VMT Musings

The Rare and Remarkable Cars of Lynchburg

2010-10-01T16:44:00.000-04:00

From rare antique touring cars to Edison2’s innovative, prize-winning Very Light Car, the Virginia Museum of Transportation celebrates Lynchburg automotive achievement on Saturday, October 23

The City of Lynchburg holds a unique place in Virginia’s automotive history, which the Virginia Museum of Transportation will celebrate on Saturday, October 23. Visitors will have the opportunity to see the Very Light Car developed by Lynchburg-based Edison2, which recently won the $5 million Progressive Insurance Automotive X PRIZE, as well as two rare antique vehicles built in Lynchburg in the early 20th century. To honor the city’s heritage, all Lynchburg residents will be admitted to the celebration free with ID. Admission for all other visitors will be discounted to $5 per person, tax included, for the day.

The award-winning Edison2 is a Lynchburg-based automotive innovation company led by Charlottesville developer and racing entrepreneur Oliver Kuttner. The Very Light Car, developed by the Edison2 team, was the only vehicle to survive the grueling Mainstream Class of the X PRIZE, in which cars were required to seat four passengers, travel at least 200 miles on a tank or charge, and meet stringent performance, handling and emissions standards, all while achieving over 100 MPGe. Based on the design principles of the Very Light Car, Edison2 seeks to develop a new market segment in the auto industry: lightweight, safe, aerodynamic cars that fit the wide-ranging needs of consumers. www.edison2.com

The day also marks the grand unveiling of the Museum’s newest exhibit, an extremely rare 1923 Piedmont touring car. The Piedmont Motor Car Company was the only company chartered in Virginia to ever mass produce cars. The firm built an estimated 1,500 cars between 1917 and 1923. Today, only three are known to exist. The 1923 Piedmont has been donated to the Museum by the Star City Motor Madness Committee to become the centerpiece of the Museum’s car collection as its only Virginia-made car. For the celebration event, the Museum’s vehicle, which is in its original condition, will be joined by a second—a fully restored 1919 Piedmont—on loan from Steve Puckette of Forest, VA.

Additional antique automobiles that once might have shared the road with the Piedmont will be parked in front of the Museum, courtesy of the Roanoke Valley Region Antique Automobile Club of America. Also on display will be the car designed by the Virginia Western Community College’s Baja Team which was the top finishing team among community college competitors and the top finishing Virginia college at this year’s SAE International Mini Baja Competition in Rochester, NY. Additional activities are planned throughout the day. For more information and a complete schedule of events, visit www.vmt.org.

The Museum gratefully acknowledges the generous assistance of Edison2, Advance Auto Parts, BB&T, Chas. Lunsford Sons & Associates, Wells Fargo Bank, WSET, the Lynchburg Museum System, Steve Puckette, the Roanoke Valley Region Antique Automobile Club of America, VIRginia International Raceway, and Virginia Western Community College.

Fall 2010 NRHS Rail Excursions

2010-09-16T15:25:00.000-04:00

This fall, the Roanoke Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society is offering two remarkable day trips, perfect for savoring the colors of the region’s autumn leaves. The Chapter is hosting two roundtrip Amtrak train excursions: the first on Saturday, November 6 to Danville, VA, and the second on Sunday, November 7 to Bluefield, WV. With trips only offered one weekend each year, tickets are expected to sell out well before the excursion weekend.

Both trips originate in Roanoke from the former Norfolk & Western passenger station in Downtown Roanoke, now home to the O. Winston Link Museum and the Roanoke Valley Visitors Center. While on board, passengers can relax and enjoy the comfort of roomy Amtrak coaches. Seats in privately owned deluxe dome and lounge cars are also available.

On Saturday, November 6, the excursion will travel via Moneta and Chatham to the beautifully restored 1899 Southern Railway Station in historic Danville. Passengers will have the opportunity to visit the Danville Science Center located at the station, or enjoy shuttle transportation to visit Civil War sites around Danville, the “Last Capitol of the Confederacy.” Food options will be available. The train will return to Roanoke on a slightly different route via Altavista, Lynchburg and Bedford.

On Sunday, November 7, passengers will enjoy mountain railroading at its finest, traveling through remote reaches of the Virginia countryside en route to Bluefield, WV. Always a favorite, this excursion will feature spectacular scenery as the train climbs Christiansburg Mountain, follows the New River for 38 miles, and passes through the Narrows of the New River before climbing the final grade into Bluefield. Several dining options will be available In Bluefield only a block away from the train station.

Tickets are $145 for adults and $95 for children in coach. Dome class tickets are $275 and lounge class is $215. For more information or to order tickets, call (540) 774-0611 or visit www.roanokenrhs.org.

Beautiful Shenandoah

2009-11-08T18:11:00.006-05:00

The Fall 2009 NRHS Excursions are over, and hopefully everyone had a good time. I was not able to make either trip, but was able to get some photos of the Sunday run up the Shenandoah Line. The trestle movie is at Stoney Battery Road, and the bridge photos were taken at Natural Bridge Station, VA. Three GE Genesis units for power, and 17 cars consisting of 6 privately owned cars and 11 Amfleet coaches. The one car with the flat spot on the wheel made it easy to tell when the train was on the approach as it went over a bridge. You could hear it for miles!

2009-09-03T16:09:00.009-04:00

Too long without an update, so here goes. The "Lost Engines of Roanoke" are lost no longer! VMT received the M2c 1151 and a tender,and the Baldwin DS44-660 #662. The M2 1118 and a tender are going to the Portsmouth (VA) Railroad Museum. The other Baldwin, #663 is at the Roanoke Chapter of the NRHS's 9th Street facility, and they traded the M2 1134 for their tank engine with Will Harris. Will also got the flat car with a tender body on it. All the tenders had been converted to tankers for MoW service, and the two larger ones were used until 1970.

Most of you know that the 917 went to Ohio last year, and it has been cosmetically restored as an attraction for a roadside resturant in Bellbrook, Oh.

Some answers for Mike, who had a few queries about the 1151. 1) The 1151 is sitting outside the fence because that is the only place we could put it for now. Two of the tracks inside the plant are in dire need of repair, and can hold no more rolling stock, and the other three tracks are full. It would have taken a large amount of engineering to get the cranes inside the fence to place the 1151 on the track due to ground conditions, and overhead restrictions. We are not too worried about someone wanting to 'tag' the engine because the paint will just help to preserve it. As you observed, there is not much left to take off of it, so that's not a problem either, but we did secure the cab and the auger space on the tender to eliminate the bums moving in. 2) The Southern Auto-Guard car that used to occupy the spot where the 1151 sits is now at the North Carolina Transportation Museum. We gave it to them because it never ran in Virginia, and they can do a better job (they have the room) of displaying it. 3) We did receive many parts that were removed from the 1151 many years ago, but the rods and pumps are sadly mostly gone. It may look bad as it is, but can be cosmetically restored without too much trouble. The guys over at the NRHS can do miracles with steel, and are in the process of doing a cosmo on the 1118 for Portsmouth. They will also do a cosmo on the 662, and maybe later we can get together and do the 1151. It will just take a while longer to round up, or manufacture parts to make it whole again. But for now, enjoy the view of the inside of the smokebox, because not many times do you get to see that. We will keep you up to date on the progress of the cosmo of 1118, but it will be some time before it is done. I give them at least six months, then it has to be trucked in two parts and put back together, and the finishing touches put on.

The Return

2009-07-15T22:29:00.003-04:00

Two announcements to make today. One, the VMT Blog is once again in active status. It has been a long while since the last post, and we apologize for that, but now the time has come to get serious about this medium. We'll be posting on a regular basis with more of a bent towards the news of the transportation world, be it happenings at the VMT, or things that happen on the mainline, the airways, the highway, or the high seas.

And since we are now in that mode, here is announcement #2. The "Lost Engines of Roanoke" are on their way to freedom from the scrap-yard where they have been ensconced lo these fifty plus years. As some of you know, old #917 was liberated last year, and is now a roadside attraction in Ohio. Steam engines #1118, 1135, and 1151, along with diesels 662 and 663, and two tenders and a flatcar will be coming out by September 30, 2009, to make way for the Carrilion Hospital/Bio-Med Center expansion. The old mill is currently being demolished, and is about 70% down, and as soon as a temporary surface can be put down, work will commence on removing the Lost Engines. In the meantime, we have a couple of photos to share with you taken in the early springtime, before the vegetation takes over.

Giving Twice

2008-11-26T23:54:00.006-05:00

‘Tis the season both to shop for Christmas and to make those end-of-the-year charitable contributions. Here is a way you can do both kinds of giving with one stop.

The VMT museum gift shop, Destinations, offers a great selection of special items for the transportation aficionados in your world. In addition, every dollar you spend there helps the museum.

Destinations stocks a delightful variety of gifts: T-shirts, sweatshirts and caps for the grownups and the young’uns. Calendars, mugs and clocks. An electic selection of videos, dvds and cds.

You’ll find puzzles, games and and throws (including one featuring the J611). A variety of toys including colorful, large wooden trucks that children can both assemble and then operate.

There are Christmas decorations and key chains. Badges and playing cards. Prints and posters and postcards. Magnets and maps.

And how could we forget the books? Books with rosters of locomotives and rolling stock. Books of railroad timetables. Coffee-table-sized picture books about trains and other types of transportation. Histories of various railroads in Virginia, the South, and across the U.S. Books that entertain or inform or inspire or all three.

The VMT museum store features products made in the USA. When you purchase one of our Made in USA products, you are helping the museum and helping to keep jobs in America.

Shopping for a child? Think beyond Thomas. We carry a line of beautifully made wooden engines and cars that are totally compatible with Thomas and Brio. Made in the USA and painted with lead-free paint, they are painted to look like real train cars. Children who are thrilled by the trains that rumble through Roanoke can now have the same NS or CSX cars on their home track.

Come on by. Or call the gift shop at 767-4651. Or roll on over to: http://www.vmt.org/destinations_museumshopRev.html You can ord-er items and have them shipped to your address. Make your trip to the VMT gift shop a challenge. See how many people on your Christmas gift list can be taken care of with one stop.

Destinations is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm and Sunday from 1-5 pm. Come in VMT’s main entrance and turn to the right. You do not have to purchase museum admission just to shop. Of course, if while you're there you find this irresistible urge ....

Collections and Connections

2008-11-04T11:24:00.003-05:00

This and that:

The Messimer Collection has had its grand opening. Housed in the front of the museum, near the gift shop, the exhibit displays an abundance of Greyhound bus memorabilia covering three-quarters of a century. The exhibit also includes Trailways items, a full size front of an Abbott Trailways bus and photos of local transit buses provided by the Commonwealth Coach and Trolley Museum of Roanoke.

Located in the same area is a new display celebrating Roanoke’s “other” railroad, the Virginian Railway. Though much smaller than the Norfolk and Western, the Virginian competed neck-and-neck with the N&W hauling West Virginia coal to Norfolk. The two railroads merged in 1959. This area is not finished. We plan to do a formal opening once the storyboards are completed and mounted.

***********************

VMT is in negotiations with two other Virginia museums regarding the N&W locomotives at the Virginia Scrap Iron and Metal Company property. Hopefully the remaining vintage steam locos can be salvaged through a cooperative effort. We’ll keep you posted.

***********************
This week the museum unveils the Jim Hyams serigraph collection. Serigraphs are prints made using the silkscreen process. The result is highly detailed paints of an almost photographic quality. Afterward the screens are destroyed, limiting the print run to a small number, sometimes only one.

The collection is being displayed at VMT in conjunction with the Roanoke Arts Festival and will remain there through the end of the year. The transportation-related serigraphs were produced by some of the premier artists in the genre.

***********************

Soon we will feature a locomotive cab inside our building. Norfolk Southern donated the cab after converting an SD-40 diesel electric into a “calf,” a unit that cannot be operated solo but is lashed together with other locomotives to provide additional power. The six-axle SD40 was manufactured by General Motors' Electro-Motive Division beginning in 1966 and became the best-selling locomotive of all time.

The cab should be in place early in 2009. It will allow visitors to experience the inside of a diesel loco. In the future we hope to add a locomotive simulator to our collection.

Ridin' the Rails, part 2

2008-10-18T00:48:00.002-04:00

On a train you experience the contrasts between the grubby and the grand, the seamy and the sublime.

To ride the rails is to understand the meaning of “the other side of the tracks.” You see the backsides of houses and businesses: junked cars, dilapidated buildings, tarpaper shacks, debris-strewn yards. (The graffiti is outstanding, however). And in these post-modern railroading years, you pass railroad depots in all stages of disrepair. Even some of the stations where Amtrak stops look like sets for a Stephen King movie.

On the other hand, to take the train is also to see grandeur from vantage points the automobile cannot provide: the untamed woodlands and rapids-laced streams of West Virginia, the sprawling cornfields and wheatfields of the Midwest, the raw majesty of the towering Rockies. The surgical cut made by the railroad right-of-way inserts the traveler shoulder-to-shoulder with the surrounding landscape. You feel like you could almost reach your hand out the window and touch that scampering deer or shake hands with the farmer on his tractor.

The train itself is a study in contrasts. Amtrak uses the names of glorious streamliner routes of the past such as The Crescent, The Empire Builder, and The Hiawatha. In reality, Amtrak service is more freightliner than streamliner, a Greyhound with flanged wheels. The facilities are adequate, the food is mediocre, and the staff ranges from gracious to grouchy. All this is not surprising, given the paucity of federal support for passenger railroading.

On one leg of my trip, the snack bar menu posted on the wall had cancellations and price changes scribbled in ink. As I sat waiting for a breakfast table, I heard a woman behind me exclaiming to her traveling companions, “In the brochure it all looked so nice.”

In addition, trains run habitually behind schedule. My eagerly awaited visit to the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry is scuttled due to the hours we sit waiting behind a broken-down freight train on a single track main line in southern Indiana. Even without such mishaps, passenger trains often run infuriatingly late because of the heavy freight traffic on the lines Amtrak leases from railroads such as CSX and Union Pacific. It’s more cost effective, a conductor tells me, for those roads to keep their lucrative freight traffic on schedule and to pay Amtrak the contractual penalties for the delays.

Nevertheless, it’s still a lark to take the train. I love the size and power of those diesels. The rocking and lurching of the coaches. The excitement of racing past grade crossings with their flashing gates and lines of cars. The sights of wide-eyed children running toward the tracks and construction workers laying down their tools to wave.

All of this reminds me why a place like VMT is so important. The railroad is wound tightly into the strands of America’s DNA. At levels deeper perhaps than we sometimes understand, trains still lure us, charm us, and speak to our hearts. You cannot really understand this nation until you understand its history with trains.

In the last couple years, congressional funding for Amtrak has become more generous. Given the concerns about global warming and fossil fuels, perhaps some of the more fascinating chapters of America’s rail history have yet to be written—a dream both grand and sublime.

Ridin' the Rails, part one

2008-10-06T18:15:00.004-04:00

I anxiously drive north from Roanoke on a gorgeous autumn afternoon. My train is scheduled to depart Clifton Forge at 4:08 and I can’t afford to miss it—the next one won’t come for two more days. I whip into the CSX parking lot and hurry with my luggage to the makeshift waiting area.

I needn’t have worried; the train is running 30 minutes late. After all, this is Amtrak. The half-dozen waiting passengers have plenty of time to gab, and we do. It’s my first reminder today of how different train travel is.

We talk of freight cars and end-of-train devices and reminisce about previous rail journeys. You seldom find airline passengers engaging total strangers in conversation like this. Besides, what can you tell about a previous airline journey: how much turbulence you encountered or how stirringly the flight attendant gave the mind-numbing safety recitation?

These people are the first of many I will encounter on my trip to St. Louis. Many of them are not riding the train just to get somewhere but to get there by rail. Whether they prefer the meandering pace and unique panoramas or seek a slice of nostalgic Americana, how they get there is almost as important to them as the destination itself.

Some pretend the golden age of American streamliners still exists and they have boarded the posh Broadway Limited or the gleaming Silver Meteor. Others relish the chance to see the countryside from a different perspective, glimpsing towns and fields and mountains from angles you can’t reach by car. The serious rail buffs among us are delighted to watch train operations at point blank range—rail yards, sidings, spurs and the “business” side of industries.

In the diner I meet an 81-year-old lady, who obviously doesn’t lack for money and who can barely walk. She has had joint replacement surgery on her knee and needs it on her hips. Yet she is determined to have what she calls her “last hurrah,” one final glorious train trip. In Chicago she will board the Empire Builder for Seattle, then roll down to Sacramento on the Coast Starlight, and finally reach Reno via the California Zephyr. She doesn’t sound nearly as excited about her two weeks in Reno as she does about the process of getting there.

Back in my coach I converse with my seatmate, who is from Wyoming. The county. In West Virginia. She regales me with tales of growing up as one of 15 children of a coal miner and moonshiner and of her 20 years as a long haul truck driver. She is headed for Kansas to see her first great grandchild.

And my destination? I am traveling to St. Louis by way of Chicago to spend a week with my daughter and son-in-law. For me also the ride is half the fun. I haven’t been on a passenger train since my trek from Richmond to Orlando years ago. Too cheap to reserve a sleeping berth, I will ride in my coach seat all night long. My body will get too little sleep and my clothes will get too many wrinkles. By the time I reach the windy city, I will have been aboard for 19 straight hours.

And I will not care, for I am riding the train.

Streamlining Into the Past

2008-09-26T04:27:00.001-04:00

The year was 1934. Tough times for trains. Tough times for everyone. In the heart of the Great Depression, the unemployment rate was 25%. American railroads had laid off about one million people, 40% of its work force,

Even before the stock market crash of ’29, railroads had been hurting due to the rise of the automobile. Car registrations increased almost tenfold in ten years. Passenger and freight revenue both shrank. The Depression just deepened the wound.

Then came the Burlington Zephyr. Along with the Union Pacific’s M-10,000, which actually made its debut two months earlier with a nationwide tour, the Zephyr helped revolutionize train travel and industrial design. That spring the gleaming stainless steel passenger train set a new nonstop distance record for trains, traveling a thousand miles from Denver to Chicago in 13 hours, a blistering average speed of 77.5 mph.

The era of streamliners and diesel-electric locomotives had arrived. Even steam got streamed. Many steam passenger locomotives added sleek new hoods, including the prestigious New York Central’s 20th Century Limited and the Pennsy’s Broadway Limited. The Norfolk and Western’s beautiful J series locomotives joined the parade. By the late 1930s the ten fastest trains in the world operated in America.

It was a short celebration, however. Not even the sleek new equipment could stop the demise of American passenger travel. How ironic that the automobile, which drove the railroads out of business, now costs so much to operate that the nation is yearning to ride the tracks again. Will it ever become more than talk, here in Roanoke and elsewhere? We will see. It’s a beautiful image, however: new coaches filled with people rolling right by our VMT, the J-611, and the ghosts of passengers past.

That original Zephyr train made Chicago its destination one final time. After 26 years and over three million miles of service, it entered its retirement home at the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry.

Next week I will relive the original historic 1934 trip and it will take me only 20 minutes. At the sprawling museum I will board the revered train for a tour and computer-simulated ride. The train won’t actually go anywhere, of course, except back in time.

My real train ride will also take me into the past as I roll through the mountains of West Virginia and the plains of the Midwest. I will relive the days of the streamliners while riding their heir, Amtrak, the stepchild of the divorce between America and its longtime great love, still valiantly chugging along in a country that has forgotten its transportation roots.

During that journey, including the hours of layover in Chicago on my way to visit family in Missouri, I will experience railroading past and present, large and small. The Museum of Science and Industry also houses The Great Train Story, an HO-scale layout that includes about 58 scale miles of trackage, depicting the train journey from Chicago to Seattle.

I will ride. And look. And remember. And dream.

