Take this box and shelve it!

The Railway Education Center in January.

The Railway Education Center is located on the Northwest Railway Museum campus on Stone Quarry Road in Snoqualmie, Washington.  The building is designed to appear like a train station, but was built to provide museum functions including a library, reading room, collection processing, classroom, and restrooms.  

Rolling carriages are the
heart of a SpaceSaver
shelving system.

The library collection is housed in a vault that features special environmental controls to tightly control temperature and humidity.  This room is designed specifically for storing and accessing the paper-based collection, which includes photographs, books, leaflets, engineering records, and more.  This installation opened in early 2017 with just five rolling shelves, but will ultimately incorporate more than one linear mile of shelving.  

Registrar Cristy L. demos
how the rolling shelving
moves along the black
tracks set into the floor.

In just three years, those five shelving units are almost completely filled with books and other materials.  It quickly became apparent that the Museum had to add another shelving unit to allow continued processing of the collection backlog.  

Thanks to a major grant from the King County 4Culture cultural equipment program, and additional support from individual donors, a new 32 inch shelving carriage has been added to the vault.  SpaceSaver made this rolling unit with attached shelving and completed the installation through their representatives at Southwest Solutions.  

Cristy L. shows off the library's new set
of wheels: 10' high, 11' long, 32" wide

The SpaceSaver shelving arrived in large crates and assembled much like a giant Erector or Meccano set.  It was ready to load with boxes after just four or five hours of effort by the Southwest Solutions crew.  Already many important documents including all the chapel car 5 research, and exciting tomes published by the Association of American Railroads have found a new home on this brand new mobile storage structure.

The Northwest Railway Museum staff, trustees and patrons send a huge "Thank You" to King County 4Culture, and the more than dozen individual donors who made this new shelving financially possible.

Training teachers

Teachers need training too, and what better place to get trained than at a railway museum?  On Saturday February 4^th, 2017, the Northwest Railway Museum hosted the Washington State Council for the Social Studies K-8 conference. The train transported more than 70 attendees from the Snoqualmie Depot to the Railway History Center on a very rare winter excursion. There, teachers split into four break-out sessions located in the classroom and reading room of the Railway Education Center, and the foyer and between tracks 3 and 4 in the Train Shed Exhibit Building.

After two hours of break-out sessions, participants grabbed lunch and re-boarded the train for a trip to Snoqualmie Falls and back. Then, the teachers were treated to docent tours of the Train Shed before returning to the Depot. Many teachers commented how they didn’t even know the Museum was there and pledged to return again – we’re hoping they come back with their students!

The Museum is honored to have had the opportunity to host a group of history educators, and is delighted to have put the new Railway Education Center to use for a program that so clearly aligns with the Museum's Mission. A huge thank you to the volunteers (train crew and docents) that came out to support the program. The Museum looks forward to many similar future programs.

This guest blog was written by deputy director Jessie Cunningham.  Ms. Cunningham manages interpretation and educational programming at the Northwest Railway Museum.

Compact rolling shelving

The new Railway Education Center.

The new Railway Education Center was dedicated in October, but over the last few months finishing touches have been applied to prepare it for use. Some of these "extras" are rather unique and unusual features long planned for this facility, and for some their inclusion may feel almost anticlimactic, but planning, designing, funding, and constructing has been a 25 year effort. 

Beginning in December 2016 special high density rolling shelving was installed in the archival vault. The project was completed last week, a major milestone for a project that was first conceived in 1992. 

The archival vault is a special windowless room with precise temperature and humidity control coupled with a clean-agent fire suppression system.  These features were among the key recommendations contained in the needs assessment funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities and performed by noted preservation librarian Randy Silverman.  For some, these features may seem rather esoteric, but for archivists and curators it is vital for the preservation of documents and artifacts. Yet archival space is valuable so achieving maximum efficiency is in everyone's interest.  

An installer from WorkPointe levels the
rails that will soon support the compact
rolling shelving carriages.

Compact rolling shelving allows a single aisle to service a roomful of shelves, which nearly doubles a room's capacity.  Each section of shelving is mounted on rolling carriages that can be positioned to provide an access aisle.  Rails were set into the vault floor and each section carriage was independently installed.  A hand wheel on the end of each carriage and shelf assembly is used to transmit propulsion to the carriage wheels.

Installation of new upper
shelves..

The shelving itself is rather conventional, but features a powder-coated finish that is scratch-resistant and low-VOC (volatile organic compounds).  The system was designed and built by SpaceSaver, and installation was funded in part by 4Culture who approved two Heritage Equipment grants in support of the project. The system was installed by WorkPointe who also arranged for a local medical center to donate the lower sections of these almost new shelves. The upper sections - to bring the total useful height to 10 feet - were purchased new.

Installing linoleum flooring.

The room itself was carefully designed to exclude any water pipes from adjacent walls or ceilings. Under the gypsum board walls a monolithic vapor barrier was applied and sealed around the frames of all room penetrations. Interior surfaces were coated with low-VOC paint, and linoleum flooring was selected for its chemical stability.  

