We have come a long way in a hundred years, but there is at least one great thing available back in 1906 that we no longer have. That is the year my grandfather John Vogt was born, and his mother, Elizabeth, died of complications from TB several months later at the age of 23. Whoa, not starting off so swell, is it? This family heartbreak is what I usually think of when I see the year 1906.

The other day, however, I was walking through the red exhibit barn at the Freeborn County Historical Museum’s village, and I noticed a train schedule and map from 1906. Did you know that people used to be able to board passenger trains in Albert Lea and go directly to cities such as Minneapolis, Omaha, St. Louis and even Chicago?

I would give my eye teeth (figuratively) to be able to take a train to downtown Chicago or Minneapolis from here. With the way our world is becoming wirelessly connected, it would be more efficient to take a train than to drive. People could take care of personal communication, participate in meetings, work and be entertained on the train using their portable Internet devices as they travel instead of having to keep their eyes on the road. (We know from highway fatality statistics what happens too frequently when people try to do both.) The time for passenger rail service between all major cities and regional hubs has come — again.

Jennifer Vogt-Erickson

Albert Lea