THE TRANSFER TABLE
The Wilmington Chapter NRHS Official Newsletter
Internet Edition
| VOLUME 22 NO. 3 | APRIL 2000 |
Back To Wilmington Chapter Web Site
MARCH
2000 MEETING NOTES
The minutes
of the previous meeting were read by Secretary Walt Robbins at the start of the
March 16, 2000 meeting. There was no Treasurer's report since Ralph
Stevens was traveling on business. There was a report from National Director Tom
Posatko. Next was a report on a grant request for WJ Tower from John Iwasyk.
He also reported on repair work for the Wilmington & Western. The 24
inch bridge I-beams are evidently only produced twice a year so they will need
to be ordered by August. John said the W&W had removed ten
30-cubic-yard dumpsters of tree debris (which does not include what the state
and country removed).
Our Regional Vice President, John Sweigart,
introduced himself and reported that he had recently received his 25 year pin
from the Pottstown & Reading Chapter. Public Relations Director Frank
Ferguson reported that meeting notices will now appear the Wednesday before our
meetings in the Hockessin and Greenville newspapers. He was also
responsible for the cover photo on Railpace magazine. Dick Hall said he is
looking for prints and slides of the W&W both before & after the flood.
President Phil Snyder talked about the May 27th trip to Steamtown. Frank
Ferguson reported on track work, raising the wire, and a new interlocking north
of Davis Tower in Newark, DE for the Fairplay Station at Churchman's Crossing.
Frank Ferguson shared a few slides including the
Acela in Newport, DE and various locomotives on the bridge in Wilmington.
Bruce Barry's show for the evening was the year
1999 with Conrail on the Penns Grove secondary and in Deepwater, NJ. We
saw an SD-45 and views of Gibbstown, Paulsboro, Zoo Tower, and Irondale,
Alabama. There was also the Altamont Commuter Express, Kiddie Wye, Niagara
Falls, the Southern Railroad of NJ, our Philadelphia Trolley Trip, and even
Wilmington, DE.
FROM THE EDITOR
IMPORTANT NOTICE !!! If you haven't yet paid your dues
for this year, this will be the last issue of the newsletter that you receive.
Get your check to Treasurer Ralph Stevens ASAP so that you won't miss a single
issue.
Get your prints and slides ready for MAY, and in honor of the new century, go get a shot of something railroad related that is over 100 years old !!
DONATIONS SOUGHT FOR RAIL CAMP
SCHOLARSHIP FUND
Last summer, the Wilmington Chapter sponsored a
student for the NRHS Rail Camp Program. Ryan Robinson, 16 years old,
successfully completed the week long camp and continues to volunteer at the
Wilmington & Western Railroad.
It is time, once again, to identify a candidate
for Rail Camp 2000. At this time, Tom Posatko, John Iwasyk, and Ed
Thornton are developing criteria to identify a student candidate. Letters
will go out to school counselors in the surrounding community alerting them of
this NRHS program.
We now wish to solicit donations from our members
and friends to create a "Rail Camp Scholarship Fund".
Approximately $500 will be needed to send one student to camp. This amount
covers tuition, room and board. Transportation cost is usually borne by
the student.
We feel that this is a worthy project. Make
checks payable to "Wilmington Chapter, NRHS" and let Ralph know that
the donation is for the "Rail Camp Scholarship Fund".. Please
send donations to Ralph Stevens, 8 Colony Blvd., Apartment #315
Wilmington, DE 19802-1459
Make your gift count twice! You may be able
to double the value of your gift if you or your spouse are employed by one of
the many area businesses that generously match employee contributions.
Please check with your employer to see if they have such a program.
We hope that you will want to support this
project and we much appreciate your kindness!
PHOTO CONTEST
The National Railway Historical Society's
Wilmington Chapter's Annual Doug Weaver Memorial Photo Contest will
be held at the regular Chapter meeting on Thursday, May 20th.
Here are the guidelines for entering images in this year's contest:
CATEGORIES
A
LOOK BACK: April 1982
by Historian Ron Cleaves
On April 24, 1982, the Wilmington Chapter sponsored a very
successful fantrip, "The Talbot Bullet", over trackage of the Maryland
& Delaware Railroad. The trip covered the entire Clayton, Delaware to
Easton, Maryland line of theirs, and was quite a classy train complete with a
classy RS-1, parlor car, lounge observation, and heavyweight Pullman car
'Defender', formerly owned by then National Director/Trip Director Tom Smith,
who coordinated this trip.
This fantrip, operated as a go-for-broke one for the Chapter, came
to add $1300 to the Chapter treasury, and is still occasionally remarked upon by
those members who participated on it as one of the top all time Chapter
sponsored fantrips.
SCHEDULE NOTES
Notices, announcements, schedules, etc. are provided here as a service to the
members. The Chapter has no affiliation with any commercial operation, museum,
or tourist line.
