Wednesday, July 11, 2012. 6:00 P.M. Charley's Restaurant. 707 Graves
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Vol. 20 July 2012 No.7 From the iron ore region of Minnesota, across the high plains of Montana, to the Cascade Mountains of Washington, the Great Northern Railway of the 50’s and 60’s will be the subject of Fred Mayer’s program for the July meeting of the Blue Ridge Chapter, NRHS. Shown above is GN 2505, a Class P2 4-8-2, which once pulled the Oriental Limited and the Empire Builder, in 1955 finishing out her life in freight service. Wednesday, July 11, 2012. 6:00 p.m. Charley’s Restaurant. 707 Graves Mill Rd. Lynchburg, VA Blue Ridge Chapter, National Railway Historical Society Minutes of Meeting June 13, 2012 President Rick Johnson called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. at Charley’s Restaurant and welcomed 27 members and 5 guests. The May minutes were approved as distributed and then treasurer John Tanner made his report. Rick reported that Chuck Haldik was in the hospital again. Ed Fielding announced that he and Skip Hansberry would give the VBR program on Sunday at the Massie Mill Ruritan Club for the Nelson County Historical Society and again on Monday at Hull Street Station in Richmond for the Old Dominion Chapter. Ed also asked members to consider helping the Old Dominion Chapter with their Buckingham Branch excursions in the fall; they need manpower. Lee Hawkins spoke briefly about the Manassas trip on August 25. Charlie Long updated members on the N&WHS Annual Meeting in Lynchburg. Skip Hansberry reported that Kenny Kennier told him work would begin on the Amherst Station project shortly and also said that his friend George Hamlin, who has done several programs for the chapter in the past, had just published a new book on trains in the Chicago area. Rick reported that he had received a letter of thanks from the Friends of High Bridge for our letter of support in obtaining a NRHS Rail Heritage Grant. Lynchburg Rail Day needs 6 and 8 foot tables to fill in and Norris announced that Virginia State Parks ranger Bob Flippen will present his High Bridge program at noon for Rail Day. He also announced that fliers are ready to distribute. There were no reports from officers or committees. Gary Quale reported that the long abandoned N&W rail stands near the Blackwater Creek Nature Trail had been reinstalled and used as a resting bench at trailside. The meeting adjourned at 7:55 p.m. and Lloyd Lipscomb won the 50/50 drawing. The program was presented by Steve Hutchison from the Winston-Salem Chapter who showed a selection of Blackhawk slides from his collection.. Tom Ledford, Secretary Roanoke Chapter, NRHS, sets tentative dates for fall train excursions - ROANOKE, Va. — The Roanoke Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society has set tentative dates for its fall Amtrak excursions out of Roanoke. While the chapter has not received final confirmation from either Amtrak or Norfolk Southern to run the trips, it has issued a schedule so passengers can save the dates. On Nov. 10, 2012, plans are to run the excursion train from the former Norfolk & Western passenger station in Roanoke, climb the Christiansburg grade, then travel across the former N&W line via Radford, Pulaski, Rural Retreat, and Wytheville before arrival in Abingdon, VA. The train will continue on to Bristol before returning to Abingdon and Roanoke. Riders will have the option of detraining at Abingdon or to remain on board for the additional ride to Bristol. On Sunday, Nov. 11, 2012, the excursion train will operate from Roanoke up the scenic Shenandoah Valley to Shenandoah, VA, and return. The chapter expects to have full information available sometime in mid-summer. To get train information, send a stamped, self-addressed, business-size envelope to: Amtrak Excursions, Roanoke Chapter NRHS, P.O. Box 13222, Roanoke, VA 24032. To get information by the Internet, send an e-mail with "2012 Amtrak Excursion" in the subject line to [email protected]. Information will also be posted at www.RoanokeNRHS.org. Blue Ridge Chapter trip reminder! Many of us are travelling to Manassas and back on August 25 on the Lynchburg Regional train to commemorate the anniversary of the second battle of Manassas/Bull Run. There's still plenty of room and the price is right. Call Lee Hawkins for further info: 434-610-2429. 