Regarding Henry

2008-09-02T20:09:00.004-04:00

Two weeks ago my wife and I headed for Florida to take our daughter to college. As if 863 miles of driving weren’t enough, we got to travel through tropical storm Fay. After moving Anna into the dorm, we headed north just in time to navigate through Fay again. Ah, the women in my life ….

This blog isn’t really about a Fay, however, but a Flagler. Henry Morrison Flagler. American entrepreneur. Partner with John D. Rockefeller in Standard Oil. Perhaps the most important figure in the development of Florida’s east coast for tourism. Owner of the Florida East Coast Railway which, in an amazing feat of railroad engineering, he extended all the way to Key West.

In Florida you find Flagler’s name everywhere: schools, streets, buildings, museums, hospitals, even a county and a beach. The main address for our daughter’s school is 901 S. Flagler Dr., which her dorm room overlooks. With her roommate she has already gone “hot-tubbing” nearby at The Breakers, the renowned beachfront hotel the man built at Palm Beach in 1896.

(When I tell Anna how proud I am that she picked a school with a railroad man’s name in the address, she just rolls her eyes.)

It’s no wonder Floridians toast Henry Flagler’s name. He built resort hotels and provided the means for northern tourists to reach them. He constructed roads, bridges, canals, public utilities and newspapers. He encouraged fruit farming and settlement along the railway line. His gifts helped build schools, churches and hospitals.

Even after a hurricane put the “over-the-seas” railroad out of business in 1935, Its bridges and roadbed became the foundation for car and truck traffic through the Keys.

Driving back toward Virginia, I thought about Henry Flagler (when the weather didn’t demand my full interest). I also thought about Roanoke. Florida before Flagler and Big Lick before the N&W were similar: largely unknown, undeveloped, and unappreciated. (Miami wasn’t even incorporated until Henry got his hand on it.)

And I thought about the differences today in the two areas’ attitudes. In Florida, Flagler is celebrated ubiquitously. In Roanoke, the railroad heritage is seen by so many as a quaint and insignificant factor, a historical footnote with little relevance for the present.

When the news broke several months ago of VMT’s financial troubles, much of the public reaction was not “We must do something” but “They ought to do something” or—worse—“Who cares whether they do anything.”

The Roanoke Times’ coverage epitomized the view that museum leadership needs to get its act together before expecting anyone else to lend a hand. Largely ignored in articles and editorials were courageous efforts VMT personnel already had put forth or the significant extenuating circumstances. And little was said of the need for the community as a whole to own this rail heritage as a core part of our identity.

Public and private donors will give tens of millions of dollars to build and promote an art museum that, regardless of its real or imagined benefits, is still a generic attraction that would seem as much at home in dozens of other cities. On the other hand, much of our community seems unconcerned about an organization which preserves and interprets Roanoke’s historic legacy and which is intrinsically linked to a group of other attractions (Norfolk Southern operations, the East End Shops, Hotel Roanoke, the O. Winston Link Museum, the Rail Walk, restored N&W buildings, etc.)

No community can live in the past. Few places thrive, however, when they ignore it.

Someone recently wrote to criticize VMT’s apparent lack of interest in salvaging the remaining Virginia Scrap Iron & Metal yard locomotives. The comments reminded me that even some of the wonderful people who do care about the museum’s future are unaware of how difficult our situation remains. Saving those locos is a wonderful goal and we appreciate so much those who leading the charge. It’s hard for us to raise money ourselves for new acquisitions, however, when we are struggling to meet an operating budget that has been cut to the bone.

Citizens of this region have a choice. We can own and celebrate our rich transportation heritage or we can treat it with apathy and neglect. Florida and Henry Flagler show us which path is the wise one.
_____________________

A footnote: I collect songs about trains. I recommend three songs for you who like music and are interested in Flagler’s achievements. Last Train to Paradise by Chris Foster and Oh Henry! by Chris Kahl cover the building of the FEC Railway across the Florida Keys, and Hurricane by Steve Gillette and Cindy Mangsen describes the railroad’s destruction by the category five Labor Day hurricane of 1935. All three songs are available at various download sites.

Car 32, Where Are You?

2008-08-13T11:59:00.002-04:00

A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity—that’s how Director Bev Fitzpatrick describes his recent ride on an inspection train. Generally railroad museum pieces move from active service to retirement display. This time the train ran in the opposite direction.

Among the dozens of locomotives and rolling stock the Virginia Museum of Transportation owns is a former Southern Railway Research car. Now painted in Norfolk Southern colors and known as Research 32, it is in wonderful shape.

Late last year Norfolk Southern asked to use it for track inspections while the railroad’s equipment was being upgraded. After all that NS has done for VMT, we were tickled to help them out. Shortly afterward, Research 32 left the museum, was retrofitted with some new technology, and hit the rails.

In conversations with railroad personnel, VMT staff expressed a desire to understand better what the car does in order to interpret it more accurately when it returns to the museum’s collection. Thus a few days ago the railroad took VMT employees on an inspection trip to observe firsthand how the car helps keep NS lines in their normal great shape.

I’ll let Bev tell the rest of the story:

We arrived at the old car shed in Roanoke just east of the old passenger station at 5:30 am. We needed to be there that early in order to board, have our mandatory safety briefing, and settle in for the ride. We were to travel south from Roanoke to Winston Salem, North Carolina on the "Punkin Vine." This line orginally belonged to the Roanoke Southern Railroad. Its nickname stems from the fact that it has very few straight segments of track along its 90-mile run.

We pulled forward out of the sheds, did a reverse move and rolled west until we passed the switch for the southbound main. Then the train changed direction and we were off on our great adventure.

We rode in a long room at the end of the car. Two employees were positioned there, one facing forward and the other turned to the rear. The first looked ahead through a window that extended about 6 inches beyond the edge of the car, spotting road crossings and bridges along the way and entering that data as we traveled. The computers had logged on at milepost 1 out of Roanoke and gave a digital readout of the train’s speed and milepost position as we moved southward.

The other gentleman watched the track behind us like a hawk. Each time we passed a mile marker a bell sounded to note where we were.

Just ahead, four other NS workers studied screens that displayed different data. The monitors showed the overall gauge of the track along every inch of the line, the wear compared with the contours of new rail, the track’s elevation, along with much more that we did not understand.

Human expertise and sophisticated technology worked together flawlessly to ensure the safety of train crews and product that will roll along this line. In the 90 miles we traveled, the inspection revealed only one small defect. The dedication of the Research and Test crew was obvious. These folks leave their families every other week to test track across the sprawling NS system. They patiently and helpfully explained what we were seeing and answered our questions.

The Virginia Museum of Transportation is so pleased to own car 32 and to have had this chance to learn more about what it does and did in its long and distinguished career. Once it returns to the Museum, we hope to do a much better job of interpreting its mission and explaining its significance to railroad operations. We remain most grateful to the R&T and engine crews for a wonderful learning experience and a safe trip.

Speaking of Safety, the emphasis placed on that was the most impressive thing of the day to me. The NS has a sterling track record in this area. They have won the highest safety award in the industry, the Harriman Award, more than any other American railroad. We experienced that culture of safety, from our safety glasses, hard hats, and boots to our safety briefings.

It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

Busing to the ‘Burg

2008-08-05T13:35:00.002-04:00

Sometimes the best way to take in a train is to take a bus. VMT is hosting a trip this Saturday, August 9 to the annual Lynchburg Rail Day at the Boonsboro Ruritan Club just off Rt. 501. A 1991 Gillig bus formerly used by Valley Metro will leave the museum at 9 a.m.

Following the Rail Day stop, the bus odyssey will continue with visits to rail sites around Lynchburg such as the lower basin, the Kemper Street Amtrak Station, the Norfolk Southern yard near River Ridge and perhaps others if time permits. We will return to Roanoke by 6 p.m. The bus ride costs $20.00 per person. Lunch and Rail Day admission ($5 per person, with children 12 and under free with a paying adult) are additional costs.

What will you find at Rail Day? Operating model railroad layouts, vendors, photography and slide shows, clinics, prizes and raffles. You can also purchase food and drinks and interact with other rail enthusiasts.

Featured layouts include Thirty Inch Rails to Portland, an On30 modular layout constructed by Noll Horan for the 2007 Narrow Gauge Convention in Portland, Maine; The Milwaukee Road in Milwaukee's Menomonee River Valley in HO scale, a project layout George Riley is building for Railroad Model Craftsman magazine; an N-Trak modular layout by LyNchburg Area N-Scalers; and an HO 1945 Northern Pacific steam locomotive servicing facility by Fred Meyer.

The Rail Day site is www.blueridgenrhs.org/rail_day.htm. To reserve a seat on the bus, call 540-342-5670.

The bus itself represents a rich transportation heritage. Jacob Gillig first opened a carriage and wagon shop in San Francisco, CA in 1890. By the late 1920s, the company produced pleasure boats and heavy trucks and, a few years later, school buses. After producing troop transports for WWII Gillig resumed the manufacture of school buses and, by the 1970s, transit buses.

Interactions on the bus ride should be half (or more) of the day’s fun. Considering the nature of rail fan(atic)s, I wouldn’t be surprised if, by the end of the day, the group had built a model railroad on board and gotten it running.

All aboard!

Take the Bus

2008-08-01T00:07:00.001-04:00

VMT will debut another new exhibit soon. In fact, the Lawrence Gallery has already unofficially opened, though it still needs some finishing touches—narratives and signage are not complete yet. It showcases The Messimer Collection, an exhibit on bus transportation, along with a feature on the Virginian, Roanoke’s other railroad. Volunteers have done much of the work on the project.

The museum gratefully acknowledges retired Greyhound driver Harry Messimer for the donation and installation of his collection which features artifacts and memorabilia spanning over 75 years of Greyhound history.

The Messimer Collection features the top dog of the 20th century highways. Begun in the rugged iron ore country of Hibbing, Minnesota in 1914 by a Swedish entrepreneur named Carl Wickman, Greyhound Bus Lines would become the largest bus line in the history of the nation.

For 15 cents a ride, Wickman transported miners from the Oliver Iron Mines in Hibbing to the new residential town of Alice. Wickman’s first year profits were $8,000. Over the years his company would reach revenues of $1.045 billion with a fleet of over 3,500 coaches.

In 1921 Wickman’s coaches were nicknamed greyhounds because of their sleek profile and gray paint. By 1929 the galloping greyhound had become the company’s official logo. During WW II the bus line began to train women drivers due to the demand for men in the military. Those female drivers, along with their male cohorts, transported troops coast to coast.

The collection includes signs, photos, toy buses, ticket stubs, magazine clippings, safety and service awards, hats, belt buckles, maps, calendars, promotional, promotional items and memorabilia that were sold at station gift shops.

Historic items from Trailways, the rival that Greyhound finally ran down, and local fixture Abbott Bus Lines also have displays. In addition, visitors can learn about industry labor issues, the connection between Greyhound and Trailways and the train industry, and the role buses played during the war and civil rights movements.

We will let you know the official opening date and provide details of the Virginian exhibit a little later. Meanwhile, come run with the big dogs. The Lawrence Gallery offers an express cruise down memory lane.

Mixed Freight

2008-07-21T23:04:00.003-04:00

Finally! I have been looking for you all everywhere. Where have you been?

Okay, I’m the one who has been missing. Other commitments have kept my schedule too clogged to blog. Thanks for your patience and continuing interest in VMT and transportation. I’m back now with a mixed freight of information (some of this and some of that).

************

The summer edition of Revolutions, our museum newsletter, is done. It will be mailed out later this week. Those of you who receive digital copies should already have yours.

The new issue is different in some ways. For one thing, it contains six pages instead of four. For another, it gives special attention to VMT’s forty-fifth anniversary, through Bev Fitzpatrick’s View from the Cab and a photo spread of the early years at Wasena Park. This newsletter covers 1963-85, including the devastating ’85 flood that destroyed the original Roanoke Transportation Museum. The fall edition will focus on 1985 to the present.

The summer Revolutions also features several other topics. They include the recent Star City Motor Madness, the African American Heritage Day during Juneteenth festivities, the Lynchburg Rail Day/VMT bus trip, the new photo exhibit, the Rescue Challenge team’s hoisting of the RF&P box car, and recent news from our Board of Directors.

To receive either the paper or the e-mailed pdf version of the newsletter, call 342-5670 or e-mail info@vmt.org.

************

Cocktails for a Cause comes to Trio next Wednesday, July 30. The VMT fundraiser works like this. Show up between 5-8 pm for cocktails, then move to the dining room for dinner, and Trio will donate a portion of your bar and meal receipts to the museum. You’ll find Trio at 315 Market St. SE. Train service not available.

************

I wrote earlier about the multiple attractions that make this area a rail lover’s dream [Railroad Heaven, May 12]. Add another to the list.

Hotel Roanoke, originally built by the N&W for its riders, still maintains a vital connection to trains. Recently the hotel launched http://www.roanokerailcam.com/. The cam sits atop the classic building, looking out over the mainline tracks of Norfolk Southern. Now you can check out track happenings without leaving your recliner five miles away or 500 miles away (assuming you can reach a computer from your recliner).

Roanoke Rail Cam offers links to the Link and Transportation museums and the N&W Historical Society. Co-sponsor of the site is the Virginia Tech Foundation, headed by that famed train watcher himself, Ray Smoot. The Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center also offers a Train Lover’s Package with accommodations overlooking the railroad—you can be your own rail cam—plus breakfast and a commemorative mug and book.

************

Did I just say “railroad lover’s dream”? Today I saw outside the museum an NS work train consisting of automated track laying equipment and those ribbons of continuous welded rail stretching seamlessly from car to car to car. The modern process of laying track still amazes me. And to see the equipment at point blank range—I drove up and down Shenandoah Avenue several times, drinking it all in—provides yet another argument why VMT is a special place. Every day the railroad past rubs shoulders with the railroad present.

Riding on the BB&T

2008-06-24T02:12:00.004-04:00

For the past three months Roanoke Valley locations of Branch Banking and Trust have doubled as the BB&T Short Line Railroad. Each branch has trumpeted VMT to their customers for a month, selling gift shop items and museum memberships, displaying images from our collection, giving out brochures and discount ticket coupons and boosting the museum’s offerings to customers.

Each branch has also hosted a VMT Feature Day with free hot dogs, snacks and drinks. A museum rep has been on hand at each one to greet customers and answer questions. Bob Hudson has joyfully given rides in his 1924 Ford Model T Huckster Wagon. Bank employees have been both good cooks and great sports.

I worked one of the Feature Days last week. Some customers, doing their banking during their lunch break, glanced briefly at the displays and grabbed a bag of Doritos or a ‘dog on their way out. Others took more time inside and out and climbed aboard the Model T for photos or a ride.

Those who had time to talk offered interesting stories. A mechanic at Norfolk Southern’s Shaffers Crossing shops talked enthusiastically about his work, a reminder that playing with trains can be a hoot regardless of its size.

One woman asked detailed questions about VMT’s exhibits to help plan an extended family outing. Her sisters and their families will visit from Sweden the end of this month, and she wants to take them someplace interesting and “real,” with authentic slices of area history. Her comments highlighted again the museum’s popularity with international visitors.

Since the beginning of the year, we have welcomed guests from at least thirteen different countries. Many of them read about us on the Internet and visit our web site. They plan their trip to America to include a visit with the 611, 1218 and our other exhibits. The passion for trains reaches around the world, and nothing in Roanoke offers anything more unique and intrinsic to our area than those giants slumbering in our rail yard.

Conversations with other customers underlined another reality. Too many residents of this area know little or nothing about VMT. We must do a better job of getting our story out in Virginia. As we promote the history of the high iron, we face the high irony of German, French and Japanese tourists traveling thousands of miles to see what area residents won’t drive across town to visit.

My favorite encounter of the day was with an elderly woman who animatedly described the train day trips she made from Bedford as a child with her father, visiting the market and other downtown Roanoke spots. This was the depression and apparently many of their rail jaunts were done sans tickets, on freight rather than passenger cars. The two of them often interacted with other non-paying travelers and she reveled in the sights of the hobo camps, though dad refused to allow her to sample the contents of their open-fire cookpots.

“How I cherish those memories—if only I could make that trip once more,” she bubbled. “I would gladly pay the railroad and sign any liability waivers they demanded for one more chance to ride to Roanoke in a freight car.”

Thanks to BB&T management and staff for treating us so well. And thanks to that lovely lady for reminding us of what we as an organization are really about: reliving history and rekindling priceless memories.

Madness and Gladness

2008-06-16T01:10:00.004-04:00

This year the Virginia Museum of Transportaton celebrates its 45th anniversary. That has sparked my curiosity about the earlier years of VMT history. Since I have only lived in Roanoke a dozen years, I knew little about the Wasena Park era, before the flood of ’85 wreaked its havoc.

Learning about those early days gives a clearer perspective on VMT’s present. For example, a current topic of debate—sparked by the Museum Management Consultants now-infamous report—focuses on whether we should be a transportation or a railroad-only institution. It’s a debate, however, you cannot realistiically have without understanding how we got to where we are now.

History shows that the museum had a broad transportation focus from day one. The first two items on display (that’s right—we began as a two-piece band) were a N&W locomotive and a fire truck. Soon the J611 loco was added, followed by more railroad equipment, trucks, buses, autos and planes.

One photo I found, obviously taken from the bridge above, shows the museum in the middle of a car show. Rows and rows of shiny automobiles are being prowled by spectators while proud and protective owners stand by their treasures. Southwest Virginia’s love of the car played an important role in museum life even then.

Fast forward to 2008 and you find VMT celebrating the grand opening of its new Advance Auto car gallery, followed two months later by the seventh annual incarnation of that steel and wheels invasion known as Star City Motor Madness. Held the last Friday and Saturday each June, the event turns Roanoke into hot wheels heaven.

“Madness” includes two events: a Friday night cruise on Williamson Road and a Saturday show downtown. Last year approximately 15,000 cars, trucks and motorcycles gathered for the cruise. The combined events drew over 80,000 people. Two features I find especially appealing are the free admission for spectators and the money raised for VMT (which helped pay for the auto gallery, by the way).

Friday, June 27th (6pm to 10pm) classic and special interest automobiles, trucks and motorcycles will assemble for a cruise on Roanoke's historic Williamson Road, which still maintains that feel of Rt. 11 when it was this region’s version of Rt. 66. Two locations will be available for cruisers to park and let spectators get up close and personal, with food and entertainment within easy reach.

Saturday, June 28th, 2pm to 7pm, the car/truck/motorcycle show will occupy a large section of downtown Roanoke including Elmwood Park. The featured vehicle this year is the Corvette, and more than 100 of those beauties will shine. The National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky will have a display and General Motors will exhibit a prototype of the new Corvette ZR1. Music, special programming and kids’ activities will add to the fun. George Barris, “King of Kustomizers,” will be present.

More is happening than what I have mentioned here. To find it all out, go to http://www.starcitymotormadness.com/ and check out all the details.

It’s easy for train lovers to get tunnel vision over transportation issues and even feel some resentment at the automobile for stealing much of railroads’ glory in the last half of the 20th century. However, our love affair with cars has that same passion for travel, adventure and mechanical power that has stirred railroad enthusiasts for so long. They are both key parts of America’s story, and the current gas cost explosion should heighten our appreciation for each.

To have Motor Madness in Roanoke is exciting, another thrill in a region so rich in transportation heritage.

Fast Facts and Upcoming Acts

2008-06-04T10:08:00.008-04:00

More musings about museums and money ….

I brainstormed last time about some of the ways individuals can help the museum, from making cash donations to purchasing memberships, from using one’s Food Lion cards to shopping in our Destinations gift store (though not with your Food Lion card). With VMT membership, by the way, you get discounts on gift shop purchases. And if you’re a dad, it isn’t too late to chuff some hints about items you would love to see rolling into your station for Father’s Day. Whoo-whoo!

