Mid-Continent Railway Historical Society blog

By: Don Meyer, Manager

This will be the last of the Water Chronicle messages. The water has completely subsided; the Baraboo River is back to its normal depth for this time of year. Even last night’s rain failed to make much of an impact beyond leaving the sky looking clean during my morning’s drive to the museum.

Our recovery efforts will continue to be a major topic of discussion, but not the only one. And we will continue to use the web site to report on our progress, while acknowledging the support and good wishes we receive almost daily from those who care about Mid-Continent’s future operations.

This past weekend we achieved another milestone in our recovery. The Chicago & North Western business car #440 was the first piece in our operating fleet to be rehabilitated and is ready to roll. All we need now is motive power with which to safely maneuver it around the property.

Credit goes to long-time member Bob Ristow for his persistence in doing one of the dirty but critical jobs (repacking journal boxes) necessary for our return to operating status. His efforts are deserving of special mention.

Watch for us in the next issue of Trains Magazine. Editor Jim Wrinn has been following the story of our trials and travails and is giving Mid-Continent his own form of special mention with coverage in his Preservation column. The attention this will bring to our recovery work is appreciated. Even though we would prefer to receive this level of exposure for a different type of accomplishment, the result of his reporting will be a positive one for the museum.

Another friend with considerable influence in the rail community gave us a surprise call that will also benefit our recovery work. Steve Sandberg offered to use his August excursions out of the Wisconsin Dells as an opportunity for Mid-Continent to do a little fund raising. This is an extremely gracious offer as Steve’s excursions with the 261 draw a huge audience and media attention. He does not really need our endorsement to insure the success of his operations, but we are pleased to be able to promote this event in gratitude for the help first extended to us.

I just received my copy of The Fast Mail, the newsletter for the 20th Century Railroad Club. It contains our initial news release about the extent of the flooding and the means by which donations can be made towards the recovery program. Once again we are both humbled and appreciative for the gracious way others have shared the news about the situation here while letting people know how to donate in support of the work.

It is a beautiful morning in North Freedom. The weather is perfect for a train ride. The phone is busy from people calling to inquire about departure times and ticket prices. The walk-in traffic is pretty steady as well. What they see is a fairly neat and orderly setting now that the water has receded and the debris removed. Appearances can be deceiving as we all know and in our case that is definitely the case.

We appear ready to run. Certainly we are willing. And with the work of our volunteers and the financial support of our many friends, we will be back in operating condition soon. Our appearance will once again match our ability to provide the type of experience for which we are best known, a gentle ride aboard vintage equipment in a lovely rural setting along the Baraboo River.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

This was a busy weekend at the museum for the Mid-Continent members and a few local residents as they continued with the cleanup of our facility. I am already thinking that this year’s annual banquet, which we use as the primary occasion to acknowledge volunteer achievements, will have to be something special to match their level of commitment to our recovery efforts.

We have been documenting their work by means of a web page on which we post regular updates about their progress. I encourage you to visit that page as a means to follow the events taking place at the museum. And you can monitor those things taking place within the field of sight of the web cams, which unfortunately does not include the shops where most of the work has been taking place.

Many of you likely avail yourselves of these tools already since I have heard from one of our web masters that web site visits since the flooding began has been overwhelming. And while we have not garnered the attention of the local media like some others in our region have been able to do, we may actually be one of the most accessible stories to a much broader audience thanks to the accomplishments of those members who make our web site such a dynamic asset for communications.

Anyone in my position can and should only feel gratitude for what is taking place around the property. For there are times when I am little more than a glorified spectator as I see others doing the actual work in our recovery, work that meets a need and helps keep our costs down, which has been the hallmark of our organization since its inception. As I mentioned earlier, the volunteer recognition at this year’s annual banquet will have to exceed anything we have done in prior less dramatic years.

But as I occupy a favored position as Mid-Continent’s public representative I am also aware of other activity taking place off-site by people who are not members in the strictest sense, except that we share a common bond as leaders in the rail preservation community. And for the balance of this message I would like to acknowledge their efforts along with a statement of gratitude for their willingness to step across organizational lines and use their influence to benefit our museum.

Bill Grimstead called me about the possible loan of a diesel being shipped this week to the Lake Superior Railroad Museum in Duluth. He is on their Board of Directors and was willing to encourage his fellow directors to approve the loan of this engine if it would help us get up and running sooner. Later that day the museum’s executive director, Ken Buehler, called me with more details about the diesel and the possibility of diverting its movement from Duluth to North Freedom.

Bill is also on the board at the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay. I am not sure if that was a factor in their executive director’s calling me that same day, but it was just as encouraging to hear Michael Telzrow’s voice offering his museum’s support with the loan of another working engine that would get us rolling again.

Similarly Nick Kallas, from the Illinois Railroad Museum in Union, called to let me know they have motive power that will be available after they finish their Diesel Days event a few weeks from now.

One of the first calls I received, almost at the time the flood waters were still rising, was from Noel Petit, who directs the Minnesota Transportation Museum’s operations at the Jackson Street Roundhouse in St. Paul. His offer of help was followed up by an e-mail from Pat Kytola, who works at both the roundhouse and with MTM’s train operations in Osceola, WI.

Not long after I received an e-mail from Eric Hopp, an MTM member who volunteers with their car repair program. He is organizing a group to come down and help with the work being done here cleaning and repacking journal boxes and replacing air brake portions. This is extremely important as we have a sizeable collection of rolling stock, all of which was affected by the flood.

