Posts that don’t fall under other categories
Congratulations to the winners in our May 2021 Chapter Photo Contest! They were, 1st Place, Bill Grady, 2nd Place, Cooper Smith and 3rd Place Bill Grady. Our next contest will run from July 15 -31st, 2021 and your entries need to be submitted no later than August 7th to jim@jimpearsonphotography.com. Each dues paying member may submit two JPGs.
Past Chapter presidents Rich Hane and Rick Bivins joined our current Chapter President Keith Kittinger for an impromptu clean up day at Kentucky Innovation Station (Old L&N Depot in Madisonville, Ky) where we hold our monthly meetings of the West Kentucky Chapter of the NRHS.
The grounds were much in need of mowing, weeding and the bushes were unruly. Rich did a fabulous job of bringing them back to form while Keith maned the weed eater and leaf blower. Ricky mowed and trimmed.
We all three cleaned up the resulting debris. It feels good to give back a little to our gracious host, Kentucky Innovation Station on June 9, 2021.
The Oriental Limited is slowly easing by No. 5012, having just exited the original Great Northern Cascade Tunnel in Washington State. Cameras were poised to record the last westbound train over the old snowshed route. But, instead of a happy group of tourists on the back platform of the observation car there was a solitary passenger bundled up against the chill.
This unhappy circumstance was remedied by replacing the lone passenger (by photo retouching) with Wenatchee’s Apple Festival Queen and her Ladies in Waiting before release to the press. The next westbound Oriental Limited will pass through the newly completed 7.79 miles tunnel, several hundred feet below. That tunnel opened on January 12, 1929.
The Oriental Limited was the Great Northern’s premium passenger train prior to introducing the streamlined Empire Builder in 1947. And you thought photo-shopping and spin-control was something new…!
Submitted by Gary Ostlund. – Pix’s by Lee Pickett, Index, WA ., as seen in Charles & Dorothy Woods book: Great Northern Railway a Pictorial Study
President Keith Kittinger adds a helix to his HO scale model railroad. This route will lead to the new Morganfield Branch.
An employee of the L&N Railroad in Paducah, Roy was instrumental in fighting the abandonment of the L&N trackage between Paducah and Murray. In 1981, he incorporated the Western Kentucky Railroad Company in an attempt to purchase the line. Although negotiations were unsuccessful, his efforts delayed abandonment and gave time for Jack Dunigan to create the J&J Railroad from Hardin to Murray. – Submitted by Chris Dees
Greetings West Kentucky NRHS members!
Due to the governors mandate which is due to an increase in COVID-19 cases and Hopkins County being a “red” county, The City of Madisonville has banned pubic meetings. Therefore Innovation Station is closed. As a result the chapter meeting scheduled for Monday, November 16, 2020 is canceled and our next scheduled meeting will be in January 2021. We apologize for the inconvenience, but we must follow the mandate set by our leaders.
A great show tune written by American composer Jerome Kern and lyricist Otto Harback for their 1933 musical Roberta. The popular song has been performed by numerous performers, but the most famous version was recorded in 1958 by The Platters.
Smoke in the eyes of engine crews racing across America’s landscape, however, not so wonderful. The configuration of steam motive power dictated that the smoke stack be up front, ahead of the boiler. That fierce exhaust is what creates the draft, keeping the firebox ablaze. Also, the fireman watched the stack, as a useful gauge on his proficiency.
Most railroad management was oblivious to the problem, but the Union Pacific and a few others solved the problem, to a degree, with “elephant ears,” as they were nick-named. The ears extended in front of the smokebox, curved inward along the top, and with fast forward movement, created an updraft. At slow speeds, tough luck, you best hope for a good side wind. The Southern Pacific solved the smoke problem particularly in their many tunnels by buying Cab-forward steam locomotives.
I can remember vividly parked along the Chilkat River in Alaska back in 1958, drinking terrible home brew, watching the Northern Lights, and listening to the Platters then new hit; “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes,” radio static and all. (It does get better than that…)
Credits: Classic Trains – Winter 2010 – Photos top Stan Kistler collection, bottom Allen W. Madison and Wikipedia
August 17, 2020 – West Kentucky Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society Meeting.
Program: “Stories from the Caboose”
by Neville Crawford, Retired L&N Conductor
Google: Herald&Review Railroad Wrecks after 1980
Congratulations to the winners of our Chapter’s May 2020 photo contest! We had a total of 6 entries this month and congratulations to Bill, Cooper and Ricky for their winning entries! Our next contest will run from July 15-31 with a submission deadline of August 7th of not more than two entries per chapter member!
The May winners are are:
The other entries were…
Our March 2020 chapter photo contest ran from April 15-30th and we had a total of 10 entries from 5 chapter members. The winning entries are below and the other entries are below them. Congratulations to our winners and we hope that everyone will participate in our May contest that runs from May 15-31st. If we are still in the pandemic please observe social distancing! Submission deadline is June 7th and we need a caption with each entry! – Jim Pearson
Former chapter member Bill Heaton has developed his O scale layout with the help of his friend, Bob Welch, who works on the scenery. As you may remember, Bill is a fine scale, rivet counting modeler! Click on any picture for a larger view!
The first photo I shot from a tree at the north portal of Ridge Top Tunnel, Ridge Top, TN. It was more like hanging from a tree as the CSX locomotive passed underneath me. I no longer advocate taking pictures from trees.
Photo by William Farrell, 2018. (Editor’s note: I thought this was just a lot of super-elevation!)
The other three photos were shot at the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum back in 2017. – Photos by William Farrell
David Alan Fraser, 73 of Clay, KY passed away Tuesday, April 7, 2020 at Baptist Health in Madisonville.
David was born in Earlington on June 20, 1946 to the late Emory and Reba Fraser.
He worked at York International where he was an industrial mechanic.
He was a member of the Redeeming Love General Baptist Church in Clay and also a member of Webster County Historical Society, West Kentucky Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society, Civic Club in Earlington and the Earlington Volunteer Fire Department.
Survivors include his wife of 24 years Gayle, 1 son Sean O’Brien (Lisa) of Madisonville, 1 brother John Fraser of Earlington 2 granddaughters Avery and Abigail O’Brien, 1 niece Melanie Fraser and great-niece Avoe Fraser.
Private funeral services will be held. Burial will be in Fraser-Blackwell Cemetery
Memorial contributions can be made to Fraser-Blackwell Cemetery, c/o Ryan Hammack, 93 Old Clifty Road, Clay, KY 42404.
Online condolences can be made at https://www.vanoverfuneralhome.com/obituary/David-Fraser