Here are a few financial fast facts to chew on:
* The Museum spends $ 111.76 per day for heating, air conditioning and water (over $40,000 a year). That doesn’t include telephone and internet service.
* Insurance necessary to keep our doors open (not employee health or benefit coverage) is $ 79.19 per day.
* Our real estate taxes paid to Roanoke City come to $ 36.56 per day.

I didn’t include this in the previous blog, but another way you can help financially is to donate materials. Here are some of the urgent items currently on our wish list:
* 2008 Quickbooks Premier software (single user version)
* Cases of copy paper (maybe drop off a case every month for six months—like a pledge; the I dream of a ream campaign, maybe?)
* Staples gift cards that we could use for printer ink cartridges
* Repainting of the gallery floors in the main areas—that hasn’t been done in quite a while
* Carpet cleaning for our conference room and office hallways
* A projector that can do power point presentations—we have the software; we just need a horse to pull it (so to speak)
* A roll or two of stamps

Used items would be a great help in some instances. When businesses upgrade equipment (note the projector mentioned above), they may end up with quality stuff that needs a new home and will end up in the dumpster if a place isn’t found. Be on the lookout for opportunities like that and call us to see if we can use the “strays.”

Amid all the needs is one piece of good financial news—since our cars and trucks and trains seldom move, rising gas prices haven’t hit us that hard.

* * * * * * *

Meanwhile, in other news (I’m a television anchor wannabe) ….

The museum’s African American Heritage Group and the Norfolk Southern Corporation are sponsoring our annual Heritage Celebration on the 21st of June to coincide with Roanoke’s Juneteenth Freedom Celebration. The NS Exhibit Car and a locomotive simulator will be at VMT all day long. That night Dr. Benjamin Dixon, retired Vice President for Multicultural Affairs at Virginia Tech, will speak. The program runs from 6:30-8:30pm and is open to the public. Seating is limited. NS employees with ID's will be admitted for half-price all day.

* * * * * * *

VMT’s newest photographic exhibit, Images of Rail: a Photo History of the Norfolk & Western, opened recently. It includes 38 of the more than two hundred photographs that are in the similarly-named book by Nelson Harris. The framed prints hang on a background painted to look like the side of an N&W passenger car. “Harvested” from VMT files, the photos depict crews, equipment, buildings, engines and the rugged landscape that N&W trains traveled from the late 1800s on.

* * * * * * *

In case you missed the news, on May 1 the museum held the grand opening of the Automotive Gallery and its first feature: From Mud to Mobility: 100 years of the Virginia Department of Transportation. VDOT and Advance Auto partnered with VMT to create the new gallery. The sponsors of Star City Motor Madness have also played a significant role (more on that in my next blog).

Visitors can view automobiles from every decade in the 1900s including a 1904 curved-dash Olds, a 1948 Packard Limo, and a 1963 Studebaker Lark Taxi. Also displayed are photographic billboards, informational displays, and a unique collection of Virginia license plates dating back to 1917, long before anyone had ever heard of a “personalized” car tag. Com2VMT and CRPL8s.

So Many Ways to Help

2008-05-27T22:29:00.006-04:00

The Virginia Museum of Transportation is critical to the Roanoke valley and southwest Virginia. Along with other railroad-themed attractions, the museum brings substantial tourism dollars to the valley. VMT also preserves and tells a gigantic part of this area’s history. It offers a unique setting and collection of exhibits that need to be preserved.

Financially, times are very challenging, due to the costs of maintaining our vintage facility and caring for the treasures in our collection, many of which are not only extremely large but also complicated and costly to maintain. The loss of a significant stream of state funding has turned a challenge into a crisis.

You can help. Many already are—larger corporations and small businesses, nonprofits and individuals—for which we are extremely grateful. Here are some other ways people can contribute.

1) Make a tax-deductible donation, either a one-time amount or a monthly gift. Anything from $10 to $10,000 will help. And if you insist on giving even more than $10,000, we will try not to fuss.

2) If you aren’t already a member of the Museum, use the form in this newsletter to purchase a membership today. You can just go to http://www.vmt.org/membership%20form.pdf or call VMT at 342-5670.

3) Become a part of upcoming fundraising events. VMT is the featured charity at Cocktails for a Cause at Trio Restaurant on Wednesday, July 30th and First Fridays at Five on August 15th. Join us at either or both events for drinks and dinner or entertainment.

4) Visit the Food Lion web site to register your MVP card (https://www.foodlion.com/IntheCommunity/ShopAndShare/default.asp). Every time you shop, a portion of your grocery purchase will be donated to us!

5) Sign up at http://www.maatiam.com/ and choose the Virginia Museum of Transportation as your charity. Shop your favorite stores online by visiting Maatiam first to sign in and select your store’s site. Hundreds of listed stores will donate a percentage of your purchase to VMT, and it will not cost you an extra penny (not even one that has been flattened on the railroad tracks).

6) If you are a member of the Rotary Club or other community organization that has a giving program, please ask your leadership to consider making a donation or a grant to the Museum.

7) Write individuals and corporations who have the capacity to make substantial capital donations to the museum. Tell them in your own words how valuable VMT is to this area and explain why it needs their help so much. Perhaps your letter will be the one that opens eyes and purse strings.

8) Consider donating to VMT through special financial arrangements such as trusts, wills, stock donations, capital projects, etc. Contact the museum, your financial advisor or your attorney to discuss options.

9) Volunteer. Your “sweat donations” can either accomplish tasks that the museum cannot currently afford or free up another set of hands to do something else. It’s more than just a dollar issue. Numerous volunteers cheerfully working around VMT is great chemistry, building morale and infecting visitors with enthusiasm. From greeting people to grease and grunt work, from computer savvy to carpentry skills, we have a job to fit just about everyone.

10) Shop in Destinations, the museum gift store. We have a collection of gift ideas for adults and children, from clothing and decorative pieces to books, videos and artwork. You can come by whenever VMT is open—you don’t have to purchase museum admission to shop there. We have great gift ideas for birthdays, graduation, retirement, Christmas and other special occasions.

11) Talk to friends you think might be willing to share their time, ability or finances. Explain to them what our mission and need are. Take them on a tour to acquaint them with VMT if they aren’t very familiar with us. Pay for their admission if need be.

12) Visit with us whenever you can. Your admission and your presence boost our efforts.

13) Talk us up wherever you go. Many area residents don’t realize what we have to offer. You can be an ambassador at-large for us.

Perhaps you have a great idea we haven’t thought of. If so, please tell us. As Red Green says, “We’re all in this together.”

Listening Again

2008-05-20T16:28:00.003-04:00

Blogs without readers are sad, sad creatures. I have been writing this one since late February and appreciate so much those who bother to show up here time after time. Here is a look back at some of your comments. (Feedback regarding whether VMT should be a transportation or railroad-only attraction I will defer until an upcoming blog on that subject.)

Welcome back
When I took over the blog in February, several of you were kind enough to say you were glad to see it back on line—and those of you who weren’t glad were kind enough not to say so. Derek wrote, “As someone from Indiana who has never had a chance to come and visit but has many fond memories of 611, this is the place to keep up on the action. Please keep the updates coming! Would also like to get the newsletter.

From Indiana? Cool. I hope you can visit in person soon. As the May 12 blog points out, you can see a lot of other railroad stuff in addition to VMT.

Wishin’ and hopin’
Several people have shared items from their personal wish list. Chief among them is the desire to have more intimate contact with the outdoor exhibits. Martin said, “I personally would like to see the Virginian Railway 0-8-0 #4 be painted up and have the cab open to the public. “ Emmo213 dreams of being able to “actually sit in the engineer's seat of 611 and 1218 …. Maybe even have an air source hooked up so there's a noon-time whistle or something similar.”

Phillip thinks one of VMT’s biggest selling points is allowing visitors to “climb all over the collection,” even though “curators in their various ways would pull out their hair.” And Anonymous applauds “how the railroad exhibits are not roped off. There is something special about touching the artifacts that I have read about or seen on video for years.

Anti-q8 wishes we could get even more up close and personal. “It seems almost criminal that [the 611] sits idle, with little or no possibility of coming back to life. My kids love trains and are just in awe when they see a regular diesel engine. I can only imagine what they’d think if they could actually see 611 under power. With the steam, smoke and the driving rods, I’m sure it would seem to be alive and breathing.”

We all ache for that to happen. More likely to occur is Philosofik’s idea.

In conjunction with a map of area railroad attractions, he (or she?) suggests cell phone tours. “Basically, the map provides visitors with a unique local or toll-free phone number they can call at the various landmarks noted on the map. The phone call will access a pre-recorded message talking about the site they're viewing with as little or as much detail as you want. Each site could have its own extension in the phone so you could even track which sites get the most traffic.”

Cell tour calls. That’s a different kind of CTC.

Thanks for the Memories

Anti-q8 loved the comments I included from a staff member about the impression 611 makes on people. He reminisces, “My grandfather was a Pullman conductor on the Powhatan Arrow and the Cavalier back in the 40’s and 50’s. When my mom was in college at Longwood in Farmville, she used to deadhead home to Norfolk when her dad was on the train. She said that when they pulled out of the station, by the time they were at the town limit, they were almost at speed. I have heard that at one time on the flats between Richmond and Norfolk, the engineers tried to see how fast she would go but had to throttle back because they were afraid the track wouldn’t hold up; so they were never sure exactly how fast the J-series really was.”

Recollections like that need to be preserved and shared, Phillip mused. “What if the VMT set up a computer terminal where guests could record their recollections of riding behind #611 or any of the other vehicles? Then have them stored so others can view them and share their own. There are so many great stories out there, it’d be a shame to lose them to time.”

“Just the Facts”
An anonymous blog reader feels “more people would read it if you posted about what's going on at VMT. Ya know, like the exhibits, what's being done to restore various pieces of equipment, things like that. Just because it's a blog doesn't mean you have to try to be poetic. I personally want information, not poetry.”

Some folks like poetry,
Some folks like prose
Thanks for your view
Though it steps on my toes.
Here’s who I write for
When I have my druthers.
Sometimes it’s one group
And sometimes it’s others.
So when one column
Leaves you at the station,
Maybe the next will
Provide stimulation.

Too Much Talk, Too Little Action
Another Anonymous (or the same one?) also groused about a piece on stories: “Yes, there are so many stories. Why are we telling them on a blog that few read instead of at the museum itself? Perhaps the museum would be in better shape if it had been telling them there.”

“That few read?” You break my heart.

Isn’t that part of the reason for a blog? To talk about what we can do better, especially when readers join the dialogue, is a vital step toward putting new ideas into practice. Sometimes we throw things out there to get your reaction and to see if you have better ideas. We would love to do lots of things that we cannot right now due to a lack of manpower and money. So we do what we can and continue to dream, with your help.

It’s Everywhere
Finally, Barbara wrote to say, “Hello, I just entered before I have to leave to the airport. If you want here is the site I told you about where I type some stuff and make good money (I work from home).”

How about that—not even blogs are immune from spam.

Railroad Heaven

2008-05-12T23:07:00.003-04:00

Have you thought about how large the rail footprint in the Roanoke Valley has become? We are a train lover’s Bigfoot, a rail fan’s gold mine. Those of us who live here may forget sometimes how much we do have to offer.

You can tour the Museum of Transportation and its extensive collection of locomotives, rolling stock and other artifacts. Adding to its value is its location within the former Norfolk & Western Roanoke freight terminal.

You can travel the David and Susan Goode Railwalk, filled with graphics, data and hands-on exhibits. Strolling alongside the mainline of one of the four largest railroads in America, you can observe all kinds of Norfolk Southern trains in action. At times you will see not only NS locomotives but also those in the livery of CSX, Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Union Pacific, among others.

Nearby you can find much more of Norfolk Southern’s regional operations to take in. A dual track hump classification yard with both receiving and departure yards on each end lies just west of downtown at Shaffers Crossing. Fueling and sanding facilities and a locomotive and car maintenance center are located there as well. Downtown the current NS office building, modern and sophisticated-looking, towers above the streets.

Across the tracks from VMT and the Railwalk stands Hotel Roanoke, the grand old lady built by Norfolk Southern’s predecessor, the N&W, for its passengers. On one side of that classic structure is the restored, Loewy-designed Roanoke passenger station. Within its walls lies the O. Winston Link Museum, featuring stunning photos of N&W steam locomotives against the vanishing rural landscape of this region.

Traipse over to the other side of Hotel Roanoke and you can gaze at two earlier Norfolk and Western office buildings, built when Roanoke was not just a regional but a national railroad headquarters. One structure now houses the Roanoke Higher Education Center where more than a dozen universities and colleges offer classes. The other building contains upscale apartment living. You can go inside the Higher Ed. Center and see the exquisite wood paneling and metal work that made this such an elegant home for railroad management.

Just down the tracks from the office buildings, hotel and passenger station you will find the sprawling East End Shops, where many of the locomotives featured in Winston Link’s photos were built. On one end, Norfolk Southern continues to perform heavy maintenance on GE locomotives, fabricate slugs and do some wreck repair. On the other end, FreightCar America manufactures ore cars for BNSF, coal hoppers for NS, BNSF and GATX, and double-stack container cars for Saudi Arabia.

The recent tour of “lost railroads” in the valley offered a reminder that there is still more railroad gold to be mined in this area. In addition, two other planned projects will make Bigfoot’s print even more expansive: the restoration of the Virginian Railway passenger station and the building of an intermodal terminal in Elliston.

How many places in America can you go and see in such close proximity the headquarters of one of the most successful and innovative steam railroads in history, the shops where some of North America’s most impressive locomotives were built, the collected work of one of America’s great railroad photographers, some of the classic locomotives he shot, the operations of a modern class 1 railroad bisecting the historic sites, a manufacturing center for new freight cars and (hopefully soon) a cutting-edge intermodal railroad center?

You can do so much railfanning here, drinking in the past and present and even the future, taking in the trains and the people and facilities that make them go. It leaves me wondering whether we are adequately marketing ourselves to the world.

Is there any coordinated attempt to “sell” to train buffs all we offer in the valley? Are visitors to the area introduced to the full range of interconnected rail attractions we offer? Do we have railfan maps of the area to hand out to tourists?

Scranton, PA has Steam Town, a somewhat motley repository of locomotives gussied up by huge amounts of federal government money. Perhaps we should call ourselves Train Town or Railroad Roanoke, or something like that (I bet you can think of a better name than the ones I just suggested).

Surely we can do more to promote our railroad riches. Looking around convinces me that we are a wonderful secret that has been too well kept.

From Caboose to Dr. Seuss

2008-05-02T14:12:00.004-04:00

The Museum of Transportation has many needs. Foremost is our need for people.

We need effective employees. We are so fortunate to have a small group of staff members who are as dedicated and adaptable as they are skilled. We are seeking another one, by the way: a new weekend gift shop manager who is responsible and enthusiastic with retail experience, customer service and computer skills, and the willingness to work Saturday and Sunday. (Anyone interested may send resumé to sloveman@vmt.org).

We need people with large vision and resources who will give to VMT. This is a critical time for us financially.

And we need people who give of themselves in other ways. Over the 45 years of the museum’s existence, volunteers have been as vital to us as coal and water are to a steam locomotive. Without them we would get nowhere.

We can utilize volunteers in so many areas, including some that surely match your interest and ability. To help you understand the ways you can serve the cause, we offer in the spirit of Dr. Seuss this poetic volunteer job description. You remember Dr. Seuss? He wrote The Cat in the Engineer’s Hat. Or was it Dr. Seuss Hops a Caboose? Whatever.

This Cat Can Do That

Our fine museum could use loads of cash.
If, though, like lots of us, you lack a stash,
That is quite cool—you don’t need to despair.
There are so many ways you can still share.

Since we’re short-handed, short-handed by half,
Lacking a fully-stocked roster of staff,
You can donate a resource we hold dear:
Give us your time, lend a hand, volunteer.

How many ways could we put you to work?
How about being a gift shop sales clerk?
Sell nifty merchandise, take up the dough
While shoppers chat with you, tell what they know.

You could help maintain the building and grounds
Inside and outside while making your rounds,
Patching, attaching, and catching up stuff,
Fixing the broken and smoothing the rough.

Maybe your thing is conducting a tour,
Leading the tourists around, making sure
They see the biggest, the brightest and best—
Railyard and car gallery, all the rest.

You could help learners—you know—educate,
Touch them and teach them, inspire, innovate;
Guiding the grownups and little ones too,
Transporting them to a world we once knew.

You could be artsy and make spiffy signs,
Do fancy lettering, create designs,
Or you could write about trails, rails and flight;
Read and research, dig up facts left and right.

You could share elbow grease: scrape, clean and scrub;
Keep the exhibits in shape—polish, rub;
Clean ‘em up, preen ‘em up, shake off the dust;
Fend off the fingerprints, cobwebs and rust.

You could help tidy the many displays,
Giving attention in various ways
So all the guests who explore the museum
Will be impressed by the sights when they see ‘em.

You could restore items in our collection
If you possess the right skills and affection,
For these are treasures both old and quite rare
Needing devoted and delicate care.

You could greet people at special events
At booths or tables or even in tents;
Be the museum’s warm face for a while,
Share information, an ear and a smile.

You could help organize, plan and promote
Shindigs and happenings, moments of note:
Easter egg hunts, birthday parties and such
That need ideas and the creative touch.

And though your work brings no wages your way,
We offer perks that are sort of like pay:
Admission that won’t cost your family a cent;
Gift shop discounts at a healthy percent.

If you can talk or walk, listen or learn;
If you’re still breathing with free time to burn;
There is, we guarantee, something to do—
Something that just fits the person who’s you.

(To find out more about volunteering at VMT, call Susan Loveman at 342-5670 or e-mail sloveman@vmt.org)

If Wishes Were (Iron) Horses

2008-04-28T07:39:00.002-04:00

What is on your museum wish list? If funds and feasibility were not issues, how would you improve VMT?

You hear about various will be’s, could be’s and should be’s. A locomotive cab with interactive controls. Resurrection of the Virginia Scrap Iron ghost locos. A rail excursion—full size, not the converted Zoo Choo.

One of my dreams is to get the Y6 N&W steam locomotive moved back here from the Museum of Transportation in St. Louis. It would complete the “big three” of classic late steam types built in Roanoke. Yeah, I understand the chances of that steam dream coming to pass. Nevertheless ….

Would you like to see more representation of other railroads besides the N&W? Which roads and what exhibits?

Do you wish for more interactive exhibits for your children, grandchildren or the young ones you teach? What would you add to or change about the museum for them?

What would you like to see done differently with non-railroad transportation?

Of the railroad equipment that needs significant restoration, that looks like it belongs as much in a scrap yard as a rail yard, which pieces would you most like to see brought back to pristine condition? The Lake Pearl sleeper? The Pennsy GG-1 electric loco? The Jawn Henry? Just kidding about that last one.

The museum’s exhibits have been criticized as static and stale. How would you breathe life and freshness into them?

Obviously funds and feasibility are issues. However, knowing what you’re thinking helps us have a better museum. And some of those wish list items that seem far-fetched now may lie closer to our grasp than we think.

Today my daughter and I hiked along the Roanoke River from Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital to Winchester St. There at Wasena Park I told her stories of the flood of ’85, including the devastation of VMT. Who then could have seen beyond the mud and muck to envision where and what the museum is today.

Out of the current “storm” can also emerge a stronger, better transportation showplace. Share your dreams with us and then help us make some of those dreams a reality.

Taxes, Trains and Transportation Tours

2008-04-18T11:41:00.003-04:00

I have been away too long, involved with other writing projects. Of course, this is also tax season. I am happy to report that my train #1040 left the station on time. I hope yours did too.