John Walker is a longtime friend, who I first met when I went to work for Ralph Justen at NRM in Green Bay. John was on the Board of Directors there. And when I moved over to the executive director’s position at MTM, John was on the board there too, another one of those railfans with dual citizenship. He has followed my escapades over all of these years and his friendly, sound advice has always been a welcomed source of support. And his counsel during my latest bout with adversity has been just as welcomed.

Robert Franzen stopped by the office to make a donation after participating with Steve Sandberg on the latest 261 excursions. Gifts have also come in from Alan Maples, president of the Everett Rail Road Company; Alan Harper, whom you know as president of the Durango & Silverton Railroad, and Polly Rose. It was especially pleasing to receive Polly’s gift and note of encouragement as an extension of the generosity shown to Mid-Continent over the years by her late husband and renowned artist Ted Rose.

And finally a word of thanks to Jim Wrinn and the folks at Kalmbach Publishing. They have carried the story of our plight over their on-line newswire and are planning to publish photos of the flooding at Mid-Continent in an upcoming issue of Trains Magazine. The publicity is appreciated as it helps to illustrate the extent of the damage done while increasing the chance of further support from those who share our passion for rail preservation.

I am pleased to be part of this vast community and will continue to draw on its collective strength, along with that of our members and volunteers, to assure the future success of the Mid-Continent Railway Museum. Our goal is not just one of survival. It is a desire to look back upon the events of these past two weeks with the certainty that they propelled us to do better and to be better as an operating railroad museum. And with this type of concentrated help we will succeed.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

Yesterday I toured the property with one of our insurance adjusters. He was both amazed and dismayed at the current appearance of our operation. His amazement was at the size of our collection and the extent of what has been accomplished in creating this setting of a vintage short-line railroad. His dismay was at the extent of the recovery work ahead of us.

This tension between two distinct impressions lead to the inevitable question: do you intend to keep this place running?

That may seem like an incredibly naive question to ask of any organization’s manager, but it is not the first time during the events of these past several days that I have been asked something like that. One e-mail message I received this week asked me if we could avoid bankruptcy. The writer then followed that up with the more surprising question of should we.

Such questions really reflect a lack of understanding as to the character of this organization. And I say “this” organization instead of “our” since I must step back for a moment as a paid participant to emphasize a key feature of Mid-Continent that will sustain its existence well beyond this flood or any other problem it confronts.

The heart and soul of this organization is its membership from which it derives a volunteer base of extremely dedicated people. This resource is then supplemented by the goodwill they have created over the years with the general public, who have benefited from the organization’s commitment to preserving a unique representation of place and time in our railroad history.

One person exemplifies that for me. Her name is Julie. She drove up from the Chicago area to volunteer during her two days off from work. She spent yesterday working with one of our members cleaning and sanitizing the restrooms; certainly one of the most disgusting jobs we needed to have done before too many other volunteers arrive on the property to take on other tasks.

At the end of the day Julie came into my office to introduce herself. She is not a member. Her father was, an early life member who brought Julie to North Freedom in the 60s and 70s when she was a little girl so he could indulge his passion for operating trains. The reason she is here now after all these years was simply stated, “My father loved this place.” And that is why Mid-Continent will keep running.

Take a look at the link on our web site that takes you to our page updating you on our recovery progress. You will see that we have added the names of the donors to the recovery effort as well as their comments encouraging us to essentially keep the faith of the rail preservationist community. I think you will see there echoes of Julie’s sentiment about her own involvement.

Mid-Continent is more than just a collection of objects. It is a family whose generations have sacrificed a lot to establish what you see when you tour the grounds, visit the web or read our publications. Closing, even bankruptcy followed by a reorganization program, is not an option. We are simply the current caretakers with a heritage that prevents us from giving up as the result of a moment’s adversity.

Next year we will celebrate Mid-Continent’s 50th anniversary as a historical society. We may not be able to do it to the fullest extent we had dreamed of just a few days ago. But we will be here and there will be train rides given over the same route we have been running on since the members arrived here in 1963. And before that season is over you can expect to see the Western Coal & Coke #1 at the head of the consist.

It is what Julie’s father would do and the many others like him who helped make Mid-Continent what it is, a beloved and well respected historical society with an operating railroad museum.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

It is Monday morning at Mid-Continent and the scene is surprisingly peaceful. The ground is dry in many places, a little damp in others. The only high water is across the road to North Freedom. Still it is shallow enough that people with pickup trucks are not hesitant about ignoring the “Road Closed” barricades and driving on through the relatively shallow waters.

A walking tour, like the one I took last Thursday, is no longer a hazard, just discouraging. Stuff, and by that I mean every thing the water could move, is now scattered around the property. Some things are amusing. The picnic tables that were under the pavilion are now in the south yard. Some things not; the bridge timbers will be extremely hard to retrieve from where they have settled among the trees in the low-lying and still soggy areas.

Everywhere the water has been there is a brown film marking its attainment. A good rain will wash away much of the discoloration, but right now that is the last thing we need.

We are still cautioning people, even those who are intent on helping with the clean-up, to stay away just now. Our water supply is likely contaminated and our sanitary facilities are extremely limited. We cannot handle an influx of people today, no matter how well intentioned. Making sure we have drinkable water and functioning restrooms are top priorities.

Today starts the first of our guided tours. Our exclusive guests these next two days will be insurance adjusters. Like most homeowners I am feeling a bit apprehensive about what they are going to tell me. All the years I have been associated with Mid-Continent our main concern has been the possibility of destruction by fire. We minimized in our thinking the possible threat of flooding in order to keep our premiums low. Now we know better.

I am grateful for our web masters in keeping the public informed of the situation by getting both web cams functioning and posting updates on the web site. I am just as thankful for their activating a secure donation page so that concerned people can support the clean-up efforts from a distance by making a contribution to the museum on-line.

