By: Don Meyer, Manager
It has been a quiet week for us in North Freedom. Other than the threat of the Baraboo River leaving its banks once again with every rain storm that passes over during this very wet July, we have simply fulfilled the routine of carrying passengers to Quartzite Lake and back three times a day. The equipment is working well. Track conditions have held up to the constant soaking of the various storms. And there have been no complaints to cope with from guests or crew; at least none that have reached my desk.
The hot topic, when the president is in my office to talk, is the probable outcome of the voting on the proposed by-law changes. I can always gauge his mood by the prediction he makes about the final tally. It also gives me a hint as to who he has talked with last before stopping by the office to take care of some business or just to confer with me.
One point never seems to vary, the belief that this vote will produce a larger response than we normally see with an election. The reason? Concern over our experiment with expanding our operations to a second site. “Mazo or no Mazo” is the way he expresses what he believes to be the driving force behind the number of ballots being returned to the office.
This may be true. I have no basis to disagree with his assessment or to be able to predict the outcome of the vote. It is simply a matter of waiting until the count is made that will reveal what the voting members think about management’s authority to direct the entire organization towards a new path for growth. There is probably little difference between that and waiting to see how high the river is going to get after each day of rain.
My own appreciation for the benefits of our Mazomanie project has changed dramatically since we held our first Gandy Dancer Festival there in 2008. Our initial exhibition in conjunction with the Phil Lewis Regional Design Center was, quite frankly, a matter of convenience. It gave us a chance to add a program to the festival with little effort on our part.
Professor Lewis’ three-dimensional, topographical model of the Milwaukee Road route that connects Milwaukee to Prairie du Chien provided the one point of common interest. It was certainly something the rail fans could appreciate for its historical significance, even if we were a little shy of understanding the implications of his studies in sustainable development. The model and our artifacts were displayed on separate floors, allowing us to tell our separate stories. But as I have come to know the Professor and his work better, I have become convinced that we have more in common than I previously realized.
For one thing he understands the importance of tourism on the American lifestyle. In his book Tomorrow By Design, published in 1996, Professor Lewis wrote, “The research shows that the tourism industry depends on the same resource patterns for its survival as those on which we depend for a satisfying quality of life and the stability of our life-support system. As the world’s major industry, tourism is an invaluable mechanism for education, recreation, and economic stimulus.”
More pertinent to our mission and personal interests, Professor Lewis’ research has provided him with an insight into the correlation between the location of our natural resources and the subsequent building of our rail corridors. He states that “The majority of the outstanding natural and cultural resources of a region usually fall within water, wetland, and steep topography patterns. Coincidentally it is in the river valley patterns with slight topographic gradients that our early railroad networks were built.”
Consequently we in the rail preservation community have a friend who is willing to partner with us in proclaiming the role of the railroads as a vital component in future development at the local, regional and national levels. “Railroads provide at least two attributes of sustainability. First they are an economical and far less energy-consumptive mode of travel than most, and second, they offer a satisfactory way to control the impact of tourism on regional resources. By allowing trains to stop only at adequately designed facilities, scenic and recreational resources can be protected from becoming eroded and diminished by uncontrolled access at many points.”
Adequately designed facilities includes the existence of multi-modal systems, which takes us back to the days when lines like the Great Northern had their own bus system to give their passengers access to such natural wonders as the national parks they helped to develop. Professor Lewis’ vision of the future therefore looks surprisingly familiar to those who know about this aspect of our railroad legacy.
This message is only just taking shape at the museum in Mazomanie. There is certainly a lot more to be learned as we work towards creating compatible exhibits that will occupy both floors of our Museum for the Milwaukee Road. But such growth also insures Mid-Continent of a new voice as an advocate for the future of the rail industry as an educator of its history, proficiency and necessity in protecting the natural and cultural assets of our region.
“Wise planning and design should utilize the rehabilitation of rail systems to link key natural and cultural features.”