2 Derecho headaches! – The violent windstorm that blew through the Lynchburg area the evening of June 29, an event that meteorologists call a derecho , (see http://www.spc.noaa.gov/misc/AbtDerechos/derechofacts.htm), caused some real headaches for the railroads in the area as well as for the millions of people left without power in a multi-state region across the mid-Atlantic. Your editor was on duty at Kemper Street station the night of the storm. The Lynchburg Regional train, #171, was running about an hour late that evening. Earlier in the afternoon Chapter member Galen Wright had informed me that a big line of storms was entering West Virginia from Ohio. I watched the line advance toward Virginia on the internet wondering which would reach Lynchburg first, the storm or the train. Getting rained upon at train time is always a nuisance. I had forgotten about the storms until I went outside to meet the train when the lightning all around quickly reminded me of their approach. The Regional arrived Lynchburg about 9:30 p.m. I heard the roar of wind in the distance behind the train and saw a grayish cloud approaching, and thought, “Oh no. We’re going to get soaked.” As the passengers were detraining this blast of wind hurtled down the platform north to south, but there was no rain in the wind, just grit. It was very dirty. Almost immediately the power went out all around us, platform lights, street lights, the station… all dark. Lightning was flashing all around and orange glows appeared in the sky. The wind continued to howl and, needless to say, the people getting off the train were starting to get a little concerned. The inside of the station was packed with people seeking shelter when I got back from trainside. Several asked me where the safest place to stand inside the building was in case this turned out to be a tornado. Fortunately, it was not a tornado event, but a lot of damage had been done. If the train had to arrive at the same time the storm did, the timing was perfect. Had the train arrived just a minute or two earlier people would have already been inside the station and it is more than likely some would have been trapped in the elevator when the power went out. Had the train operated a few minutes later it may have been blocked by a fallen tree just outside the station. Ah, yes. Fallen trees. Then there is Train #19. Train #19, the Crescent, had just left Charlottesville and was only 20 minutes behind schedule when the storm struck. To make a long story short, there were so many trees across the railroad to be cleared that #19 did not arrive into Lynchburg until 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, or 13 hours late. It was a long, dark and warm wait for those who held tickets to ride #19. The two northbound trains Saturday morning, the Regional, #156 and the Crescent, #20, had to hold at Lynchburg until the job of tree trimming north of the city was finished. The Crescent left town 4 ½ hours late, but due to the fact that signals and road crossing gates were out, it lost even more time en route to Washington. The Regional followed the Crescent out of town. In fact, the two trains were combined three miles south of Charlottesville for the remainder of the trip to Washington. Arrival time at Washington was 7:19 p.m.: 10 ½ hours late for the Crescent and 5 ¾ hours late for the Regional. Saturday morning’s departure were rough, for sure, but Saturday evening’s southbound trains were even rougher. It seems the Northeast Corridor suffered damage from the storm mainly between Washington and Philadelphia and had to be shut down for most of Saturday morning causing big initial delays to #147 and #19, followed by delays in the terminal at Washington and delays getting to Lynchburg account of continued signal problems. I understand the Regional train, #147, would have been terminated in Washington and busses substituted had any been available, but with the Fourth of July holiday just around the corner there were none to be had. Saturday’s #147 arrived into Lynchburg (No. Not kidding.) at 2:18 p.m. SUNDAY, almost NINETEEN hours late. Saturday’s #19 got here at 9:46 a.m. Sunday 11 ¾ hours late. Again, it was another dark and hot night at Kemper Street Station. Even darker than Friday night because the batteries for the emergency lighting had played out. But the fun did not stop there. You must understand that Saturday’s #147 is turned at Lynchburg and goes back north the next morning as #156, which is supposed to leave here at 9:59 a.m., but #147 did not arrive until mid-afternoon on Sunday. It was turned and the maintenance contractor went to work cleaning the consist. A fresh crew had to be called to take the train back to Washington. Unfortunately, the Regional’s crews are all based out of Washington, which means a lengthy taxi ride from D.C to Lynchburg first. Finally, at 9 p.m.