The Official Newsletter of the ORHS Autumn 2010-4

ALL ABOARD
The Official Newsletter of the ORHS
Autumn 2010-4
MEDINA LOOP EXPRESS, OPERATION LIFESAVER, JUMPIN’ PUMPKIN JAMBOREE, “RIDING WITH SANTA”
ORHS ACTIVITIES & INFORMATION AND RAILROAD NEWS ITEMS
ORHS News from Your Editor, Richard Jacobs
The Orrville Railroad Heritage
Society enjoyed a very active
autumn. As the hours of daylight
waned, the activities seem to
increase. We operated several
ORHS trains, assisted on others,
and had several Orrville depot activities. . The Orrville Union
Depot Museum was open for visitors on the 2nd and 4th
Saturday afternoons each month. All of our activities were not
based in or from Orrville, however. Our passenger crews also
assisted on trains out of Brewster, Hartville, Medina and
Warrenton, Ohio. ORHS had a booth at the Wayne County
Fair in Wooster, Ohio. A safety poster display from our
Railroad Safety Poster contest was in the 4-H building.
The exciting railroad movie “Unstoppable” hit the
theaters on November 12. It was based on a 2001 railroad train
runaway in Ohio, and actively participated in by the ORHS.
We supplied two of our coaches, with two members for
mechanical support, for the movie production. See my article
about our involvement on page 9.
The ORHS ran four “Riding With Santa” trains from
Orrville to Lodi and return each day on November 27 and
December 4. Members also assisted the Wheeling & Lake Erie
Railway with their Santa Express trains. The ORHS also
supplied a complete passenger consist and locomotive 471 for
those trains. Before the Santa trains, ORHS supplied
passenger cars and crew for the “McKinley Day” trains at
Hartville, Ohio on October 16. See my article on page 7.
After all the hectic activities, we took time to dine
together and celebrate the year at our annual dinner meeting in
Orrville on December 7. We re-elected the current officers for
2011 and presented awards to several deserving members. In
summary, we were very active and accomplished much during
the last quarter of 2010. We are planning for and looking
forward to another great year in 2011.
Medina Loop Express.
The Orrville to Medina fall foliage excursion was held on Oct.
9th, to the A.I. Root Candle Co in Medina. A buffet lunch was
served to many passengers who selected the optional lunch.
Other passengers lunched and shopped nearby.
Operation Lifesaver Trains
Operation Lifesaver trains were operated for several
Northeastern Ohio school districts in October. ORHS
locomotive #471 and all five coaches were used on those
trains. See Bill Engel’s report on page 4.
Jumpin’ Pumpkin Jamboree
The 6th annual Jumpin' Pumpkin' Jamboree was held Oct. 23
from Mc Gill Street in Orrville. Many folks took time to take
their young’uns up into the cab of ORHS locomotive #471.
The young folks were excited by the visit. Hot dogs, soda pop,
and other snacks were available trackside from ORHS
concession car #105. The Orrville Depot Museum was open
for viewing. Tickets for “Riding With Santa” trains were sold
and the depot Gift Shop was open for souvenirs.
“Riding With Santa Trains
The 2010 Santa Train rides were operated on Nov. 27th, and
Dec. 4th. They again operated from Orrville to Lodi and
return. ORHS partnered with the Lodi Railroad Museum for
the December 4 trains. Christmas at the Depot was celebrated
in the Orrville Union Depot Museum both days. The depot
museum was also open on Friday evening, November 26 as
part of Orrville’s “Home for the Holidays” celebration.
December Dinner Meeting
The annual carry-in dinner and awards banquet was held in the
party room of Maibach’s Ford agency in Orrville on Tuesday,
December 7. Membership dues were collected. The current
slate of officers were re-elected for 2011. Awards were
presented to several deserving members.
ORHS membership meetings are held the first
Tuesday of each month at 7:00 PM in the Orrville
historic depot, just off of West Market Street. The
public is invited to attend any ORHS membership
meetings.
