Ft.WRHS Acquires Ex-CP Observation Dome Car

The Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society has acquired a former Canadian Pacific dome-sleeper-observation car that will be assigned to its Indiana Rail Experience excursions.

The car, Riding Mountain Park, is being restored at the society’s shops in New Haven, Indiana.

The overhaul is expected to cost $250,000 as workers address issues with the HVAC systems and spruce up the interior furnishings.

A private donor contributed the money used to purchase the car. The society is seeking donations to be used to pay for the car’s overhaul.

It is the third streamliner era rail car the FtWHS has acquired this year. Earlier, it bought two former Pennsylvania Railroad cars, Collinsville Inn and Franklin Inn, from the Washington Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society.

Riding Mountain Park was once a regular on the Toronto-Vancouver Canadian.

It has much of its original interior and artwork and has for the past decade been in storage on the Adrian & Blissfield Rail Road in Michigan.  

One Lucky Donor to Ft.WRHS Diesel Restoration Effort to Get a Day-Long NKP 765 Cab Ride

The Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society will give away a cab ride and train tickets to donors who contribute to the restoration fund of former Nickel Plate Road SD9 No. 358.

The society is seeking to raise $20,000 to complete the mechanical restoration of the locomotive, which society officials expect to be operable by next year.

Two donors of $35 or more will receive tickets to ride the Oct. 1 Indiana Rail Experience excursion between Edon, Ohio, and Hillsdale, Michigan, featuring Nickel Plate Road 2-8-2 No. 765.

A donor of $385 or more will win a day-long cab ride in the 765 during that sold-out Oct. 1 excursion.

All donations made through Aug. 21 will be matched. Donations can be made via mail at Project 358, PO Box 11017, Fort Wayne, IN 46855 or made online at https://fortwaynerailroad.org/project-358/

In an email blast sent out last week, the society said once the fundraising goal has been met the 385 will be sent off for painting and test runs.

The diesel locomotive is expected to be part of the consist of FtWRHS excursions next year as part of the Indiana Rail Experience.

It is being restored to its 1957 appearance with the NKP’s black and imitation gold striping.

FtWRHS Puts Silver Diner Into Service

Silver Diner was in the consist of the Indiana Ice Cream Train shown leaving Angola, Indiana, on July 9.

The Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society said this week that it has officially placed its Silver Diner into service.

The car, which was built in 1948 for the California Zephyr, will be in the consists of excursions to be pulled by Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 No. 765.

The society has spent a year rebuilding the car. That work included extensive cleaning, HVAC repairs, cosmetic work, new window gaskets, and curtains, among other things.

The society said the car can host up to 40 passengers and includes a kitchen and buffet counter space, and provides on-board refrigeration and catering space for excursions and events.

The car was once owned by the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, and spent several years on the Amtrak rolling stock roster.

Amtrak retired Silver Diner in 2017 and donated it to the FtWRHS in 2019. It is one of four surviving California Zephyr dining cars still operating.

Ft.WRHS Acquires 2 Ex-PRR Passenger Cars

Two former Pennsylvania Railroad passenger cars have been acquired by the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society for excursion train use.

The cars are former sleepers Collinsville Inn and Franklin Inn that were built by the Budd Company in 1949.

The Pennsy converted them to coaches in 1963. The cars were donated to the Washington, D.C., chapter of the National Railway Historical Society in 2008. The Ft.WRHS acquired the cars from the Washington chapter.

The Collinsville Inn ran for a time on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. Both cars now feature a PRR livery.

Each car is expected to be used on excursions of the Indiana Rail Experience, a series of trips to be pulled by former Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 No. 765.

Fort Wayne Rail Park Likely to Open in August

A railroad theme park in Fort Wayne is expected to open in August.

Headwaters Junction is expected to eventually be the home of Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 No. 765, which is owned by the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society.

The park will be located on the north side of the St. Marys River across from Promenade Park.

One rail car has been delivered to the site, which is still under development, with a second car expected to arrive next week.

Don Steininger, chairman of the Headwaters Junction Committee, said those two cars will be the first phase of the development.

 “This is the starting point of what headwaters junction can be. The question is what is phase two going to be? We don’t know yet. We know we’re working on it. We know there will be one,” Steininger said.

NKP 765 to Run on Indiana Northeastern

Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 No. 765 will be exploring new territory in Indiana, Ohio and Michigan this summer.

The Indiana Northeastern has agreed to host excursions behind the Berkshire-type locomotive between July and October over multiple years.

The Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society said information about the trips and ticket information will be released later this month or in early June.

Indiana Northeastern was founded in 1992 and operates over 100 miles of track that was once owned by the New York Central and Wabash railroads.

It handles more than 5,000 carloads a year for 25 shippers. The railroad has offices and a locomotive repair facility in South Milford and Hudson, Indiana, respectively.

The excursion agreement is being named the Indiana Rail Experience.

The Fort Wayne group said it will collaborate with the Little River Railroad, Norfolk & Western Business Car No. 300 Preservation Society, Steuben County Tourism Bureau, and City of Angola.

For more information visit fortwaynerailroad.org.

