Thomas the Tank Engine arrives!

That very useful engine rolled into North Bend this week in advance of Day Out With Thomas 2018.  Thomas the Tank Engine traveled all the way from an event in Canada.  He moved on the State and Provincial highway systems using a special truck trailer.  In North Bend, a locomotive and an "idler" car coupled onto Thomas and pulled him back onto the railway track.

When he awoke from his nap, neighborhood children rushed to the North Bend Depot to welcome him to the Snoqualmie Valley.  Children of all ages took a moment to pose for a photo with him, too.

When all the diplomatic pleasantries concluded - and after railway workers conducted a thorough safety inspection to make sure he had arrived safely - Thomas the Tank Engine got up his courage to cross the Big, Big Bridge (aka Bridge 35), and continue his journey to Snoqualmie.

Thomas the Tank Engine will be appearing in Snoqualmie at Day Out With Thomas July 13 - 15 and 20 - 22.  Tickets and more information are available on the Museum's special Thomas page at www.Thomas.TrainMuseum.org  Thomas the Tank Engine is looking forward to seeing you there!

Main Street crossing reconstruction

"We've been working on the railroad" and there is another new highway crossing to show for! 

Railroad crossings represent one of the bigger funding challenges for the Northwest Railway Museum.  With a total of 18 roadway crossings, the Museum devotes significant resources towards maintenance and reconstruction.  This latest project cost was in excess of $51,000 and replaced a double track crossing in downtown North Bend, which was required to continued operating trains into the North Bend Depot.



Concrete panels arrive and await

installation on Main Street as an

excavator sets the grade.

Main Street was last reconstructed in 1988.  Normally, a new double track crossing of that size would have cost over $100,000 and there was no funding to perform work on that scale.  Fortunately, the Museum was able to leverage several opportunities to make the project viable.

The Museum learned about a small track removal project in the City of Redmond, about 20 miles from the Museum.  There, two concrete tub crossings that were installed in 1997 were being removed to allow installation of a new sewer.  Often, used tub crossings are scrapped because they are difficult to remove without damage.  So with little commercial value, the City of Redmond was able to donate the panels to the Museum.  In the end, of the 70 panels removed, 40 were reclaimed, repaired and reused.  This “saved” the Museum over $35,000 versus the cost of new crossing tubs.

The new crossing takes shape on Main

Street in North Bend.  Concrete tubs

eliminate the use of railroad ties in the

crossing.

 

The Museum was able to secure a grant from the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (“WUTC”).  The WUTC is one of the agencies that provide regulatory oversight of the Museum’s railway.   They maintain a Grade Crossing Protective Fund, which awarded a $20,000 grant towards the cost of new welded rail and its installation. 

Other important project support came from the City of North Bend, which provided all the traffic control required to close the road and detour traffic, and forgave three years of user fees for the North Bend Depot for a combined benefit of over $11,000.

The crossing has been completed; it opened as soon as the

asphalt cooled.

And the Museum was able to secure some relay rail for the side track (new rail was used on the main).  As well, the Museum's dedicated volunteers were able to perform the required repairs on the used crossing panels.

The project allowed for six days of construction but it was completed in less than five.  RailWorks Track Systems, Asphalt by George, and Snoqualmie's Imhoff Contractor Crane Service performed the balance of the work. 

Chapel car's travels

{Please remember to vote for the chapel car 5 Messenger of Peace today and every day until May 12 at http://www.PartnersInPreservation.org/}

Chapel car 5 Messenger of Peace traveled the country for 50 years. Beginning in 1898 with its dedication at Rochester, New York, car 5 brought hope, enlightenment, and religion to hundreds of communities. Some visits were short and others were longer but by length of service the greatest impact was in the Pacific Northwest. From the first visit to Pasco, WA in August 1915 to retirement at south Everett in the summer of 1948, the chapel car spent nearly 33 years in Washington and Oregon. It also made brief visits to Idaho and California.

