On This Date in Minnesota History: April 16

April 16, 1901 – “St. Paul rail tycoon James J. Hill, on business in Seattle, learned that Edward H. Harriman was in New York buying up shares of the Northern Pacific to wrest control of the company from Hill. Hill ordered all trains to give right of way to his express train, and made the 1,800 mile trip to St. Paul in 45 hours 50 minutes -- 21 hours under the typical time. He went on, and stopped the deal in New York. During the buying frenzy, NP shares rose from $100 and peaked at $1,000 on May 9.”
http://www.thehistorypeople.com/data/docs/timeline-part1.pdf