For more ORHS information, visit the ORHS website at
www.orrvillerailroad.com
Rails to Trails in Wayne County
The construction of the biking and hiking trail on the former
Erie/EL roadbed from Creston to Rittman in northern Wayne
County is mostly complete. The active Erie Lackawanna
railroad line was removed by Conrail in 1982. A paved trail
way has been provided for cyclists and hikers. The former
B&O Sterling freight station building and a parking lot has
been located at Kauffman Avenue in Sterling. The former EL
bridge west of Kauffman Avenue has been replaced to allow
2
trail users to cross the creek. The railroad bridge was removed
by Conrail.
ALL ABOARD
3
ALL ABOARD
The ORRVILLE RAILROAD
HERITAGE SOCIETY Inc.
(ORHS), founded by a small
group of railroad enthusiasts in
1978, promotes the preservation
of our Ohio railroad heritage.
ORHS is a non-profit 501(c)(3) historical and educational
organization based in Orrville, Ohio, a town that owes its
very existence and development to the railroad industry.
Membership is open to the general public and those
interested in preserving the railroad heritage and history
of Orrville and the surrounding area.
The Orrville Railroad Heritage Society holds
monthly meetings at 7:00 PM on the first Tuesday of each
month at the Orrville Union Depot at 145 South Depot
Street, just off West Market Street. The December dinner
meeting is held elsewhere. Those interested in learning
about the ORHS, or joining, are certainly welcome!
WE ENCOURAGE RESIDENTS of ORRVILLE and WAYNE
COUNTY, and ALL PEOPLE to BECOME AWARE OF and
INVOLVED with the ORHS.
ORHS 2010 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
2011 ORHS Event Schedule
CHAIRMAN / LOCOMOTIVE & TRAIN CREW
ADRIAN ESKEW
330-484-1101
PRESIDENT / LOCOMOTIVE & TRAIN CREW
JOHN HARDING
330-939-4300
VICE PRESIDENT / FOOD SERVICE
ANNA DAVIDSON
330-682-6673
CO-SECRETARIES
SANDY ENGEL
330-854-4466
TREASURER / EXCURSIONS
BILL ENGEL
330-854-4466
TICKET SALES
ROGER SCOTT
330-682-4372
MEMBERSHIP
RENEE BENDER
330-464-3046
SAFETY
DEAN MARK
330-695-4251
RENOVATION / SPECIAL ACTIVITIES
ROGER SCOTT
330-682-4372
GIFT SHOP
BOB CUTTING
330-698-2367
DONATIONS
(Open at this time)
PASSENGER CAR ATTENDANTS
JIM FULLER
330-497-7529
RAIL EQUIPMENT
LARRY MARSHALL
330-682-4311
LOCOMOTIVE & TRAIN CREW
LYNN BUTTS
330-455-6391
RICHARD WILLIAMS
330-494-2604
AT LARGE
JERRY BEACH
330-484-9815
CHAIRMAN EMERITUS
HOWARD WADE
STUART, FL
SPECIAL ASSIGNMENTS
OPERATION LIFESAVER PROGRAMS & TRAINS
SANDY ENGEL
330-854-4466
BILL ENGEL
330-854-4466
RAILROAD SAFETY POSTERS
ROY CARMONY
330-262-5555
PASSENGER EXCURSIONS TRAINMASTER
STEVE MAGIER
330-683-2729
PUBLICATIONS and NEWSLETTER
RICHARD JACOBS
330-682-6213
The 2011 Excursion and Events Schedule is
currently being planned. The ORHS office in the
depot will open on March 1, 2011.
2010 ORHS Passengers/Riders
From Roger Scott
ORHS carried 5258 passengers in our coaches and riding the
track cars during our four days of mainline excursions and two
days of local operations in Orrville. ORHS ticket agent Roger
Scott provided the counts.
Mainline Passenger Excursions
“Museum Flyer” Orrville to Bellevue trip
162
“Medina Loop Express” Orrville to Medina trip 322
“Riding With Santa” Nov 27 Orrville to Lodi trips 1,066
“Riding With Santa” Dec 4 Orrville to Lodi trips 1,154
Train and Track Car riders Orrville Events
Railroad Days
Jumpin’ Pumpkin Jamboree
Total passengers/riders for 2010
1,316
1,278
5268
It Was Fair Time Again!
Saturday, September 11 through Thursday,
September 16 --- The ORHS sponsored a booth on the
Midway, near the Grandstand at the Wayne County Fair again
year. Members were on hand to provide information on our
activities and events.