I am extremely grateful to the many donors who have availed themselves of this simple tool. Their participation is just as important to us as those who will be volunteering for clean-up and repair duties.

One extra feature of the new donations page that I have personally enjoyed is the ability of our donors to leave messages along with their gift. All are encouraging. Some impart a sense of care about the museum that we do not always associate with the thoughts and feelings of non-members. So it is good for me to be reminded once again of how others see and appreciate Mid-Continent. I will consider it the silver lining on our otherwise dark cloud.

Our hearts are broken for this terrible time for all of you. We spent a week’s vacation in this area and left around the 25th of May. We loved the train and were in the caboose and talked with the doctor who volunteers one day a week. He was so full of information and all there were so friendly. We bought several gifts from the gift shop. We had barely returned when all this happened. We look at our pictures and weep. We know that you will get it right in time. We pray for all of you there. We shall keep in touch. Richard and Cynthia, Hartselle, AL.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

Like any good chief executive would, I made a tour of the flood damage at the museum. Since I am not the President of the United States of even the Governor of Wisconsin, I was not able to do this by air. Mine was a walking tour, as befitting my lowly status as a museum manager.

The first thing that impresses you is how powerful the water flow is. Not just because you are foolish enough to be standing waist deep in it, but because of the size of the items you see washed up against the equipment and buildings. It is evident that one of our first tasks will simply be the removal of debris and relocating bridge timbers, ties and other items that have been displaced by the river.

Inside each building the scene is both eerie and depressing. By the time I was making my rounds the water level had receded some. The high water mark is easily discernable. Everything above it is clean. Everything below is covered with a muddy film, meaning every surface on the property will have to be cleaned, a process made all the more difficult since we are dealing primarily with wood versus metal. Greater care must be taken.

Perhaps the most disturbing site is the scene inside our Car Shop. This is where all of the restoration work takes place on our wooden car collection. Perhaps it is just a reflection of the fact that most of the materials used are wood and wood floats, but you can’t escape the impression that you are living out a scene from the movie “Titanic”. Wood siding, window frames and paneling are floating at random around the shop. Thankfully no bodies were found.

Once again it is evident from the water marks that most of the electrical equipment was immersed for some period of time. This same scene was reflected in the Engine House as well. The heavier items there do not float so you find them with your shins. But evidence of the damage done to the power tools can be estimated by the height of the water line. Only in the case of the Engine House the mud has a more oily feel to it and leaves a brown stain on your clothes.

As I made my way from the north to the south end of the property, the change in the water’s depth was also impressive. I began my walk in knee high water. By the time I reached the South Yard it was up to my chest; another dumb move on my part since I had forgotten that my cell phone was in my shirt pocket. I had taken it along as a safety precaution in case I became stranded. It has since been replaced out of necessity since the phones at the museum are out of service. The cell is the only way to reach me other than by e-mail.

By the time I made my way back to the road that divides our property in two, the water was more than knee deep. The constant and heavy rainfall we experienced Thursday served to reverse all the gains of the previous 36 hours when the river was in decline. I opted not to try to check out the status of the bridge across the Baraboo River. That can wait for a more opportune time. But it continues to be one of my greatest concerns as it has been subject to the force of the river to an extent that makes me doubt its ability to survive.

The drive home was equally challenging; the time nearly tripled thanks to the increasing number of road closures. I may have been one of the last to make it through a couple of back roads that got me from the museum to Baraboo. But once there Baraboo itself felt like it was in a lockdown. The primary roads going east and southeast were closed, making the easy way home impossible.

I eventually found a route that might also have been closed not long after my escape. Going down Highway 12 past the Baraboo Army Ammunition Plant, the north bound lanes were closed due to the high water over the road. Fortunately for me this section is divided highway and the south bound lanes (technically east by DOT standards) had standing water only at the shoulder.

Long after my arrival home at 9:30pm the rain kept falling and not gently. This was torrential by my amateur estimation. So what I saw when I left Mid-Continent as to the rise in water level was only made worse by the hours that passed before the rain ceased. Today I am staying home.

I have not troubled myself to look at a weather forecast this morning. I do not need the potential discouragement of knowing another shower, however slight, is on the way. Instead my time has been spent on the phone with insurance adjusters and others whose involvement will be needed once the waters due subside.

Given the continual onslaught of snow storms we endured this past winter I would not bet that our troubles will be over anytime soon. It seems plausible to me that one rain storm will follow another so as not to be outdone by its winter cousin for the challenges imposed on mere mortals trying to survive, not to mention the short life expectancy of my cell phone.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

I am late in keeping to my schedule of posting my Monday web log message. But if you have taken a look at our web cam recently, you will know the reason for my preoccupation with other matters.

This past weekend’s series of storms created a flood problem for our area of major proportions. I am sure that when the river finally crests, projected to be sometime late Wednesday or early Thursday morning, the official report will pronounce this to be the worst flooding in our county ever recorded.

Our beautiful setting along the east bank of the Baraboo River has betrayed us. The typically serene backdrop to our train operations has laid claim to the entire operation. No longer content to define the eastern boundary of our rail yard, the river has reached out to cover virtually ever square foot of land occupied by buildings, track and rolling stock.

What you can see on camera one is the depot, looking like an island in the midst of a muddy lake. But what the still images of the web cam cannot adequately reveal is the fact that there is a pretty swift current now running through the property, strong enough to relocate the bridge timbers we had stored in a grassy area just west of the depot. Who knows where we will eventually find them, if at all.

Camera two only slightly illustrates the problems with the southern part of our property. Both the Engine House and the Car Shop are inaccessible except by boat. That is only a slight exaggeration. You can wade over to them as long as you are wearing something more substantial than knee-high boots or are willing to get thoroughly soaked.