Completion of the archival vault and the installation of the first seven shelving carriages represents a remarkable milestone in development of the Northwest Railway Museum.  Almost 3,000 linear feet of shelving now stand ready to accept small objects, photographs, maps, drawings, books and more.  This milestone also represents the beginning of the real work: completing the sorting, cataloging, and finding aids for a collection 60 years in the making.

Scenes from the Education Center dedication

Saturday, October 8, 2016 was dedication day for the Railway Education Center ("REC"), the third phase in the development of the Railway History Center campus in Snoqualmie. While some work remains to be completed, the building is enclosed, the heat is on, the restrooms work, and at the dedication everyone could tour the building!  

The event was modest and straight-forward.  It included a special train ride; dedication speeches by Washington State Representative Chad Magendanz, Snoqualmie Mayor pro tem Bob Jeans, Museum Board President Dennis Snook and Museum Executive Director Richard Anderson; and refreshments consisting of hot cider, cake, and cookies.  During the event, many of the more than 200 guests posed along the front of the Railway Education Center for a group photo.

Museum staff and a number of guests added a special touch: period clothing. Even Deputy Director Jessie Cunningham and Executive Director Richard Anderson participated, each wearing their own representation of early 20th or late 19th Century attire! (Usually only Registrar Cristy Lake and Marketing Manager Peggy Barchi participate.)

Highlighting some of the important points concerning this latest phase, Executive Director Anderson said, "This third phase of the Railway History Center is actually critical mass for the Museum.   This latest facility allows the Museum to operate exhibits independent of train operation, and allows extended visits with train operation.  With this new facility, the Museum will be able to expand the size of audience and significantly increase the length of visit.  These factors are important not only to the success of the Museum, but increase its economic impact in the community."

He continued, "The Museum has been developing what came to be known as the Railway History Center for most of its history.  The more concerted effort has taken place over the last fifteen years, with active construction beginning about 11 years ago.  This latest effort called the Railway Education Center, is the third phase, and actually completes the original museum scope envisioned 60 years ago. And What makes this project and the museum successful?  It certainly isn’t one or two people, it is a diverse team and includes trustees, staff and volunteers.  So whether it is a trustee who makes a substantial financial contribution, a volunteer who contributes material to the library, or a staff member who fills out a grant application, all of the team members are vital to the project success.  But there is another important element: community.  The City of Snoqualmie and its current and former mayors and council, it is the community members, it’s the county, and the State.

"And what makes this project and the museum successful?  It certainly isn’t one or two people, it is a diverse team and includes trustees, staff and volunteers.  So whether it is a trustee who makes a substantial financial contribution, a volunteer who contributes material to the library, or a staff member who fills out a grant application, all of the team members are vital to the project success.  But there is another important element: community.  The City of Snoqualmie and its current and former mayors and council, it is the community members, it’s the county, and the State."

Anderson added, "I have personally been working on museum development for the Northwest Railway Museum since I accepted this job almost 22 years ago.  I believed in the Museum’s mission then, and I continue to believe in it now.  It encompasses a vision that is not a library or an exhibit hall, not a steam train or a railroad bridge, it isn’t a book or a locomotive, and it is neither a short experience nor a long one.  It is all of these things that together present a cohesive and compelling story about how the railroad shaped settlement and development in the Pacific Northwest.  Thank you for being here today to help us celebrate this achievement, and welcome to the Railway Education Center."

Railway Education Center nearing completion

Cladding is being applied to the exterior

The new Railway Education Center at the Northwest Railway Museum is rapidly approaching completion. Just in the last few weeks, crews have been completing the electrical work, installing heating and air conditioning duct work, applying gypsum board, and applying steel cladding to the exterior. The building dedication is set for October 8 so the pressure is on!

Scaffolding allows workers to install
the special air handling system in the
vault. 

Special air handling is being installed in the archival vault. It will maintain relative humidity around 40% and the temperature at between 60 and 65 degrees Fahrenheit. The vault incorporates approximately 800 square feet and will feature extended height compact rolling shelving along with a very high floor load rating. An enormous volume of material will be accommodated in this purpose-built space that is being protected with a "clean agent" FM-200 non-aqueous fire suppression system.

The women's restroom will feature seven
stalls.  Hopefully, no one will ever have
to wait.

Another notable feature of the new Railway Education Center is the restroom. The combined total of "receptacles" is 14, exceeding the Snoqualmie Depot count of just eight. This will improve the visitor experience during major events that may be held at the new museum campus and ensure - or so Spike sincerely hopes - that families with young children are comfortable visiting for longer periods of time.

The classroom is really taking shape!

A primary feature of the new center is a classroom to accommodate school groups, lecture series, rules instruction, traveling exhibits, and more.  Adjacent storage rooms will allow for maximum flexibility so the room configuration can be almost infinitely modified. An adjacent kitchen will provide support for larger and longer events too, as well as support for Halloween and Santa Train!

Attic storage.  Note fire suppression
piping to the right.

Up in the attic a clever feature is being installed. With the building's massive foundation and structure to allow a library and archival vault, the attic area is receiving a special records storage unit. Important museum records that are not part of the archival collection will be stored in fireproof file cabinets located in the attic area and accessed with a retractable ladder. (The fireproof file cabinets are further protected with a fire suppression system.) Most business records are kept for not longer than 7 years so the room has been set up to allow the easy removal and disposal of materials once their life cycle has been completed.