ORHS Library
ORHS has a sizeable collection of railroad books in its
library. Recent additions have been catalogued and entered
into our card file by member Connie Naus. Any member
interested in checking out a book from our library should stop
by and do that.
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ALL ABOARD
Presidents' Peal
By John Harding
Well, yet another year has been notched on all of our belts. Of
course, some have had to let out a notch or three after the
holiday, especially after the great ORHS yearly dinner a few
weeks ago. Speaking of which, on behalf of the rest of the
officers, thank-you for showing your approval of our efforts,
you demonstrated this by re-electing last years’ officers.
We are looking forward to some new venues for our
excursions this year, so keep your eyes on the newsletter and
we will fill in the details as they become available. We are not
sure of the number of Santa outings this coming year as we
really had a tough time getting folks to commit to hosting with
so many runs so close together week after week. We did three
days of Santa runs the weekend after Thanksgiving and
another day of runs the following Saturday. Even wilder, the
W&LE has offered the possibility of yet another Santa run if
we want it. We shall keep you posted.
In keeping with past practice, I would like to take a
moment to thank Kristine Deitz for her efforts this past year.
This young lady has a knack for showing up and making a
huge contribution every time we turn around. It just seems that
whatever it is that needs done gets done with a minimum of
discussion and without anyone really needing to ask. Ticket
sales and credit card orders? Done! Need someone to man the
table on the siding on our days with the track cars and train?
Done! Need those excursion signs back in the Depot? Done!
Thanks Kristine, and if you know of others with the drive and
enthusiasm you show us, please bring them along.
So, ‘till
next newsletter, thanks for all the help from everyone last
year. Let’s do it again this year folks.
You’re humble President,
John Harding
Treasurer’s Report
By Bill Engel
As of the Executive Committee meeting on October 26, we
had $11,500 less in our checking account than we did at this
time in 2009. As I reported to the members of the committee
this was mainly due to not having the income we had last year
from the movie company filming “Unstoppable”.
The good news is we sold 323 tickets for the
“Medina Loop Express” trip on October 9. In fact we even
leased an outside car to accommodate all the passengers who
wanted to ride! Even with the added car lease expense and the
freight to ship it to the W&LE interchange point this was
welcome revenue. Tickets have been on sale since July 15 for
the “Riding with Santa” trips on November 27 and December
4. Sales, which started out a little slow, picked up closer to the
event and we grossed nearly $50,000. We received coach
lease revenue from McKinley Day in Hartville on October 16
and are due lease revenue from Dennison Depot’s “Polar
Express” trips in December. I plan to report further on our
financial status in the next issue of the “All Aboard”.
I want to say thank you to Jackie Fitzsimmons for filling as
Interim Treasurer while Sandy and I were away during
November.
I will conclude my report with a gentle reminder that
the ORHS is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. Donations
are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. We need
several thousand dollars to complete needed air conditioning
work on coaches 104 and 106. Construction is moving
forward on the signal display at the Depot. Also, keep
bringing in your aluminum cans for Bob Cutting and Roger
Scott to recycle.
Recent Donations
Several donations have been recently made to ORHS by
various members or organizations. They include;
Kathleen (Kitty) Keating, Bob Keating’s widow. Bob
Keating was our # one food concessionaire at Depot Days for
many years. He passed away more than 6 years ago and we are
still receiving donations from him.
All-States Rail Services (Rob Smykal)
Anna Davidson’s co-workers at the Ohio Department of
Revenue in Akron in memory of Sally Wade.
Richard Jacobs, Denise Rehm and Lois Tongish made
donations in memory of Sally Wade as well.
Wayne County Sheriff's Furtherance of Justice Fund and
the Valley Cottage Grange for the 4-H Railroad Safety Poster
Contest.
Mr. & Mrs. Dilyard donated a Union # 29, combination
wood and coal, cast iron caboose stove to the ORHS. The
Dilyards operated a used car agency north of Wooster, near
Madisonburg for many years. The stove was in the lobby of
their sales office. The stove is square, similar to the round
stove on display in our main meeting room. It is a nice
attraction to our displays.
Jay Klemme & Ann Wilson who used to be
members, but who now just contribute.
We are always open to donations of railroad artifacts.
Please contact the depot museum at 330-683-2426.
