Working on the Railroad success

The Museum hosted its first Working on the Railroad benefit dinner at the TPC Snoqualmie Ridge. Attended by 137 people, the March 5th event was an unqualified success. Great food, entertainment, and an insightful historical talk filled the evening. It was a fitting way to remember the Wellington Disaster and a great way to support a new museum exhibit building.

Co-hosts Bob Jeans and Cindy Walker welcomed everyone and introduced several key people. 4Culture Executive Director Jim Kelly made additional introductions and spoke of the role and importance of historical organizations in preserving and interpreting American history, and the importance of culture and cultural organizations in a healthy community. A wonderful dinner was served by the TPC kitchen and the Issaquah Singers serenaded the patrons with a medley of railroad songs. During the evening a series of unique items including copies of photos from the Museum’s Oberg Collection were offered in a silent auction. Several items including an opportunity to run a locomotive were auctioned off. Following dinner, Gary Krist, author of The White Cascade: The Great Northern Railway and America's Deadliest Avalanche, presented a gripping presentation about the Wellington Disaster. (More about Gary Krist here.) Rare photos and an incredible narrative captivated the audience for nearly 45 minutes. The evening concluded with an informative question and answer session.

The Working on the Railroad benefit dinner in part commemorated the 100th anniversary of the Wellington Disaster, an avalanche that occurred March 1, 1910 at Wellington in Stevens Pass. (The disaster killed 96 people and is the most deadly North American avalanche.) The evening was also the formal launch of the Wellington Remembered exhibit and web site, an initiative to remember the community that was far more than the site of a disaster; it was a company town and a community from 1892 until 1929. Excerpts from the exhibit were on display in the TPC foyer and engendered considerable interest. (The exhibit itself appears in the Snoqualmie Depot freight room inside a model of a snow shed; shown at left is Executive Director Richard Anderson, Author Gary Krist, and Educator Jessie Cunningham as they toured Mr. Krist through the new exhibit.)

Working on the Railroad was made possible with the generous support of the community. We are grateful to Gary Krist for donating his time to speak about the Wellington Disaster. We also give thanks to the many businesses and individuals who contributed goods and services to the auction and dinner: Salish Lodge and Spa (overnight stay with breakfast), Jim M. (wine from the Bookwalter Vineyard), Allan W.(Hand-made candle box, wine butler & coaster holder), Cindy W.(Cedar River Watershed tour + gourmet lunch basket), North Bend Theatre (Evening at the theatre for you and your 250 closest friends), Infinite Possibilities (life coaching sessions), Betty L. (Leavenworth condo stay), Snoqualmie Falls Golf Course (round of golf), Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad (steam locomotive cab ride), Russ S.(hand-made wine rack), Down to Earth Photography (portrait session, photo of Snoqualmie Falls, & photos of the event), Carmichael's True Value Hardware (metal truck planter), Phil L. (auctioneer), Issaquah Singers (evening of railroad songs), THINK2A (graphics and marketing), ColorGraphics (printing), Thom W. (graphic design & layout), & Birches Habitat (photo frame for Gary Krist).

The Museum is very pleased with the results of the evening; proceeds will help support construction of the new Train Shed exhibit building now under construction in Snoqualmie. Support from the community and an enjoyable evening combined to create a memorable and repeatable event. We are all looking forward to another Working on the Railroad event this fall.

Wellington Remembered

Today - March 1, 2010 - is the anniversary of a northwest tragedy: the Wellington Disaster. On March 1, 1910, at about 1:15 AM, an avalanche over ½ mile in length began high above the town of Wellington. The town itself was spared, but two snow-bound trains just west of the depot were swept into the valley below. At least 96 people perished, most of them railroad workers.

Several great authors have written insightful works about the avalanche, most recently Martin Burwash with his release of Vis Major. Gary Krist wrote The White Cascade: The Great Northern Railway Disaster and America’s Deadliest Avalanche and an excellent profile of Gary and what precipitated his writing adventure was detailed by Phoebe Snow. And Gary will be making a presentation at the Museum’s Working on the Railroad benefit dinner this Friday, March 5, 2010.

Without question, the Wellington Disaster was a tragedy, but it tends to overshadow the importance of the town of Wellington, and even why it existed. In 1910 transportation in and out of Northwest was in its infancy. Just 27 years prior, the Northern Pacific Railroad had connected Puget Sound with the eastern railway network. The Great Northern Railway – whose tracks passed through Wellington – drove its last spike just a few miles from Wellington (near Scenic) in 1893, and that had been just 17 years prior. And to the north, arch competitor Canadian Pacific completed its transcontinental in 1885 and therefore had got a running start on the Great Northern. Railway transportation empowered the industrial revolution. It was vital for the development and settlement of the Northwest, and to connect trade with the Far East.

Wellington was a company town that supported the operation of the railway, in fact a vital link in the railway machine. For 37 years, from its founding in 1892 until its end in 1929, Wellington was indispensible to the operation of the mighty Great Northern. In Wellington alone, nearly 100 men were routinely required to build and repair track, build and maintain snow sheds, clear snow, service locomotives, maintain tunnels and bridges, maintain telegraph lines and of course run the trains.

So what was it like to live in Wellington? We know surprisingly little about life in Wellington, but some of its stories are probably similar to those of other nearly forgotten yet once vital Western Washington towns such as Cedar Falls on the Milwaukee Road and Lester on the Northern Pacific Railway. In 2010, just as the last living memories of Wellington have passed on, we are scrambling to learn what we can about this town.

The Northwest Railway Museum recently accepted the Oberg Collection, 60 glass negatives exposed in and near Wellington by Casper Hansen in 1913 and 1914. They offer some insight into life in Wellington and have provoked a broader study of the town. So on this anniversary of a tragedy, the Northwest Railway Museum is launching Wellington Remembered, an initiative featuring images from the Oberg Collection. As this project develops, we hope to hear from descendants, friends and acquaintances, and history fans. This project will result in a permanent exhibit in the new Railway History Center Train Shed, and the companion web site Wellington Remembered.

Wellington, WA

March 1, 1910 was a disastrous day in King County. Two occupied trains - a mail train and a passenger train - yarded at Wellington, Washington, near Stevens Pass, waiting for the tracks ahead to be cleared of snow, were swept away in the worst avalanche in American history. 96 people were killed with countless others injured; most were railroad employees but many passengers were victims too. Though tragic, this is a fascinating story and an important chapter in King County and Northwest history.


The Northwest Railway Museum is pleased to announce it is hosting a Working on the Railroad event at the Snoqualmie Ridge TPC on Friday, March 5, 2010 at 6 PM. A gourmet dinner will be followed by a presentation from noted author Gary Krist, author of the White Cascade: The Great Northern Railway Disaster and America's Deadliest Avalanche (available in the Depot Bookstore). The evening will also feature the Issaquah Singers performing a medley of railroad songs, and a silent auction with some memorable items including photos from the Wellington (Tye) area taken circa 1913. Proceeds benefit construction of the new Train Shed exhibit building. Tickets are $100 and are available from the Depot Bookstore in Snoqualmie in person or by phone (425) 888-3030 Extension 202.

(Photo depicts steam rotary x808 and crew circa 1913 at Wellington (Tye), WA.)

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.