Hiawatha (train) Hiawatha (train) The Hiawathas were a fleet of named passenger trains operated by the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (also known as the Milwaukee Road) between Chicago and various destinations in the Midwest and Western United States. The most notable of these trains was the original "Twin Cities Hiawatha", which served the Twin Cities in Minnesota. The train was named for the epic poem "The Song of Hiawatha" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The first "Hiawatha" trains ran in 1935. By 1948, five routes carried the "Hiawatha" name: The "Twin Cities Hiawatha" was the original "Hiawatha", beginning service between
The Song of Hiawatha (and an Introduction). Hiawatha is not introduced until Chapter III. In Chapter I, Hiawatha's arrival is prophesied by a "mighty" peace-bringing leader named "Gitche Manito." Chapter II tells a legend of how the warrior "Mudjekeewis" became Father of the Four Winds by slaying the Great Bear of the mountains, "Mishe-Mokwa." His son Wabun, the East Wind, falls in love with a maiden whom he turns into the Morning Star, Wabun-Annung. Wabun's brother, Kabibonokka, the North Wind, bringer of autumn and winter, attacks Shingebis, "the diver". Shingebis repels him by burning firewood, and then in a wrestling match. A third brother,