Ne w ORHS Members
Welcome to the new members who have joined the
ORHS recently. Glad to have you aboard!
Among those are:
· Ed & Kim McIntire, Free Port, Ohio
· Michael Reed, Burton City, Ohio
· Dee Ann Powell, Brunswick Hills, Ohio
· James Pryor II, Canal Fulton, Ohio
· Shirley Bartzi, Wadsworth, Ohio
· Michael McNaulty, North Canton, Ohio
· David & Ann McPeek, Orrville, Ohio
David is a model railroad fan and Ann was the president of
the Orrville Historical Museum Society during 2010
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ALL ABOARD
Operation Lifesaver News
Passenger Rail Update
By Bill Engel
By Bill Engel
Fall 2010 was a busy time for OL activities.
The 4H Railroad Safety Poster exhibit at
the Wayne County Fair kicked events off in
September. Then in October we helped
the W&LE to run four days of OL student
safety trains during the week of October
18. First to ride, on October 19, were 99 fourth grade
students from the Tuslaw Local Schools. Next were 188 fourth
graders from Buckeye Local Schools who rode eastward from
Litchfield toward Medina on October 20. That afternoon 227
Highland Local School fourth graders rode westward from
Sharon Center. This is the group that gets to ride across the
River Styx trestle which is an exciting time for them. On
October 21 Black River Local School’s 89 third graders rode
eastward toward Lodi from Spencer. Later the same day 185
Cloverleaf Local School fourth grade students rode from Lodi
to Creston and return. Finally, on Friday, October 22, it took
two trips to accommodate a large group of 264 Lake Local
School fourth graders from Hartville Elementary who rode
from Hartville to AC&Y Jct.
With the large number of students all five ORHS
passenger coaches were used on these trips. ORHS
locomotive #471 was the power at one end of the train while
W&LE locomotive #102 (with Operation Lifesaver logos) was
at the opposite end. Sandy Engel thanks Jerry Beach, Bill &
Janet Burkholder, Lynn Butts, Denny Deeser, Kristine Dietz,
Bill Engel, Janet & Jim Fuller, John Harding, Kurt Korfhage,
Dean Mark, Rob Smykal, Paul & Kaye Weitzel, and Dick
Williams for their help as car hosts, mechanics, and video
experts. Support from the Ohio Highway Patrol (Officers
Hirsch and Trotter) and Hartville Chief of Police Larry Dordea
is also greatly appreciated.
In 2011 plans are to run OL student safety trains
during the week of May 9, following our Spring excursion.
Please remember to always “Look, Listen, and Live”
when you come to the railroad grade crossings or are near
railroad property.
At
the end of October, Amtrak announced that
they have contracted to purchase 70 ACS64 electric locomotives from Siemens.
These are intended to replace all
existing AEM-7 and HHP-8 locomotives used on
the Northeast Corridor between Washington, DC and Boston
as well as on the Keystone service between New York City
and Harrisburg, PA. This writer remembers the last run of the
ex-Pennsylvania Railroad GG-1 electric locomotive on NJ
Transit in October 1983. The AEM-7 had been introduced
only a few years earlier so their tenure will be nothing like
that of the GG-1 which entered service in the late 1930’s.
For more information about Siemens go to
www.usa.siemens.com
Amtrak has also announced performance improvement plans
for both the Capitol Limited and the Cardinal. Plans for the
Capitol include through cars between Chicago and New York
City. These would be switched to the Pennsylvanian at
Pittsburgh. Both coaches and sleeping cars would run through
to New York. A transition car would provide passengers on
the single level through cars access to the Superliner cars of
the Capitol Limited. Plans for the Cardinal include making it a
daily train instead of the existing tri-weekly schedule.
Implementation of these plans might occur in 2011.
The Ohio 3-C Corridor project received the OK in
September to spend up to $15 million of the $400 million FRA
grant for further engineering and environmental studies.
Unfortunately, Governor-Elect, Republican John Kasich, is
opposed to the project. As a result, U.S. Transportation
Secretary LaHood has taken the unspent $385 million
originally awarded to Ohio and re-allocated it to other states.