The museum’s quarterly newsletter is in the mail, sporting a new name and look. Tell us what you think of the name, Revolutions, and the newsletter. If you don’t receive it and want to, call 342-5670 or e-mail info@vmt.org.

This issue features Bev Fitzpatrick’s new column, View from the Cab, news of recent and upcoming events, and photos of the Advance Auto Gallery and the A 1218 in the snow. You will also find a picture of the “lost locomotives” on the Virginia Scrap Iron and Metal property.

Speaking of the auto gallery, its grand opening is May 1 from 5-7:30 pm. That exhibit also includes From Mud to Mobility, a review of the past 100 years of VDOT.

Just days before that event, on April 26, is a rail tour. Sponsored jointly by VMT, the N&W Historical Society, the Roanoke Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society and the O. Winston Link Museum, the tour will focus on little known rails from this area’s past. They include the Valley Railroad, the narrow gauge link from the Ore Mines in South Roanoke and the N&W lines near Shaffers Crossing. The tour will be offered twice, at 9 am and again at 1 pm, departing from the Link Museum. For details, please call VMT at 342-5670.

Drop by BB&T this month or next. You can do some banking and get a taste of “VMT on location.” The museum will have displays in several branches including the J 611 tapestry, brochures, images from our collection, gift shop items and membership info. Bank employees will take membership orders and gift shop purchases. BB&T locations featured in April are Towers, Tanglewood, Oak Grove and Main. Consider it a new kind of branch line railroading. Shucks, BB&T even sounds like the name of a railroad.

Finally, thank you for sharing some of your valuable time by reading the blog. I also appreciate your comments, including those that disagree with me or criticize VMT. Your views are important to us and we learn from them. If you ever have comments about the blog that you would rather share privately, you can e-mail me at info@vmt.org.

Happy trails to you this weekend.

The Little Engine that Will

2008-04-06T18:53:00.003-04:00

At a time when many people are attempting to put new things on top of Mill Mountain, the Museum of Transportation has brought some- thing back down the mountain.

The Zoo Choo will become the new Choo. The little train that could ... and did, transporting children and adults around Mill Mountain Zoo for more than half a century, will soon roll on the mini-main line of the museum rail yard.

Painted in the burnt tuscan red of the N&W Railroad, the current Zoo Choo includes a gas-powered Model G-16 miniature train engine, two passenger cars and an observation car. The train's relocation is a joint effort of VMT and the Jaycees, who will split revenue from its operation.

The new train will help VMT meet two of its goals for improving its operations: more interactive exhibits and more features geared to children. It should be fascinating to see the tiny train snaking its way among the unmoving giants of yesterday’s locomotives and rolling stock while modern trains rumble along the tracks a pebble’s throw away.

A number of details still need to be worked out. One of them is trackage rights. Even a diminuitive train needs room to turn, and one end of the rail yard does not have quite enough of it. Norfolk Southern and the museum are working together to resolve the problem, which could involve NS granting a few feet of right-of-way for the track. Sounds like real railroading, doesn’t it?

And as with any new rail line, there is the matter of a name. What should we call the transplanted train? Zoo Choo no longer fits. Do you have suggestions? Then please let us know.

Meanwhile we will continue to dream of the day when VMT can offer short excursions on a lifesized train. Start thinking—we will need a name for that one also.

Rails that Divide, Bridges that Connect

2008-04-04T23:14:00.004-04:00

Railroad tracks unite.

And they divide.

The rails that spread like kudzu across the vast west following the War Between the States enabled the U.S. to grow faster and farther than anyone would have thought possible a couple decades earlier. The pounding of a golden spike at Promontory, Utah in 1869 was both a literal and symbolic uniting of America. Tracks continued to multiply in the last half of the 19th century, creating arteries and veins that provided the life blood of the towns and industries connected to them.

The railroad also divided. In its earlier years, the division was primarily cultural and political. Many Americans feared and loathed these danger-carrying, noise-screaming, smoke-spewing beasts. Few viewed trains through the rosy lenses of nostalgia as so many of us do today. The strange, newfangled trains and their owners, seen as greedy and rapacious devourers of land and resources, were usually detested.

The rails divided in other ways. They bisected towns and prairies, in many cases dictating where and how commerce would take root and people would settle. Often unintentionally, rail and crosstie became a steel and wood line of demarcation separating prosperity from failure and status from ignominy.

As a child, I remember hearing often that phrase, “the other side,” or “the wrong side” of the tracks,” meaning the poorer, seedier and more dangerous section of town. Sometimes I wondered why the less desirable neighborhoods were always the “other” side from where anyone I knew lived. Most of the time I just accepted it as an immutable fact of life.

Sadly, that other side was usually disproportionately African-American. Even after the end of slavery, blacks in both north and south were robbed of equal housing and job opportunities. In Roanoke and in many other places, minorities lived on the “wrong side” of the tracks.

That’s one more reason all Roanokers should rejoice in the re-opening of the aptly renamed Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Bridge. It spans rows of tracks and links the Gaineboro area with downtown literally and symbolically.

Does anyone feel more pleasure in that connecting walkway than those whose reminiscences are the heart of the Museum exhibit, African American Heritage on the Norfolk and Western Railway, 1930-1970? When I watch the video and read the signs in that display, I am equally impressed by two things: the level of injustice these N&W workers endured and the courage and dignity with which they served.

I am also struck by how different today’s landscape looks. In recent decades, railroad corporations such as Norfolk Southern have gone to great effort to lay new tracks of opportunity and fairness. For that we should salute them, Dr. King and railroaders like the ones depicted here.

Railroad tracks can divide. They can also unite, especially when people are willing to build bridges.

Listening to the Museum

2008-03-31T20:54:00.006-04:00

Stories. In my last blog I highlighted the need for stories. Museums need to tell the dramas of people and their interactions with the exhibits on display.

Part of the genius of Winston Link’s photographs of Norfolk & Western steam trains was that he didn’t merely take “train pictures.” He captured the railroad’s interaction with the environment around it, a way of life that was disappearing as quickly as those steam locomotives.

VMT has plenty of stories. Some of them are already being told vividly and elegantly, such as the exhibit, “African American Heritage on the Norfolk & Western Railroad, 1930-70.” Others lie there like undiscovered treasure. I have already suggested some possibilities. Here are others.

Though the Museum of Transportation focuses on the N&W more than any other railroad, much gold remains to be mined. Consider this. What other rail museum lets you stand next to mammoth locomotives, gaze just steps away at the tracks along which they once stormed, then glance a few blocks down the street where those fire-bellowing creatures were created.

What about the drama of the big little railroad that “ran from nowhere to nowhere,” as someone characterized its lack of access to major metropolises, succeeding because it did almost everything more efficiently than its competitors? Then there is the story of the mouse that ate the cat—how the N&W, once owned in part by the Pennsylvania RR, turned the tables when Norfolk Southern bought half of Conrail, the successor to the Pennsy and other bankrupt northeastern roads.

Even the former freight station that houses VMT tells tales, as the words of a newer staff member describe:

When the museum is calm and I sit in the quiet of the building, I feel that old freight station trying to communicate with me. It speaks audibly in groans and creaks, bumps and bangs. The building seems to be telling a silent story, too. The floor fascinates me. I want to know the story of the holes, the chips, the ruts in the concrete. How about the wooden bricks and the scales? Who or what chipped the floor; what was weighed on the scales? How many times did those baggage carts transport goods from a box car to the loading dock? Light floods through the upper windows today, just as it did 80 years ago. Today it illuminates the artifacts that tell a story about transportation. But in 1918 it illuminated the people and machines that wrote the story.

Then there are the stories that our guests bring to us. That is what I like best about the museum: meeting our guests and listening to their stories. For so many people, coming to the museum is more like a pilgrimage than a tourist stop. They remember the 611 when it passed through their town or behind their home. They remember their daddy or granddaddy who was an engineer, a fireman, or who worked in the shops. They remember the last excursions of the 611 and still experience a shiver of excitement when they recall riding behind the majestic locomotive. The stories people tell about the trains are an absolute delight. I have learned so much from them.

Perhaps the thing that has surprised me most is the passion our guests feel for trains, especially the 611. Actually, passion is not a strong enough word. People have bonded with that engine. It is not an inanimate machine; it is a piece of their lives and an anchor that ties them to their own family history. They love that engine!

So many stories.

Telling Stories

2008-03-24T22:11:00.003-04:00

Stories. Everyone loves a good story. From tiny toddler to old codger, from high school dropout to Ph. D., we all get hooked by stories.

They capture our attention and tickle our imagination. They entwine us in their plots. They captivate us with their color.

Think of the speeches, lectures, and sermons you’ve heard. After you had forgotten the talking points and the statistics, you remembered the tales about people and places and hopes and hardships.

To me, one of the most significant observations made in the museum consultants’ study of VMT is the importance of exhibits that tell stories. Information isn’t enough. Facts and figures are fine, but it’s the narrative that engrosses the visitor and makes the museum experience spring to life.

We’re already doing this in some areas. The new Advance Auto gallery does not merely offer a lineup of old cars. A curving roadway with guard rails, traffic markers, Burma Shave signs and a country gas station add drama. Helping to thread the story together are the VDOT displays, “From Mud to Mobility,” which track a century of highway development in Virginia. The context turns a static exhibit into a story.

The “African Americans on the Norfolk and Western” exhibit opens a treasure chest of firsthand accounts told in print and on video. Together those reminiscences piece together like a jigsaw puzzle to create a poignant and powerful picture of courageous men toiling with dignity amid an unjust system. In the same room, “Working the High Iron” carries you on a visual journey of the history of the N&W.

What other stories lie among the artifacts, ready to be given a spellbinding treatment?

How about coal? It was N&W’s lifeblood and the Virginian Railway’s almost sole reason for existence. The two roads raced neck and neck from mountain to ocean, each straining to transport the black gold faster and more economically than its rival. The Virginian even electrified its line between Roanoke and Mullens, West Virginia, a plot twist graphically illustrated by the hulking EL-C 135 electric loco still standing in the museum’s rail yard.

Coal’s story is implicit throughout VMT, from the HO scale tipple diorama to the giant tenders of the steam locomotives. It needs to be told more explicitly: how the coal was mined and transported to market, how the mines fueled the success of the railroads—literally and figuratively, where the coal went and how it was used. Such storytelling underlines the importance of restoring endangered equipment such as the three vintage coal hoppers rusting outside the museum.

Another storyline is the saga of the different railroads which ran through Virginia. Where did their tracks go? How did they compete and cooperate with one another? Where did they each end up during the years of merger mania? What developments led to Virginia becoming the headquarters of two of the “Big Four” rail giants remaining in America?

A ready-made tale of now and then lies as near as VMT’s back porch. There you can stand on the old freight docks, surveying the weathered survivors of steam and early diesel against the backdrop of a busy modern rail line, that of Norfolk Southern. What a great vantage point for telling how railroading today is alike and dissimilar to yesterday. For explaining how locomotives and rolling stock have changed. For depicting the goods that provide modern railroads’ revenue. You can see history and current events rubbing shoulders just steps away from where you stand.

So many stories to tell … these are just a few. What tales do you hear being whispered at VMT along the galleries and out in the yard?

Trains or "Trans"

2008-03-14T00:15:00.003-04:00

What If …?

De bait has been taken and debate has taken off.

The recently publicized report by Museum Management Consultants criticized VMT for being a transportation museum and recommended that it focus solely on railroads. That seems to have stirred as much reaction as anything in the report. Since then others have been weighing in on this issue, here and elsewhere.

“Trans” or trains? Potato or potahto? Is this a critical issue for the organization’s future?

I have some opinions. Some of you are already sharing yours. Before I add my two mashed-flat-on-the-tracks cents’ worth, though, I’d love to hear from more of you, as well as learn more details from those who are already “on record.”

So jump on in and splash around some.

Whaddya think? Should the place remain the Virginia Museum of Transportation or forsake its “official” Commonwealth status and do what it seems to do best? Why?

And if you think VMT should retain its current mission, how could it do the job better? Where should there be nips, tucks or complete overhauls? What should be changed, added, subtracted, or displayed differently? How much should the railroad theme be emphasized versus other modes of transportation?

On the other hand, if you are convinced that planes and cars should be barred and wagons and trucks should be shucked, what would you do with them? Would Roanoke accept such a change after 45 years of hybrid emphasis? Do you think a rails-only attraction would attract as many visitors? And how would you reorganize to create a successful railroad museum? What would you do with trains that is not already being done?

Then there is the geographical issue. Despite the General Assembly’s designation, if it refuses to provide funds, should VMT’s collection be tailored more to this part of Virginia and its unique transportation history? (To a degree, that is already the case with the preponderance of Norfolk & Western materials.) To what extent should the focus be on what Roanokers will support?

Much of this is purely theoretical at this point. Nevertheless, it’s fun to play armchair quarterback, I mean, engineer. Not only that, such a debate serves a valuable function. Whether VMT ever changes its mission, clarifying the answers to such questions can help sharpen the museum’s focus and increase its effectiveness.

At least more people are talking about VMT again. That in itself is progress.

Keeping the Faith

2008-03-10T11:12:00.002-04:00

Keeping Secrets and Keeping the Faith
March 10, 2008

The secret is finally out.

The Virginia Museum of Transportation is in trouble. Deep trouble. Museum Management Consultants says so. The newspaper says they say so. The newspaper’s editorial writers say that is so, so troubling.

So?

The press and public comments last week were unfairly harsh. Yes, mistakes have been made and accountability is critical whenever you ask to spend other people’s dough. Given the extenuating circumstances and the dedicated efforts of current staff, however, a little less invective and a little more perspective would have been nice.

Ultimately the press coverage may serve as a blessing by raising public awareness, but it also highlighted a number of myths floating around.

Myth #1: There was a secret. Nobody has tried to keep this information hush-hush. The city commissioned the study. Norfolk Southern Foundation paid for it. VMT welcomed it. Visitors who know the place could see and sense it. It was a secret only to those who have remained out of touch with the place.

Myth #2: VMT’s problems are primarily due to bad management. What happens to any organization when it loses 48% of its budget support? Has to reduce staff to the bone (and remove a few ribs as well)? Changes leadership repeatedly? Has its ability to do marketing and outreach crippled?

Myth #3: The Museum appeals to a very limited audience. Is it just for tiny tots and old railroaders? Is it only a blue-collar museum (as though blue-collar folks aren’t important or can’t appreciate aesthetics)?

Actually, attractions like VMT appeal to a broad cross-section of the population. We Americans like “earthy” history exhibits. We especially like seeing and feeling and smelling the metal, wood and leather of things on wheels. And we love trains, even decades after American railroads passed their zenith.

Myth #4: The Museum decided to sell the Nickel Plate steam locomotive to pay bills. They reluctantly agreed to sell only after they were approached by another tourist organization and after they concluded that this loco, which never ran in Virginia, had little relevance to the mission of VMT.

And due to extraordinary circumstances, on this rare occasion the funds from such a sale were used for operations rather than acquisitions. Frankly, I would rather have an open facility with one less exhibit than a bankrupt and closed attraction with its exhibits intact.

Myth #5: VMT is just another museum—nice but not critical to Roanoke. I wish the reactions of media and public officials had been a little more “we” and less “they.” After all, there is no cultural attraction in Roanoke with the same intrinsic connections to the city as VMT. I appreciate Mill Mountain Theatre, the Roanoke Symphony, the Art and Science Museums. However, none of them relates to Roanoke and southwest Virginia the way those historic exhibits in that historic freight station do.

VMT carries the soul of Roanoke. The railroad transformed a bucolic village into a regional urban center. It put Roanoke on the map. Even now the rush and roar of trains bisect the heart of downtown. I have a stack of books on American railroading piled on my den table right now. In every one of them Roanoke’s growth and accomplishments via the railroad get significant attention.

No one did steam railroading as impressively for as long as the Norfolk and Western. No other railroad built its own locomotives and built them so well that they are still considered among the best ever manufactured more than a half-century later.

Vintage cars and buggies aside, that’s why VMT exists. That’s why the Winston Link Museum came here. Those two, the multi-million dollar Railwalk that connects them, and the continued imposing presence of N&W’s successor are integrated threads of a rich and unique tapestry.

Myth #6: VMT shouldn’t look to donors to rescue it from distress. Why not? It is a wonderful treasure worth saving. However financially successful it may become in the future, current circumstances require big hearts from both government and private parties.

The Museum of Transportation isn’t asking for a marvelous new building, just an adequately-maintained vintage facility. It doesn’t need a $3 million-plus operating budget, just sufficient funding to once again employ an adequate number of professional staff and effectively manage and market its product. It isn’t asking for millions to purchase new exhibits, just enough to restore and protect the irreplaceable pearls of transportation history it already has at its fingertips.

All that VMT’s leadership wants is the means to run a “mainline” operation once again rather than maneuver along a wobbly, rusty and overgrown side track.

That would be so, so …right.

VMT Blogger Is Back

2008-02-26T15:19:00.002-05:00

The New Kid on the Blog

February 26, 2008

Blog. It’s just one of the many other-worldly words that computers and the Internet have added to our language.

But blog? It sounds plodding. Boring. Neanderthal (“Blog take spear, kill velociraptor for dinner”). It’s short for weblog, I realize, but it rhymes with slog and clog and flog, which are not the best company to be keeping.

Blog sounds like something you might unhappily find stuck to the sole of your dress shoe.

However, I am getting off-track, which a railroader should never do. I will blog on.

Since this is my first attempt as the new blogger on this website, perhaps telling you a bit about me would be good. At least then you will have some idea who’s writing the stuff that interests or irritates you.

I have been a pastor and a free-lance writer most of my adult life. Three wonderful women brighten my world, a wife and two grown daughters. I can now speak credibly of the infamous midlife crisis in the past tense, and I have the hair—or bare—to prove it.

Sports, movies, books, photography, music and theater all clutter my imagination at times. Especially music. I collect it, listen to it and occasionally make it, though somewhat sloggishly.

My music pursuits have recently intersected my transportation interests. I have collected the lyrics (so far) of about a thousand railroad songs from the near and distant pasts, several hundred of which I have in audio form as well. More about that at another time.

About a decade ago I worked intermittently as a tour guide and workshop leader at the Museum. Now I have begun editing its quarterly newsletter. By the way, if you don’t receive a copy and want to, please e-mail us an address. Preferably yours.

And I play with trains. I started out in HO, then discovered my level of patience and fine motor skills did less damage in large scale. One of these days I plan to actually build and operate the layout which now exists only in my post-midlife brain. It will depict southwest VA about 1959, when the last steam was passing the baton to the diesel-electrics. Back then I would watch with wonder those N&W beasts snaking through my boyhood backyard.

I’m no expert on transportation, railroads, model trains or museums. However, I get excited over them all and I passionately believe in the treasures and mission of the Virginia Museum of Transportation. I will preach the gospel of VMT as well as try to learn from you.

As I muse about Museum-related topics, talk back when the mood strikes you. Your comments will make for a better blog, and I will have evidence that I’m not just mumbling to myself. And if you can’t slog through my prose without getting your brain clogged up or your interest bogged down, you are welcome to flog me.

At least in print.

Freedom's Eve

2007-12-31T09:56:00.000-05:00

On this day, New Year's Eve, in 1862, millions of African-American slaves in the United States held their breath. The next day, the first day of 1863, would be so much more than a new year for them. They'd had new years before, but all of those just turned out to be the old year all over again. 1863 would be different. When President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1862, it did not immediately go into effect. It would not do so until January 1st, New Year's Day, of 1863. And so, on New Year's Eve, millions of slaves held their breath. The piece of paper is not what would free them. What would free them is the commitment by the United States that the piece of paper represented. Now, some 145 years after what came to be known as "Freedom's Eve," civil rights remains a huge issue. These are wounds that do not heal quickly. But this is not why I write this.

