efforts ultimately led to the creation of the End-O-Line Railroad Park & Museum, part of the Murray County Parks Department, in 1975. The park is located at 440 North Mill Street on Murray County Hwy 38 off of US Hwy 30 in Currie. between Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day. We are closed on Monday’s and Tuesday's except for holidays and special arrangement. Open on Memorial, Independence, and Labor Days. Before Memorial Day during the month of May and after Labor Day until Minnesota Educators Academy (MEA) Weekend, the park is open by pre-arranged appointment only.