The Federal money is now lost to Ohio. Passenger rail
advocates in Ohio are considering what other ways the
project can be moved forward. Watch this column in the “All
Aboard” for any future developments
Ohio Rail Tourism Association News
By Bill Engel
The Ohio Rail Tourism Association (ORTA)
has scheduled their Fall trustee’s meeting
for Saturday, November 13 in Lebanon,
OH. John Harding very graciously
volunteered to be the ORHS delegate at
this meeting due to my being out of town. Topics for
discussion at this meeting are sure to be the All Ohio Rail
Pass, as well as the 2011 ORTA Annual Conference. The
Conference is planned for April 9, 2011. CVSR will be the host.
Save the April 9 date and watch for more details in the next
“All Aboard”!
Buckeye Local Schools students board the OLS train at
Litchfield, OH on October 20. Bill Engel photo
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ALL ABOARD
2010 Jumpin’ Pumpkin’ Jamboree
Train Rides
By Roger Scott
Our sixth annual Jumpin’ Pumpkin
Jamboree was held on October 23,
providing train and track car rides for
visitors. The track cars operated
between train trips up the track.
Visitors were allowed up in the cab of
locomotive #471 between trips. The
young folks were thrilled to put their hands on the throttle and
brake, and to blow the diesel’s horn.
The ORHS concession car was spotted on the siding
to provide snacks and souvenirs for our visitors. The Orrville
Depot Museum was open for visitors to view the railroading
displays inside and visit the Gift Shop.
We started with two coaches on the train, but before
our 2nd trip out to the W&LE mainline, we added more
coaches, due to the large crowd of riders. The weather was
much nicer than last year, and the turnout was really good.
There were at least ten track cars running, which helped a lot.
Last year we had only had four; they could not keep up.
Thanks to ORHS member Mr. Dean Mark for lining them up.
Something that also helped was moving the event date to later
in the month. Track car rallies are held the first two weekends
of October.
I was disappointed with the turnout of our members
to help, however. Several said they would help, but didn’t
show up on event day. Most of our volunteers had to staff their
stations alone. I hope it will be better in 2011.
We have set next year’s date for October 22. It would
be nice to have other Orrville organizations get involved.
Hope to see you all there!
The wonder of it all! Father and son watching the track cars go
by.
Passengers are eager to board the ORHS train
Many thanks to any and all who helped with
Jumpin’ Pumpkin Jamboree 2010!
Adrian explains how the controls work to an interested family.
The boys are thrilled!
JPJ Photos by Richard Jacobs
Starting the track cars for the JPJ at 10:47 AM on 10/23/2010.
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ALL ABOARD
2011 Officers, ORHS President
In Memory Of
By Roger Scott
SALLY WADE, age 81, wife of ORHS Chairman Emeritus
Howard Wade, and mother of ORHS Vice President Anna
Wade, passed away on September 9, 2010. A memorial
service was held on November 6, 2010 at the United Church
of Christ in Orrville. Sally was active in ORHS activities, and
served as ticket agent for several years. Memorial donations
may be made to the Orville Railroad Heritage Society.
DAVID ATHMAN, age 72, of North Canton, passed away on
Saturday, November 13, 2010. David proudly served our
country in the United States Navy where he retired from in
1981 following 23 years of service. Memorial donations may
be made to the Orville Railroad Heritage Society or the Lodi
Railroad Museum.
MARTHA C. BAER, ORHS life member, died Dec. 4.
Martha was not an active member, however she was the wife
of William B. Baer; Bill Baer was an active member. ORHS
coach 101 was named for Bill. She was also the mother of
James Baer of Mentor, also a life member.
JOHN THOMPSON, of Orrville died July 10, 2010. John
was an ORHS member along with his wife Bonnie. Bonnie
always makes cookies for the Christmas at the Depot open
house.
After the election of the 2011 officers, Mr. John Harding said
this will be his last year as president; someone else will have
to take over next year.
I would like to tell our members, I have been very
impressed with all John has taken on, and accomplished this
past year. He has done things that many of our members,
including me, have complained about for years. For example,
the frame of a coach we scrapped out years ago finally
disappeared, as did piles of scrap metal, and piles of rotted
cross ties that came from various projects, including the
laterals from our Main St. grade crossing that Bob Bixler
repaired over 5 years ago. The siding looks very nice, better
than it has for many years. The riding lawn mower has been
moved out of the depot building, where it has been stored for 3
years. When it came into the depot, it was only to be there 3 or
4 months, probably a violation of our insurance policy. John
also took on the task of renovation of our track car. He
participated in every event we did in 2010, when other
members were on vacation or away.