Of all the railroads on display at your Virginia Museum of Transportation, one very important one remains absent -- the Underground Railroad. The Underground Railroad was at its peak in the decades leading up to the Emancipation Proclamation and Freedom's Eve, and it was a model of cellular organization. Station Masters, the benevolent men and women who would hide escaped slaves in their homes, knew very little of the full route of the railroad. Instead, they would know of nearby "stations" and "conductors" to help guide the "passengers" to freedom. And while some may have actually traveled on an actual railroad, most went by foot in the dead of night -- a railroad of walkers.

There are plenty of books and resources on the Underground Railroad that can go into far greater detail with much greater reliability than this blog can or will attempt to do. For now, we spend this anniversary of Freedom's Eve in quiet and meditative remembrance of 2007, and with fierce and unyielding optimism, we look forward to 2008.

Happy New Year to you all.

Monte Car-lo

2007-12-28T15:30:00.000-05:00

Box office records would indicate that not many of you went to see the 2003 film, "Looney Tunes: Back in Action." Critical reviews would indicate that you made a good decision to see something else. Nonetheless, a piece of memorabilia from that movie now resides at your Virginia Museum of Transportation.

In the film, Nascar driver, Jeff Gordon, makes a cameo, driving his trademark #24 Chevrolet Monte Carlo. After the abuse it took in the film (being hijacked by none other than Yosemite Sam), it wasn't exactly fit for the race track. Another detriment to its racing condition would be that it lacks an engine. So, Warner Brothers shelved the car.

Four years and several lawyers later, the car afficionados on the VMT Board of Directors managed to bring the car here to Roanoke.

At first thought, a car used in a movie bears only the slightest relevance to the Official Transportation Museum of the Commonwealth of Virginia (I just thought that looked better with capital letters). It rolls on tires and carries people (well, a person -- there's no passenger seat), so it is transportation, in the academic sense, but what about relevance to Virginia?

Well, according to Wikipedia, Mr. Gordon was born in California, raised in Indiana, and currently lives in North Carolina. No Virginian ties there. However, he has raced numerous times at Virginia's major raceways, winning some and losing some.

Though Nascar's formal development owes much to Florida and North Carolina, its roots go back to Prohibition, when bootleggers would modify their own cars (stock cars in the truest sense of the term) to help them evade police. Bootlegging was prominent throughout Appalachia, most certainly including Virginia. As the sport grew from the tradition, its strongholds in the south cemented.

Auto racing represents an important element of Virginia's transportation heritage. It was the efforts of racers to modify their vehicles that drove innovation in auto technology. As automobiles developed, so too did the roads need to develop to support them. This is the principle theme of our Auto Gallery, so despite its Hollywood glitz, our new car has a legitimate story to tell.

Let's just hope its story gets better reviews than the movie in which it starred.

Report Card

2007-12-26T16:15:00.001-05:00

When I was a kid, one of my least favorite days was when report cards would be sent home. I was a pretty good student, I'll concede, but I had one of those mothers who liked to nitpick. I once brought home a report card that had five As and one A-minus (I was a nerd). Her first question was, "Couldn't manage another A?"

I say this because we have a report card day coming up. The report from the Museum Management Consultants* is in our hands for final review before it's released into the wild. Because it is still in the review stages, I'm prohibited from speaking about its contents specifically. So we'll speak generally, and all will be clear when the report is made public.

The good news is that there is nothing in the report we didn't already know. We know we're short-staffed, we know we're inadequately funded, and we know that the personnel we have are not true museum professionals with curatorial, archival, or exhibition experience. We know that our building is too large and that our collection is too broad. We'll tell anyone that asks. Shucks, we might just put it on our blog.

The rest of the good news is that the MMC had the wisdom to compare us to museums with similar collections, not museums in a similar region as we had initially feared. Comparing us to the Science Museum of Western Virginia or the Mill Mountain Zoo would be the proverbial apples and oranges comparison, which is rarely more substantial than, "Well, they're both kind of round." Our comparison museums included the North Carolina Transportation Museum, the B&O Railroad Museum, the National Transport Museum in St. Louis, and a few others.

The bad news is that the results, while honest and forthcoming, are not favorable. No sugar-coating bushes or beating around dances here. They represent the good-faith recommendations of a business with more than twenty years of doing exactly this, and doing it with good results. What they presented is a well-rounded summation of what people in the biz call, "screwing stuff up."

When the report becomes public, one of two things will happen: One, the public will take little or no interest in it at all, as is the typical response to news involving the museum; or Two, there will be clamor for changes in leadership, organization, this, that, the other, etc.. Between the Scylla and Charybdis of apathy and antipathy is the best path for us.

All that said, we're not bringing home five As and an A-minus. Sorry, Mom.

*This report was the subject of our blog post that had to be taken down.

Und hat ein blümlein bracht

2007-12-21T15:09:00.000-05:00

This week, we happily welcomed back Mr. Wick Moorman, Chairman of Norfolk Southern. Mr. Moorman once again toured the museum and had what our Executive Director called, "the most productive meeting with a Norfolk Southern official this museum has ever had."

While we can't give out any details of the meeting, I will give a hint of one of the topics discussed. We may be on our way to making a trade for a certain locomotive that's been away from home for far too long.

That's all I can give for now.

Meanwhile, the Zoo Choo is finally here. It made the trip down from the mountain uneventfully and sits on our back dock to be protected from the elements. The next step is to lay the track for the train, a project we hope to have underway early in the new year. With a little luck and a lot of work, we'll have it operational for the tourist season next year.

#1218 is coming along in the way of its exhibitions. It will open for the Christmas Eve sneak preview, though most of its signage won't be in place until the New Year's Eve sneak preview. We hope to have all of its major controls labeled, a light installed in the cab (for better visibility), and a narrative detailing the contributions of the engine and the other Class As during World War II.

Lastly, we have opened our President One and Safety Instruction Cars for public viewing. The President One car was the personal car of the President of the Illinois Terminal Railroad. While its restoration is ongoing, we have opened the living room, a bedroom, and the dining room for display. The kitchen and other bedrooms are not currently open as they still need some work, but there's still plenty to see. The Safety Instruction Car features a 48-seat movie theater (for showing safety films) and an apartment in which the full-time safety instructor would live while on the rails. We have some of the old safety films in our archives, and we hope to have a few running in the theater next year.

We'll be closed on Christmas Day and on New Year's Day, but we are otherwise open for all comers. Come by and see us during your holiday week.

Sneak preview

2007-12-18T16:29:00.000-05:00

Given today's date, it seems appropriate to announce the opening of our #1218 to the public. We've had #1218 at the museum since 2004, but it has not been open to the public in that time. The reasons for this are myriad, ranging from safety considerations to laziness. But, we've overcome these challenges, and you can now step into the cab of Norfolk & Western's Class A, #1218. Almost.

We'll be opening the exhibit permanently starting on January 2nd of 2008, but we'll host two sneak preview events before that. One will be on Christmas Eve, the other on New Year's Eve, each running from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm. We'll have a reduced general admission rate of $5.00 per person. Also, we'll be giving away a free copy of our book, From Here to There to the first 1,000 visitors at each preview.

Ok, so that's the press release stuff. Now for the good part (see; you knew you read this blog for a reason).

We're working on several elements of this exhibit. The first is a diagram showing which knobs and levers served which functions in the operation of the locomotive. We'll also include a narrative in the cab detailing the significant role the Class A locomotives played during World War II. We hope to have lights in the firebox to simulate a fire, and in time, we would like to add an interactive element demonstrating how the articulated aspects of the locomotive worked. How much of this will be done by the sneak previews, we're not sure, but we hope to at least have the light and narrative in place for the grand opening on January 2nd.

We're very excited about this, and we're hoping to create a very different kind of experience for our visitors from that they receive inside #611.

Ding, Ding, Ding Went the Bell

2007-12-14T09:19:00.000-05:00

DC Transit #1470 has not moved under its own power in more than forty years. Given that it drew its power from overhead wires and a trolley pole, this isn't terribly surprising. In 1985, the Roanoke River overflowed its banks in what the area still infamously remembers as "The Flood of `85."* Directly alongside that river was the Virginia Museum of Transportation, located then in Roanoke's Wasena Park. #1470 was likely completely submerged. The water level rose as high as the rafters of the old museum building, and the trolley certainly wasn't that tall, so we're making the inference. We don't know for sure. In any event, the wheels were underwater for days. Now we skip ahead 22 years as we try to move DC Transit #1470 again.

The idea was simple -- we would pick up the street car, pull out the rails, and set it back down on the other set of rails underneath. If we had actually done this, we might have been alright. However, with the Zoo Choo desperate for space given its rather commodious turning radius, we opted to move #1470 a little more to the east to give the train some clearance. This was the rub.

We're estimating the weight of our street car to be in the neighborhood of 30,000 pounds. While that was within the lifting capacity of Allegheny Construction's big crane, it was not within its capacity due to the angle by which the crane was forced to operate (there are some messy physics involved that I won't bother going into). So the new plan was to lift the front end of the trolley with the crane, and pull it forward using a large tow truck (services generously donated by the Commonwealth Coach & Trolley Museum) until it had cleared its upper rails and the front wheels could be set down on the lower rails. This part went [relatively] smoothly. Now we get to the ugly part.

Next we would lift the rear end of the trolley, and drag the whole thing forward some more with the wrecker until those rear wheels cleared the upper rails to be set down level with the rest of the car. Remember how I told you that those wheels had been underwater for days? Well, it seems they never got cleaned up, and the wheels that carried that street car from Alexandria to Glen Echo every day for years refused to let it move the first foot forward today.

Enter: The Tow Truck

By this point, our one-hour moving project had already ballooned up to the three-hour mark. It was decided that a fair lead could be rigged (since the tow truck couldn't maneuver in the tight space to be directly in front of the trolley) to the side of the tow truck, beneath the crane, in front of the street car. The resultant system of pulleys more closely resembled a Rube Goldberg device than a wench.

Picture this: the tow truck sits to the right and about a car length forward of the trolley. The line comes from the tow truck, immediately out to the left (toward the street car), through a pulley fastened by a chain to the rails themselves, to the front of #1470. We created a Tetris piece out of steel cable. Now to engage the wench, pull the trolley forward, and set its rear-end down.

At this time, I'd like to let you know about a new exhibit at your Virginia Museum of Transportation. This museum is now home to the only combination narrow gauge-standard gauge rails on earth.

Rather than pull the trolley forward, the force of the wench and the resistance of the street car joined to bend the steel rails in toward each other, pigeon-toe style. Time for another new plan.

The distance the car needed to move forward was only about three feet. It had been pulled the rest of the way earlier with its front wheels in the air. The daredevils with Allegheny Construction lowered the rear end of the trolley onto blocks they'd put on the lower rails, forward of the upper rails. Then it was just a matter of shoving the upper rail segment out of the way, pulling the blocks out from under the street car, and lowering it finally down to the earth.

And so it was. After five hours, our street car had moved twenty feet forward, and two feet straight down. In the process, we rendered useless a pair of steel rails, dug massive holes in our playground from the tow truck's path, and cost Allegheny Construction about twenty man-hours in donated time and services.

Why settle for the easy way, when the very hard, destructive way will do?

*Every small community refers to natural disasters in this way. It's quaint, which is another way of saying that no one understands it, but it seems charming, anyway.

Clang, clang, clang went the trolley...

2007-12-12T19:39:00.000-05:00

Today, the Metro connects Washington, D.C. and Northern Virginia. As do highways, commuter rail, and even a few bike trails. But once upon a time, neither area was as grown up, and street cars connected the two.

Street railways were once a common feature in metropolitan areas. Few maintain them, but they used to be all over. As the interstate system really took hold and people embraced the freedom of driving wherever they wanted without having to wait on a street car, or walking to the nearest street car line, those trolley cars became fewer and fewer. But we're getting ahead of ourselves.

D.C.'s street car system began way back in 1862 using horse-drawn street cars. They ran very short routes, mainly between Federal buildings and nearby residential areas.

About a quarter-century later, Richmond, Virginia installed the nation's first electric street railway, and emulating Virginia's capitol, our nation's capitol followed suit. There were several small such railways operating for a while, until they all consolidated (to settle the very confusing interchanges, differences in fares, etc.) as the Washington Traction Company in 1895. Nearly another quarter-century of prosperity and growth followed.

Then came the buses, the death knell for electric street cars. One last-ditch consolidation maneuver in 1933 created the Capital Transit Company. The company enjoyed some success, mainly from being the only game in town apart from buses, until a worker's strike in 1955 put commuters on foot for nearly seven weeks in the heat of the summer. A new owner took over, but he had a different idea for the company.

The name changed, for starters, to DC Transit. Most significantly, though, the transit changed. Street cars yielded to buses and DC's street railways were no more by1962.

Most of the street cars were sold or scrapped, though some escaped to museums, such as DC Transit 1470 which rests at your Virginia Museum of Transportation. (Come on, I know you were wondering if I was going to make a point.)

#1470 has been part of the museum's collection for years. As a piece of rolling stock, it's best displayed on rails. It sat on rails, indeed, which sat on ties, it's true. But instead of leveled ground, the ties sat on top of the ground for a long time. When the museum built up its outdoor pavilion, it had to do something with this street car on rails on ties on the ground. Because there was only rail or pavement, and needing pavement more than rails, the street car on rails on ties was placed on... other rails. While we're waiting to get some digital pictures up, here's a rough sketch.

Streetcar
Rails
Ties
Rails
Ground

Now, this is silly. Rails on ties on more rails is silly. We thought so, our patrons have thought so, but there it is.

Well, our friends with Allegheny Construction have a big crane, and it just so happens that their big crane can lift our street car. The idea is that we'd lift the street car, drag the upper rails out of the way, then set the street car down on the lower rails. Seems simple enough work, probably less than an hour's worth.

Five hours later, our street car was stuck with its front wheels on the lower rails, and its tail in the air, held up by a crane. For the rest of this story, you'll have to check back later this week.

How's that for a teaser?

Carol of the Bells

2007-12-06T15:51:00.000-05:00

I couldn't help myself. I read over some of the old posts here, and noticed a trend -- we complain about money a lot. I'm not saying there isn't a good reason for that, nor that there isn't some interesting stuff there. Just an observation, that's all. So, in our continuing effort for consistency, here's another ~~rant~~ post about money.

Hark! how the bells, sweet silver bells, all seem to say "Throw cares away."

Last year, we sold a locomotive (a sentence I never thought I'd use before I started working here). By the calendar, that happened this year, but as far as our finances are concerned, that was last year. Anyway, if not for that sale, we'd have ended up in the red. This year doesn't look a lot better, and we're all out of locomotives to sell.

Christmas is here, bringing good cheer to young and old, meek and the bold.

The situation isn't terrible, as we've still got some chunks of local money and other donations coming in, but the outlook is not good. Citizens of Virginia are well-aware of the budget crunch facing the Commonwealth, and the murmurs in Richmond say that there will be no state funding for non-state agencies. As a tax-payer, I can't personally fault this sentiment, but working for a struggling non-profit, it's a dark cloud. It's also worth noting that your Virginia Museum of Transportation is the Official Transportation Museum of the Commonwealth. That designation isn't just fluff -- it came directly from the legislature in Richmond years ago. While the title is nice, it does not make us an agency of the state. Ergo, when goes the money, so goes the show.

Ding, dong, ding, dong -- that is their song, with joyful ring, all caroling.

The City of Roanoke hasn't been much help, either. We expected and accepted that long ago, so this is no great surprise. Our funding from the city is at an all-time low, but the city has its own budget needs, too.

So what does that mean for the 44-year old caretaker of Virginia's transportation heritage?

One seems to hear words of good cheer from everywhere, filling the air.

It means we've got three possible futures.

In the first, we receive a substantial donation from a major player, to be continued in perpetuity. The B&O Railroad Museum receives substantial funding from CSX. They get a lot of donations, too, of course, but this is an example of what a large corporate partner can do. Last year, Norfolk Southern very generously contributed tens of thousands of dollars to us. This year, they're again doing so with the caveat that we now match their donation. However, in neither case was the money enough to get us through a year. We're no less grateful; merely honest.

In the second, we become a state agency. This is probably the most ideal course for us. State funding ensures our continuation, and provides resources beyond our current means. This would resurrect our restoration, curatorial, and education departments -- three neglected and presently inactive areas of our operation forced into dormancy by a lack of funding. It would also help us cross the hurdle we've been stuck on for a while, and get out of the rather regional focus we have in our collection and exhibits. At its last meeting, the VMT Board of Directors voted to pursue this course, but their consent is not the only cog in this wheel.

In the third, we continue as we are. The only end game for this particular circumstance will be the closing of our doors. We could get by a few more years, but if we made it to a 50th birthday, it would surprise everyone involved.

O, how they pound, raising the sound, o'er hill and dale, telling their tale.

Virginia's Explore Park just shut down, largely for the same reasons. The brand new Art Museum of Western Virginia has not yet opened, now costing nearly double its initial $40.5 million price tag. The History Museum of Western Virginia resembles a ghost town. Despite some [reasonably] successful events and increased attendance, your VMT in the same trenches.

Gaily they ring, while people sing songs of good cheer. Christmas is here!

During the holidays, everyone has a hand out, asking for toys, clothes, money, food, time, prayers, and company. There's never enough to go around, this is true. What we don't seem to realize is that this holds true during the rest of the year, too. We just don't notice it unless we stand outside in a Santa suit and ring a bell.

Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas!
Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas!

And we're back

2007-11-15T13:14:00.000-05:00

After too long, we're back and better than ever, coming in over your FM dial. That last part's not right, but we're back nonetheless, so let's get you caught up on some recent events at your Virginia Museum of Transportation.

On October 27th, we hosted our first annual Iron Horse Tug of War, a joint fund raiser with Special Olympics Virginia. We were fortunate for some fantastic weather, coming off three consecutive days of rain. Six teams competed in the event, pulling our #611 in heats. We very nearly killed the first team. Despite tugging with all they had, they weren't able to budge the engine an inch. After some investigation, we discovered that one of the tender brakes failed to disengage, so the team was pulling a 800,000 pounds of steel with its brakes on -- ouch. After releasing the brake, we had no difficulties at all, and #611 rolled back and forth easily. Below are some photos from the event, taken by Mr. Martin Moorefield.

We had not seen these blue skies since early this week. We were glad to have them for the event.

Local band Key West played for us through the event.

The competitors and spectators line up as the final preparations are made.

Teams pose for pictures after the awards are given out. Awards were given for the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place teams, as well as the last place team which earned the "Caboose Who Got Loose" award. Our thanks go out to Creations in downtown Roanoke for helping us with the awards plaques.

Just two weeks later, we hosted a lecture and book signing by Rush Loving, Jr., author of The Men Who Loved Trains. This event was the first in a series of collaborative efforts involving the N&W Historical Society, the C&O Historical Society, the Blue Ridge and Roanoke Chapters of the NRHS, the O. Winston Link Museum, and of course, your Virginia Museum of Transportation. Attendance was, admittedly, light. Despite the small crowd, Mr. Loving fielded excellent questions, and took a tour of the museum after signing copies of his book. We thank him for his time, and hope to have him back soon.

In other news, the first step in bringing the Zoo Choo to VMT is underway. Next week, we hope to receive the track upon which the train will run. Because the Mill Mountain Zoo will be replacing its train, they opted to keep their track in place, and simply purchase a new train. Their old train comes to us, along with brand new track that we'll lay down in our rail yard outside. We'll be renovating the Ellett Station, and old combination freight-passenger station formerly used on the Virginian Railway, as our ticket office. Check back for more information on this in the coming weeks.

There's one last topic brewing that needs to be addressed, but this isn't the right post for it. Look for another post soon on a more serious subject. I'll give you a hint -- it starts with "M," rhymes with "honey," and is synonymous with "somethin' we ain't got."