Of greater concern is the potential damage done to our coaches and diesel engines. We will not know the extent of our problems until the water recedes sometime next week. But nothing will be rolling at Mid-Continent for quite awhile.

We have two bridges on our line. The one across the Baraboo River is our access to the general system. It was awash by noon on Monday. I did not venture down to La Rue to see how the wooden trestle bridge across Seeley Creek was faring. Instead my attention was focused on the threat of water damage to our office, particularly the basement which houses our archives.

By mid afternoon we heard a rumor that the river was expected to crest at another seven feet from its current level. If true, which seemed a bit exaggerated, it would mean the basement would be totally flooded. Still the water level was creeping ever higher with no prospect of stopping for two more days.

I felt we had to act on the possibility that the rumor might have some legitimacy in its forecast. When I left the property at 9:30 Monday night the entire collection of photos, documents, books and drawings had been moved upstairs thanks to the considerable help of some staff, members, and a few local residents who came to our aide.

The collection now safely occupies every available inch of office and attic space. If the river threatens us any further the only hope will be to airlift the building off of its foundation for relocation to higher ground.

My sleep was not troubled by concerns over what the future holds for our museum. I was too exhausted to care. My day began with a futile attempt to protect the depot with sandbags and ended with an extended drive just to get back to the Village of North Freedom, a mere quarter mile but an hour’s drive away thanks to several road closures.

But now the daylight hours bring me back to working through the process of taking the next steps in getting back to business, only there will be no “as usual” appended to that phrase. For now we are closed to normal operations. And when we do reopen it will no doubt be to a new definition of normal.

In the meantime you can visit us on the web. Or if you feel adventuresome, you can drive to the edge of the new Lake Mid-Continent for a rare photo op, if you can find a road near us that has not been closed due to high water. Good luck.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

This week’s message is going to be a very personal one, which I feel compelled to write due to an incident that took place last week involving a museum guest.

A casual reading of my weekly messages will reveal my favored terminology when it comes to describing the people who respond to our advertisements to come see the collection and ride the train. I avoid such words as customer and patron, even though at the most basic level that is what they are. Instead I use the words visitor and guest.

I think it is important for those of us who provide services at Mid-Continent to remember that the majority of the people we see are here for the first time. The things we take for granted about our operations are new and intriguing to them. They must cope with being disoriented in a place that lacks an adequate supply of directional signage.

This is most evident by the questions we are asked when people arrive on the property: Where do we get tickets, where do we board the train, where are the restrooms, where is the museum?

The pride we take in our operations as members and staff does not need to be diminished when we patiently respond to people who regard us as some kind of novelty. Rather it should be an incentive for us to share our expertise even if it is limited to simply being able to point them in the direction of the depot.

More important to me personally is that we should regard the people who make the effort to come to North Freedom as being our guests. This transcends the mere courtesy of pointing them in the right direction. This implies a moral sense of care and protection during the time they are here, just as if they were guests in our home.

If you ever have the opportunity to take our Brakeman’s Training Class you will learn that the first rule of train operations is safety. We stress this in terms of the danger imposed by working with large, unmerciful equipment. But safety is not limited to a person’s physical well being. It is an emotional condition as well. Our guests need to feel safe as well as being kept safe.

Feeling safe has everything to do with how one is treated. It is the Golden Rule lived out in an environment that smells of diesel fumes and journal oil, of crew members whose uniforms are sweat soaked by the end of the day, of coaches that are little better than ovens in the summer heat, and shop crews who toil in relative isolation – by choice – but pause to give a brief explanation of their work to the occasional guest who wanders into their sacred territory.

My favorite terms, my perception of the people who come here, won’t be found in the Consolidated Code. But anyone who has worked with me over these past few years, whether paid staff or volunteer-member, or read these web log messages has heard me repeat them often.

We have a tradition of great achievements in restorations and operations. We no doubt intend to do more. I am equally devoted to the goal of creating a corporate culture that values people and in terms of our guests that means creating an environment void of fear. We did not do so well at this last week, leaving me with the need to have my say without inflaming the situation further.

Mid-Continent is a great place to visit, to stay, and to volunteer. It is big enough to satisfy everyone’s expectations as to why they came. Even the manager’s.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

Two weeks ago I wrote a message about fund raising and the comment I received in response was about the comparative costs of restoring the next steam locomotive. More specifically is there a cheaper alternative to the Chicago & North Western No. 1385?

Last week I wrote about the change in leadership that I believe is taking place at the museum, as evidenced by a committee meeting which took place the previous week. The one comment that was posted in response was about the future of steam; what can we expect to see in the next thirty years?

My original plan for this week’s web log message was not about steam. However, it seems expedient that I change those plans in order to answer a concern that is probably shared by the majority of people who are avidly following Mid-Continent’s progress as a railroad museum; progress which includes the return of steam to active service - the sooner the better.

The museum’s official position has been shared with you in previous messages. Our focus is on the Western Coal & Coke No. 1. All donations to the Steam Fund go to her restoration first. At the same time the owner of the Saginaw Timber Company No. 2 is working on his locomotive, which will then be leased to us for operating purposes for a fifteen year period.

Work is also taking place on the Chicago & North Western No. 1385. We have a grant from the state specifically for this locomotive, which we must spend before the grant terms expire. To-date we have completed an engineering study on the construction of a new boiler. Now we are in the process of purchasing the materials for that project.

We expect to see all three locomotives restored for operations at Mid-Continent. And we expect their return to service to take place in the sequence I have just presented to you. The official party line stops there, with a fleet of three working steamers, but in all honesty the dreaming never stops.