John told me when he was elected in late 2009 he
would probably be doing things his way and we would have to
like it or else. I must say, he has accomplished a lot, he is not
afraid to tackle any project.
Smucker’s Christmas Plate
Each Christmas season, the J.M.Smucker
Company produces a collectible dinner plate
with a Christmas motif. This year the plate
features the Orrville 1868 former
Pennsylvania Railroad Union Depot, home
of the ORHS. It displays a nostalgic scene of
an old fashion steam train passing the depot laden with snow
and ice. A very Christmassy scene indeed! Steve and Barbara
Magier brought some plates to the ORHS Board meeting on
December 28. They were gifts to the Board members from the
Smucker Company.
Plates may be purchased at Simply Smucker’s on Route 57,
south of Orrville. Some folks collect them every year.
Remember!
Contributions in memory of fallen ORHS
members may be sent to the Orrville Railroad Heritage
Society, P.O. Box 11, Orrville, 44667-0011.
Remember When?
Railfans photograph an ORHS passenger
excursion behind Ohio Central’s 4-8-4
#6325. Richard Jacobs photo
A
W&LE
passenger train behind 4-4-2 #2001
stops at the Dalton, OH depot long
ago. Passenger service ended on the
Wheeling in 1938. The Wheeling former mainline from
Orrville to Massillon has been abandoned. The ORHS uses a
portion of the original line from Orrville to Orrville Junction,
where it joins the current mainline. Photo
from
Richard
Jacobs collection. (left)
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ALL ABOARD
Annual Dinner Meeting
Our Annual Meeting was held Tuesday December 7, 2010 at
the social room of Maibach Ford in the north end of Orville. A
social time was followed with a sumptuous meal. The meal,
including dishes prepared by many members, was enjoyed by
all. Dues were collected for 2011 membership. No changes
have been made to the dues structure at this point.
After dinner, election of ORHS officers for 2011 was
held. The incumbent slate was returned to office by a near
unanimous vote of the members. Service awards for 2010
were presented by President John Harding. They are;
· Service Award Jackets:
Don Henderson, Donna Shaffer, Ralph Shaffer, Kristene
Deitz, and Ted Deitz
· Unsung Heroes:
Glenn Bowman, Russell Jaite, Roger Scott, Ted Deitz,
Denny Deeser, Lynn Butts, Paul Weitzel
· Member(s) of the Year:
Kristine Deitz, Steve Magier
A door prize drawing concluded a festive evening.
There were members at the dinner that we do not see often
enough. Congratulations to the returned elected officers, a
vote of confidence by the members for a job well done in
2010. Congratulations also to the members awarded for their
outstanding service in 2010.
We are primed and ready for the New Year 2011!
ORHS President John Harding awards the “Member of the
Year” plaque to Kristine Deitz at the December dinner
meeting on December 7, 2010. Richard Jacobs photo
New Members are welcome! New members keep us
going! We need new people to help further the heritage and
history of the railroads of Orrville and elsewhere, a task
undertaken by the Orrville Railroad Heritage Society (ORHS).
The revenues from our excursions help do that. Our members
staff those excursions, and also help with maintaining our
passenger cars. They also help at events at our 1868 former
Pennsylvania Railroad depot. ORHS has plenty of
opportunities for those wishing to enjoy the fellowship with
good people with similar railroad interests.
Hartville’s Mc Kinley Day Trains
By Richard Jacobs
Five roundtrip train excursions from
the historic Hartville Train Station to
Mogadore were operated on October
16, 2010 by the Wheeling & Lake
Erie Railway. The hour-long leisurely
trek by rail was a part of Hartville’s
McKinley Day celebration. The trains
journeyed along the golf course of Congress Lake and the
waters of Wingfoot Lake. Two hundred seats per run were
sold. The train was scheduled for four runs every two hours
starting at 9:15 a.m. A fifth run at 5:15 p.m. was added, due to
the overwhelming response for tickets. President William
McKinley impersonator Jerry Sandifer was onboard the train.
McKinley was no stranger to Hartville and the train service
from Canton to Congress Lake. He was a founding member of
the Congress Lake Club, then known as a hunting club.