The Messenger of Peace’s early years in Washington were widespread and interesting. From research conducted by Norman and Wilma Taylor, we have learned a few colorful details about early visits to a variety of communities:

Car 5 visited Spokane in April 1916 where Pastor Thomas R. Gale described the church as “nearly dead, a hard proposition.”

A month long visit to Deer Park began on May 21, 1916 where the Reverend Gale provided evangelistic services and helped build a church building. This community on the Great Northern Railway was home to more than a dozen saw mills and was on what was Daniel Corbin's Spokane Falls and Northern Railway.

The remote logging communities of Wilburton and Mid Lakes received three weeks of attention from the Messenger of Peace in November and December 1916. These communities were on the Northern Pacific Railway’s belt line along the west shore of Lake Washington that until recently carried the Spirit of Washington dinner train, and fuselage sections for 737-900 aircraft unable to clear close clearances in Renton. Today, both settlements are a part of Bellevue and are anything but remote.

The bustling metropolis of Renton was another stop for car 5 in late 1916 where Reverend Gale described, “a mining camp [with] deplorable religious conditions.” Coal mines were the core of Renton’s economy in that era and churches were not plentiful.

In January 1917 the chapel car visited Issaquah for 6 weeks during a dreadfully difficult time for the community. The alien property custodians had also just arrived in town to seize what was left of a German-backed chemical plant. Adding to that was a layoff at the local Superior Coal mine. Messenger of Peace soldiered on to revive not only the Baptist church but the Methodists as well.

By March the car moved on to North Bend to help the First Baptist Church of North Bend, which continues today at the North Bend Community Church. Hear what Pastor Pete Battjes had to say on a recent visit to the Snoqualmie Depot:



The Messenger of Peace went on to visit hundreds of communities throughout the Northwest. It touched the lives of thousands of people yet its stories are nearly forgotten. The rehabilitation and restoration of chapel car 5 Messenger of Peace will help preserve and revive this exciting history. Please help support the effort by voting for the Messenger of Peace today and every day until May 12 at www.partnersinpreservation.org

More on the Messenger of Peace

Chapel Car 5 Messenger of Peace is competing for funding in the Partners In Preservation Seattle/Puget Sound initiative. At stake for the chapel car is up to $100,000 in funding and your votes will help decide if it gets funded! Vote today and every day until May 12 at http://www.PartnersInPreservation.org/

The chapel car is a pretty exciting project. Win or lose, it is getting a lot of attention. Check out what local officials had to say about the chapel car:

The chapel car was built in 1898 and served the American Baptist Publication Society for 50 years. Retired in 1948, the car had an after-life as a road side diner, cottage, and is now set to be rehabilitated to become a museum exhibit.

Chapel cars helped settle communities and develop the west. They helped establish community values in far-flung settlements, promote the Railroad YMCA, and revive congregation. Their story is nearly forgotten but now a surviving example - with your help - will be rehabilitated and used to tell their story.

Learn more about the chapel car at http://www.MessengerOfPeace.org/ and vote to fund it at http://www.PartnersInPreservation.org/

Movie Night Nov 4 offers train scenes, suspense & fun

In less than a week, a one-of-a-kind theatre, a movie full of action and suspense, and a lively museum team up to offer you a casual evening out with family or friends. And the best part is . . .

Actually, there are a lot of “best parts” to next Wednesday’s movie night fundraiser for the Northwest Railway Museum.

For some it will be the great footage of Idaho’s Camas Prairie Railroad splashed across a big screen.

For others it will be not having to decide whether to spend extra money on popcorn and soda, because it’s all included in the $10 ticket price.

For others it will be knowing that part of their $10 goes to the new Train Shed exhibit building now under construction in Snoqualmie.

For still others it will be a sneak preview of a Wellington exhibit planned for next year, along with a Train Shed update, recent museum project highlights, and a personal welcome from Museum Executive Director Richard Anderson.