You can see it in the comments that have been posted to the web log these past two weeks. You can hear it in the conversations that take place among the members who volunteer in the Engine House. We are not even done with the first project and people want to know what’s next?

In response to the question as to whether or not a survey has been done to find a cheaper alternative to the 1385, the answer is no. That does not mean that people lack an opinion about which locomotive should be next. Opinions are in plentiful supply. Here is mine: We first and foremost need to finish what we have started. Therefore the effort to restore the Chicago & North Western No. 1385 needs to be completed before we attempt anything new. We jeopardize both our credibility and our morale if we do anything else.

If the “powers that be” one day do decide to restore another piece to operating condition, I am for doing an analysis of each one first before making the decision on which one to attack. But my own personal criteria would not be about cost, since I believe that the type of inspection that can be done without totally dismantling a locomotive would render the same result for each piece. So take your pick of any of the dead engines sitting on the property and I think you are safely looking at a $1,000,000 project.

My experience with the Western Coal & Coke No. 1 tells me that you can never really know what a project is going to cost until you tear the thing totally apart to see the hidden components that an external inspection cannot reveal. I would also be hesitant to start on anything new without a firm commitment from all involved that we would do a thorough restoration regardless of the cost in order to achieve the best possible result.

For me there is a more important consideration than price in making the decision on what to restore, which brings me to last week’s question about what the next thirty years might provide in terms of steam restoration. In order to make that kind of projection I think the question we need to answer is which piece or pieces bring the greatest interpretive value to the museum? Here, then, is my own personal short list given in the sequence I would suggest that we do the work.

Chicago & Illinois Western No. 701: This locomotive is commonly referred to as the Consumers 701, but it was built for the C&IW in 1914 and it is in that livery that the engine fits the primary criteria of our collection. We certainly gain an opportunity to present something new about a little known line. To say the C&IW is under represented in any railroad museum is an understatement. But we also gain the functionality of an 0-4-0 switch engine, which can demonstrate switch moves while the passenger train is out on the line. How unique is that? This is also the first steam engine ever acquired by the museum. I would say its time has come for being put on display.

City of Minneapolis No. as yet unknown: Surprise! This is an 18-ton crane, not a steam locomotive. I think you will find it in our collection listed as the Soo Line X-81, which it became in 1961, well outside the range of our collection criteria. Like the C&IW No. 701 I value this piece for its ability to showcase more about railroading than merely providing the motive power for a train ride. An alternative would be the St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern No. Z-8, a 120-ton crane built in 1914 (aka Mo-Pac No. X-105).

Goodman Company No. 9: This shay was built by Lima in 1909 for the Sawyer Lumber Company. But it is as the Goodman No. 9 that we know this locomotive and have the most information about its operation. And in this livery we are still able to meet our primary collection criteria. There are other shays in operation around the country, but none in Wisconsin. And logging was a major industry here, which incorporated the use of rail service. The No. 9 is our open door to interpreting that part of our state’s history in the same way the Badger No. 2 fish car provides us with a rare opportunity to showcase the railroad’s participation in the hatchery program.

You can see from this list that my own view of having three steam locomotives in service for our passenger trains is adequate. Any other forays into steam should be for reasons other than giving rides. Others of you may want to nominate the rotary snow plow for consideration, which is fine. But I think if we can achieve even this much in thirty years, while meeting all of our other demands to house and care for the collection, we will have achieved a lot and improved our credibility as a railroad museum.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

Saturday I participated in a meeting at my office, whose principal attraction for me was the affirmation that we have a viable topic for this year’s special edition Gazette. These December editions, in my opinion, have elevated our value as a historical society. The content is focused on a single topic, provides more depth than a typical article, presents a balance between the written and visual information, and is relevant to our mission.

The last two editions have added a different element, which in turn has added value to our organization. Rather than being stand-alone products, these issues of the Gazette have related to other Mid-Continent initiatives.

In 2006 it was the Badger 2 edition, which was used in our fund raising campaign for the car’s restoration. In 2007 it was the postcard Gazette, which introduced the addition of a much larger collection of historic postcards accessible on our web site. The 2008 edition will follow this same strategy, being fully loaded with strong content as a representative sample of what can be found on the web.

My anxiety and reason for attending Saturday’s meeting was to make sure we had a new topic. Once that was acknowledged I became more of an observer than a participant. And watching, rather than talking, gave me the opportunity to appreciate something more than just the perpetuation of a cherished project.

I have attended many meetings in this office, sitting around the same table discussing the next big thing for the museum, and many little ones as well. What eventually caught my attention, once I took a moment to sit back and consider what was happening instead of trying to guide it, was the change in players. These were essentially new people having their say about the direction Mid-Continent is about to take. And with them came a new spirit of cooperation in shaping that direction.

At this time of the year there are certainly much larger issues for me to contend with than mapping out the content of a future Gazette. But in the midst of all the other worries that can be overwhelming, the results of Saturday’s meeting were very gratifying. I doubt the other participants came away with a similar perception of the event. A conscious move towards cooperation was not on the agenda and there was no reason for them to anticipate anything other than a respectful reception for their ideas and opinions.

How times have changed. We have had trouble in the past recruiting people for board and committee positions from fear of the internal squabbling that seemed to accompany each meeting; what a long-time member recently told me was the internecine warfare endemic to our relationships. Perhaps we have reached a turning point at last.

While the talk around the museum still tends to be preoccupied with how good the attendance will be this year, and while I still obsess over how we are going to keep enough money in the bank account in order to pay the bills and keep the lights on, there appears to be a new product on the market that is worthy of note. You won’t actually see it bound into the pages of that December latest issue of the Gazette. But it will hopefully become an important component of that and all of our other work as we move ahead in pursuit of our mission.