Saturday, April 8, 2000 LEHIGH GORGE CRUSADER-RARE MILEAGE EXCURSION DEPART JIM THORPE, PA. at 9:00 A.M. Train will operate over the Reading & Northern's former Lehigh Valley trackage, from Jim Thorpe, Pa. to Coxton Yard. Pass thru Rockport and White Haven Tunnels and see Laurel Run. View the spectacular Lehigh River from the comfort of the recently refurbished ex-Reading RR RDCs. Food will be available for purchase on board. FARE: $35 To order tickets: send stamped, self addressed envelope and check payable to Jersey Central Railway Historical Society, Post Office Box 700, Clark, N.J. 07066 Info: phone (908) 233-3603, Internet at http://www.rrhistorical-2com/jcrhs
Sunday, April 30 - AUBURN VALLEY RAILROAD DAYS 1 - 4:30 PM, at Tom Marshall's estate on Rt. 82 in Yorklyn, DE
Saturday, May 6 - Chapter Trip to Gladstone, NJ do-it-yourself trip, 30th St. Philadelphia to Gladstone, NJ, details available soon
Sunday, May 21 - AUBURN VALLEY RAILROAD DAYS 1 - 4:30 PM, at Tom Marshall's estate on Rt. 82 in Yorklyn, DE
Saturday, May 27 - Memorial Day at Steamtown leave 6 AM, return ~4 PM, re-enactments, WW II equipment , new M-1 tank and more, call Phil Snyder.
Saturday, May 27 GOOD SPRINGS RAMBLE - RARE MILEAGE EXCURSION DEPART PORT CLINTON, PA. 9:00 A.M.; Train will operate over the Reading & Northern's former Reading Company trackage to Good Springs, Pa. View the countryside from the comfort of the recently refurbished ex Reading RR RDCs. FARE: $35 tickets: send stamped, self addressed envelope and check payable to Jersey Central Railway Historical Society, Post Office Box 700, Clark, N.J. 07066, Info: (908) 233-3603, or http://www.rrhistorical-2com/jcrhs
Saturday, June 3 - Reading FP7 50th Anniversary Trip former Reading FP7 Nos. 902 & 903 owned by Lancaster & Philadelphia Chapters respectively) over several Reading lines now operated by SEPTA. details soon.
Saturday, June 3 - 9 AM to 5 PM Pennsy Days, RR Museum of PA, Strasburg Sunday, June 4 - Noon to 5 PM Noted railroad artists and authors sell their works. Special lectures, demonstrations, memorabilia and tours of equipment are featured.
Sunday, June 25 - AUBURN VALLEY RAILROAD DAYS 1 - 4:30 PM, at Tom Marshall's estate on Rt. 82 in Yorklyn, DE
Friday-Saturday, June 30- July 1 - 9 AM to 6 PM Reading Railroad Days, RR Museum of PA
Sunday, July 2 - 11 AM to 5 PM Famous Reading Company trains of eastern Pennsylvania history through special tours of Reading Company equipment, a huge, operating model railroad and oral history presentations.
July 12-16, 2000 NRHS National Convention to be hosted by Western Connecticut Chapter
Sunday, July 30 - AUBURN VALLEY RAILROAD DAYS 1 - 4:30 PM, at Tom Marshall's estate on Rt. 82 in Yorklyn, DE
Thursday, August 17 - 9 AM to 5 PM RR Circus Days, RR Museum of PA, Strasburg Friday-Saturday, August 18-19 - 9 AM to 6 PM & Sunday, August 20 - 11AM to 5 PM Scale models of circus trains, equipment & performances, displayed by Circus Model Builders International.
Sunday, August 27 - AUBURN VALLEY RAILROAD DAYS 1 - 4:30 PM, at Tom Marshall's estate on Rt. 82 in Yorklyn, DE
June 18-23, 2001 NRHS National Convention to be hosted by St. Louis Chapter
CHAPTER EVENTS
Thursday April 20, 2000 7 PM Chapter
Meeting program by Frank Ferguson, Jr. program postponed from October 1999
entitled "The Last of Big Blue: Memories of Conrail"
Saturday May 6, 2000 8 AM Chapter Trip to Gladstone, NJ !! date changed, exciting details to be available soon!
Thursday May 18, 2000 7 PM Chapter Meeting Annual Doug Weaver Memorial Photo Contest Y2K special category: photo of any rail-related vehicle,structure,or equipment built 1899 or BEFORE
Saturday May 27, 2000 6 AM Chapter Outing Phil Snyder's trip to Steamtown
Saturday June 10, 2000 10 AM Chapter Picnic Perryville / Havre de Grace, MD our annual do-it-yourself transport, bring your own food & chair, summer extravaganza!
Thursday June 15, 2000 7 PM Chapter Meeting program not known at this time
Thursday July 20, 2000 7 PM Chapter Meeting Do - It - Yourself Program
Thursday Aug. ??, 2000 ? ? Chapter Outing ? program not known at this time
Thursday Sept. 21, 2000 7 PM Chapter Meeting program by Roy Soukup, Jr.
The Wilmington Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society (NRHS) meets at 7:00 PM on the third Thursday of each month [except August & December] in the Darley Room at the Claymont Community Center on Green Street in Claymont, Delaware. Visitors are always welcome. Admission to regular meetings is free.
The Transfer Table
The Transfer Table is published six to ten times per year as the
newsletter of the Wilmington Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society.
Items in this publication do not represent the official position of either
Officers or Members of the Wilmington Chapter or the Editor of this publication.
Permission to reprint articles and news items appearing herein is granted to NRHS Chapters and other newsletters provided appropriate credit is given. Contributions are always welcome and should be sent to the editor at SD40GMA@aol.com or send to: P.O. Box 1136, Hockessin, DE 19707-5136. Deadline for entries is the 25th of the month.
Chapter Officers
President Phil Snider
Vice President & Historian Ron Cleaves
Treasurer Ralph Stevens, Jr.
Secretary Walt Robbins
National Director Tom Posatko
Editor Greg Ajamian
Public Relations Frank Ferguson, Jr.
Event Photographer Bruce Barry