Friends of the 457

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Friends of the 457

The Friends of the 457 is a volunteer organization dedicated to the restoration & preservation of the Minneapolis & St. Interested in helping?

Louis steam locomotive #457 "Rotary Cannonball". The Minneapolis & ST Louis Railway locomotive #457 has been on display in East Park, Mason City, Iowa since 1959, and is open to the public on weekend afternoons, mid-May through October. Ring the bell, hear the Nathan 6-chime whistle, and enjoy the era of steam! Our Story
Dubbed the “Rotary Cannonball” in a local naming contest, the locomotive beca

me an eyesore after years of neglect and vandalism took its toll. Beginning in 2003 an effort was made to clean up the site, resulting in a full scale effort by volunteers to restore and preserve the artifact of an earlier time of history and development of Mason City. In cooperation with the City and Parks dept, the site has become a premier tourist attraction, at one time drawing nearly 10,000 visitors during a season. The site now features an Educational Plaza depicting historical milestones, in the beautiful setting of the Cannonball Gardens. Volunteers staff the locomotive for visits during open hours. The Friends of the 457 meet monthly to keep the project "on track". Contact us at our website http://www.friendsofthe457.org/pview.aspx?id=173&catid=6

05/29/2026

Our contractor got a little delayed due to the recent storm, so we're not quite done yet, but doesn't this look amazing!

05/22/2026

The smoke stack fogger is working!
Again...for today....

This time the pump was clogged. Here's to hoping if stays running for the remainder of the year! We plan to be open a little early tomorrow for the parade goers.

05/19/2026

Apparently our Saturday post didn't get published :(

We had a great crew hanging baskets and planting flowers, Dr. Riesen worked hard to get the kid's interactive and sound system back on line, and the Hubbard family gave the #457 a much needed scrub down.

Thank you to all of our fantastic volunteers. We couldn't do it without you!

05/11/2026

The exterior of the #457 looks so great, but the backhead was looking a little rough. Dwain's Sandblasting from Osage has returned to give it a makeover.

05/04/2026

Opening day is just a few weeks away and we are getting the depot ready for visitors. Chad Gustin of Clear Lake did a fantastic job cleaning up & weatherizing these travel trunks displayed on our luggage cart. Thanks Chad!

04/26/2026

Ended National Volunteer Week with this great group! Approximately 3 hrs were spent preparing our beautiful Cannonball Gardens for the season. Thank you to everyone who attended this Thrivent sponsored event organized by Warren Larry Torkelson.

Thank you to all the volunteers who make our mission of keeping the Rotary Cannonball - Minneapolis and St. Louis #457 steam locomotive available to the public a possibility!

04/16/2026

Friend Mark Suby got a jump on our Spring cleanup and spent 🍁🍂 5 hours 🍂🍁blowing leaves out of the Cannonball Gardens on Wednesday. WOW!!! Thanks Mark!

Join us for our upcoming Spring Cleanup sponsored by Thrivent at 9AM on April 25th

04/12/2026

Address

900 East State Street
Mason City, IA
50401

Telephone

+16414235328

Website

http://www.friendsofthe457.org/

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