Web cam highlights:

This is the final week before daily operations. You can still see some train activity as we host a few charters plus a walking tour Tuesday morning at 9:30am, guided by yours truly. Enjoy the show.

Departure times:

Tuesday at 10:00am and 2:00pm.

Wednesday at 3:00pm.

Friday at 10:00am.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

This past week I was talking with our banker as we worked on a refinancing plan for our debt situation. Part of our discussion involved an explanation about the purpose for each of our bank accounts. We have seven at this time.

I described for her how we use some of our accounts to accumulate donations over a long period of time for projects like the Badger 2 and the Chicago & North Western No. 1385. Both of the bank accounts associated with these two projects have sizeable balances in them, which is understandably appealing to a banker.

It did occur to her that these amounts will be withdrawn once the work on the equipment associated with these accounts takes place. Our cash assets will become tangible fixed assets in the form of a restored fish car or a working steam locomotive. This is a good result for Mid-Continent, but it is an outcome which is obviously less attractive to the bank since the value of what we have on deposit with them will evaporate as we spend the money to cover restoration costs.

I went on to explain that while we certainly will be spending the existing funds we will just as certainly be starting on a new campaign to accumulate funds for the next project. Opening bank account number eight is a foregone conclusion.

Her bemused response was predictable as she came to the realization that the fund raising process never ends. Each goal attained is just an intermediate step in pursuit of a mission which, of necessity, must encompass a variety of options to grow in order for an organization to stay relevant and viable. And contributions will be the primary means of financing those goals, even for an organization like ours that also generates revenue in the form of train fares, gift shop sales, and dues payments.

At Mid-Continent we have no shortage of projects in need of funding. Most of our collection has yet to be restored. All of it needs to be housed within buildings which will provide adequate protection while affording us the opportunity to interpret their history to museums guests. We have the audacious goal of operating a steam locomotive fleet, not just a single locomotive. And maybe even more daring is the dream of developing a truly educational program that reaches people across all age, gender and ethnic lines.

We intend to grow. And for our banker that means preparing the paperwork for opening accounts eight, nine, ten and so on. Fund raising for any non-profit organization is the one true never-ending story.

Web Cam Highlights:

The trains will be in operation in May on the 15th at 1:00pm; 16th at 10:00am; 17th and 18th at 11:00am, 1:00 and 3:00pm; 20th at 10:00am and 2:00pm; 21st at 3:00pm; and 23rd at 10:00am. Daily operations begin May 24th.

Enjoy the show.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

This Saturday is the official start of our summer season. When that first train pulls away from the depot with its load of passengers, it will mark the beginning of our 46th year for providing train rides at North Freedom.

Each year at this time our hopes are high for a good turnout, not just for the opener but for the entire season. Attendance is a strong indicator of our financial well being that our members look to for reassurance, for the number of riders is also a strong influence on how we value ourselves as an organization. The one statistic we have faithfully recorded for all of those previous 45 years of operation is the number of passengers carried on our trains.

A lot of hours have already been committed to being ready for Saturday’s departure, both from our volunteer/members and by our staff. We are ready for whatever level of response we receive from the general public. The only point of speculation right now is how responsive will the public be given the state of our economy and the price of gas.

These are things over which we have no control. They may be the cause for doubt in some people’s minds, but that has not deterred the members and staff from pouring themselves whole-heartedly into the things we can control in order to be ready for whatever the results may be. Their efforts, therefore, are worthy of a little recognition at the outset as they have done their best to prepare Mid-Continent for success over the long-haul of another season.

E-mails have bounced around the internet network entwining those members who volunteer in the Mechanical Department in an attempt to coordinate the work being done on our motive power. President Jeff Bloohm, who doubles as our General Foreman of Diesels in his spare time, has been very precise and demanding about the sequence of work to be done by Doug, Ed, Kelly, Pete and others on the Nos. 4, 7 and 1256.

No e-mail messages have been necessary for the one-man show I have watched taking place over the past few weeks by member Art Eggert. His means of communication has been the placement of the blue flag in front of the line of coaches we use in revenue service as he has cleaned, painted, and polished the four Lackawanna cars in true anticipation of benefiting our guests. For it is the interior of these cars that provide the setting in which most of our guests will experience the museum.

Then there is the somewhat amusing spectacle of seeing our one-man section crew, Dave Lee, wince in some discomfort from using muscles that have been a dormant over the winter months. Then again it is not everybody who can walk four miles of track, carrying the heavy tools needed for tightening the bolts that secure the joint bars spaced out along the right-of-way at thirteen foot intervals.

Inside the depot, more specifically inside the Gift Shop portion of the depot, Jeff Haertlein is going through the process of pricing and stocking the merchandise he has ordered. We measure Jeff’s involvement in terms of decades not years, which is all the more impressive given that, as a volunteer, he has established a rather lucrative business in the small space afforded him. Appropriately enough the Gift Shop is located in what was once the freight room. Now freight of a different kind is transported in and out its doors as one form of commerce continues to take place in this 1894 icon of the Chicago & North Western Railroad.

Across the yard in the Coach Shed the newly refurbished C&NW drovers caboose is back on display. Stu Mathias led the volunteer work crew in installing the upper berths and a couple of benches to complete this longstanding project. I had the pleasure of showing off the car’s interior during a private tour this past week. The “Wow” factor was in evidence as soon as I opened the vestibule door. The impression was one of a getting a sneak peek at a car fresh from the North Western’s shop before the drovers were allowed to take over and make it a livable space.

