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Monday, December 22. 2014Recent Rock Island ProjectsFirst, I would like to thank all of you for reading my restoration blogs and to wish all of you a Happy Holiday Season!! Next, thanks to all the volunteers in the coach dept who have help make this a very successful year for us. A number of projects are nearing completion as well as more receiving attention. Do not forget the blogs about the railroad china display. Two weeks ago Paul Cronin and myself inspected the progress. Quite impressive and very professional done, I might add. Look for in the new year more progress and maybe a new arrival or two! Remember, your donations, whether large or small, help Irm's many, many equipment restoration projects. Thanks Roger Kramer, lead restoration manager This fall we have completed two milestone projects on our Rock fleet. Advertising cards have now been installed in the 2602 and we now have fifty glass windows in the 2612.  Here I am, placing the last window into the 2612s frame  PHOTO  PHOTO  November 15th Rick was beginning to install the cards  Here he has just finished installing all the cards in the 2602. Its now November 22, 2014. That didnt take to long, just a couple of weeks. Friday, December 19. 2014December 13th and 14th in the Coach DepartmentSaturday, December 13, 2014 Saturday started out as a foggy day in old Union town.  Looking west down Central towards Olson Rd. - Photo by Michael McCraren Mark Gellman and Michael McCraren started working on the Union Pacific portion of the china exhibit. Seven different patterns will be displayed covering the history of the Union Pacific passenger trains in the 20th century. In addition to china, this exhibit will also include silverware, flatware, glassware and menus from the railroads.  Here is some of the china and glassware that will be on display - Photo by Michael McCraren One exhibit that ended this year was Gwyn Stupar's "Brilliance: An Exhibit Honoring the Lives of Women on the North Shore Line". Thanks to Gwyn and others who helped with that fine exhibit. Those pictures came down today and in it's place will be the china exhibit and an exhibit on the station restaurants of Chicago. Sunday, December 14, 2014 Shelly Vanderschaegen and Michael Baksic arrived in the morning. Shelly cleaned the Birmingham for the Christmas party to follow. Michael spent time with Paul Cronin. On Sunday Mark Gellman, Kevin Krebs, Jim Windmeier, Michael McCraren and Jon Habegger all turned out to work in the 1st Exhibit Car on the railroad china display. They finished up the north side of the car (or left side as you walk in).  Union Pacific patterns - Photo by Michael McCraren  More of the Union Pacific section - Photo by Michael McCraren  The Chicago & Planning started on the south side of the car (or right side). This side will continue the railroad china story to Amtrak. We will also have an interurban section and a section of Chicago railway station restaurants. We are also looking into a section that would change during the year so the exhibit would not be entirely static. It gives visitors a reason to keep coming back! The costs of materials (plate hangers, sticky tape, ect.) has been donated by the volunteers putting this exhibit together. If you would like to help with expenses, please send a check to the RARTRA fund. Thank you in advance. Lunch was at 1:00 o'clock in the Birmingham as usual but today it was the Christmas party. Guests included Susan and David (birthday boy) Stepek, Buzz Morisette, Jim West, Nick Kallas, Sam Polonetzky, Kevin Brown (thanks for the soda pop!), Mark Hoffman, Jon Habegger, Michael McCraren, Mark Gellman, Jim Windmeier, Kevin Kriebs, Brian LaKemper, and the crew from the Happy Holidays Railway. Thanks to all who brought a dish to pass. There was plenty of food, soda, water, coffee, and desserts.  