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Annual Report on Form 10-K

Great Northern Iron Ore Properties

December 31, 2004






















SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF
THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended  December 31, 2004   Commission File Number  1-701  
 
GREAT NORTHERN IRON ORE PROPERTIES
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
 
Minnesota 41-0788355
(State or Other Jurisdiction of
Incorporation or Organization)		 (I.R.S. Employer
Identification No.)
 
W-1290 First National Bank Building
332 Minnesota Street
Saint Paul, Minnesota 		55101-1361
(Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code)
 
Registrant’s Telephone Number, Including Area Code 651/224-2385
 

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of Each Class
   Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered
  
Trustees’ Certificates of Beneficial Interest New York Stock Exchange

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act – None

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding twelve months and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.   Yes    X    No       

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of Registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K.   X  

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant is an accelerated filer (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act).   Yes    X    No       

The aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates computed by reference to the price at which the common equity was last sold, or the average bid and ask price of such common equity, as of the last business day of the Registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, that being June 30, 2004, was $144,180,000.

The number of shares of beneficial interest outstanding as of the close of the period covered by this report:

Trustees’ Certificates of Beneficial Interest – 1,500,000

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Portions of the Annual Report to Certificate Holders for the year ended December 31, 2004, attached hereto as Exhibit 13, are incorporated by reference into Part II.



PART  I

Item 1.   BUSINESS

  The Registrant (“Trust”) owns interests in fee, both mineral and nonmineral lands, on the Mesabi Iron Range of Minnesota. The Registrant is a conventional trust organized under the laws of the State of Michigan pursuant to a Trust Agreement dated December 7, 1906. Because the Trust properties and offices are all located in Minnesota, the Trust is under the jurisdiction of the Ramsey County District Court in St. Paul, Minnesota. Income is derived through royalties on iron ore minerals (principally taconite) taken from these properties by lessees. The Registrant is presently involved solely with the leasing and care of these properties. There have been no significant changes in these functions since the beginning of the fiscal year.

  The terms of the Great Northern Iron Ore Properties Trust Agreement, created December 7, 1906, state that the Trust shall continue for twenty years after the death of the last surviving of eighteen named in the Trust Agreement. The last survivor of these eighteen named in the Trust Agreement died April 6, 1995. Accordingly, the Trust now terminates twenty years from April 6, 1995, that being April 6, 2015. The termination of the Trust on April 6, 2015, means that there will be no trading of the Trust’s 1,500,000 certificates of beneficial interest (shares) on the New York Stock Exchange beyond that date.

  At the end of the Trust, all monies remaining in the hands of the Trustees (after paying and providing for all expenses and obligations of the Trust) shall be distributed ratably among the certificate holders (term beneficiaries), while all property other than monies shall be conveyed and transferred to the reversionary beneficiary (formerly Lake Superior Company, Limited) or its successors or assigns (currently Glacier Park Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Burlington Resources, Inc.). In addition, by the terms of a District Court Order dated November 29, 1982, the reversioner, in effect, is required to pay the balance in the Principal Charges account (as explained in Note D of the Financial Statements) which primarily represents the costs of acquiring homes and surface lands on the iron formation that are necessary for the orderly mine development by United States Steel Corporation under its 1959 lease with the Trustees. This account balance, which may increase or decrease, will be added to the cash distributable to the certificate holders of record at the termination of the Trust.






1


Item 1.   BUSINESS – Continued

  The raw materials essential to the business of the Registrant are the minerals contained in properties owned and leased by the Registrant. Since the Registrant leases its properties to mining interests which control the amount of ore production, the Registrant itself has no direct control over the tonnage mined from its properties but is solely involved with administering the leases on the properties. Since operating companies insist on freedom to move from property to property as mining requirements dictate, such changes in production cannot be precisely reduced to financial forecasts.

  Registrant owns mineral interests in 12,033 acres on the Mesabi Iron Formation, including approximately 7,443 acres which are wholly owned, 1,080 acres in which Registrant is a tenant in common with a 91% interest, 3,350 acres in tenancy in common with a 50% interest and 160 acres in tenancy in common with other fractional interests. Of said total, 6,992 acres are under lease and 5,041 acres are unleased.