McKinley was a Canton prosecutor, governor and the 25th
President of the United States.
The five trains ran from Hartville MP Q47.4 to
Mogadore about 8 miles north on the Wheeling’s Cleveland
subdivision and returned to Hartville. At MP Q40.1, the line
met the Akron subdivision of the Wheeling, which is the
former Akron, Canton & Youngstown Railway. Both lines
became part of the current W&LE in May 1990 when spun off
from Norfolk Southern, the owner and operator at that time.
The line is former original W&LE/Cleveland, Canton &
Southern/Cannotton Valley. The line was originally 3 foot
narrow gauge. It was widened to standard gauge in one day on
Sunday, November 18, 1888 with the simultaneous effort of
1,150 men along the 115 miles of mainline track.
Motive power for the trains was the Wheeling’s GP35’s #’s 106 and 102. Coaches and train crew were provided
by the Orrville Railroad Heritage Society (ORHS). The ORHS
train crew assisted the loading and unloading of passengers, as
well as providing assistance and trip highlights along the way.
NOTE: Some information for this article was
obtained from the Suburbanite.com website. Information on
the CC&S/CV track widening is from John B. Corns book
“The Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway.”
Passengers are loading the McKinley Day train at Hartville,
OH on October 16, 2010. The Hartville depot and C&O wood
caboose are nearby, at the left in the photo.
Richard Jacobs photo (left)
9
ALL ABOARD
ORHS 2010 Santa Trains
By Richard Jacobs
Orrville Railroad Heritage Society (ORHS) sponsored two
weekends of Santa Claus trains listed as “Riding With Santa.”
Four round-trip trains ran from Orrville to Lodi, Ohio on
Saturday, November 27 and December 4. Santa Claus was
onboard to chat with the young folks and thrill their parents.
Santa’s elves passed out gift bags to the youngsters. Santa’s
and children was the subject of many Christmas photographs
by excited parents. Member Dean Mark organized the Santa’s
for the trips and portrayed the jolly old elf himself.
The train of several coaches from the Orrville
Railroad Heritage Society was led by ORHS locomotive #471
westbound to Lodi, while a locomotive from the Wheeling &
Lake Erie Railway (W&LE) led the trains eastbound on the
return to Orrville. Four private cars were also part of the train,
the W&LE #1990 (former Bob Bixler’s Buckeye Lady), Larry
Marshall’s “C&B Marshall” #3850, Glenn Bowman’s “Paul
Revere” #3125 and J. Kidd’s former RF&P #386. ORHS
concession car #105 provided snacks and souvenirs for the
passengers. ORHS volunteers staffed the train, which was
operated by a W&LE railroad crew.
The train consist was operated from Orrville to Lodi, OH on a
cold and cloudy Saturday, November 27. Four trains were
operated that day, starting at 10 AM on a two hour schedule.
They traveled west from Orrville to Lodi and returned. Four
Santa trains from Orrville were repeated on Saturday,
December 4. The Lodi Railroad Museum was a partner for the
December 4 trips, with members and their families boarding
the trains at Lodi.
The Orrville Depot Museum was open both
Saturdays for passengers and visitors to view the many
railroad exhibits inside. An operating model train layout
entertained young and old alike. Christmas cookies, hot
chocolate and coffee warmed the visitors, while the Christmas
tree and trimmings fed their holiday spirit. The depot Gift
Shop was open for Christmas items and railroad souvenirs.
The 1868 former Pennsylvania Railroad depot was also open
for Orrville’s “Home for the Holidays” town wide celebration
on Friday evening, November 26.
Visitors enjoy the Christmas trimmings, displays and the
model trains at the Orrville Depot Museum on 11/27/2010.
As the last “Riding With Santa” train came to a halt in
Orrville at 6:00 PM on Saturday, December 4, it provided a
spirited conclusion to two weekends of ORHS holiday
festivities on the railroad.
Santa listens to a young passenger's "Christmas Wish List" on
the 11/27/2010 "Riding With Santa" train.
A Happy New Year to One and All
From The Orrville Railroad Heritage Society
Santa waves from ORHS car #105 on 11/27/2010.