The Christmas Party made a pretty full house in the Birmingham - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen  Happy Holidays Railway crew members Jerry Saunders and Jim West joined in the fun - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen  Sam Polonetzky and Brian LaKemper visit from the center aisle - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen  Paul Cronin and Buzz Morisette - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen  Jon Habegger and Nick Kallas - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen  David Stepek blows out his birthday candles - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen  Susan and David Stepek sit with Michael Baksic and Shelly Vanderschaegen - Photo courtesy of Shelly Vanderschaegen Michael McCraren made some railroad specialities for the party. The potato salad was from an Atlantic Coast Line recipe. The cole slaw was from the Missouri Pacific. The salad dressings were Frisco French and Illinois Central dressing (1000 Islands type) and the cocktail sauce was from the Louisville & Nashville railroad. Shelly brought ham and cupcakes. Jim Windmeier brought shrimp. Brian LaKemper brought cookies. Kevin Krebs brought cheese and crackers along with cookies. Jon Habegger and Michael Baksic also contributed to the party food. Everyone sang Happy Birthday to David Stepek and Shelly made his favorite cupcakes for him. David, Susan, Nick, and Shelly went to visit Mr. and Mrs. Claus who happened to be at the Museum for the Happy Holiday Railway event, but they were too early so they went to the 1st Exhibit Car and visited Kevin, Mark, Michael M., Jim, and Jon and admired the railroad china display under construction. After lunch Brian helped Paul put the straightened tension bar back on the Galt House buffer. Paul will adjust the buffer to bring it to level on Wednesday. One step closer to having Galt House roll down the Museum's tracks once again.  The re-installed buffer rod, small black arrow points to the re-installed rod - freshly missing paint shows where it was straightened - Photo by Brian LaKemper Mark G., Jon, Mike M., Jim W., Paul, and others continued work in the 1st Exhibit Car. Mike B. and Buzz did some work in Ely. Mark H. was working in the John McGloughlin and Lackawana 556.
 Mark G. and Jon removing a board to install the top of the display cabinet being added to the exhibit car - Photo by Brian LaKemper  Mark G. marking the location for a bracket to hold the top of the new display cabinet while Jon is holding the top of the cabinet - Photo by Brian LaKemper Elsewhere on the property, Happy Holidays Railway was making it's last trips of the year, and Jerry Saunders, Sam Polonetzky, and Jim West carried loads of happy families in our 2200 series "L" cars decorated for the holidays. One of our trolley buses was running as a shuttle service for patrons.  The 2200s leaving East Union Depot with another load of kids for Happy Holidays Railway - Photo by Brian LaKemper  This Trolley bus was acting as a shuttle for visitors - Photo by Brian LaKemper David Stepek had a nice visit with Santa and Mrs. Claus and ran into another friend before heading home with his mom.  David visits with Santa and Mrs. Claus as Susan Stepek looks on - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen  David with Dorothy from the Gift Shop give the thumbs up - Photo by Shelly Vanderschaegen Saturday, December 13. 2014Remembering the Rock Island Part 2 and a IdeaHere is the second installment of pictures taken by Robert Banke. They were taken in and around the Chicago area in the late seventies. Please notice the condition of the yards, facilities and the equipment.  Pictured is RI 2610. Just two numbered coaches away from our 2612. Please credit all these pictures to Robert Banke. This one taken May of 1978.  A six coach commuter train, its now June 2, 1978.  With #649 in the lead this commuter train rounds the curve. Its June 2, 1978  Up close picture of the consist. Taken, 11-1977  Unit 643 waiting for its assignment, November 1977.  Unit 642 rounding a curve June 1978. Anyone know where this picture was taken?  E unit 630 sitting on the ready track. July 1977  Engineer climbing into the cab of the 630. The unit next door is #4804. What RR is that from? July 1977  Rock Island 938 4-6-2 Pacific taken Nov 2012 at IRM
Wednesday, December 10. 2014The Railroad China Display is Getting More PolishedSaturday, December 6, 2014: Michael McCraren reports that he was the 'lone ranger' in the 1st Exhibit Car on Saturday, December 6th. He set the Milwaukee Road portion of the display this day.  