For me, it’s the fact that the museum keeps coming up with intriguing fundraisers that offer the community genuinely fun events directly relating to the museum’s mission, instead of following generic fundraiser models.

Whatever your “best part” is, we look forward to seeing you.

Breakheart Pass
Wednesday, Nov. 4, 7:00 PM
North Bend Theatre
125 Bendigo Blvd. N
Click here for directions
$10/person includes popcorn & soda

NO CREDIT CARDS accepted. Cash & checks only.
Cash machines next door at Cascade Bank and Bank of America.

Oh, so you want to know what the movie is about? Breakheart Pass, a 1975 film starring Charles Bronson, weaves a tale of an 1870 Army outpost, a conspiracy between a group of killers and a tribe of Indians, an undercover agent posing as an arrested criminal, the lure of gold and silver, plenty of deception, and a rescue train carrying medical supplies and assorted passengers. As the train crosses the Rocky Mountains, passengers are murdered one by one. . . . But that's all incidental, right? We're all coming for the scenes of a Camas Prairie steam locomotive and wooden railway cars.

The Spirit of Cooperation

Two Snoqualmie Valley Museums are sharing a new exhibit, “North Bend’s Own Train,” which depicts the fascinating but untold story of the role the rail line played in the growth and development of North Bend and the Upper Snoqualmie Valley. The display contains the history, historical photos, diagrams and first-hand accounts of how the railroad brought prosperity to the Valley.

Although Snoqualmie had the elaborate depot, and was the heart of the operation, North Bend was where the train and crew were based for many years. (The engine was serviced at night by a watchman, the crew slept in old boxcar converted to a cozy caboose, and the engine was turned on the wye in North Bend.)

A commonality shared by North Bend and Snoqualmie is the critical role the railroad played in the development and sustainability of both communities. Until modern times the only way products like lumber and coal got to customers was by train. The rail line, opened in 1889, has served North Bend and the Upper Snoqualmie Valley for 120 years, bringing trade and tourists and thereby boosting - even enabling - the area’s economy.

The exhibit is the work of Northwest Railway Museum volunteers Dan O. and Thom W. It shows there are many opportunities for individuals to volunteer their particular talents at the valley Museums. Also contributing research, images, data, and stories were the Snoqualmie Valley Historical Museum, the White River Valley Museum in Auburn, the Northern Pacific Railway Historical Association, the North Bend branch of the King County Library System, and a number of individuals.

North Bend’s Own Train will be on loan to the Snoqualmie Valley History Museum through October 30th. Stop by and check out their newest installations; an exhibit on the Snoqualmie Tribe and another reflecting the last 100 years in North Bend. The Snoqualmie Valley History Museum is a short walk from the North Bend Depot. Take a stroll and return on a later train. Don’t be afraid to mention where you saw the information.

Beginning November 1st, the exhibit will move to the North Bend branch of the King County Library System, and then it will be placed on long-term display at the Northwest Railway Museum.

Five time-tested ways to keep your cool

1) Enjoy the breeze and the view from Coach 272 when you ride the Snoqualmie Valley Railroad.

2) Stroll the Centennial Trail past the Museum’s rail yard, and continue a half mile to Snoqualmie Falls to catch some spray.

3) Board the train in Snoqualmie, and cool off with a cone or a shake at Scott’s Dairy Freeze in North Bend before completing your journey. Or board in North Bend, and take your ice cream break at the Chew Chew Cafe in Snoqualmie.

4) Inspect the Museum’s Northern Pacific Steam Rotary Snowplow, and consider how delectable these days will seem when temperatures dip below freezing next winter.

5) Enjoy the slower

pace of Snoqualmie. Step inside the historic wooden depot. Sit on a bench out front and contemplate all the people who have stood on the platform over the past 120 years.

Thomas the Tank Engine arrives in Snoqualmie

This is a true story but the narrative has been adapted to suit the occasion!

