Tag: caboose

Chatham Railroad Museum, Chatham, Massachusetts

by jbcowgill, posted in Uncategorized

The U.S. state of Massachusetts is one of the New England states that makes up the northeastern region of the United States of America.  The state began as one of the thirteen original British colonies and became a U.S. state when the United States of America won its independence from Great Britain.  It was here at a place called Plymouth Rock on the shore of Cape Cod Bay where the Pilgrims landed after a long voyage from Holland, and it was here where what was called the First Thanksgiving took place.  Even though it was not the actual First Thanksgiving as the actual one happened in the U.S. state of Virginia near the present day city of Richmond, it was the Pilgrim’s Thanksgiving that the holiday is modeled after as it involved a feast where as the in Virginia, it was a long prayer of thanking God for surviving a long and dangerous voyage across the ocean.  Massachusetts played a big role in the American Revolution with the Battle of Bunker Hill, the Boston Tea Party, the famous ride of Paul Revere, and ‘the shot heard around the world’ at the Battle at Concord Bridge.  (In case you are wondering, ‘the shot heard around the world’, was not a gunshot that was so loud that it was heard as far away as Antarctica but message that the United States of America was fighting for its independence.)  Along with the American Revolution, the city of Boston, the state capital, is a big sports town.  It is the home of the Boston Celtics, the most championed team in the National Basketball Association and the third most championed team in North American professional sports.  (The Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League is number two and the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball are number one.)  Also, you will find the Basketball Hall of Fame in the city of Springfield.  The state is known for its geography with a long stretch of land known as Cape Cod and its islands of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, and the state has a few great lighthouses.  In the town of Provincetown at the very end of the Cape Cod peninsula is where the eastern end of U.S. Route 6, a road known as the Grand Army of the Republic Highway which honors American Civil War Veterans and is the longest route in the United States of America, is located.

Yes, the state of Massachusetts is known for many things.  When people think about the state, very few people will think about the railroads.  The railroad sites are commonly overshadowed by its other historic sites.  There is one particular place where the railroad once was.

If you visit the town of Chatham, Massachusetts, you will see a nice, charming town.  Located on the southeast corner of the state, you will get great views of the Atlantic Ocean, on old windmill, a lighthouse that is still active and own by the United States Coast Guard, and an old train station.

Some of you are saying, “Wait a minute.  There is no railroad on Cape Cod.”

Welcome to the Chatham Railroad Museum.

Some of you are saying, “Oh!  I see.  They found an old train station and brought it to this town to make it a museum.”

Actually, you are wrong.  The old train station, built in 1887 in what is called a Railroad Gothic style, is on its original site.  On what was originally the trackside is a wooden caboose from the New York Central System.  The town was the end of the line for the Chatham Railroad Company that ran between the town of Chatham and the town of Harwich.  There was also a railroad yard in Chatham.  As tourism in Chatham grew, so did the railroad.  As the roads on Cape Cod improved, the railroad declined.  Service to Chatham ended in 1937.

Today, very little evidence of the railroad remaining in Cape Cod with very few of the old railroad beds are now rail trails.  As for the old train station, it later became the home of the Chatham Railroad Museum.

Some of you are saying, “Oh yeah, and it has somebody’s old train collection.”

Well, if you had two New York Central System model locomotives that were on display at the 1939 New York World’s Fair, you can say that it is a great collection.  The exhibits display the history of the railroad to Chatham and the stations along the short railroad.

The Chatham Railroad Museum is located at 153 Depot Road in Chatham, Massachusetts, just off of Massachusetts Route 28.  It is open from June to October.  Admission is free, but they can use your donations to keep the museum open.  The museum is staffed by volunteers with no paid staff.  Although the train station is wheelchair accessible, the caboose is not.  You can read more into the history of the Chatham Train Station and get information on hours and directions at https://www.chathamrailroadmuseum.com/.

The U.S. state of Massachusetts is a state full of American history, a state of sports history, a state of natural beauty, historic sites, and an old railroad town called Chatham.  It is a town where you can enjoy a lobster roll with a little railroad history.

Miller Park, Bloomington, Illinois

by jbcowgill, posted in Uncategorized

Cities big and small throughout the United States have their landmarks and city parks.  Among these city parks is Miller Park in the city of Bloomington in the U.S. state of Illinois.  The park has trees, a playground, a small zoo, a manmade lake, a miniature golf course, a memorial to firemen and a war veterans memorial.  Located in the southwestern area of the city on the Historic U.S. Route 66, it is a park within the city that is an oasis from the urbanization.