Michael McCraren continued setup on the Milwaukee Road china - Photo by Michael McCraren  Another view of the Milwaukee Road display on Saturday - Photo by Michael McCraren Paul Cronin worked on the Galt House Diner buffer. Back in Winter 2008, Phil Stepek reported on the Louisville & Nashville 2726 Diner Galt House: "The diner returned from Horicon but suffered buffer damage in transit. Repairs will require the removal of the diaphragm and buffer plates to reshape the metal. This will probably be deferred until the 2008-2009 off-season. The car will be on display in Barn 3 during the 2008 season." The Coach Department is working to get this car back in service. Sunday, December 7, 2014: There was a light crew on Sunday with only Michael McCraren. Mark Gellman and Jim Windmeier working in the 1st Exhibit Car. More china was put up and some details were added. The Burlington Route section features the "Violet and Daisies" pattern. This pattern was on all major CBQ trains and the California Zephyr.  On Sunday the Milwaukee Road china display was even more polished - Photo by Michael McCraren  Jim Windmeier took pictures of the china for later use - Photo by Michael McCraren  NYC china - the menu in the middle is a dinner menu from the 20th Century Limited - Photo by Michael McCraren  This is the Pennsylvania Railroad china. We have every pattern from the 1900s to the close of operation - Photo by Michael McCraren  Jim Windmeier and guest Kevin Brown at lunch on Sunday - Photo by Michael McCraren Sunday, December 7. 2014Fall restoration activitiesIts been real cold in the weeks of November but the warmer months of late August, September, and October have produced a number of positives. Where as other coach dept projects have the luxury of a indoor heated area where you can work in your street clothes ours now is strictly in a often unheated environment. We have been busy focusing only on a small number of projects. First, our heavy weight sleeper, John McLouglin, has had its long interior hallway completely needle chipped, sanded, and prepped for priming. Some of this work has been preformed in the milder weather of September and October. I have also reinstalled the ceiling light fixture in the women's bathroom. It was removed in January of this year and brought home to my workshop where it was primed and painted to the finish ceiling color. Robert Olsen and Rick Serenda, two new members to our team have been scraping and priming areas on the steel roof. When the weather warms we will prime and paint these areas black..  Chipping in warmer weather. Mike is getting it done.  Chase Renwick chipping in the background.  Its almost complete. That is Matt Voss in he background  Bob Olsen ,yes, another Bob, prepping the surface of the roof.  Bob scraping some tar off the roof. Now, its a lot colder!  The light fixture almost painted. Now its fastened to the ceiling! Next, we have been working on the interior of the Lackawanna coach 556. Mark Hoffman, Loraine Bixler and Brian Patterson have been working on removing the old peeling paint from the ceiling, walls and on the baggage racks. We hope to have the interior painted by next year. Many volunteer hours will be needed to accomplish this task. We now have a limited heating supply to keep the car at least 50 degrees. Maybe that will bring out a few more volunteers to help with the project. Interested? Please see me or Paul Cronin on Saturdays or Wednesdays.  Working on the ceiling and wall of the 556 Jack Biesterfeld has again been working on his favorite project, B&M 1094. He along with Dan Boguse and myself have removed a protection wall behind the oil fired boiler. This boiler will be removed at a later date. In the meantime we have found the old coach wall behind it. The old wall is in a viable state and can be restored. Missing is the wooden window and it's frame. This will be made in our woodshop when monies become available. If you would like to contribute to this worthy project please send a donation to the B&M 1094 Fund. Lastly, Gerry Boguse along with his brother,Dan, have been busy winterizing the water system on the L&N 2726 Diner. They drained all the water out of the system and then filled it with an antifreeze solution used in RV motorhomes. Gerry also received from R and B Metal the last of the made to order stainless steel flooring. These six pieces will be installed next spring. As of yet there is not an interior winter heat source for the diner. Anticipation grows about operating the diner in limited service on our railroad next year!  Gerry showing off the operational water system. This picture was taken in 2011. Thursday, December 4. 