Crossing gate retired

One of the aspects of railroads that Spike finds particularly interesting is the longevity of many fixed assets.  Bridges, depots, and even rails are frequently in service for many decades, and in some instances for more than 100 years.  Electrical apparatus, however, are not things you often see with long service lives, but there are exceptions. 

The Museum recently retired a railroad crossing gate mechanism that was placed in service in 1953, reportedly on either the Great Northern or Northern Pacific Railway here in Washington State. It was received in a donation from the Burlington Northern in 1977 and installed on Meadowbrook Way SE in Snoqualmie.

The Griswold-built device was manufactured in Minneapolis by the precursor to today's Siemens Rail Automation.  This device is known in the industry simply as a model EM gate, and was replaced with a much newer device of the same design that was rebuilt by the Museum's signal maintainer Jon B.  Rebuilding included new wire, a new relay, repainting, new lights, new cross bucks and more.  Total financial investment was modest but an estimated 175 person hours were invested in the project.

The original device served the Museum well but the mechanism was badly worn; replacement was the only practicable option.  The newly rebuilt device will easily serve for twenty or more years thanks to the efforts of Jon and others at the Museum.

Come and see it in operation for yourself - trains operate weekends through the end of October.  Check out schedules and fares on the Museum's web site at www.trainmuseum.org

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. 

Giving Thanks in 2009

15 things the Northwest Railway Museum is thankful for (in no particular order):

1. Sprinkler systems! (The Snoqualmie Depot was spared from major fire damage by sprinkler heads located on the structure’s exterior.)

2. Successful flood recovery. (On January 8 the Museum experienced the most significant flood event in its history and recovered in time to operate trains in April as scheduled.)

3. Broad base of community support from a truly successful community. (Participation through programs, volunteering, contributing funds, donating goods and services, and helping protect the museum from fire, flood and even petty crime.)

4. Popular programs. (2009 experienced record-setting participation in the Museum’s programs.)

5. Beautiful scenery in a great location. (A beautiful location helps the Museum be successful, and is part of railroad's legacy in the Northwest.)

6. A Collection of Northwest railway history truly representative of the region. (Locomotives, a depot, bridges, freight cars, coaches, lanterns, books, photographs, maps, and examples of pretty much anything else imaginable that was used to build, operate or maintain a railroad.)

7. Great volunteers. (Over 200 people have participated this year in everything from flood recovery to staffing all programs.)

8. Dedicated staff. (Five full time and four part time staff provide management and general support for museum programs.)

9. Supportive local government (Snoqualmie, North Bend and King County have all helped the Museum become more successful.)

10. Awesome elected officials at all levels of government from the City of Snoqualmie Council all the way to Congress.

11. Irreplaceable support from the State of Washington and the United States. (Together, the State and Federal government are funding nearly 40% of the new Train Shed.)

12. Museum members. (Membership remains as one of the Museum’s critical support mechanisms.)

13. Generous funders. (Recent new support received from 4Culture, North American Railway Foundation, the Quest for Truth Foundation, the City of Snoqualmie and dozens of individuals.)

14. Effective and dedicated Board of Trustees. (Museum is governed by 11 volunteer trustees. Members include rail historians, museum volunteers, and community representatives.)

15. The best bells and whistles of any museum in the County!

The sights we saw along Railroad Avenue!

Snoqualmie Railroad Days was so much fun this year, we can’t wait to give you a sneak preview of Railroad Days 2010.

August 2009 was the first time the Northwest Railway Museum hosted Snoqualmie’s annual festival. Thanks to all who helped! The Field of Fun transformed the Snoqualmie Depot grounds, where hundreds of children bounced themselves silly in inflatables, raced bananas in North Bend Theatre’s Banana Boogie, and laughed and sang along with Nancy Stewart, Eric Ode, and Clay Martin’s Puppet Theater. 877 runners completed 1k, 5k and 10k courses in the Snoqualmie Fun Run. View results and a gallery of photos. 65 vendors sold paintings, crafts, insulated glass, you name it. 44 Grand Parade entrants marched, danced, rode and unicycled through Snoqualmie. Congratulations, winners! View parade and festival photos. The police department estimates 3,500 festival-goers, which nearly quadrupled downtown Snoqualmie’s population for a day!

Snoqualmie Valley Railroad trains sold out. Fair-goers also rode the rails aboard a railway motorcar. The Museum demonstrated a tie spacer, which is a diesel-powered machine for aligning railroad ties; a Pettibone Speedswing, which is a small crane that operates on roads and railroad tracks; and a winded museum director showing tamping techniques and rail spiking. Don’t know what those are? Well, that’s what the demo’s are for! We’ll see you next year, when the Museum will feature additional demonstrations and activities throughout 3 festival days.

That’s right, we’re back to a full-sized festival in 2010, beginning Friday, Aug. 20, 2010. You can look forward to the Legends Car Club Classic Car Show on Sunday, Aug. 22. RunSnoqualmie will host the Fun Run Saturday, Aug. 21, and the Northwest Railway Museum will dedicate its new Train Shed exhibit building. Should be about triple the fun!

What makes Railroad Days different

Seventy years after its launch as a fundraiser for Snoqualmie's volunteer fire department, Railroad Days - now a free annual festival - is under new management. And who better to take it on than a railroad?

Early this year, with the City of Snoqualmie’s wholehearted approval, the Northwest Railway Museum adopted the community festival. Come check out the results this Saturday, August 22! You’ll find everything you’d expect from a friendly town festival, including a pancake breakfast, fun run, Grand Parade, live music, food and art vendors. The Children’s Field of Fun offers live entertainment, games and the North Bend Theatre Banana Boogie: young folks build banana racers and compete on a special raceway. Plus, kids get their own Root Beer Garden, while adults get their Beer Garden.

But what makes Railroad Days different from other community festivals are the themed activities springing from Snoqualmie’s rich railroad history. Hop aboard a train in North Bend, arrive in style at the Snoqualmie Depot, and be sure to catch the railroad and logging equipment tours and demos.

Saturday trains depart North Bend 11:26 am, 12:56 pm, 2:26 pm and 3:56 pm (that one lands you in Snoqualmie with no way back to North Bend). Trains depart Snoqualmie at 11:01 am, 12:31 pm, 2:01 pm, 3:31 pm and - this next one takes you to the Falls and back to Snoqualmie only - 4:11 pm. Also, although there are no festival activities this Friday, the Snoqualmie Valley Railroad is running special trains Friday, August 21, departing North Bend at 12:26 pm, 1:56 pm and 3:26 pm (no return to North Bend), and departing Snoqualmie at 12:01 pm, 1:31 pm, 3:01 pm, plus 3:41 pm to the Falls and back only. Adults pay $10, seniors (62+) $9, and children (2-12) $7.

Get the whole scoop on Railroad Days...

View details on train rides and depot locations...

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.