Some of you are saying, “It is nice that these cities have parks.  These parks are great.  However, there is a problem.  Since this park has no railroad history, I will not be taking a walk in this park.”

Oh, you will want to take a walk in this park.  Why?  One of the big features of this park is Nickel Plate Road Steam Locomotive Number 639 and its tender.  Another feature is Caboose Number 4770 from the Southern Pacific Railroad.  Other feature include a whistle that was on top of the shops of the Chicago and Alton Railroad and pays tribute to the workers of those shops.  (The shops are now gone.)  Another feature is an old semaphore.  (Semaphores have been replaced by the railroad signals today.)

The locomotive was built by the Lima Locomotive Works and was used by the Nickel Plate Road.  When the Nickel Plate Road decommissioned the locomotive, they donated it to the park.  Today, it is on display with the Southern Pacific Railroad Caboose.

Miller Park is located at 1020 S. Morris Avenue in Bloomington, Illinois along the Historic U.S. Route 66.  (It is west of U.S. Route 51 by way of Wood Street.)  Parking is on side.  The park is open sunrise to sunset, and the park is wheelchair accessible.

When in Bloomington, Illinois, visit Miller Park.  See a locomotive that once ran on the rails of the United States of America.

Victoria, Virginia

by jbcowgill, posted in Uncategorized

Have you ever heard of the small town of Victoria in the southern region of the U.S. state of Virginia?  If you have never heard of this town, do not feel sad as very few people even know that this town even exists.  The town, located halfway between the port city of Norfolk at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay and the city of Roanoke, has no famous historic sites or landmarks.  It is your typical small town with a main street with stores.  The only routes through the town is Virginia State Routes 40 and 49.

Some of you are saying, “Well, that is not much.  With a name like Victoria, it would be funny if the town is named after some famous queen.”

Ladies and gentlemen, start laughing.  This small one-horse town is named after Queen Victoria.  Yes, it is named after the British Queen Victoria.  The county the town is located in, Lunenburg County, is named for a German Duke.  As you can see, the town of Victoria is a small town that has much European royalty.

Now some of you are saying, “Amazing.  Queen Victoria would be very proud to have a town named in her honor.  Being a small town with no castles or palaces, she would probably never visit here.  What is really bad is that there is no railroad in this town.  Therefore, I will not accept the royalty of visiting this town.”

So, you do not want to visit this town because of the fact that it is not a railroad town.  Ladies and gentlemen, you are about to learn about a small town in southern Virginia.

The U.S. state of Virginia is a state that has much history, and the history begins long before the state was established.  Before it was a state, it was a British colony, one of the original thirteen colonies.  It has the oldest continuous American city in the United States of America which is the site of the first English settlement in the nation, Jamestown.  (Yes, Taos, New Mexico and Saint Augustine, Florida are older establishments, but they were not part of the United States of America until years later.)  The state has many great historical cities like the state capitol, Richmond, a city that served as the Confederate capital during the American Civil War, and Williamsburg, a city that was once the state capital of Virginia, and Yorktown where a great victory over the British and where they surrendered during the American Revolutionary War, and, as mentioned, Jamestown, the oldest continuous American city, and Charlottesville, the home of Thomas Jefferson, and Manassas where the first major battle of the American Civil War took place and it the only place that was the site of two major battles during that war, and Alexandria, a city with deep history, and Bristol, a town that is partly in Virginia and partly in Tennessee where it is said that country music began here.  The state has produce more U.S. presidents than any other state.  The father of the nation, George Washington, and the man who drafted the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson, two U.S. presidents, were born here and had their homes here.  Speaking of Thomas Jefferson, his home, Monticello, located in Charlottesville, is the only U.S. presidential home that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  The state is one of the most visited states in the nation.

That brings us to the town of Victoria, a town that very few have heard of.

Some of you are saying, “If nobody has ever heard of this town, then the town most likely had no significance.”

What is special about the town of Victoria, Virginia?  When you arrive here, you with see a town just like any other small town, but then you notice something.  You see a park with a caboose.  What caboose?  It is from the Virginian Railway.  What is it doing here in this town?  You notice what appears to be a trail, but it is not an ordinary trail, but what appears to be a rail trail.