  Registrant cannot estimate at this time any tonnage for nonmagnetic taconite because of lack of drilling, testing and any established large-scale commercial treatment method for Mesabi Iron Range nonmagnetic taconite. To give a better perspective on magnetic taconite, Registrant’s engineers estimate that the magnetic taconite under lease as of January 1, 2005, was equivalent to approximately 332,671,000 tons of pellets.

  Present leases provide for minimum royalties aggregating approximately $4,285,000 for the year 2005 even if no taconite is mined. All of this amount is attributable to long-term taconite leases.

  None of the Registrant’s leases provide for any right of renewal by the lessees upon expiration, even though unmined minerals might remain. Any extension of any such terminating lease would have to be negotiated in the same manner as unleased properties.

  All leases granted by the Registrant, except some covering remnants of natural ore, have provisions for escalation of royalty rates. Most of the taconite royalty rates are escalated on the basis of the price of pellets, the iron content, the Producers Price Index (PPI) (All Commodities), the PPI (Iron and Steel subgroup) or certain combinations of the above.






2


Item 1.   BUSINESS – Continued

  There are other landowners on the Mesabi Iron Range, including mining companies and other private fee owners. Accordingly, firm data on competitive conditions in the iron ore industry is not available. Iron ore is also available from a number of other sources. However, the generally close proximity of the Trust’s lands to the mining facilities tends to provide a competitive advantage to the Trust. In addition, other typical competitive factors include royalty rates, quality and geological characteristics of the ore bodies available, production guarantees granted to the fee owners, minimum royalty provisions and other matters. The Registrant’s non-taconite shipments have ceased as a source of income because the ore deposits have, for practical purposes, been exhausted. The mining of taconite by lessees is the most important part of the Registrant’s business. Future development depends, to a large part, on the demand for taconite from the Registrant’s properties by mining companies.

  The Registrant’s royalty income is dependent on the number of tons of taconite shipped from its properties by the lessees, royalty rates, minimum royalties collected and liquidation of minimum royalties collected. Following is a summary of shipments by lessee during 2004, 2003 and 2002:

Tons Shipped
 
  2004 2003 2002
 
United States Steel Corporation   5,384,244   6,233,871   3,791,949  
Hibbing Taconite Company  3,782,956   3,538,467   3,210,144  
National Steel Corporation  —   —   92,353  
 
   9,167,200   9,772,338   7,094,446  
 

  Effective May 20, 2003, United States Steel Corporation purchased National Steel Corporation, which had filed for bankruptcy in early 2002. Tonnage mined before the purchase is reflected under National Steel Corporation and tonnage mined after the purchase is reflected under United States Steel Corporation.

  At December 31, 2004, the Registrant employed ten persons. The Registrant has been engaged in only one line of business, namely the leasing and maintenance of its mineral properties. The business of the Registrant is not seasonal, but income depends upon production by mining companies which lease its properties. The Registrant has no operations in foreign countries and has no customers or lessees in foreign countries.






3


Item 1.   BUSINESS – Continued

  As previously reported, Section 646 of the Tax Reform Act of 1986, as amended, provided a special elective provision under which the Trust was allowed to convert from taxation as a corporation to that of a grantor trust. Pursuant to an Order of the Ramsey County District Court, the Trustees filed the Section 646 election with the Internal Revenue Service on December 30, 1988. On January 1, 1989, the Trust became exempt from federal and Minnesota corporate income taxes. For years 1989 and thereafter, certificate holders are taxed on their allocable share of the Trust’s income whether or not the income is distributed. For certificate holder tax purposes, the Trust’s income is determined on an annual basis, one-fourth then being allocated to each quarterly record date.

  The Trustees provided annual income tax information in January 2005 to certificate holders of record with holdings on any of the four quarterly record dates during 2004. This information included a:

  Substitute Form 1099-MISC – This form reported one’s 2004 allocable share of income from the Trust, distributions declared and any taxes withheld. (Foreign certificate holders received a Form 1042S).

  Trust Supplemental Statement – This statement reported the number of units (shares) held on any of the four quarterly record dates in 2004.

  Tax Return Guide – This guide instructed the certificate holders as to the preparation of their income tax returns with respect to income allocated from the Trust and various deductions allowable.