Just in time for our opening, this year’s summer and special event brochures have arrived from the printer’s. Once again the artistic talent of Paul Swanson, who handles all of our graphic design work, is in ample evidence. Paul’s day job is that of an engineer for the Wisconsin & Southern Railroad. It is during his off hours that he utilizes his gifts to make Mid-Continent look good, perhaps even better than we are. But then that seems to be the special talent which all of our volunteers bring to their respective areas of involvement with the museum.

For the participation by the staff, Nancy Miller and Lynn Anderson seem to be doing everything else. The pace in the front office tends to be a little frenetic with all of the details that must be tended to before we open the depot doors to the public. That is why I hibernate in the back room in order to stay well insulated from the calls and correspondence which are beginning to dominate the tranquil existence of our once peaceful office.

This weekend we will start our 46th season of train operations at North Freedom. In addition to our usual coach service we will also be offering first class and dinner. This means other members will be on hand to serve as wait staff for this special occasion, led by Tom Buehler, our major domo, and Ron Kokemuller, the bar captain. They will augment the regular train crew – all volunteers – in our customary safe operation of the train along a route that has seen continual service since the first load of ore was hauled out of the LaRue mine more than a hundred years ago.

And while all of these more visible projects have been taking place to prepare for the current season, our shop crew and contractors have worked steadily on the restoration of the Western Coal & Coke #1 with the same anticipation of influencing attendance for the benefit of the museum. Only the goal for them is being prepared for another season, our 47th and the 50th anniversary of the founding of what is now the Mid-Continent Railway Historical Society.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

Last Friday afternoon the first train of the season departed our North Freedom depot with a group of about 40 school kids and their teachers. April school charters constitute for us what in retail would be considered a soft opening. The preparations are a little more relaxed. A few hours of work versus a whole-day’s commitment and the train crew, typically volunteers, can tie-up and savor the fun of operations without the fatigue. Plus the museum gets the benefit of the first little bit of positive cash flow since February’s Snow Train.

At Mid-Continent the first school charter is like the sighting of the first robin. Winter is officially over for us (even though it is snowing again today).

It occurred to me on Friday, watching the train pull away from the depot, that anyone lucky enough to have logged on to our web cam that morning got an eye full of switch moves as the crew assembled the consist. There was plenty to see as the school bus arrived, the kids milled around on the platform awaiting the call to board, and then there was the best part of the show – the train in motion, captured every few seconds by the still images of the camera.

Since I see all of this through my office window, I take such actions for granted. What never occurs to me, though, is to send out an alert to our web cam fanatics that there might be something of value to watch in these days prior to our formal opening besides cars speeding through the crossing. So allow me to make amends by providing the following known schedule for you regarding the dates and times of these special charters which fall outside of our published operations.

May 2 at 2:30pm.

May 15 at 1:00pm.

May 16 at 10:00am.

May 20 at 2:00pm.

May 21 at 3:00pm.

May 23 at 10:00am.

The wonders of modern technology make it possible to enjoy certain aspects of our railway museum without ever having to leave the comfort of your home or office or wherever you might happen to be when you access our web cam. Railfanning in the new age means never having to load all your gear in the truck, van or car to chase trains, an economic benefit during these days of high fuel prices. And we even provide the camera.

So sit back, relax and enjoy the view.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

Last week’s message elicited an unrelated comment, asking for an update on the steam program. This has been a topic I have tried to sidestep for the past several weeks. As noted before, we have experienced a few set backs in our plans and I have wanted to refrain from writing anything about our situation until I knew more about the solutions to our problems.

We have known for quite awhile that the first boiler course was “out of round.” After it was patched and after it was heat treated for stress relief, the course was found to be distorted. And ultimately that was determined to be severe enough that it was beyond repair.

A completely new first course is currently being fabricated. Our own shop crew wrapped the original course in plastic to identify the location of the rivet holes. They then laid the plastic out on the new piece of material, marked it and drilled the pilot holes. We are now waiting for the contractor, Milwaukee Boiler, to roll the material and ship us back a completely new first course.

With the first boiler course removed, it was determined that the second course was also out of round, only not as severe. The remedy in this case was to subject it to a heating and cooling process that helped to restore the second course into a true circular shape. Things look good at the moment, but I suppose the proof in the value of this method will be seen when we attempt to attach the newly rolled first course. Hopefully we will have a match.

There have been other “discoveries” that have required an alteration to our repair plan. These other items have proven to be not as substantial as the boiler work and therefore not as costly to fix. We launched this endeavor knowing that as we peeled back the layers of a project like this there would be some surprises. But the magnitude of these smaller items has been subjected to its own distortion when viewed in the context of these larger problems.

I am committed to completing this restoration according to the same high standard we established at the beginning. No compromises on the repairs made, no matter what the consequences to our project budget. That is easy to say and hard to fulfill when you are told that all of the work done to-date on the firebox will have to be replaced. The calculations we relied on in designing the work proved to be in error. A whole new box will have to be fabricated, a totally unexpected add-on to an already weighty campaign.

This is the kind of news that can be a death-knell for any manager or development director. Admitting to a mistake of this proportion is the kind of thing that can cripple one’s credibility with donors. And when their confidence in your ability is damaged, the loss in revenue can terminate both the project and the manager’s value to the organization.

The easy decision would be to start making cuts in other parts of the project to compensate for these higher costs. But that I will not do. There are to be no compromises in returning the Western Coal & Coke #1 to active service on our railway. Just don’t expect to see her running this fall as previously forecast by me.

On my last tour of the shop I received a thorough update on the work being done on the running gear by Chris Zahrt, an employee of Steam Operations Corporation. I nodded in agreement as he explained to me the machining taking place, even though I really am deficient in understanding the mechanics of this type of work. I can only appreciate the depth of his knowledge and skill as well as the fact that it is being applied professionally to our own project.