The "front" elevation of the Railway
Education Center.

During some construction days there are more than 20 workers on the site making for rather congested working conditions. Substantial completion is scheduled for October, small and punch list items will be worked on in November and December, and the "move in" time horizon remains in early 2017. Meanwhile, fundraising continues and your contribution to help assure completion of this important new facility and the programs it will allow will be acknowledged on a donor board in the new foyer.

Railway Education Center framing

Construction of the Railway Education Center is continuing, and its objective of improving preservation and access will soon be achieved.  This new facility will incorporate 5,000 square feet and features an archival vault, public restrooms, a classroom, admissions and program offices.  An elevator will assure accessibility in this two-story structure. 

Since the last update, building framing has begun and is now well underway.  The structure is being "built to last" so it is more likely to survive potential natural disasters, and many decades of public use.  The Snoqualmie Depot was built with similar ideas and last year celebrated its 125th anniversary!  Check out these recent images that illustrate progress on the new Railway Education Center:

Framing began in mid June 2016 with the boarding plat-

form and the outer walls.

 

Boarding platform close up.



By late June, the second floor began to appear.  The

building is being clad with plywood to minimize off-

gassing that occurs with many modern materials such

as Oriented Strand Board (OSB).



The staircase takes shape.

Floor joists are massive - the archival collection is being

located on the second floor high above the flood plain.







The end walls were fabricated horizontally and then

tilted up into position.

 

In early July the basic exterior walls were complete and

sheathed with plywood.  Work has now shifted to interior

walls and the roof.

 

Railway Education Center construction progress

Spring and early summer have been busy periods at the Railway History Center in Snoqualmie. Construction of the third phase - the Railway Education Center - is rapidly advancing, but Spike is a little behind posting photos.  Plumbing and electrical has been run inside the foundation, the concrete floor has been poured, and now framing is underway.  Here is a short gallery post incorporating some highlights of the floor construction.  Spike will follow up in a few days with another gallery post that depicts framing progress.

An excavator filled inside the stem walls with a select fill.  The

stem walls elevate the building above the flood plain.  Grade

beams and utilities are located within the walls.

 

Plumbers and electricians ran pipe and conduit below what will

be the first floor. Pipe hangers will attach these pipes and

conduit to the bottom of the concrete floor.

 

Lots of reinforcing bar is hidden in floor and foundation! The

Northwest Railway Museum is in a seismic zone and

commercial buildings like this must be designed to ensure

a minimum magnitude 7.2 earthquake without collapsing.

Substantial grade beams, the Geo Pier foundation, the stem

walls, and other features work together to achieve this

design requirement.

The concrete crew pumped concrete into the

rebar cages.

 

A large concrete pump truck simplified the floor pour by

delivering concrete exactly where it was needed.

 

The concrete pumper allowed the crew to direct concrete around

the utility pipes in an efficient manner.

A simple 2x4 board was used to level the concrete.

Hand trowels helped smooth the surface.

A larger trowel helped make the floor surface uniform.

After the concrete cured slightly, workers performed

additional surfacing to create a really smooth surface.

A power trowel smooths the surface of the floor.

The complete foundation and first floor is ready for the

framing crew!

Railway Education Center form-setting event

Period clothing worn by guests at the

form setting event.

It was a bright and sunny morning in May when a steam train full of supporters pulled away from the Snoqualmie Depot.  And many on board were dressed in Depot-appropriate period clothing dating from the late Victorian era, too.  Headed east, the passengers soon arrived at the Railway History Center campus.  That day's event was the official concrete form-setting for the new Railway Education Center, the third building planned for the museum campus, which is designed to provide preservation and access for the collection.

Snoqualmie Mayor pro

tem Bob Jeans.

More than 100 guests filed into the Train Shed.  Presentations by Snoqualmie Mayor Pro Tem Bob Jeans, King County Councilmember Kathy Lambert, Museum Board of Trustees President Dennis Snook, and Museum executive director Richard R. Anderson recounted just some of the efforts required to get the project under construction.  Getting to this day took the efforts of many people more than ten years, and required support from hundreds of individuals, Foundations, Corporations, and local, regional, and State government!

In commemoration of the event,

visitors were able to sign their them on

a concrete form board.

While attending the form setting, the guests had an opportunity to sign their name on a concrete form board, which will be preserved after the project is completed.  They also had an opportunity to experience the new Train Shed exhibits, which were added earlier this year, and are part of every regular schedule train excursion.

Supporters aboard the

steam train traveling to the

form-setting event.

Kirtley Cole and Associates is constructing the new Railway Education Center that will feature public restrooms, a library and archives vault, a classroom, admissions, and program offices.  Construction is expected to continue through September, and the Museum will officially move in during winter 2017. Expanded hours of operation for the exhibit building being made possible by this new Railway Education Center will begin in 2017.


Thank you to Mitch Barchi for providing the photos used in this post. 

Technical issues prevented this post from appearing in early May as intended.