What is special about the town of Victoria, Virginia?  It was a planned community.  As mentioned, the town is halfway between Roanoke and Norfolk.  What is so important about that?  Norfolk, as mentioned, is a major port city, and it is the largest natural port in the world.  Both Roanoke and Norfolk were major railroad cities, and they are major railroad cities today.  Why is Norfolk a major port?  The Port of Norfolk is a major coal city, and the port is served by many coal trains bringing coal from the mines in Kentucky, Virginia, and West Virginia to the ships in Norfolk.

Some of you are saying, “That is nice, but what does Victoria have to do with it?”

As mentioned, Victoria, Virginia was a planned community.  What was the plan?  The town was planned around the railroad.  The Tidewater Railway came to town.  The Tidewater Railway was then taken over by the Virginian Railway.  The steam locomotive, after one hundred miles of operation, had to be serviced.  What is special about the town of Victoria, Virginia?  It was the site of a roundhouse and a railroad yard.  The town flourished.  As the steam locomotive was replaced by the diesel locomotive that required less maintenance and could go farther before needing maintenance, the roundhouse became obsolete.  The Virginian Railway was taken over by the Norfolk and Western Railway which became the last railroad to serve the town.  (The Norfolk and Western Railway was later taken over by the Norfolk Southern Railway.)  Like with many takeovers of railroads, certain railroad lines are abandoned.  Sadly, the railroad line through Victoria was one of those lines.  The tracks were taken up, and it was eventually turned into a rail trail.

The railroad in Victoria, Virginia is now gone… but it is not forgotten.

Virginian Railway Caboose Number 342 sits in the place where the railroad yard and main railroad line once was.  Next to the caboose, you will see the foundation of the passenger station.  What about the roundhouse?  Across the street from the caboose is the Victoria Railroad Park.  Like the passenger station, only the foundation of the roundhouse and a Virginian Railway gondola car remain.  You can walk and see where a roundhouse once stood.  What is now a quiet park was once a bustling place.  When the railroad left town, the town became what it is today.

The town of Victoria, Virginia is located in southern Virginia served only by states routes 40 and 49.  The railroad park is located off of Main Street (Virginia Route 40).  The rail trail, part of the Tabacco Heritage Trail, is paved.  The Victoria Railroad Park is open sunrise to sunset, and it is free.  Parking is on site.  The park is flat, but it is not completely paved.  Wheelchairs may have difficulty getting around.

The town of Victoria, Virginia, may not be as famous as other cities in Virginia, but it has a place in state, national, and international history.  It may be a small town, but it has much railroad royalty.

The Cover Photo is an AI generated photo.

Wildlife Prairie Park, Hanna City, Illinois

by jbcowgill, posted in Uncategorized

The U.S. state of Illinois is commonly called ‘The Land of Lincoln’ became it was this state where Abraham Lincoln’s rise to fame took place.  The state is also famous for the city of Chicago, but it is also a state with much farmland and open space.  West of the city of Peoria is an open space where you can watch animals roam free.  Well, there are in enclosed spaces, but they are not stuck in a case.  The Wildlife Prairie Park is a place where you can feel like you are on an open plain, but you really are in a wildlife park.  You can ride a hay ride with benches known as Adventure Trek where you can ride through the bison and elk pasture.  If that is not enough, you can even spend the night here.  Ladies and gentlemen, they do not call this place a jewel of the North American Midwest for nothing.  When you visit here, you will truly see how the park gets that name.  If you enjoy seeing wildlife in large and natural habitats, you will enjoy a day, and a night, at Wildlife Prairie Park.

Some of you are saying, “Wow!  This place sounds like it is a jewel.  I love animals, and I enjoy seeing them at the zoo.  There is a big problem.  As you can see.  This is a wildlife park.  This park is about wildlife.  This is not a railroad park.  Therefore, I will not be paying a visit to this place.”

Well, Wildlife Prairie Park is a park that specializes in wildlife and not trains.  Why visit this place?  Yes, it is a jewel of a park and a place worth your time.  As you enter the park, you will see why you want to visit.

As soon as you pay your admission, the very first thing that you will see is a railroad crossing.

Some of you are saying, “I have been to many places where you have to cross train tracks to get to the attraction.  Many railroads run alongside of parks and historic sites.”