The comment Chris made that I have carried with me and shared with others is his expression of the pride he feels in what he sees being accomplished. At the heart of this sensation is the fact that the work is being done right. When complete, when we see the locomotive under steam and ready to represent Mid-Continent in its presentation of railroading’s Golden Age, then I believe we too will feel that same sense of pride for having participated in its restoration.

We can do this.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

Last week’s message attempted to pay tribute to one of our members whose recent passing prompted me to recall some wonderful moments from my early days at Mid-Continent. And if you saw the comments which were posted to that message, then you know that Al Duval is fondly remembered by other museum members, particularly those who served with him on the train crew.

I did receive other comments to that message, but they did not come as direct replies that I could post for others to read. Instead some folks prefer to contact me directly through my personal e-mail address. And I typically honor their desire for anonymity by keeping the exchange limited strictly to our own virtual conversation.

But one message was sent directly to me in response to last week’s message that surprised me by its insight. Not that the writer is incapable of some profound thinking, but that it applied the message in a way that was outside the box of my own purpose for writing it. So I thought it worthwhile to share with you.

Here is the comment I received:

“What you have said indirectly in your last blog entry is that the older folks at Mid-Continent (and perhaps some of us younger ones as well) are writing our own epitaphs each day in how we work with others and what kind of contributions we make to the organization. We’re more likely to be remembered for the relationships that we developed with others than by pieces of equipment we worked on. It might not be a bad thing to hammer on the theme How would you like to be remembered by other members when your time comes? ”

I have written before about the need for unity within the organization and the strategies for how this can be achieved. And while I think that this is a valid question to ask, it is admittedly not the management tool that I would have thought to apply on my own.

If asked, most members would likely respond that their value to our organization can be found in their skills and knowledge for restoring or operating the equipment in our collection, not in their personal behavior. But in this comment, and in the way Al chose to live his life, I think we see a direct challenge to that traditional way of thinking.

It is not what you do that matters. It is who you are while doing it that has the most profound and positive impact.

By: Don Meyer, Manager

We have reached a point in the year where membership issues occupy a significant part of the work day for the office staff. The majority of our dues paying members have a renewal date of January 1. Therefore March 31 is recognized as the 90-day deadline for those members to pay their dues. This is to be understood in the very literal sense of that phrase since every Mid-Continent volunteer believes that he or she has paid their dues in the form of sweat equity.

Come April 1 the by-laws require us to remove non-paying members from the roster of active members. This is never a pleasant task. Membership is a personal matter and something people perceive as an investment in our organization. Having it taken from you can feel like an insult. So we have elected to take on the additional task of calling anyone who has not paid by the established deadline. This allows each person the opportunity to tell us directly their choice about continuing with their Mid-Continent membership or not.

Most do. They enjoy the perks received through the publication of the Gazette, Steamer and calendar. Or they want to continue their active participation as volunteers in one or more of our programs. Or they simply value the association of being part of a reputable railroad museum. Whatever their reason, we do our best to retain the relationship that exists between Mid-Continent and its more than 600 members.

With those who choose not to renew we are still very careful about how we represent the termination of their membership. They are not dropped. They are simply moved into Inactive status. Their contact information, their membership number, all that we know about their history with us is kept on file in case they should have a change of heart and wish to resume their participation at a later date.

Who knows? If we handle their departure respectfully, maybe they will reverse their decision. Even so, we hate the physical act of taking a members’ file folder to the inactive files stored in the attic. It feels like a defeat.

There are some departures we can do nothing about, however. No matter how courteous we behave or how close the relationship has been, a member’s passing is final. No phone call from the office can grant a reprieve. And Mid-Continent is at an age where the receipt of an obituary notice is a fairly common occurrence.

Such a notice came to the office several days ago concerning the death of F. A. “Al” Duval, Life Member No. 195. The fact that we received it from several sources is indicative of how well liked he was by many within our organization. The obituary revealed details about the man which I never knew. Our relationship was limited to our time together on the train, he as conductor and me as trainman, during my early years with the museum.

Al set a standard that was good for a newcomer to witness. He looked the part, always in full uniform, and of an age similar to that of the equipment we were operating. He was so authentic in his appearance, he looked as if he could have arrived as a living artifact for the coaches in which we were riding.

Al was personable and handled his role with the public in a professional though gracious manner. As I recall it, many of our passengers were surprised to learn that he was not a retired conductor, he handled his role so well.

He had another characteristic that set him apart from all of the other conductors that I worked with. On the last trip of the day he insisted on being the trainman, particularly taking over the responsibility for doing the runaround. Nearly 80 at that time, he just wanted to prove, perhaps mostly to himself, that he could still perform the tasks of throwing switches, coupling up the engine to the coaches and connecting air hoses. His smile when the job was complete showed just how much he relished the achievement. He was a delight to work with.

During those times that we worked together I never heard Al say one unkind thing about another person. And that in itself is quite an achievement at Mid-Continent. Our collective behavior tends to give everyone ample opportunity to comment negatively about anyone else with some assurance of being accurate in the assessment. Neither did I ever hear one uncomplimentary statement made about the man. He remained above the personal conflicts we call politics and therefore remained beyond the reach of the mudslinging that is rife in a volunteer organization such as ours.

If you have a copy of the 1997 edition of the Whistle on the Wind booklet, look in the lower right-hand corner of page 3. You will see a photo of Al Duval in a classic conductor’s pose, giving the highball signal to the engine crew. It is an appropriate way to remember a man whose character added value to the Mid-Continent experience.