An Amazing Universe

Sometimes I am overwhelmed by the wonderful things that happen to me as a result of music. I've been a train buff as long as I can remember. My Grandfather built an HO layout for me with plaster mountains, a tunnel, two turnouts and a mountain division. I've seen myself in 8mm home movies playing with that layout in my pajamas when I got it for Christmas.  There was a Lionel "Texas Spacial" Alco FA and a Revell F7 in Santa Fe War Bonnet colors.  I remember the Lehigh Valley hopper and a "Radioactive Materials" flat car like they were yesterday. Those two cars are probably in boxes somewhere around the house.

I say all this to put something extraordinary in perspective. Jim Wrinn came to the Steam Into History excursion last Saturday, 27 July 2013. He is the current editor of Trains Magazine - the most important magazine of the railroad industry, as well as a great fan magazine - http://www.trains.com

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, Elvis is in the building. He was in disguise with sunglasses and and a jungle hat - admiring Northern Central #17 as she built steam for the day. With some trepidation, I went over and introduced myself. It was easier to meet Vince Gill, but I don't think Jim noticed my "star-struck" glow. Maybe he did, but, Jim was fun to talk with and I soon felt at ease. I needed to prep for the day's performances on the train. Everything has to be portable - meaning strapped to me - so it takes a few minutes. I excused myself and got ready. I was glowing.

As I got to the train, Jim was there taking pictures and he snapped one of me with my concertina, which I use to welcome people aboard and give them that "Happy Feeling". Notice the Trains Magazine lapel pin that Jim gave to me.

After the train got underway, everything became a blur as I hurried about getting acquainted with passengers. I saw Jim at several grade crossings. He must have planned his train chasing. I bet he's a pro - well, actually, he is! After all, Jim is the Editor of Trains Magazine. He was getting photos on a beautiful summer day in York County, Pennsylvania. Visions of international media exposure for the train flashed through my head. People are going to come here in droves. We're already selling out most of the excursions. We'll have to get another locomotive.

As soon as we got to Hanover Junction, PA, I jumped off the passenger coach platform and started playing "Shenandoah" - one of the most well-known songs of the American Civil War. It sets the mood for the passengers to walk around the restored station complex that Abraham Lincoln passed twice - on the way to - and back from - the Gettysburg Address in November 1863. Lincoln also passed there in State on his Funeral Train on his way back to Springfield, Illinois.

Then, in 1876, Terrance Mullins - a character I portrayed on The History Channel - tried to steal Lincoln's Body from his tomb in Springfield. - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1374959/

You see - this all ties together.

It is amazing that this universe has allowed me to do so much - to meet Jim Wrinn - to make music - to play trains - to act on The History Channel - and to work on the railroad that carried Lincoln's Body!

Thank you, Jim Wrinn for visiting our railroad and thank you for forwarding that wonderful picture that you took of me.

Patch Town Days at Eckley Miners' Village

PATCH TOWN DAYS

Saturday & Sunday - 

June 15 & 16

10am - 5pm both days

Eckley Miners' Village should have been a ghost town in the mountains of northeastern Pennsylvania, but a series of miracles happened.

Movie Town

In the late 1960s, Paramount Pictures thought this would be a great location to film "The Molly Maquires" starring Sean Connery, Richard Harris and Samantha Eggar.

Eckley had hardly changed since the mid-1800s. The buildings represented a typical "company town" of the Anthracite Mining region of Pennsylvania. It looked the part that was needed for the movie's era and locale, where families really lived.

With an 11 million dollar budget, Paramount was able to restore Eckley, Pennsylvania, including moving the electric wiring underground and pulling off post 1870s features, such as TV antennas.

Paramount constructed a large coal breaker near the middle of the town to provide a background that established the town's mining status.  They also constructed a series of mining cars. They are four-wheeled cars with link and pin couplers and hand brakes. Many of these cars still exist, though some of them are badly deteriorated.

Preservation

The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission took this treasure town and preserved it by turning it into a large living history mining museum. Creative financing has helped to preserve this wonderful town. Living historians - and other residents - can actually live here by paying rent and agreeing to a strict set of rules that preserves the historical character of the village. The cars that you see on the streets are antiques. The facades present a company town appearance.

An Annual Event

Patch Town Days are held annually on the third weekend in June. In 2013, the event will be on the 15th and 16th of June.

Kent Courtney Live

Kent Courtney will be making personal appearances with performances of historical music on both days of the event. He will be singing a mix of union organizing songs, railroad songs, mining songs and Irish songs.

His stories will include the struggles that lead to the formation of the United Mine Workers - including some interesting facts about the fabrication of events surrounding the Molly Maguires. In his research, he has discovered a connection between the mine owners' persecution of their own workers in Pennsylvania and the mine owners in Colorado. Their tactics - and the pawns of the mine owners - were the same.

Living Historians

There are a lot of things to do during Patch Town Days at Eckley Miners' Village. Many different occupations are represented by knowledgeable actors who portray the lifestyles of people in the anthracite patch in the 1800s and early 1900s.

You can watch girls washing clothes and see food being cooked over a campfire. There's a policeman, fancy gentlemen, ladies and many mine workers are portrayed.  Eckley Miners' Village truly comes to life.

Blacksmithing

Two working blacksmiths will provide continuing demonstrations at the Blacksmith shop where visitors can watch the fabrication of iron tools in a forge typical of the type used in mining areas. Specialized tools were required to drill holes for blasting in the mines with the hand-powered drilling methods used to create the holes where dynamite would be inserted to open up coal seams.

Single and Double Jacking


Small hand drills looked like chisels when driven and hammered by one person - single jacking.  Double jacking drills were longer, being used by a two person team.  In double jacking one person would hold a bit and twist it as another used a large sledge-like hammer to create the holes for the dynamite.  Both of these styles of bits wore out quickly while being hammered into the coal and rock. So, the blacksmiths were constantly busy sharpening bits and creating new ones.

Railroads

Without the railroads, the coal business could not have developed the industry associated with the nearly smokeless anthracite. In the 1870s, the four-wheeled train cars used to haul coal were called "jimmies". These short cars are represented by the left-over props from Paramount's movie, "The Molly Maquires".

Modeling the Miners' Village

There are many details to be found in this living history village that offer model railroaders a chance to look at an earlier period's lifestyle that can be translated into accurate scenes on a train layout.  The Molly Maguires was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Art Direction, so the source for this look has won critical acclaim. It's always good to look for "best examples" when choosing prototype scenery.

First Excursion of Steam Into History 2JUN13

The weather was beautiful for the start of the Civil War steam train excursions out of New Freedom, PA. This would be just another photograph except for a chance inclusion of Debi Dwyer Beshore in the left background. As usual, she is busy on the cellphone, coordinating a dozen things at a time in her role as Manager of Steam Into History.

 Somehow, this looks like a scene out of The Waltons with Kent talking to the Fireman of the "York", number 17 of the Northern Central Railway - pictured in the background.

 For the start-up celebration, Kent provided the PA system, and of course sang some of his favorite Civil War and railroad songs, while telling the story of the Northern Central Railway. That guitar amp at the lower left of this photograph is a Peavey Austin 400, Kent's favorite guitar amp.

 There she is, the "York" under steam and smoking up a storm as she heads toward Glen Rock, Pennsylvania.

Today's excursion was sold out and there were many people who couldn't get a ticket. Because of the popularity of this Civil War train ride, it is suggested that you get tickets online at http://www.steamintohistory.org