"My roof's got a hole in it and I might drown"

2007-10-26T12:47:00.000-04:00

Last summer, our roof came off in a storm. After a year or so, we finally got it fixed. Now, a different part of our roof is in trouble.

This building was donated to us in pieces. As Norfolk & Western/Norfolk Southern no longer needed portions of the building, they would give them to us. A quick tour of the building obviates this. Different paint schemes, sign layouts and fonts, and construction materials for galleries punctuate the run-on sentence of our building.

Among the last segments we received was the administrative wing on the far east side of the building. This housed the administrative offices for Norfolk Southern's Shenandoah Division. Now it's home to the offices of our accountant, Director of Operations, and Executive Director, along with our archives, fax and copy machines, and administrative files.

It's leaking.

When a new roof was applied to this part of the building, it seems that the roofers inadvertently blocked a drain pipe. This pipe began backing up and channeling water across the top of the building, underneath the roof. We were told yesterday that a part of that roof is quite literally floating on top of the structure, the roof membrane acting as a sort of inflatable raft. Water is coming in, ironically, through a bathroom. Several ceiling tiles have fallen already, and one of the light fixtures is streaming water onto the floor. That's got to be safe.

Next door, our Director of Operations had to evacuate his office at the insistence of a roofing expert who came to look at what was happening. We won't know how bad the damage is until the rain stops, but our earliest estimates are not good.

A letter to our readers

2007-10-26T12:14:00.000-04:00

Dear readers,

When this blog began, we promised that it would be an unvarnished, unspun account of the things that go on here at your Virginia Museum of Transportation. Our latest post got our Executive Director into some trouble, and upset the wrong people.

Nothing said was false, but in order to remain true to our promise, we'd rather take down a post than try to make it less this or more that to appease certain people. As such, we're taking that post down immediately.

We apologize to you, but we hope you'll understand. As our moms told us, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."

However, as an old teacher of mine once said, "If you don't have anything nice to say, sit next to me." If you'd like to read that post, you can email us for a copy.

Freedom of Information is a wonderful thing.

Sincerely,
The VMT Blogger

They're back!

2007-09-27T10:47:00.000-04:00

It took all day, but #611 and #1218 came back to the museum yesterday. After what seemed an eternity waiting for freight trains to go by, we finally saw this coming down the main line.

#1218 rolled through our gates first, shortly before lunch time. We would not see #611 until just before 7:00 pm, but it was worth the wait to see these engines come home. Once again, we offer our thanks to Norfolk Southern for their help, and for their understanding about our sense of urgency. We also want to thank Phil McFarland and Connor Doornbos, two VMT volunteers who stayed all day to help us get this done.

We've got plenty more video that we'll put up. Stay tuned!

Return

2007-09-25T16:33:00.000-04:00

They're coming back!

Norfolk Southern has a crew scheduled to begin operations around 7:00 am down at the Roanoke Shops. We're approximating a return of #1218 around 10:00 am. They'll be re-arranging some of our rolling stock to make room for #611 after that, so expect the J to return some time after lunch.

NS is giving us about a 99% likelihood that this will take place, however there is still a chance that there may be a delay. Once again, please call ahead to make sure we're rolling (pun absolutely intended).

NS Update

2007-09-25T12:58:00.000-04:00

On Saturday, a rail car carrying a load of calcium chloride overturned underneath the Fifth Street bridge, just outside the museum's gates. Clean-up operations have been on-going since that time. This has meant that work on the track leading into our property -- the reason #611 and #1218 have not returned yet -- has not been completed.

Today, we received word that our two engines MIGHT be returned tomorrow. No time has yet been set for that event. Neither have we heard whether Norfolk Southern will help us re-arrange our rolling stock or not

And so, once again, if you're planning to come to the museum tomorrow, either to see our the engines or to see them moving around, please call ahead to make sure it's happening.

For your patience, here's a photo of #1218 at the shops at night. This photo was taken by Wayne McKinney, a Norfolk Southern employee. Enjoy.

The Romance of Disaster

2007-09-21T16:33:00.001-04:00

There's an intriguing double standard that exists in the realm of the rail fan. To illustrate the point, ask yourself the following question: Would you purchase an item with a picture of a traffic accident on it? What about an airplane crash? A sunken boat? While we remain fascinated by these things (as evidenced by the slow-down of traffic passing an accident on the highway), we would feel uneasy about owning a reminder of these tragedies and disasters.

So why is it different with train wrecks?

In our gift shop, we sold a mug with a picture of a wrecked train bearing the words, "I'm a wreck without my coffee." Commercialization is one thing, but this blurs the line between tacky and tasteless. And yet, for some reason, it's ok. It was one of the gift shop's best sellers. A mug with an airliner crash or a car wrapped around a telephone couldn't possibly do as well. Right?

Is the sentimentality of John the Rail Fan so powerful that he doesn't perceive this? Is he so enamored with a niche of history that even its most somber tragedies can't escape reproduction?

Maybe it's easier to remove or ignore the human element. Fatalities aren't so in-your-face when a 600,000 pound locomotive folds in on itself, spilling a mile-long swath of cargo and equipment. Maybe the carnage to injury ratio is low enough to make things palatable. Sure the wreck covered more than a mile, took out a bridge, and will require weeks to clean up, but there were only seven people killed. Only seven people killed. Please don't let that be the thing.

There is a romance attached to this way of life. It speaks of a time gone by. The quaint, simpler, slower days when the day's activity died as the sun set were the era of the locomotive. Trucks and planes rule the industry now, but there are beasts of steel that still traverse the hills, the second, third, and fourth generations of iron horses, each calling up the past with whistles and rumbles. The good comes with the bad. Those trains would jump the tracks. People would die. The railroads took enormous safety measures because of the dangers involved, and they took responsibility when even a single man was injured.

Is this what we want to remember? Between the Scylla of overwrought memorials and the Charybdis of unhealthy obsession lies the path of tasteful remembrance.

If we learned from those experiences, we're better for them, but if they become entertainment, what are we?

All quiet

2007-09-20T14:37:00.000-04:00

Still no word yet from Norfolk Southern on the return of our engines. We've seen some NS folks near the track outside our gates, so we're happily assuming that they're working on the tracks.

It seems that the rail ties underneath the switch leading into our property (but still just barely on their side of the property line) have eroded and rotted to the point that the switch no longer functions, being stuck in a position that doesn't permit any of the equipment to pass safely. Until that's repaired, we're similarly stuck. We'll post more updates as we have them.

In the meantime, our volunteer Yardmaster has started his own, unofficial blog. You can check it out here. There are some great photos there you won't find anywhere else as he has access to items that the public doesn't usually have. Enjoy!

611 & 1218 Update

2007-09-18T10:35:00.000-04:00

As of today, #611 and #1218 are still down at Roanoke's East End Shops. However, Norfolk Southern will be attempting to move them back this week. As soon as we get a date and time for that event, we'll post it here.

Our thanks go to those of you who wrote to us offering your support. It's been a rough couple of weeks, but we're near the end of it now. Our thanks also go to Norfolk Southern for understanding about our plight and working to get the engines back to us as soon as possible. The track has not been totally repaired yet, but they think they've got a way around it. Regardless, we're optimistic that we'll have them back soon, and that is to Norfolk Southern's credit.

Here's a photo of #611 sitting just yards from where it was built. More photos coming soon. This photo was taken by VMT's own Phil McFarland.

We're down. Go ahead, start kicking.

2007-09-11T10:19:00.000-04:00

#1218 and #611 left the museum last week to go to Norfolk Southern's 125th anniversary shindig. (Look for a post later this week with some exclusive pictures from that event.) They were supposed to come back to us this week. However, Norfolk Southern is now claiming that there are some problems with the track leading into our rail yard and that they won't move the engines over that track until it is repaired. While the track in question is on their property and while they will take care of it, their time line for returning our bread and butter to us is somewhere around two or three WEEKS.

Our admission rates are reduced whenever those engines leave the premises, and with them gone for three weeks, the impact on our finances is significant. We lent those engines to Norfolk Southern for nothing. It was a goodwill gesture. We asked nothing for them, and took the hit to our admissions income for a week without complaint in the spirit of cooperation and gratitude. Now we're being asked to take that hit for two or three more weeks. This is unacceptable to us, but that isn't the purpose of this post.

This isn't supposed to be a rant about this situation, despite the tone of these first two paragraphs. This post is an apology to our patrons for what remains a terrible inconvenience. We are not so naive to think that people come to this museum to see anything other than those two steamers. So, if you're planning a trip to the museum this month, please call ahead to see if our glory girls are back.

For those of you who came to see them and were disappointed, please accept our apology. We posted the information on our website and on our front door, but the short notice most likely left a lot of people ill-informed about it until it was too late. We won't make excuses about that; that's not our style. We simply offer our understanding and humility.

The farmer and his sons

2007-09-05T13:33:00.000-04:00

There is an old story about a farmer and his sons. On his death bed, he called his sons to him and told them that there was a great fortune buried beneath his fields. After his death, the sons took up their shovels and spades and dug over the farmer's fields looking for the buried fortune. They found nothing. They did not understand what their father had told them until the fields rewarded the sons' labor with an abundant crop later that year.

This week, the prizes of our collection -- N&W's #611 and #1218 -- are down at Norfolk Southern's East End Shops for the 125th anniversary celebration of Norfolk Southern/Norfolk & Western. Further, your Virginia Museum of Transportation is co-sponsoring and hosting a lecture and book signing by Rush Loving, Jr., author of The Men Who Loved Trains in November. Our co-sponsors include the O. Winston Link Museum, the C&O Historical Society, the N&W Historical Society, and the Roanoke and Blue Ridge Chapters of the National Railroad Historical Society. These two things couldn't be less related, save for one important element. -- collaboration.

Will we see any money or additional foot traffic from having our two most famous locomotives off-site? No, quite the contrary, really. Will the book signing be a profitable experience for us or any of our co-sponsors? At least not monetarily, no.

Wick Moorman, Chairman of Norfolk Southern said not once, not twice, but thrice in a speech that the N&W Class Y6 #2156 which currently resides in St. Louis, Missouri should be brought home to Roanoke to stand next to its cousins, #611 and #1218. Think a bit of the sight that yet may be, those three steam engines -- A, and J, and Y -- all in one place again.

What greater fortune could there be beneath this field? And who better to work the field than we, the sons of the railroad?

A sight not seen in some time

2007-08-27T16:12:00.000-04:00

Roanoke celebrates its 125th anniversary this year. This means that Norfolk Southern, after a fashion, also celebrates its 125th anniversary this year. As part of the commemoration of the latter, two of Roanoke's glory girls may be showing off their stuff at Norfolk Southern's Roanoke Shops.

Norfolk Southern is hosting an open house at its Roanoke Shops on September 8th. The term "open house" is a misnomer as the event is open by invitation only. Nonetheless, the open house at the shops is a big deal, and to emphasize it, #611 and #1218 may be making an appearance.

Now, the event is closed to the public, which is too bad, really, but not surprising. The shops are in various states of repair, and safety concerns should and do prevail. These concerns only grow as the number of attendees does. However, your Virginia Museum of Transportation will offer exclusive photos of those engines at the shops, if they are part of the event. The photos will go up on this blog. The sight of a J Class steam engine on the turntable at the Roanoke Shops has not been seen in over a decade, and might not ever be seen again.

We're holding our breath, crossing our fingers, and knocking on every piece of wood we can find.

Pb and Progress

2007-08-14T19:03:00.000-04:00

Lead is in the news. It is an intriguing element by itself, really. It is highly malleable, but a poor conductor of electricity. It resists corrosion, but tarnishes in the open air. It was discovered by the ancients, used in everything from drain pipes to metal coins. Later uses included gasoline, glass, and paint. As environmental concerns grew, lead's usage shrank. Some even suspect that lead poisoning may have had a role in the decline of the Roman Empire. The latest toy recalls will likely bring about all kinds of new importation practices, quality assurance standards, and inspection procedures. I'm skewing pretty far afield from what we would consider germane, so let me hasten to the point.

Lead affects your VMT in two different ways. In the first, there are three coal hoppers sitting at the west end of the museum. While further research needs to be done, we currently believe them to be some of, if not the oldest surviving steel coal hoppers in the country. However, one quick look by even the least educated rube would lead one to question how well they're surviving. All are almost totally mussed in a rusty crust; trees have just bust that robust and rusted crust, leaving us nonplussed.

Sorry, couldn't help myself.

In any event, we've begun collecting bids to restore at least one of the hoppers, but our efforts ground to a halt when we discovered -- you guessed it -- lead on the skin of the cars. The cost of sandblasting a car of that size, priming it, and repainting it, comes to about $8,000 (assuming no metalwork is done, and these cars need a lot of that). That's also assuming there's no lead. Factor in the various safeguards that have to be taken to handle and dispose of the blasted lead, and the price per car jumps to nearly $20,000. For those of you wondering why those cars still sit at the end of this building untouched, you've got your answer. Meanwhile -- please forgive the cheap plug -- we will happily accept donations toward the restoration of what could very well be America's oldest surviving steel hoppers.

So, I said that lead affects your VMT in two ways, but I've only named one. The other one is rather unsettling.

Up until a few months ago, the museum's gift shop carried Thomas the Tank Engine products. If you purchased any from us, or know of people who may have, PLEASE CONTACT THE MANUFACTURER TO DETERMINE IF YOUR PRODUCTS HAVE BEEN RECALLED. But there is some good news here, too. The museum's gift shop no longer carries Thomas products. Instead, it carries products from parent-favorites Melissa and Doug and our new friends, The Whittle Shortline Railroad. The latter's wooden trains are all made in America, and as their website boldly states, their paint is 100% lead free. Anyway, this is less about merchandise, and more of a general notice to our patrons and customers.

It's not at all difficult to see progression in a museum. In this one, for example, one can see steam give way to diesel, horses give way to internal combustion engines, and motive technology itself move from journal boxes to roller bearings. And yet, the same lead in the paint on our hoppers that threatens the environment forms a barrier in the glass of our computer monitors to shield us from radiation. Mankind is on a time line of progression, taming the very elements of nature to meet his demands.

Neat, huh?

90 and 11

2007-08-10T10:45:00.000-04:00

In the movies, whenever a film maker wants to convey the heat of a desert or other warm locale, the camera will usually take a few establishing shots of the area featuring visual distortions from the heat, a scant few desert creatures, or perhaps a clichéd skeleton adorning the sandy ground. As a blogger, I have no such visual tools to capture the essence of how hot it is inside this building today. I have only two numbers -- 90 degrees, 11:00 am.

As you know by now, we had to postpone our Tug of War due to a lack of participation. The event has been rescheduled for Saturday, October 27th. We're hoping that the extra weeks will give us a chance to talk to more businesses, involve some college fraternities and sororities, and other people who would be less likely to be vacationing in the fall than in the summer. Also, given the current temperature, it might make pulling an 800,000 pound locomotive a tad easier if the thermometer doesn't show off as much mercury.

The museum building, Norfolk & Western's historic freight station, is 89 years old this year. Back in the day, it utilized gravity vents to cool the interior. These vents created a nearly constant breeze through the building. As the building was upgraded with modern air conditioning, the gravity vents were sealed off, but the hoods were left on top of the roof. These hoods are still visible atop the building, but serve only to mock those of us working here without the luxury of central air.

In any event, it's hot. But we're still open. Come on down and see us, but bring a water bottle. You'll need it.

Lullaby

2007-07-31T10:38:00.000-04:00

A, and J, and Y, one time drove on gilded rails;
Drove on rails that traced the dales that trembled as they assailed.
"Where are you going and what will you find?" the old moon asked the three.
"We've come to pull the coal and kind that live in this beautiful valley.
Cars of iron and steel have we," said A, and J, and Y.

The old moon laughed and sang a song as they rocked on the gilded rails.
And the fires that sped them all night long shook the hills and dales.
Now the little stars are the coal and kind that live in the beautiful valley;
"Load your cars wherever you wish. Never afraid are we!"
So cried the stars to the steam engines three - A, and J, and Y.

So all night long their cars they loaded with the stars from the twinkling dome.
'Til out from the skies went the gilded rails bringing the steam engines home.
'Twas all so pretty a drive it seemed as if it could not be.
Some folks say 'twas a dream they dreamed of driving those rails so free.
But I shall name you the steam engines three - A, and J, and Y.

Now A and J are resting at home, but Y is still abroad.
And the gilded rails that traced the dales are worn where these giants trod.
But close your eyes and think a bit of the sight that yet may be
When all have come home o'er rails and dales, and share each other's company
Where were born the steam engines three - A, and J, and Y.

Going home

2007-07-25T09:48:00.000-04:00

The Nickel Plate locomotive #763 has been on constant display at the Virginia Museum of Transportation, and its former self, the Roanoke Transportation Museum for more than forty years. Yesterday, #763 backed away from the museum and headed down Norfolk Southern's main line, ultimately bound for its home in Ohio.

The museum offered half-price admission for the day, not only to bring some extra bodies in the door, but also to be fair to people who showed up expecting to have full access to the rail yard, finding most of it cordoned off with caution tape.

We won't waste any more time with text. Here are some photos and a video from the day. Enjoy.

*Note: As of 7/27, we are having technical difficulties in uploading photo and video content. As soon as these issues are resolved, this post will be updated with the appropriate media.*

Transform and roll out

2007-07-13T09:50:00.000-04:00

As we mentioned some time ago, #763 is leaving us for greener pastures. The date of this move will be Tuesday, July 24th, starting around 10:00 am.

This is shaping up to be an exercise in rolling stock logistics. There are quite a few pieces of equipment stacked behind #763 that will need to be pulled out first before the Berkshire can move. To add some confusion, we'll be moving around several other cars and locomotives, too, as #763's departure will leave a 100' gap in the line. At present we're considering moving more than one locomotive into its place underneath the Claytor Pavilion.

The questions of interpretation and relevance come up. The museum's collection prominently features a lot of rail equipment from Virginia, but there are also some odd balls that never ran here, such as #763. Among these, we have another Nickel Plate engine in the collection that fits that description, along with one of the original motorized mules used on the Panama Canal, and a set of three mining cars used in a mine in New Jersey. While each of these pieces tells a story of its own, we once again have to ascertain their role in Virginia's transportation heritage. Those pieces needing the most care and protection, and which hold the most significant roles in Virginia's rail history are the items that logically should be under cover.

This is likely to be an all-day affair, so if you're going to be in town, you won't want to miss a rare event like a moving steam locomotive on the Norfolk Southern main line. The engine will be pulled east to Norfolk Southern's shops for an inspection. As soon as it has been cleared, it will be pulled out of town to Ohio to be restored to working order. We'll have photos posted from the move to post here, so be sure to check back.

If you're coming to see this take place, we strongly recommend calling the museum first to make sure that the event is a go. Because Norfolk Southern is providing the crew and equipment to make all of this possible, and because it's their main line we'd be occupying for a few hours, if they have other business needs that day, the event may be postponed. Please call the museum at (540) 342-5670 for that information.

We're still here

2007-07-02T23:41:00.000-04:00

July is a peculiar month for Independence Days. We employ the plural form here because in addition to the United States, Venezuela, Peru, Belgium, and Argentina all celebrate their Independence Days in July. Moreover, Canada became a nation in July, and Idaho and Wyoming became states. So July is a month full of anniversaries of new beginnings. Your Virginia Museum of Transportation has an odd sort of anniversary coming up, too.

It was a dark and stormy night in July, you see, when Mother Nature visited the First Bank of VMT, withdrew 10,000 square feet of roof and deposited 1,000 gallons of rain water. This shut down the museum for two weeks in the heart of our busy season. At nearly the same time, our former Executive Director resigned under controversy about misappropriation of funds. Many of our volunteers jumped ship, and we couldn't really blame them.