Richard Jacobs’s text and photos
10
ALL ABOARD
“Medina Loop Express”
Fall Foliage Tour 2010
By John Harding
The morning of Saturday, October 9, 2010 dawned bright and
clear, with the promise of temperatures in the low 70’s. We
had 310 anxious passengers waiting for the ORHS crew to tell
them it was time to board. Mr. Dean Mark was our trainmaster
for this trip. Soon enough everyone was seated, and we headed
east from Orrville.
We experienced a smooth and uneventful trip to
Medina. As usual, one of the highlights of the trip to Medina
was the run over the River Styx trestle. It gives a very
different look when you are up above and looking down into
the valley below. Due to the yearly track replacement that is
ongoing with the W&LE, we made good time to Medina.
Our stop in Medina was highlighted by Mr. and Mrs.
John Root personally greeting us as we arrived at the A. I.
Root Candle Company. We were welcomed into the store
there known as West Liberty Commons. As one can imagine,
the ladies got immense pleasure out of shopping there. For
those of us choosing to dine in the conference room there, Old
Schoolhouse Catering put on a wonderful spread. We
managed to feed 280 persons in about one hour and fifteen
minutes. This was in a large part due to the great job of setting
up the tables done by A. I. Roots’ director of marketing
Heather DeRosha and her assistants. Also very helpful were
the people kind enough to eat and depart without lingering.
Some folks chose to walk into town and dine at other
establishments. Also we were parked next to an old train depot
that is now an antique shop. So the ladies were able to score
all around. We have been told that the A. I. Root Company
will welcome us with open arms anytime we see fit to return.
We experienced a trouble free and quick ride back to
Orrville and detrained in daylight after a great day on the rails
and some great times in Medina. Consideration is being given
to returning to the A.I.Root Candle Company again in the
future, possibly after a fall trip to another destination in 2011.
Any suggestions or comments will be gratefully received at
anytime.
Inspiration for “Unstoppable”
By Richard Jacobs
The movie “Unstoppable” was inspired by the "Crazy Eights"
unmanned train incident in 2001. The train, led by CSX
Transportation SD40-2 #8888, left its Walbridge, Ohio, rail
yard and began a 66-mile journey through northwest Ohio
with no one at the controls, after the engineer got out of the
originally slow-moving train to correctly line a switch,
mistakenly believing he had properly set the train's dynamic
braking system, just as his counterpart in the movie did.
Two of the train's tank cars also contained
thousands of gallons of molten phenol, a toxic ingredient of
paints and dyes harmful when it is inhaled, ingested, or
comes into contact with the skin. Attempts to derail the train
using a portable derailer failed, and police were unable to
shoot out the fuel release valve, instead hitting the fuel cap.
For two hours, the train traveled along at speeds up to
47 miles per hour until the crew of a second train coupled
onto the runaway and slowly applied its brakes. Once the
runaway was slowed down to a speed of 11 miles per hour, a
CSX employee, trainmaster Jon Hosfeld, ran alongside the
train and climbed aboard, shutting down the locomotive. The
[21]
train was stopped just southeast of Kenton, Ohio.
CSX ran an Operation Lifesaver Enforcement Train
northbound from Columbus to Toledo on its Toledo Branch
sub the same day of the “Crazy Eights” runaway train. It
arrived in Walbridge to turn for the return trip to Columbus
shortly before #8888 began its wild run. That train was held
instead and its passengers (Operation Lifesaver invitees)
ultimately were returned to their point of origin by bus. ORHS
members Sandy and Bill Engel were among the passengers on
the Enforcement train! They had boarded at Kenton for the
trip to Toledo.
One of the reasons the “Crazy Eights” event got so
much coverage, in Bill’s opinion, is that the media people on
board the Enforcement train were given the "scoop" about it.
The various police agencies, with officers available to watch
for crossing violations when the Enforcement train passed,
were thus able to protect the crossings for the runaway.
Information for this article obtained from Wickipedia.org
website and from ORHS member Bill Engel.
“Medina Loop Express” passengers enjoy the buffet lunch at
the A.I.Root Company in Medina, OH.
Bill Engel photos
W&LE “Operation Lifesaver” locomotive #102 waits at
Litchfield, OH for Buckeye Locals students on October 19.
11
ALL ABOARD
ORHS #471 leads the westbound "Riding With Santa" train west of Orrville on 11/27/2010. RJ photo