  The Registrant does not maintain a website and therefore the Registrant does not make available through a website the annual, quarterly and other reports that it files with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The Registrant will furnish to investors free of charge, upon request, a paper copy of the reports that it files with the SEC. The Registrant will also furnish to investors free of charge, upon request, a paper copy of the Trust’s Code of Ethics, which has been signed and affirmed by all employees, Trustees and officers of the Trust.












4


Item 1.   BUSINESS – Continued

  The following is a listing of the Registrant’s current leases:

Lease Number of
Leased Acres 		GNIOP
Interest 		County Location Term Lessee
Termination
Provision
Bennett Annex   237   100 % St. Louis   1/1/1965 to 12/31/2039   1 year  
Carmi-Campbell  1,597   100   St. Louis  7/1/1959 to 12/31/2010  1 year 
Enterprise-Mississippi
    (incl. Miss. #3 mine)		  776   100   St. Louis and Itasca  1/1/1961 to 12/31/2010  6 months 
Hanna Taconite #1  40   100   Itasca  4/1/1962 to 12/31/2010  6 months 
 
Gray Annex  40   50   St. Louis  1/1/1974 to 1/1/2049  1 year 
Ontario 50%  1,397   50   St. Louis and Itasca  7/1/1978 to 12/31/2016  1 year 
Ontario 100%  400   100   St. Louis and Itasca  7/1/1978 to 12/31/2016  1 year 
Ontario #3  80   25   St. Louis  1/2/1993 to 12/31/2016  1 year 
Mahoning  980   100   St. Louis and Itasca  1/1/1979 to 12/31/2026  1 year 
Russell Annex  120   50   Itasca  1/1/1966 to 12/31/2040  1 year 
 
South Stevenson  180   100   St. Louis  4/1/1966 to 4/1/2041  1 year 
Minntac  1,725   100   St. Louis  1/1/1959 to 12/31/2057  6 months 
Atkins  160   91   St. Louis  8/1/1984 to 7/31/2009  6 months 


5


Item 2.   PROPERTIES

  The Registrant owns interests in fee, both mineral and nonmineral lands, on the Mesabi Iron Range of Minnesota, most of which are leased to mining companies which extract taconite. A list of the leased properties is shown in table format in Item 1 above. The leases provide the lessees exclusive mining rights during the term of such leases. Taconite deposits are substantial. The properties have a reversionary interest as explained in Item 1 above.

Item 3.   LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

  In proceedings commenced in 1972, the Minnesota Supreme Court determined that while by the terms of the Trust, the Trustees are given discretionary powers to convert Trust assets to cash and to distribute the proceeds to certificate holders, they are limited in their exercise of those powers by the legal duty imposed by well-established law of trusts to serve the interests of both term beneficiaries and the reversionary beneficiary with impartiality. Thus, the Trustees have no duty to exercise the powers of sale and distribution unless required to do so to serve both term and reversionary interests; and, if the need arises, the Trustees may petition the District Court of Ramsey County, Minnesota, for further instructions defining what is required in a particular case to balance the interests of certificate holders and reversioner. Also, the Court, in effect, held that the Trust is a conventional trust, rather than a business trust, and must operate within the framework of well-established trust law.

  By a letter dated March 9, 2004, certificate holders of record as of December 31, 2003, and the reversioner were notified of a Hearing on May 26, 2004, in Ramsey County Courthouse, Saint Paul, Minnesota, for the purpose of settling and allowing the Trust accounts for the year 2003. By Court Order signed and dated May 26, 2004, the 2003 accounts were settled and allowed in all respects. By previous Orders, the Court settled and allowed the accounts of the Trustees for preceding years of the Trust.

Item 4.   SUBMISSION OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF CERTIFICATE HOLDERS

  None.










6


PART II

Item 5.   MARKET FOR THE REGISTRANT’S SHARES OF BENEFICIAL INTEREST AND RELATED SECURITY HOLDER MATTERS

  Shares of Beneficial Interest, Market Prices and Distributions on page 8 of the Annual Report to Certificate Holders for the year ended December 31, 2004, attached hereto as Exhibit 13, are incorporated herein by reference.

Item 6.   SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

  Selected Financial Data on page 2 of the Annual Report to Certificate Holders for the year ended December 31, 2004, attached hereto as Exhibit 13, is incorporated herein by reference.