But, here comes July again and we're still open. On a personal note, this comes as a bit of a surprise to this blogger, and to many people, I have no doubt. In the past year, we lost our roof and our director, our Director of Education resigned, a man ran into our building with his truck, we had to call the bomb squad not once, but twice, saw our phone and internet lines cut for more than a week, had a small electrical fire in one of the walls, had a burglar break into the museum looking for cash, and discovered the ugly reality that was our exploding debt.

That's a lot of doom and gloom for one paragraph, so let's not belabor the point. In the same year, we've repaired that roof, hired a new Executive Director, paid off every penny of our debt, developed new and healthy relationships with other transportation museums and organizations, seen our volunteer corps grow in size from a handful to dozens, acquired a miniature locomotive for kids and adults to ride, and opened a brand new gallery showcasing automobiles from nearly every decade of the Twentieth Century.

The point is, we're still here. That makes it an anniversary worth celebrating.

Merrily we roll along

2007-06-20T23:02:00.000-04:00

Friday, June 15th was a big day for the museum. We didn't have a ton of visitors. We didn't raise a bunch of money, or receive anything new to the collection. What did happen, though, was a sight too rare in our time. #611 moved.

We've been ramping up to our big tug of war fund raiser for a few weeks now, and in order to make sure that #611 could not only still roll (as we all knew it could), but that it could do so safely (of which we weren't quite so sure). So, on June 15th, we decided to try it out.

Our thanks go out to Robert Young's Towing for helping us with this project. We absolutely couldn't have done it without them.

Someone let the monkeys out

2007-06-14T16:51:00.000-04:00

No, Oops is still up on the mountain. We're talking about the other small, energetic primates -- kids.

With school out for the summer, VMT is entering its busiest time of the year. We'll see as many people through our doors in the next two months as we've seen since the year began. It's a favorite time for us, not just financially, but also because the fun of this place really comes out when kids are here.

The old rail fans (affectionately known as "old farts") are some of our best customers, but a large portion of our museum is devoted to providing fun and educational experiences for children. We have a playground, hands-on exhibits, trains the little ~~devils~~ darlings can climb on, and a transportation safety room geared directly toward them.

One new experience in the works is a train simulator so that kids and adults can get a sense of what it's like to sit in the cab of a locomotive rolling down the line. We're hoping to install this simulator in the cab of one of our diesels sometime soon, though the all-important dollar, the hinge around which our museum turns will dictate the time table for that.

Not to forget the kids during our tug of war fund raiser, while the adults are pulling on #611, the kids can pull on a 1950 Studebaker Land Cruiser. We might even let the parking brake out for them.

Clerical Oversight

2007-06-06T09:38:00.000-04:00

VMT used to be a city museum. This is an older bit of history, but it bears mentioning because it has to do with this story. VMT got its start as the Roanoke Transportation Center and Railroad Museum in May of 1963. At that time, it was an odd assortment of priceless locomotives and rather ordinary wagons and a four-year old Jupiter IRBM. The whole thing sat in Roanoke's Wasena Park for 22 years before a flood wiped out most of the complex.

The museum relocated to its current home on Norfolk Avenue, with its new and current name in tow. A curious matter of billing never quite caught up, though.

While in the city park, the museum's water bill was paid by the city. This made sense as there was no way to discern how much water was being used by public fountains and bathrooms and how much by the museum itself. Fair enough. But when the museum reopened downtown, the city continued to pay its water bill. One might think that this was an oversight that would be corrected in a few months, or maybe a year. Try 22 years.

In the early spring of this year, the museum received a notice from the water authority that threatened to turn off our water for a past due bill. When we called about this, the water authority told us that the bill had been paid by the city. A phone call to the city confirmed this, and shed light on a clerical error more than two decades old. The museum changed its name prior to moving from the park, so the bills showed the same name and got sent to the same address with the city's Parks and Recreation office. Apparently, nobody in that office thought this was odd. More accurately, 22 years of city officials in that office didn't think it was odd.

We finally started paying our own water bills this year, and we thank the tax payers of Roanoke for their generous contributions over the years. They quite literally kept the water running.

NCTM

2007-06-02T13:07:00.000-04:00

On May 21st, the VMT staff and a few volunteers traveled to Spencer, NC to take a tour of the North Carolina Transportation Museum.

Despite being qualified museum professionals ourselves [*cough*], we were happy to receive a guided tour to tell us about the exhibits, the collection, and the facilities. Here, we've stopped to learn a bit inside the museum's automobile exhibit, Bumper to Bumper.

Unlike the VMT facility, the museum in Spencer occupies multiple buildings, each housing a different exhibit. Luckily, we enjoyed great weather in Spencer, though our Fearless Leader (center) came to regret a long sleeve shirt in the heat.

The NCTM is also home to the North Carolina Transportation Hall of Fame. This is a terrific idea, honoring figures integral to North Carolina's transportation heritage. Orville and Wilbur Wright are among the first people honored here. This inspired us to consider such a tribute in Virginia. To our knowledge, no such honor exists in the Commonwealth, and who better to do it than the VMT?

The primary exhibit in the museum is its collection of railroad equipment and rolling stock, housed ingeniously inside the Spencer Shops round house. This is an ideal building to house this collection, and boy is it big. The pieces in their collection are in immaculate condition. Here is the Southern Railway #6900. We'd get up close and personal with another Southern engine soon.

Steve, practicing his Deer-In-The-Headlights look. It's ok, Steve, you can climb on these exhibits.

In a reminder of home, the railway post office car included a slot for our native Roanoke. Interestingly enough, there is an enigmatic slot labeled only "Virginia." Were Roanoke and Richmond so important that they were the only Virginia cities worth their own slots? Meanwhile, Greensboro got two slots, twice as many as Philadelphia or Washington, D.C..

Easily the most exciting aspect of the museum are the live train rides. Here, the VMT crew head to board their chariot, another Southern diesel humming in the distance.

The museum's live train rides cover the length of the Spencer Shops, traveling by old and new buildings. Tour guides talk about each over an intercom as the train passes them.

Museum work has its perks. For example, when invited on a tour of another museum, you get to ride in the cab of one of their engines!

Here, the engine passes the Gift Station (right) and the backshops building (left) still under renovation. When finished this building will house a larger aviation gallery and other exhibits.

The engine is on its way back to the round house.

Also, we got to take a ride on the turntable itself. Many thanks to our kind hosts at the North Carolina Transportation Museum. Come on up and see us and let us return the favor!

The sound of rain

2007-05-30T16:53:00.000-04:00

I hope you'll forgive this blogger if he waxes poetic today.

It's raining right now. Twenty-five feet above my head is a roof, and directly above that there's rain. Ten months ago, that roof got thrown onto Norfolk Avenue like a comforter kicked off the bed in the middle of the night. The rain came in. It soaked the small collections room, it condemned two offices, a conference room, and a bathroom, and it cost $156,000.

It's hard not to think about that when the rain comes down. We all sneak our eyes upward to the ceiling to look for leaks, drips, seepage, or damp spots. Our new roof is nearly finished -- they're hoping to finish it this week. After that, there should be no reason to look up. In fact, in this part of the building, the roof was largely undamaged, so there has been no reason to look up. And yet, when the sky darkens and the temperature drops, I find myself watching the ceiling, as if my keen eyesight might detect a problem in time to do something about it. What I might do, I don't know. This is akin to the guy driving down the road with a mattress strapped to the top of his car with his hand out the window holding it down. What exactly does he think he can do? What could I do?

Nothing.

And right now, I can do nothing but sit and listen to the sound of rain, still scanning the rafters for trouble.

Look for a big post later this week about the staff's field trip to the North Carolina Transportation Museum. Stay tuned and stay dry.

Tales from the front [office]

2007-05-15T12:00:00.000-04:00

We get a lot of different people here at the museum, and they get here a lot of different ways, coming for a lot of different reasons. We'd like to share a few of our favorite stories with you.

We'll begin with a man from Switzerland. He had never been to the United States before, so he decided he wanted to see as much of it as he could while he was here. He bought a car in Vermont, plans to drive all over the country before ending up in California where he'll sell the car before flying home. He stopped here along the way today.

Next up is an Australian gentleman. He befriended a Canadian couple some years ago when they were on holiday in Australia. Since then, they have taken an annual holiday together, choosing different countries each year. This year, they chose the United States, specifically Virginia for the 400th anniversary of Jamestown. They saw Jamestown, Colonial Williamsburg, Richmond, Appomattox, and Roanoke before heading up to D.C. to make their separate ways home. Their previous holidays took them to Bali, England, Eastern Europe, Chile and Argentina, and China.

One of this blogger's personal favorites is a couple from Hawaii. They got married in Hawaii, but chose to come to Roanoke, Virginia on their honeymoon. Why? Each was a die-hard train buff, and they wanted to see our own #611. Now, in the interest of full disclosure, they were only in Roanoke for one day on their way to Bermuda (still, why go to Bermuda if you live in Hawaii? What do they have that you don't?), but they stopped here just to see us.

The following story is one we hear almost weekly. Let's paint a picture. An older couple, retired, show up in an RV. The husband collects model trains, may have worked for the railroad, or just likes trains. The wife could probably care less, but through an osmotic process, she's as knowledgeable as he is. Usually, he'll spend a few hours in the rail yard whilst she wanders the museum, lingering in the gift shop for a while. This happens at least once a week, nearly every week of the year.

Then there are the hikers and drivers. South of Roanoke is the Blue Ridge Parkway, one of the most scenic and beautiful drives anywhere in the country. Roanoke is a natural stop, being located centrally along the Parkway. North of Roanoke runs a portion of the Appalachian Trail. People stop in town for much the same reason. During the summer, hikers abound. In the spring and fall, the Parkway may as well be I-81 with all the traffic on it to see spring blooming and fall foliage.

Let's not forgot the Hobo King, who graced the museum with his Presence not so long ago. He traveled in here in an old Jeep (which may or may not have belonged to him; just kidding... we hope) out of which he seemed to live as there were many clothes and odd items in the vehicle.

The most touching story this blogger has encountered involves an older gentleman. He met his late wife riding on the Cavalier behind our #611. They were married for many years and enjoyed a large family. After his wife passed away, he brought his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren to the museum to see #611, without which none of them might exist. The man was originally from West Virginia, though he and his wife met somewhere over the rails on a 60 miles-per-hour train ride to the rest of their lives.

In our lobby, on one of the walls is an old saying. It reads:

No matter how you got here, transportation brought you.

Indeed.

A House Divided...

2007-05-09T16:09:00.000-04:00

Fair warning: this post is long.

There is an unwritten rule in the museum world -- museums don't compete with each other.

In some areas, it could be very easy for museums to fall into the trap of trying to compete with one another. Museums sharing similar missions, foci, or collections in a relatively close geographical proximity might feel that they are in competition with one another. Even museums separated by hundreds or thousands of miles may feel that another museum is trying to steal exhibit X or hoard collection Y. All of these things aside, museums cannot compete with one another. To do so is suicide. Here's why.

There is another competitor in this arena. Museums in the same city or region on a certain level do compete with one another for visitors, but typically, patrons of a science museum are not likely to visit an historic home or a botanical garden, and vice-versa. However, museums do compete, collectively, with the other entertainment venues in that city or region. Shopping malls, movie theaters, festivals, sporting events -- these are the real competition.

One museum trying to attract visitors in a certain city must naturally compete with that city's other attractions for attention, visitation, and money. That's a big enough challenge by itself. Why add to it trying to compete with another museum whose mission, however similar to its own, is still different? Lincoln wrote that "A house divided against itself cannot stand...." Boy was he on to something. Competition can be fatal. Competition may be irrelevant.

For a city of less than 100,000 citizens, Roanoke has a lot of museums. There are seven in the city proper -- the O. Winston Link Museum, the Art Museum of Western Virginia, the Science Museum of Western Virginia, the History Museum of Western Virginia, the Harrison Museum of African-American Culture, the Mill Mountain Zoo, and your own Virginia Museum of Transportation. If we expand our radius a bit, we get the Salem Museum, the Blue Ridge Institute and Farm Museum, Explore Park, and the sundry museums at the Natural Bridge. That's a dozen museums within an hour's drive of Roanoke, and this list is not exhaustive. This is a sizable list of institutions for any community.

Despite the abundance of these cultural institutions, there is not yet a consistent or reliable answer to the often-heard question, "What is there to do in Roanoke?" There remains an ignorance about what is here and what the various cultural institutions do.

When VMT hosted its holiday open house last December, we had more than a few guests make the comment, "I didn't even know you all were still around." This is staggering, really, and a wake-up call for our self-important campaigns and attempts at service. If people in our own home town don't know we're here, how could we ever hope to attract people from out of town?

And yet, people from out of town know us and visit us far more frequently and consistently than townies. To the tune of 80%. So what does that mean for our efforts in town?

What if all of the area museums banded together and combined their advertising and marketing? What if they all stopped competing with one another and started competing with movie theaters and golf courses? No, it's not a fight that could ever be won, but it's one that would make the right moves and promote each museum better than any one could do on its own.

There's precedent for this, too. In Madison, Wisconsin, and in the Bronx in New York, museums have joined forces to advertise and market themselves. Sometimes it means pooling money for billboards or radio spots. Other times it means joint fund raisers that benefit all of the institutions. Still other times, it's just a forum for the museum members to share ideas and problems and benefit from the others' experiences.

We see no reason that can't happen in Roanoke. In some ways, its infant stages can be seen even now. Center in the Square encompasses three of Roanoke's seven museums, and has close ties to the O. Winston Link Museum. Imagine what kind of resources all seven institutions could share. Imagine a single joint ticket good for admission to each museum, good for a whole week. It already exists in part. VMT, the Link, and the History Museum of Western Virginia already operate a joint ticket program, sharing revenue with one another and providing a natural increase in attendance to each participating institution. This is not the venue for competition; it's the venue for collaboration.

Competition should be irrelevant.

Think of a shuttle service that connects each museum with other points in town. The Valley Metro service already stops in front of most of the institutions. Why not initiate a visitor-oriented route, stopping at each museum and all the major local hotels and hot spots?

Think of a high-quality, professional brochure available in every hotel and visitor station in the area. The brochure would feature beautiful photography, in-depth descriptions of what each institution offers, ticket prices, contact information, and even coupons for discounts at museum stores or exhibitions. One brochure, not seven. Seven visitors, not one.

Competition should be irrelevant.

What's truly distinctive about Roanoke's museums is that not one is state funded. Don't get us wrong, we all receive some state funding, but for most of us, it's not enough to pay the electric bill for the year, no less to fund operations. We're not saying this is bad. What we're saying is that private organizations know their communities better than any state agency could. The programs that we can offer are catered to the exact and specific needs and interests of our community. Complete state funding might very well dampen that effect as budget questions ultimately get answered in Richmond, not Roanoke.

The side effect of this specialized service is that we struggle to do these things for the always ugly reason of not enough dollars. There aren't enough dollars when they're spread among football teams, roller skating rinks, art galleries, museums, public parks... the list is endless. But if a contingent can get together and present themselves in a unified way, their voice is louder, their draw greater. More dollars flow that way, and these private organizations increase their service and enhance their offerings. Everyone wins.

Competition is irrelevant.

2007-05-04T11:11:00.000-04:00

To attempt to describe the railroad's presence and influence in the city of Roanoke over the years is to attempt to describe a rainbow to a blind man. Roanoke still bears the marks of its illustrious rail heritage, much as an older man may still show some pocks from his pimpled youth.

A quick look around town will confirm this. Consider The Great 611 Steak Company*, a local restaurant adorned in the colors and images of Norfolk & Western's own #611. The Norfolk Southern shops still dominate the city skyline on the other side of I-581. There are dozens of bridges and overpasses for trains. Shaffer's Crossing is the largest rail yard in Virginia west of Richmond. Some of the most popular events in the town's history have been when locomotives came into or left this museum, much like the fanfare that accompanied their births at the shops down the street.

One other rail tribute lives in Roanoke. Actually, it lives above Roanoke at the Mill Mountain Zoo. The Zoo Choo, a miniature train, has operated at the zoo for more than half a century, happily transporting visitors around the zoo whilst bombarding them with views of the valley that are truly unmatched. The Zoo Choo is every bit an institution in Roanoke.

Last night, it was announced that the Zoo Choo is moving.

The train is owned by the Roanoke Jaycees, but has chugged along atop Mill Mountain for more than 50 years. The zoo asked the Jaycees to remove the train as they wished to purchase a train for themselves, no longer wishing to split the revenue from the Jaycees' engine. Looking for a new home, the Jaycees contacted us, and we said yes.

To place the train here requires a healthy bit of construction that we cannot guarantee to be completed for next year (the train will move out of the zoo in November of 2007). A track pattern resembling a dog bone will be placed outside in our rail yard. At several points, it will cross the tracks on which its larger cousins rest. These sections will be made removable so that we can move the pieces in our collection as needed. This means elevating the entirety of the mini-train's track and filling with ballast and wood.

One consideration is to relocate and repaint the old Ellitt station which sits outside the museum for use as the ticket booth. Another would be to purchase tickets inside at the front desk or gift shop, though the station idea is obviously preferable.

The Jaycees would operate the train, hiring all the engineers and maintenance workers. The terms of the financial agreement would be as they were with the Mill Mountain Zoo -- VMT and the Jaycees will split the net return.

This is a fitting home for the Zoo Choo. When the museum was located in Wasena Park, it operated a miniature train of its own. That train, however, was actually a tractor with a fiberglass shell over it, far from the sophistication of this entity. Moreover, the zoo will not be without a train forever. The zoo already has plans to purchase a train that it would own and operate itself, so the Zoo Choo will yet live.

One of the single most common requests at VMT from visitors is for a train ride. Since Norfolk Southern's main east-west line sits right behind the museum, this is nearly impossible. However, the Zoo Choo is an excellent compromise and will provide a fine base of operations for the next fifty years of its life, riding the rails in the shadows of the giants that inspired it.

*VMT collaborates with The Great 611 Steak Company. A receipt from the museum is good for 10% off your meal at the restaurant, and your meal receipt is good for 10% off admission to the museum.

2007-05-02T12:42:00.000-04:00

Graffiti is an interesting thing. In some areas, it's used simply to deface property. In other areas, it marks territory. In yet other areas, it can be effective, and often moving artwork. But graffiti at VMT is another thing altogether.

When we were kids, a fun thing to do was to carve our names into trees or picnic tables or benches or anything that could be chipped away with a young boy's pocket knife. I think we can all remember desks in our schools which bore the names of students from years past, letting us know that they "were here."

What have these two paragraphs to do with one another? When synthesized, they lead to the subject of this post.

In our railyard, we have a large collection of locomotives, baggage cars, dining cars, cranes, and other rail equipment. Located directly beside Norfolk Southern's main east-west line, this equipment picks up a considerable amount of dust and dirt kicked up by the nearly constant passing of freight trains. Add to this the pollen of spring, and what's created on the sides of these metal monsters is a thick plaster of dirt out of which is carved with bony fingers the markings of who "was here."

What follows is a photo essay of our graffiti. Note its different purposes. Greetings, dates, relationships, and even religion. Also, please note that we haven't cleaned these in a little too long.

Alas. A love lost before it began.

Hello, yourself. Come on in and write on things. No, really, it's cool.

The date of this scribbling is 6-2-06. When I think about how many times it's rained since June of last year, and that this is still here, it's almost sickening.

This is easily the best of the lot. One wonders if the person enjoys the food, (and if so, what kind of pie) or the number and the person just can't spell.

In addition to his playhouse, PeeWee also had hopper cars.

A rat fink? Really? It's like Sinatra came back from the grave just to insult Gideon. Who says "rat fink" any more?

The family that vandalizes together...

Religion is not absent from VMT. Neither is Jesus.

