Brainerd Subdivision
The Brainerd Subdivision is a rail line owned and operated by BNSF Railway (Burlington-Northern Santa-Fe). It runs from Staples, Minnesota to Duluth, Minnesota. It is about 150 miles (241 km) from Staples, Minnesotato Duluth, Minnesota. It was built and owned by Northern Pacific Railway. (finished building all rail about 1911)
In 1970, the Northern Pacific merged with other railroads to form the Burlington Northern Railroad, but then in 1996, merged with Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (ATSF) to form BNSF Railway.
The rail line gets about 8-12 trains daily, most of which are coal.
Railyard
The Brainerd Sub has one railyard, and is very small. Most of the yard is MOW Equipment, because of BNSF Brainerd Shops.
The railyard also has a small line that leads to Brainerd Industrial. (Not 100% active anymore, and streetruns before getting to the Park)
References
1. Office of Freight and Commercial Vehicle Operations (January 2015). "Minnesota Freight Railroad Map" (PDF). Minnesota Department of Transportation. Retrieved March 19, 2016.
2. Information from people around Aitkin, Minnesota
3. BNSF Crew
4. Some books from Northern Pacific Center in Brainerd, Minnesota
5. Some photographers that railfan the line