Item 7.   MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

  Trustees’ and Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations on pages 3, 4, 5 and 6 of the Annual Report to Certificate Holders for the year ended December 31, 2004, attached hereto as Exhibit 13, are incorporated herein by reference.

Item 7A.   QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

  None.

Item 8.   FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

  The following financial statements of the Registrant are included in the Annual Report to Certificate Holders for the year ended December 31, 2004, attached hereto as Exhibit 13, and are incorporated herein by reference:

  Balance Sheets – December 31, 2004 and 2003.

  Statements of Income – Years ended December 31, 2004, 2003 and 2002.

  Statements of Beneficiaries’ Equity – Years ended December 31, 2004, 2003 and 2002.

  Statements of Cash Flows – Years ended December 31, 2004, 2003 and 2002.

  Notes to Financial Statements – December 31, 2004.


7


Item 8.   FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA – Continued

  Quarterly Results of Operations on page 9 of the Annual Report to Certificate Holders for the year ended December 31, 2004, attached hereto as Exhibit 13, are incorporated herein by reference.

Item 9.   CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE

  None.

Item 9A.   CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

  As of the end of the period covered by this report, the Trust conducted an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, of the Trust’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”)). Based on this evaluation, the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that the Trust’s disclosure controls and procedures are effective to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Trust in reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in Securities and Exchange Commission rules and forms.

  Management’s Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting on page 7 of the Annual Report to Certificate Holders for the year ended December 31, 2004, attached hereto as Exhibit 13, is incorporated herein by reference.

  The Report of Ernst & Young LLP, Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm, on Management’s Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting on pages 21 and 22 of the Annual Report to Certificate Holders for the year ended December 31, 2004, attached hereto as Exhibit 13, is incorporated herein by reference.

  There was no change in the Trust’s internal control over financial reporting during the Trust’s most recently completed fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Trust’s internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act).







8


PART III

Item 10.   DIRECTORS AND EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF THE REGISTRANT

  The Registrant, being a trust, has no directors as such. The management of the Trust is vested in the following Trustees and officers whose terms of office are not fixed for a specified time:

Name and Position Age Years of
Service in
Position
Joseph S. Micallef   Trustee and President of the Trustees,
    Chief Executive Officer		   71   28  
Roger W. Staehle (1)  Independent Trustee  71  23 
Robert A. Stein (2)  Independent Trustee  66  23 
John H. Roe, III (3)  Independent Trustee  65    3 
Thomas A. Janochoski   Vice President and Secretary,
    Chief Financial Officer		  46  13 

  The Board of Trustees meets quarterly throughout the year. The principal occupations of the Trustees and officers during the last five years were as follows:

  JOSEPH S. MICALLEF
  President and Chief Executive Officer, Great Northern Iron Ore Properties.

  ROGER W. STAEHLE
  Adjunct Professor, Institute of Technology, University of Minnesota;
Industrial Consultant.

  ROBERT A. STEIN
  Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, American Bar Association.

  JOHN H. ROE, III
  Chairman of the Board, Bemis Company, Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota;
Chief Executive Officer, Bemis Company, Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota until May 4, 2000.

  THOMAS A. JANOCHOSKI
  Vice President and Secretary, Chief Financial Officer, Great Northern Iron Ore Properties.

_________________

(1)  

Roger W. Staehle is an independent member, pursuant to NYSE standards, of the Trust’s Audit Committee.

(2)  

Robert A. Stein is an independent member, pursuant to NYSE standards, and the chairman of the Trust’s Audit Committee. He is deemed, for purposes thereto, to be a financial expert. He also presides at all non-management executive sessions.

(3)  

John H. Roe, III is an independent member, pursuant to NYSE standards, of the Trust’s Audit Committee. He is deemed, for purposes thereto, to be a financial expert.



9


Item 10.   DIRECTORS AND EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF THE REGISTRANT – Continued

  Executive employees in addition to those listed above include Roger P. Johnson, Manager of Mines and Chief Engineer.

  There are no family relationships among any of the above persons.