This panel doesn't seem all that remarkable...

until you find out that the panel is eight feet in the air on this piece. How did they get up there?

Big doin's

2007-04-19T15:54:00.000-04:00

The Roanoke City Council voted unanimously to give the Nickel Plate Locomotive #763 to us. This kick-starts the chain of events involved in making the sale finally happen. The Ohio Central Railroad Historical Society will pay us once we have written confirmation that Norfolk Southern will move the engine for them. With all of that in place, #763 will pull out of Roanoke for the first time in about forty years.

Meanwhile, the Advance Auto Parts Auto Gallery is nearing completion. The museum will be closing to the public this Sunday, April 22nd, to host a private event for Advance's team members in honor of Advance's 75th anniversary. After that, the gallery will open the following week. We're not sure when the grand opening will be as there's still a lot of work to do, but the public will have access before the month is out. How wild is that?! And it's only seven months late... pesky storms.

On a slightly personal note, this blogger just returned from a trip to the Museum Store Association Conference and Expo in Denver, Colorado. Coming out of the contacts made and research done there, look for a unique product line to be introduced this fall in VMT's store, Destinations. These items won't be available anywhere else, so be sure to check back for more information.

Finally (ah... finally), the museum may be acquiring a U.S. Army Cobra helicopter for display outside the museum. The hope is to place it about twenty feet in the air in front of the building with its running lights on to attract attention. Unfortunately, and for obvious reasons, we can't keep the rotor running. One flock of birds with bad depth perception and we've got a mess.

Stay tuned for more, and some pictures of our fearless leader trying to operate a Zamboni machine in a shirt and tie!

Change is a-comin'

2007-04-10T12:17:00.000-04:00

We've got some fairly big doings happening right now worth mentioning. Our featured exhibit, "Starlight on the Rails" has finally come down and is on its way back home to the Robert Mann Gallery in New York.

Though the Lawrence Gallery which housed that exhibit here is closed, we're excited to report that our Auto Gallery will be opening this Friday! Ok, let's put aside the glamorous press release stuff and talk about what's actually going on.

The Auto Gallery was supposed to open in October of last year. After the roof came off, everything got put on hold. Gallery openings, annual fund raising drives, newsletter mailings -- everything. Resultantly, the Auto Gallery got pushed back and pushed back while the "Starlight" exhibit got held over and held over. Now, entering the final quarter of the museum's fiscal year, with a firmer grip on finances than at any time in the museum's recent history, things are finally back on track (if you'll forgive the pun).

The Auto Gallery will not be finished by the time it opens on Friday, but it will at least be presentable. It houses nearly a dozen automobiles ranging from the 1900s to the 1980s, along with a set of license plates covering almost every year of Virginia's auto history, a set worth more than $5,000 in itself. The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) donated a substantial collection of photographs, signs, and other materials for the first exhibit in the gallery. All of these things will be up and running on Friday.

What isn't ready is the building itself. Because the Auto Gallery is contiguous with the rest of the museum, though divided from it by a fire wall, a certified fire door has to be in use. We don't have one of those (though Advance Auto Parts has generously donated the funds for such a door's installation). Also, the gallery is in a portion of the building that still retains most of the original rolling doors from the building's construction in 1918. That's right -- these doors are almost 90 years old. While they keep people and animals out, that's about all they keep out. This museum has never been properly renovated, and as a result, air gets in everywhere. Heating and cooling costs harken back to your dad telling you not to leave the front door open with the air conditioner running. Dad was right. So, those doors have to be replaced, either with new doors or walls or a combination of the two.

We won't have all of the signage done yet, either. Thanks to the efforts of the VMT Intern, we have well-researched, engagingly written signs for each automobile, but they're still not back from the printers, and the clock's ticking.

What this means is what we call in the biz, "a soft opening." We'll have a grand opening once the whole thing's ready, but as of Friday, all guests entering the museum will have access to this gallery. Hopefully, a room full of beautiful automobiles will serve as a substitute for a room full of railroad photography.

And what of that room? This summer, we hope to have not one, not two, but three new exhibits in that room. We've posted about two of them before -- the Grayhound Bus exhibit, and the Virginian Railway exhibit. The third exhibit is devoted to Star City Motor Madness, an annual antique car celebration held in Roanoke (and, not without mention, a generous contributor to the museum).

Anyway, come out Friday. See the cars. See the trains. See the three-block long museum run by four people. Marvel.

VMT's special guests

2007-03-30T15:11:00.000-04:00

Today, your Virginia Museum of Transportation received two special guests.

The first is Mr. Karl E. "Redbird Express" Teller, the National Hobo King. "Redbird" was elected (by applause) King at the 2002 National Hobo Convention at the Hobo Museum in Britt, Iowa.

King Teller said, "I've been trying to get down here to this museum for a long time, and it was worth the wait."

"Redbird Express" continues to serve as Hobo Ambassador-at-Large, and serves as a Special Ambassador to the Casey Jones Railroad Museum in Water Valley, Mississippi.

The National Hobo Convention meets annually during the second weekend in August (he provided us with a brochure for the event). During the weekend, they host such attractions as:

A "Hobo Jungle" (Who knows what this could be?!)
Carnival
Parade (It must be a stirring sight to see these shoe-less vagabonds with all their possessions in a bag, walking along not completely sure of where they are.)
5K and 10K Walk/Run (Hobo traditions when other forms of transportation are not available.)
Classic Car Show (How would Hobos get cars?)
Hobo Auction (Whether Hobos' belongings or Hobos themselves are being auctioned is not clear.)
The Coronation of the Hobo King and Queen (These elections are determined by applause as decided by a panel of Hobo Judges.)
Mulligan Stew (This is interesting; the city of Britt, Iowa cooks up 550 gallons of Mulligan Stew and allows all comers to fill their own containers. Some fill thermoses, others have been known to bring large ice chests to fill.)

Britt, Iowa is roughly 130 miles from anything. 120 miles to the south is Des Moines, and Minneapolis is situated 140 miles northward. The Hobo Museum is located on Britt's Main Street in an old movie theater. "Redbird" told us that they were attempting to have a new facility built, but even the lowest bidder was talking about more than $100,000 for a new building and "that's not Hobo money."*

As for our other special guest, the Virginia Museum of Transportation was pleased to welcome David Goode, retired Chief of Norfolk Southern. David and his wife Susan were in Roanoke today for the dedication of the David and Susan Goode Railwalk, commemorating and chronicling Roanoke's rail heritage via a walking trail from VMT to Market Street downtown. After touring the Railwalk, David and his wife returned to VMT for a tour of the building, led by Executive Director Bev Fitzpatrick and President Tom Cox.

The amount of internet real estate in this post devoted to our two guests may be inversely proportional to their relative importance to this museum's well-being. Nonetheless, VMT was glad to welcome both of our special guests, and we invite them to come back any time.

*Blogger's note: I don't know what that means.

Show me the... wait, where'd it go?

2007-03-27T16:22:00.000-04:00

Museum life has its ups and downs. Saying something that trite is not only painful, but also painfully true.

An article in last week's Roanoke Times reports that the City of Roanoke has promised up to $500,000 in matching funds to the Mill Mountain Zoo for capital improvements. That is great news. We have some good friends at the zoo, and those facilities have been in need of repair and upgrading for some time. This was a long time coming for them, and hopefully worth the wait.

Meanwhile, the new Art Museum of Western Virginia is churning along, unfurling like a cross between the Flying Nun's habit and a vague monument to bourgeois taste (that's alright, because it fits in so seamlessly with Roanoke's general architectural scheme). All of this at $66 million. All kidding aside, we have some good friends at the art museum and we're happy they're receiving a new facility.

Naturally, one might think that with the city being so generous to the Mill Mountain Zoo and the Art Museum of Western Virginia, your Virginia Museum of Transportation might be on the eve of a great windfall, a financial bonanza that would be a new sunrise for the museum.

Not only was our grant proposal answered with a mere $24,900, but the latest kick in the teeth came when the city began soliciting bids for a strategic plan for the museum, funded by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. Let us be more clear. We're happy to receive a strategic plan, but the city has so far kept us out of the loop on the bidding process. We're sorry, City of Roanoke, but the last time we checked, we were still a private organization. Unless you're creating a strategic plan for the locomotives themselves, we think we've got a more than legitimate right to input on any and all decisions relating to this museum.

The City of Roanoke owns about 45% of our collection, including the only surviving Norfolk & Western Class J and Class A locomotives, and the largest collection of diesel locomotives in the south. The City of Roanoke, which cut our funding from $60,000* two years ago to $52,000 last year, already has a sizable investment in our museum. In many ways, our museum better than any other, tells the story of Roanoke. Further, admissions figures show that nearly 80% of our patrons come from out of town. How many other museums in Roanoke can boast that?

The building that houses that collection, tells that story, and draws those tourists was built in 1918. Some of the electrical wiring inside is original. More than 75% of the roll-down doors that line the front and rear of the building are in horrible states of repair, and their improper seals make for extremely inefficient heating and cooling. Moreover, damage from the storm last summer that ripped off about 10,000 square feet of our roof left two offices, a conference room, and a bathroom condemned due to water damage in the electrical system. Further, it forced the complete replacement of two HVAC units to heat and cool the building, not to mention a new roof which still hasn't been installed (it took nearly six months to receive the first check from the insurance company after lengthy negotiations and adjustments). If you came by the museum this winter, you discovered what those of us working here encountered daily -- no heat. That same storm tore the main gas line off the building like an old band-aid and permanently damaged the heaters up there.

Census data tells us that the Roanoke metropolitan area is home to roughly 200,000 people. If it costs 66 million dollars to build a new art museum, half a million dollars to restore the zoo to a high level of quality, and if there are more than 35 non-profit organizations in that same metropolitan area, the question is this:

Just how much money will be left for anybody?

We don't think we're more deserving than any other institution in town. Except, maybe we are. Roanoke's investment here has already been illustrated. So maybe we should ask, how much is it worth to protect and develop that investment? It's becoming increasingly clear what the city thinks.

* To put this figure in perspective, $60,000 covers slightly less than two months of our operating expenses.

Tug-of-war

2007-03-26T10:01:00.000-04:00

The last time our Norfolk & Western J Class #611 ran under its own power was in 1994. When it finally came back to us, the crowds along the tracks were several people deep on both sides.

Currently, #611 is the closest thing we have to an operational locomotive. The current estimate to restore it to running condition is less than $250,000 -- a drop in the bucket for anybody willing to shell out the kind of money it would take to run #611 in excursion service. This is sort of like the people who buy expensive sports cars; if they can afford the car, they can probably afford the gas and taxes.

Like #1218 and #763, we don't own #611; it belongs to the City of Roanoke, and we lease it from them for $1.00 per year. As part of our agreement with the city, and the city's agreement with Norfolk Southern, we are required to move #611 about once a year to keep its wheels and bearings from flattening under the weight of the engine. The last time we moved it was more than a year ago.

Our Executive Director had a fantastic idea to accomplish this task this year -- a large-scale tug-of-war tournament. #611 is registered as a national engineering landmark, in part because it is very well-balanced, so much so that a small group of people (perhaps as few as two or three) can pull it with a rope over level track.

The idea would be to clear the track in front of and behind #611, and have competing teams pulling in opposite directions. The first team to pull the engine beyond a certain point would win that round and it would proceed in a tournament style.

We'd solicit prizes from local businesses, get some live music, throw some burgers and dogs on the grill and charge a nominal admission fee, also collecting group entry fees from the teams. The turn-out could be tremendous, and it could easily become an annual fund raiser. There are a lot of people locally and abroad that would pay just about anything to see this engine move.

If nothing else, we'd get somebody to move the engine without Norfolk Southern having to come in with a switcher just to move the thing a few feet in either direction.

763

2007-03-15T15:32:00.000-04:00

There was a good deal of discussion when it was announced that we were going to sell the Nickel Plate locomotive, No. 763 to the Ohio Central Railroad Historical Society (no direct link available). We received positive and negative feedback, but the reasoning behind the decision seems to have been lost amid nostalgia and passion. We'd like to explain why we chose to sell this piece of the collection, and how it will benefit you, our patrons.

To start, we need to clear up that we, the museum, cannot actually sell this particular locomotive. It doesn't belong to us. Rather, it belongs to the City of Roanoke, having been gifted to the city by Norfolk & Western in the 1960s when this museum was the Roanoke Transportation Museum. At no point has the Virginia Museum of Transportation ever owned this locomotive, and as such, its sale must ultimately be made by the city, not us.

On down the rabbit hole, this locomotive in no way furthers the mission of VMT. What is our mission, you ask? It is:

To preserve and interpret the transportation heritage of the Commonwealth by collecting, restoring and exhibiting significant artifacts in order to serve and educate the citizens of Virginia.

That's it. So why doesn't #763 add to this? #763 never ran one foot within the borders of the Commonwealth of Virginia. It came here purely by chance when Norfolk & Western acquired the Nickel Plate line. As diesels were replacing steam engines, there was no need for this piece, but it would be bad politics to simply scrap it. So, it went to the City of Roanoke, home of Norfolk & Western's headquarters at the time. The city stuck it in our back yard, where it's been quite literally through hell and high water.

Ok, now for the ugly part -- money. The American Association of Museums (AAM) contends that it is in bad form to sell any piece of a museum's collection unless the money from the sale directly benefits the collection through restoration or the purchase of another piece. Well, we can't really argue that fact. As mentioned above, the City of Roanoke would receive the money, and it would be at their discretion to allocate it to VMT or not. Assuming they would, the money would at least partially go toward the collection. There's more to it, though.

It has not been made clear quite how dire things have been for VMT financially. In a year that saw the roof torn off the building like wrapping paper on Christmas morning, the state cut our funding by nearly 60%, and the City of Roanoke which owns more than 40% of our collection, gave us a mere $52,000 (representing about a 5% cut from the previous year). The sale of #763 for $125,000, to be blunt, keeps our doors open.

If we want to adhere strictly to the AAM's guideline about the application of money from the sale, then no, it isn't all going where it should. To that, we can only say this:

If we are closed, the pieces in our collection will deteriorate more than they would when we are open.

Period. Do we have a full-time restoration team? No. Could we afford one if we did? Probably not. Would the sale of #763 allow for that? You better believe it would. It would also pay for us to offer educational programs to schools and community organizations, it would go toward restoring and preserving the pieces of our collection, and it would enable us to exhibit better the artifacts we already have. All of these things are 100% in line with our mission statement.

It is undeniable that #763 has a special place in the heart for a lot of Roanokers and Virginia rail fans alike. The decision to sell the locomotive is not meant in any way to belittle or demean this sentiment. Rather, the opposite is true. The Ohio Central Railroad Historical Society has both the money and the ability to restore #763 to operating condition. Upon doing so, it will run excursions in Ohio, providing an unforgettable and meaningful experience to the citizens of Ohio, the engine's true home.

We hope that you'll come to see #763 one last time before it leaves Roanoke. It had a long history here, and will leave amid tears and celebration. But its sale helps us do our jobs, and our jobs make your experiences here better.

"Starlight" Moving On

2007-03-15T09:30:00.001-04:00

This month will be your last chance to catch our temporary exhibit, "Starlight on the Rails," currently on loan from the Robert Mann Gallery in New York. The exhibit showcases nighttime railroad photography NOT done by O. Winston Link (though it certainly must have been inspired by his work).

This exhibit will be leaving in mid-April, to be replaced by two exhibits -- one on buses, the other on the Virginian Railway. Look for more info about those soon.

If you've been by the museum, you've probably seen a banner out front advertising the "Starlight" exhibit. If you were of an especially keen eye, you probably saw that this exhibit was supposed to have left us last year, but has been held over. However popular the exhibit has been (and people have seemed to enjoy it), we didn't keep it this long because of the mass appeal of nighttime railroad photography -- Roanoke already has a museum for that.

We kept it, to be blunt, because there were a hundred other things we had to do, and only six paid employees working in the building, two on a part-time basis. You'll probably hear some spin about how popular it is, but the reality is that when your roof comes off in a storm and your former Executive Director resigns, priorities shift dramatically, and taking pictures off a wall that HASN'T suffered water damage isn't that high on the list. Anyway, our thanks go to the Robert Mann Gallery for being so understanding. They've extended the loan of this exhibit well beyond our contract, and haven't once pushed us to get it back before we were able.

So, only about six or eight months late, "Starlight on the Rails" is leaving us to go back home to New York. Come on down and see it while it lasts. Sunday, April 8th will be the last day the Lawrence Gallery (where "Starlight" currently resides) is open before it changes over.

Come. See. Gawk.

Vince and Larry 2

2007-03-13T00:05:00.000-04:00

As promised, here are some photos of Vince and Larry's first day on the job at VMT.

This is Larry. Larry was ready to go, pretty early on today.

This, on the other hand, is Vince. Vince was in bad shape when we rescued him from the attic. But, with a little work, he turned out alright.

Now, we'd hoped that Vince could drive one of our cars for us, but the problem is that Vince is pretty tall as far as crash test dummies go. First, we tried the Impala.

Then the DeSoto...

Then the Studebaker...

And finally the Packard with Jerry. Vince's head is actually touching the top of the passenger compartment, but he fit!

Meanwhile, Larry had been committing unspeakable acts, and trying to hide the evidence in an old refrigerator.

When Vince discovered this, we had to try to hold Larry back from doing the same to Vince.

We were unsuccessful. Note Larry's glee with his act of violence, and Vince clutching his severed leg in shock.

But Vince would be ok again, and the boys had a good first day at work. And they look darned good in the Packard.

Vince and Larry

2007-03-12T11:35:00.000-04:00

Aside from being an under-appreciated band from the 1990s, the Crash Test Dummies are Vince and Larry.

We're happy to welcome Vince and Larry to VMT to take part in our auto gallery. Look for pictures later today.

Inaugural post!

2007-03-02T10:22:00.000-05:00

Welcome to VMT Musings, the official blog of the Virginia Museum of Transportation. I'll be your conductor, cruise director, and flight attendant as VMT sets out to document its work and progress in the digital realm and beyond. Ok, enough fluff. Here's what's happening at the museum.

Currently, the museum is transforming itself, getting ready to open a new gallery which will increase the size of the museum by 33%. This new gallery will be our auto gallery (check back for posts with updates on and photos from the gallery), housing first an exhibit from the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) called, "From Mud to Mobility." This exhibit will chronicle the history of VDOT's work in Virginia, from the first paved roads to the creation of the Smart Road. We're hoping to have a soft opening for this exhibit by the end of March, so check back in for more information.

Also on VMT's to-do list is an upcoming bus exhibit. The Executive Director of the museum loves buses (and we all think he seems happiest behind the wheel of a bus), so this exhibit has a special place for him. It showcases a collection of model buses, photographs, bus maps, and other items.

Soon, the museum hopes to re-vamp its Virginian Railway exhibit. Currently, this exhibit is little more than a hodge-podge of boarding passes, time tables, and photographs -- this is hardly a fitting exhibit for one of the leading railroads of its era, and Roanoke's "other" railroad, beside the Norfolk & Western. Look for that exhibit later this year.

Last, but certainly not least, are our on-going restoration projects. The first priority goes to the car we call "President One." This car was used by the president of the Illinois Terminal, and offers quite a few amenities including a kitchen, dining room, state room, and bathrooms. The car still needs a lot of work. Look for photos soon!

So, you're asking yourself, "Self, what can I learn from reading VMT's blog that I can't learn from press releases or advertising?"

What we'll offer you here is the stuff that doesn't go in press releases. You'll be able to follow our restoration efforts on an almost daily basis as new work is done. We'll provide photo essays on what it takes to keep this place running. You'll be able to see the real damage done by the storm last summer that tore off our roof and still has most of the building without heat. This is the acoustic set -- the good, the bad, and the really quite ugly. Stay tuned.