2014Remembering the Rock Island in Chicago Part 1These pictures were sent to me courtesy of Robert Banke. They were taken in the late 70's at the Rock Island station. Today, you can not even get close to many passenger commuter yards to take pictures like this let alone just to view them. How times have changed! Please take note of the surroundings in the following pictures. You can see the lack of maintenance of both equipment and infrastructure. Notice there is more grass growing than ties Sad, how a once great railroad would end up like this! Here, then, is a snapshot of what it was like to ride the "ROCK" in the late 70's; the good old days!  A detailed look at coach 2610 taken in May 1978  A detailed look at the old train shed July 1977  Servicing a commuter train. A wider shot of the above picture. July 1977  Two coaches ready for the reverse commute. Notice the people in the cars. Does this look familiar? We are portraying this picture at Irm. May 1978  A detailed close up shot of the two coaches  A carman checking the steam line. Yes, we too might be doing the same thing someday inspecting the steam lines during winter operations. Taken Dec 1977  A rare picture, indeed, of the interior of one coach with the interior lights on. Oct 1976  A detailed look of the same photo. All the lights are on. No burned out bulbs here.  Tickets Please! The ticket agent would have been busy earlier in the day. Notice the 7UP Bottle dispenser and US mail box. You dont see those too often, anymore. March 1977 Monday, December 1. 2014The Last Weekend of November in the Coach DepartmentSaturday, November 29th: Michael McCraren worked in the morning on getting the Pacific Peak set up for winter work. Bedrooms E & F will continue to be restored back to the days when the car belonged to the Union Pacific. Mark Gellman painted the panels above the windows in the Birmingham dining room on the south side of the car. Both men spent the afternoon working on the railroad china display in the 1st Exhibit Car. The Santa Fe section is "done". Changes may still be made be Michael feels they are close to final placement.  Part of the Santa Fe railroad china section - Photo by Michael McCraren  The Santa Fe section is close to final placement - Photo by Michael McCraren  IRM has gone into holiday mode with lights along the fence by the main parking lot - the Holiday Train starts running next weekend - Photo by Michael McCraren Sunday, November 30th:Kevin Kriebs and Shelly Vanderschaegen hung curtains in the Ely in the morning. Michael Baksic and Ray Mormann worked in the Birmingham. Shelly cleaned the Birmingham dining area before lunch.  Very early Sunday morning at IRM - Photo by Mark Gellman  More plates were hung by Mark and Michael M. on Sunday - Photo by Mark Gellman  Jim Windmeier and Mark Gellman pondering the dining car china display in the 1st Exhibit Car - Photo by Jon Habegger A note of thanks to Buzz Morisette who recently stripped the Ely dining room celing light fixtures. They will be primed and painted later. |
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Comments
Wed, 03-04-2015 08:42
If I recall correctly, that shelter was built last year by a TV production company for filming of the pilot episode of "Scandal", and was removed [...]
Mon, 03-02-2015 08:40
Thanks Jeron for the info. Roger
Sun, 03-01-2015 16:46
That was sprayed on the cab while at East Troy. The locomotive is TE-1. It was built for Toledo Edison, and worked there its entire life until [...]
Sun, 03-01-2015 07:14
Thanks Roger... It seemed too good to be true. Bill McCoy Strasburg, PA
Sat, 02-28-2015 22:35
The motor in question is former Toledo Edison #1.
Sat, 02-28-2015 21:33
Hello Raphael That is an idea but you would be wasting valuable labor and $ applying paint and decals. Why not do it once and do it the right way?! [...]
Sat, 02-28-2015 21:28
Hello Bill I hope someone from the Electric Car dept will respond to your question. I believe one of the members wrote that on the engine. It [...]
Sat, 02-28-2015 21:24
Hello Mr. Fan. I was wondering if you ever had conveyed your interest to the team restoring the plow? Not being involved but knowing the members [...]
Sat, 02-28-2015 21:13
Hello Dave That was a shelter built exclusively for a movie set that was shot at the museum. Per the contract it was removed after the "shoot". [...]
Sat, 02-28-2015 18:16
while 428's cab is still on the ground, there could be some premature painting and decals that could go on the outside of the cab
Sat, 02-28-2015 15:50
The last picture in the woodsshop report shows the Electroliner and a yellow steeple cab with a CNS&M monogram and spray painted number 454. Could [...]
Fri, 02-27-2015 16:26
Thank you Nigel! We look forward to seeing 1630 in operation this season. Good luck with the repairs!