Fenelon Place Elevator Company

DETAILS:

• Location: 512 Fenelon Place, Dubuque, Iowa 52001

• Hours of Operation: 8AM to 10PM daily - April 1st thru November 30th

• Parking: Free street parking. Please observe posted street signs.

• Cost: Adults: $2 One Way, $4 Round Trip / Children (5-12): $1 One Way, $2 Round Trip / Children (under 5): FREE

• Time Commitment: 30 minutes.

• MISC:

  • CASH ONLY!

Pre-dating Angels Flight Railway in Los Angeles by over 20 years, the Fenelon Place Elevator railcar in Dubuque, Iowa, is billed as the steepest & shortest railway in the world. Climbing almost 200 feet in less than a 10th of a mile, The Fenelon Place Elevator was built in 1882 as a private mode of transportation for Dubuque mayor; JK Graves, to get from his residence located at the top of the hill down to his place of work located in the business district at the bottom of the hill. The elevator opened to the public several years later.

Today, it’s a much beloved and quirky Iowa tourist attraction. The top of the elevator is located in a residential area and offers an amazing birds-eye view of Dubuque and the Mississippi River. And while the ride up and down is sort of the point in it of itself, you’d be remissed not to check out the ice cream parlor; Sweet Memories, right at the bottom of the hill or any of the surrounding shops and restaurants a few blocks away.

 

RESOURCES:

• Fenelon Place Elevator Company website.