Item 11.   EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

  Summary Compensation Table

Name and
Principal Position 		Year Salary Bonus All Other
Compensation
CEO/President of the Trustees:                    
     Joseph S. Micallef   2004   $ 150,000   $ 50,000   $ —  
   2003    150,000    50,000    —  
   2002    100,000    35,000    —  
 
CFO/Vice President and Secretary:                 
     Thomas A. Janochoski   2004   $ 123,133   $ 5,000   $ 6,800  
   2003    113,433    5,000    6,100  
   2002    102,533    3,500    5,000  

  Chief Executive Officer (CEO)/President of the Trustees Compensation

  The Trust Agreement (as modified by Court Orders, the last being effective January 1, 2003) provides for annual compensation to the CEO/President of the Trustees of $150,000 and, in addition, a sum equal to 1% of the excess of gross income of the Trust over $5,000,000 for that year until his total compensation shall reach $200,000. By Court Orders previous to 2003, annual compensation to the CEO/President of the Trustees for the year 2002 was set at $100,000 and, in addition, a sum equal to 1% of the excess of gross income of the Trust over $5,000,000 for that year until his total compensation shall reach $135,000.

  Trustee Compensation (Other Than the CEO/President of the Trustees)

  The Trust Agreement (as modified by Court Orders, the last being effective January 1, 2001) provides for annual compensation to each Trustee (other than the CEO/President of the Trustees) of $50,000.


10


Item 11.   EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION – Continued

  Because the compensation of the Trustees and CEO/President of the Trustees is established by the Trust Agreement (as modified by Court Orders), there is no compensation committee for the Trustees and, accordingly, there is no Trustee compensation committee report pertaining to their compensation, nor a performance graph generated to link total return to executive compensation. There are no other arrangements pursuant to which any Trustee was compensated for any services provided as a Trustee, including that of committee participation or special assignment. There are no options, stock appreciation rights, long-term performance-based incentive plans or retirement benefits applicable to any of the Trustees (including the CEO/President of the Trustees) and, accordingly, disclosure tables with respect to such items have been omitted.

  Executive Officer Compensation of the Chief Financial Officer (CFO)/Vice President and Secretary

  The Board of Trustees, as a whole, determines compensation of executive officers (other than the CEO/President of the Trustees). No compensation committee report exists as the Trust Agreement empowers and grants the Trustees authority to establish salaries for all employees of the Trust. The Trustees base employee salary compensation on market data obtained from time to time, as deemed necessary. The CFO’s Bonus compensation is based on 10% of the CEO/President’s Bonus compensation. All Other Compensation of the CFO represents an accrual and interest earnings established in a deferred compensation plan.

  The following table shows the CFO’s estimated annual pension benefit payable upon retirement at various years of vested service as indicated:

  Pension Plan Table

Average Annual Salary for Highest 60 Months of Consecutive Estimated Annual Pension Benefit Payable
for Years of Vested Service Indicated
Service 10 15 20 25
 $100,000      $22,500     $33,800      $45,000      $  75,000    
 110,000   24,800   37,100   49,500     82,500 
 120,000   27,000   40,500   54,000     90,000 
 130,000   29,300   43,900   58,500     97,500 
 140,000   31,500   47,300   63,000   105,000 
 150,000   33,800   50,600   67,500   112,500 
 160,000   36,000   54,000   72,000   120,000 
 170,000   38,300   57,400   76,500   127,500 
 180,000   40,500   60,800   81,000   135,000 


11


Item 11.   EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION – Continued

  The CFO’s estimated annual pension benefit payable upon retirement from the Trust’s defined benefit Pension Plan is based on the highest 60 consecutive months average annual salary as disclosed in the Summary Compensation Table above, the years of vested service, a straight-life annuity and no offsets or deductions. The CFO is presently entitled to 15 years of vested service as of December 31, 2004. Upon the Trust termination on April 6, 2015, the CFO would be entitled to 25 years of vested service.

Item 12.   SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT

  (a)   The only authorized securities of the Registrant are Trustees’ Certificates of Beneficial Interest. These securities are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “GNI” (Cusip No. 391064102). The holders of these securities do not have voting rights. There were no entities holding more than 5% of the Certificates of Beneficial Interest outstanding, of record and/or beneficially, as of December 31, 2004.

  (b)   There were no securities owned by the Trustees or officers as of December 31, 2004.

Item 13.   CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS

  None.