This is true, but if you are fortunate enough, you may be stopped by a train, it is not an ordinary train.  The train is the Prairie Zephyr.  You have read correctly.  This is the Prairie Zephyr, and the train station is to your right.  Well, one of the stations is to your right.  There are three stops on this line.  What are you going to do?  Well, of course, you are going to ride the train.

You enter the station, and you board the train.  The train leaves the station.  You pass by trees and see animals along the way, and then you stop at the Pioneer Homestead.  From here, you return on the same track, and you arrive back at the station.  It is the end of the ride, but it is not.  Remember.  There are three stops, and you only have been to two of them.  The passengers board and deboard, and the train continues on.  You pass by the train yard and pass through a tunnel.  You pass by more animals, and you arrive at a playground, and you have an opportunity to go down a big slide known as the Gollywhopper Slide.  After a short stop, you return to the station, and you get off the train.  By the way, your train ticket allows you to ride the train all day long.

Some of you are saying, “Well, that is it.  No more trains at the wildlife park.”

Ladies and gentlemen, you are wrong.  While at the main train station, you can visit the railroad museum.  Yes, there is a railroad museum here.  The museum has a collection of toy trains.  How often do you get to visit a wildlife park that is about wildlife that has a railroad museum?

Some of you are saying, “Well, you have a point.  I do not know of any wildlife park or zoo that has a railroad museum.  Anyway, I guess that is all of the railroads that we will see at this park.”

Not exactly.

As mentioned.  You can spend a night, or many nights, at this park.  Yes.  There are other wildlife parks that allow you to spend a night there, but how many wildlife parks let you spend a night… in a caboose.  Yes.  You have the option to spend a night in a Santa Fe Railroad Caboose.

If you think that you do not have a reason to visit Wildlife Prairie Park, you now have many.  Along with the train, the railroad museum, and the cabooses, you have a variety of wildlife you see.  There is also laser tag, hiking and biking trails, fishing, disc golf, kayaking, and events throughout the year.

Wildlife Prairie Park is located at 3826 N. Taylor Road in Hanna City, Illinois south of Illinois Route 8, Interstate 74, and U.S. Route 150.  Although the park is open year-round (open 361 days and closed only four days of the year) from 9:00am to 4:30pm (9:00am to 6:30pm from Memorial Day to Labor Day), the Prairie Zephyr runs only at certain times of the year.  Although much of the park is wheelchair accessible to include the Prairie Zephyr, there are some steep paths.  You can information about admission, lodging, activities, the history of the park, to look at the map of the park, and read more into their conservation efforts at https://wildlifeprairiepark.org/.

Wildlife Prairie Park in Hanna City, Illinois is a great place to visit.  When you visit, you will see why.  You will see why they call this place a jewel.

A special thanks to Cody Miyler, Lelonie Luft, and Calli Dicks of Wildlife Prairie Park for the pictures of the recently painted cabooses.

Alberta Caboose, Alberta, Virginia

by jbcowgill, posted in Uncategorized

The small town of Alberta is located in the southern region of the U.S. state of Virginia.  Yes, the name of the town is Alberta.  (Whether it is named after the Canadian province is unknown.)  In this small town in the center of the town is a caboose.  How is the caboose here?  This town has no railroad.  Well, the town was once served by two railroads, and there was heavy rail traffic in its heyday.  Like many small towns, service declined, and the railroads were forced to abandon the town.

Some of you are saying, “This is nice, but many small towns in the United States of America have declined from the lack of the railroad.”

Even though Alberta, Virginia looks like a ghost town today, the Alberta Caboose reminds everyone about the railroad heritage.  The caboose is from the Virginian Railway and sits near the old railroad bed of the Virginian Railway which is now the Tobacco Heritage Trail which runs across the southern region of Virginia as a reminder of how the Virginian Railway and, later, the Norfolk and Western Railway was a big part of the tobacco industry.

What about the caboose itself?  As mentioned, it was used by the Virginia Railway.  It was donated to the town in memory of Earl Walter Wilkinson.  Who is Earl Walter Wilkinson?  He was a devoted employee of the Norfolk and Western Railway.  Like many cabooses that you once saw on the end of freight trains, it was preserved and put on display.

The Alberta Caboose is located in the Town Square in Alberta, Virginia at 123 First Avenue.  It is one block from Virginia Route 136 and minutes from U.S. Route 1 and Interstate 85.  There is a small parking lot for parking.

If you ever visit the town of Alberta, Virginia, it may appear to be a ghost town, but it comes alive with the memory of the railroad.