Minneapolis–Saint Paul Grand Excursion, a trip into the Upper Midwest sponsored by the Rock Island Railroad, brought more than a thousand curious travelers into the area by rail and steamboat in 1854. The next year, in 1855, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow published "The Song of Hiawatha", an epic poem based on the Ojibwe legends of Hiawatha. A number of natural area landmarks were included in the story, such as Lake Minnetonka and Minnehaha Falls. Tourists inspired by the coverage of the Grand Excursion in eastern newspapers and those who read Longfellow's story flocked to the area in the following decades. At one time,
The Hiawatha Story of the train led the Milwaukee Road to apply the "Hiawatha" brand to other routes, and Scribbins tells the history of these as well: "Chippewa-Hiawatha", "Midwest Hiawatha", "North Woods Hiawatha" and "Olympian Hiawatha". Throughout, Scribbins pays close attention to the operation details as well as the rolling stock. Famous Milwaukee Road products such as the Beaver Tail and Skytop Lounge are described in detail, as are the Pullman-Standard Super Domes, the first full-length dome cars ever built, which operated on several "Hiawatha" routes. "The Hiawatha Story" received favorable reviews on its publication. Richard C. Overton reviewed the book for "Technology