Local Groups Get Emery Trust Grants

Two Northeast Ohio organizations were among the 22 recipients of grants announced this week by the John Emery Rail Heritage Trust for 2022.

The Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad will receive $15,000 to help pay for interior renovation of former Burlington baggage-coach Silver Salon for ADA accessibility.

The Midwest Railway Preservation Society of Cleveland will receive $ 10,000 for further work on 1924 Pullman car Mount Baxter.

Other groups that were awarded grants included the East Broad Top Railroad, $15,500 for truck and traction-motor maintenance for gas-electric car M-1; the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society,: $10,000 for continued work on baggage car No. 3671, built for Santa Fe by American Car & Foundry in 1955; and the Pennsylvania-based West Chester Railroad Heritage Association, $10,000 for continued renovations of Reading Blueliner coaches.

The Emery Trust will award $350,000, for rail preservation projects this year. It received

34 applications requesting more than $1 million.

In a news release, the Emery Trust described itself as the largest in the United States whose grants are solely for rail restoration projects.

The trust was founded by John Emery of Chicago who rode trains around the world between 1920 and 1960.

FtWRHS Acquires ITM Equipment

The Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society has obtained seven pieces of equipment once owned by the Indiana Transportation Museum.

The equipment includes two former Milwaukee Road F-units, a former Milwaukee B-unit, a Pennsylvania Railroad hopper, a Nickel Plate Road boxcar, a Louisville & Nashville boxcar, and a Wabash boxcar. 

The Fort Wayne group plans to keep the boxcars but offer the other equipment to other organizations.

Kelly Lunch, vice president of the Fort Wayne group, said a private donor assisted in saving the equipment.

ITM was evicted by the City of Noblesville four years ago from a park that the museum had used for several years.

Some of the equipment saved by the Fort Wayne group had been left behind in Noblesville while other pieces were in Logansport, Indiana, where ITM at one time had sought to establish a new museum site.

The equipment has been moved to private property where restoration efforts are underway.

The Fort Wayne group is best known as the owner and operator of NKP 2-8-4 No. 765.

NKP 765 to Return to CVSR in May 2022

Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 No. 765 will return to the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad in 2022, but for the first time it is coming in the spring.

The CVSR and Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society, which owns and operates the Berskhire-type locomotive, said will be run May 13-15 and May 20-22.

Typically, the 765 has run on the CVSR during September. Trains will depart from Rockside Road station in Independence on May 14 and 21 and from Northside station in Akron on May 15 and 22. All of these trips will feature a photo runby.

Trips will depart Rockside Road on May 14 at 10 a.m., 2 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. May 21 trips depart Rockside at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Trains depart Akron on all dates at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Night excursions with photo opportunities will operate on May 13 and 21, leaving from Rockside Road station at 7:30 p.m.

The three-and-a-half hour outing will involve a night photo shoot with special lighting illuminating a stationary 765.

Other special events being held in conjunction with these excursions include dinner aboard the train, a murder mystery trip, and wine and cocktails trips for passengers age 21 and older.

All of these special events will occur on evening runs and depart from Rockside Road station.

The dinner trains will operate on May 13 and 20, the murder mystery event operates on May 13, the cocktails on the rails is set for May 20, and a canvas and wine event is slated for May 21.

The latter involves an artist providing step-by-step instruction on how to create a painting while the participates sip wine.

Ticket sales for CVSR members begin Dec. 10 with general public ticket sales starting on Dec, 14.

Fares for regular excursions range from $25 to $70 depending on the type of seating class selected.

Prices for special events range from $75 to $135 depending on seating class. Dinner train tickets range from $135 to $150 per person.

More information and ticket sales are available at https://www.cvsr.org/steam

NKP 765 Back Home Again in Indiana

Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 No. 765 returned home to New Haven, Indiana, On Monday after spending much of September in Ohio.

The Berkshire-type locomotive pulled excursions on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad in Northeast Ohio and then put in an appearance at the Mad River & NKP Railroad Museum in Bellevue.

While in Bellevue, the 765 was reunited with one-time running mate NKP 757, which is being cosmetically restored by the Mad River museum.

It was the first time two NKP Berkshire locomotives were coupled together since the early 1960s when many steam locomotives were lined up waiting to be scrapped.

Museum officials said that more than 2,000 purchased tickets for caboose rides, hostling tours, and a night photo session.

They said several hundred more showed up just to see the two locomotives together.

During the event, the 765 crew ran a steam line to No. 757 to allow the latter’s whistle to sound. During the night photo session, a third Berkshire made a temporary appearance with No. 765 assuming the cosmetic role of Wheeling & Lake Erie No. 828, whose whistle has been featured on the 765 previously.

Some cosmetic changes to the 765 were undertaken to give it the appearance of a W&LE steamer.

The Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society, which owns the 765 said planning is underway to celebrate the locomotive’s 50^th anniversary next year.

Society officials said they are talking with various possible hosts in locations the 765 might be able to visit.

FtWRHS Vice President Kelly Lynch said next year also is the 50^th anniversary of the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad, so plans for a special Steam in the Valley experience are in the works.