Item 14.   PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES

  All audit and non-audit services were preapproved by the Audit Committee. Audit-related services pertain to testimony at the Trust’s annual hearing of accounts and printing services and, in the year 2003, tax services pertain to the Trust’s tax return guide and income tax returns. Estimated fees in 2004 for the annual audit services are $79,250, for audited-related services are $4,050, for tax services are $0 and for all other services are $0. Fees paid in 2003 for the annual audit services were $44,250, for audit-related services were $3,800, for tax services were $28,630 and for all other services were $0.












12


PART IV

Item 15.   EXHIBITS, FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES AND REPORTS ON FORM 8-K

  (a) (1)   The following financial statements of Great Northern Iron Ore Properties are included in the Registrant’s Annual Report to Certificate Holders for the year ended December 31, 2004, attached hereto as Exhibit 13, and are incorporated by reference in Item 8:

  Balance Sheets – December 31, 2004 and 2003.

  Statements of Income – Years ended December 31, 2004, 2003 and 2002.

  Statements of Beneficiaries’ Equity – Years ended December 31, 2004, 2003 and 2002.

  Statements of Cash Flows – Years ended December 31, 2004, 2003 and 2002.

  Notes to Financial Statements – December 31, 2004.

    (2)   All Item 15(d) schedules for which provision is made in the applicable accounting regulation of the Securities and Exchange Commission are not required under the related instructions or are inapplicable and therefore have been omitted.

    (3)   Listing of Exhibits – See the “Exhibit Index” immediately following the signature page.

  (b)   Reports on Form 8-K – Form 8-K filed on January 28, 2005, attaching a Press Release with respect to financial results.

  (c)   Exhibits – The response to this portion of Item 15 is set forth above in Item 15(a)(3) of this report.

  (d)   Financial Statement Schedules – The response to this portion of Item 15 is set forth above in Item 15(a)(2) of this report.







13


SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

GREAT NORTHERN IRON ORE PROPERTIES
(Registrant)

 
 
/s/   Joseph S. Micallef   February 7, 2005  
Joseph S. Micallef, Chief Executive Officer,
   Trustee and President of the Trustees		  Date 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the Registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

/s/   Roger W. Staehle   February 7, 2005  
Roger W. Staehle, Trustee  Date 
 
 
/s/   Robert A. Stein  February 7, 2005  
Robert A. Stein, Trustee  Date 
 
 
/s/   John H. Roe, III  February 7, 2005  
John H. Roe, III, Trustee  Date 
 
 
/s/   Thomas A. Janochoski  February 7, 2005  
Thomas A. Janochoski, Vice President and  Date 
  Secretary, Chief Financial Officer 






14


ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K

EXHIBIT INDEX

YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2004

GREAT NORTHERN IRON ORE PROPERTIES

W-1290 First National Bank Building
332 Minnesota Street
Saint Paul, Minnesota 55101-1361

Exhibit 3 – Copy of Trust Agreement and Rules and Regulations for Management of the Trust (filed as Exhibit A to Form 11 of Great Northern Iron Ore Properties filed on May 6, 1935, as published under date of March 30, 1935, and incorporated by reference)

Exhibit 4 – Specimen of Securities Registered Hereunder (filed as Exhibit E to Form 11 of Great Northern Iron Ore Properties filed on May 6, 1935, as published under date of March 30, 1935, and incorporated by reference)

Exhibit 10 – Court Order on Trustee Compensation dated May 16, 2001 (filed as Exhibit 10 to Form 10-K of Great Northern Iron Ore Properties filed on March 14, 2003, and incorporated by reference)

Exhibit 10(a) – Court Order on President of the Trustees’ Compensation and Annual Hearing of Accounts dated May 14, 2003 (filed as Exhibit 10(a) to Form 10-K of Great Northern Iron Ore Properties filed on February 26, 2004, and incorporated by reference)

Exhibit 13 – Annual Report to Certificate Holders

Exhibit 23 – Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

Exhibit 31.1 – Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

Exhibit 31.2 – Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

Exhibit 32 – Certifications of Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (furnished but not filed)

Exhibit 99(a) – Tax Return Guide

Exhibit 99(b) – Audit Committee Charter

Exhibit 99(c) – Report of Audit Committee