Thomas the Tank EngineTM arrived in North Bend early in July 7, 2009. Unfortunately, the Fat Controller made a mistake and loaded Thomas on the lorry facing the wrong direction! Thomas insisted that he be turned around and everyone at the Northwest Railway Museum agreed. Some clever work from Steve P. and Earl W. (with help from Dan C., Vern S., and Hugh H.) using the Northwest Railway Museum's Pettibone Speedswing accomplished the feat in no time and then it was official: Thomas the Tank Engine was ready to haul some freight!

Wagon NP 14794 was loaded with some precious cargo and was coupled to Thomas. Then the nice diesel 4012 was coupled on the rear so the guard would have a nice place to ride. And then they departed for Snoqualmie pausing on bridge 35 to chat with the fisherman and fisherwoman who were beneath the bridge. A short time later, Thomas arrived in Snoqualmie right on time!

Thomas the Tank Engine is visiting Snoqualmie for the next two weeks and will be hosting 8th annual Day Out With Thomas TM here on July 10 - 12 and 17 - 19. He would love to take you for trip to the scenic Snoqualmie Falls on the Museum's railroad. There are still a few tickets available so why not join him? Information is available on the Museum web site.

Thomas the Tank Engine and Day Out With Thomas are copyright 2009 Gullane (Thomas) Limited.

North Bend block party

The City of North Bend is turning 100 this year! In preparation for a grand celebration in August, the City hosted a block party for local residents, and the Northwest Railway Museum was there. Hundreds of people turned out to watch Twede's burger-eating contest, George's Bakery's children’s giant donut-eating contest, a race through Encompass’s inflatable obstacle course, listen to music and of course visit the Cookie Train!

Cookie Train was conceived by George’s Bakery’s proprietors. Tens of dozens of locomotive-shaped cookies were given to local residents who came down to tour the Museum’s Army Ambulance Kitchen Car and SP&S combine 272, both located at the North Bend Depot just for the occasion. Thom and Lynn W. volunteered to give tours and distribute the cookies, and Isaac F. and Bob L. helped the regular crews move the cars to North Bend for the day.

The block party was fun, but it was just a warm up. Prepare for North Bend’s grand centennial celebration. It will be held on the August 8th weekend, during the annual Festival at Mt. Si.

Signal repairs

North Bend's Bendigo Street railroad crossing is fully repaired following efforts led by signal maintainer Jon B. and assisted by Steve P., Issac F., and Dan C. A beautiful April 24 saw temperatures soar to 66 degrees and the crew of four made quick work of the assignment. Completing this work will allow trains to operate through this crossing without restriction beginning Saturday, 25 April 2009. (Click here for current schedules.)

Technically, a new Safetran model S-40 gate mechanism was installed in the west quadrant. Heavy rains that precipitated the January 7 & 8 flooding infiltrated and damaged this crossing gate mechanism on Bendigo Street. Temporary repairs allowed the crossing signals to function normally up until now, but complete replacement for "permanent" repair was required because it was not practical to fully repair this 30 year-old model S gate. The old gate mechanism was disconnected and lifted off with the Museum's Pettibone Speedswing; then a new one was hoisted into place. The entire procedure took 5 hours and replacement parts cost over $6,000; this in another in a series of flood-related repairs that when completed will total $116,000.

Beautiful Day for a Ride

It’s an ideal weekend for a scenic train ride through the Snoqualmie Valley. Many people took advantage of the beautiful spring weather today and rode the Museum’s train, traveling through the towns of Snoqualmie and North Bend and even stopping to overlook the gorge beyond Snoqualmie Falls.

Don’t worry-you didn’t miss it. Come out tomorrow and enjoy a day in the valley. Trains depart from the historic Snoqualmie Depot at 12:01 PM, 1:31 PM, 3:01 PM, and 3:41 PM. You may also depart from North Bend. See the train schedule under Regular Trains on this web site for more details.

Bring a picnic to enjoy in the yard at the depot or stop for lunch at one of the many wonderful restaurants in Snoqualmie or North Bend. Spring has arrived!