the DispatcherCentral Oklahoma Chapter

of the National Railway Historical SocietyOklahoma Railway Museum Ltd,

NARCOA Affiliate Member

Volume 49 Issue 7 July 2014

by Gary Githens

photo provided

Union Pacific Public Safety Trainin OKC on May 22nd

Left, Anne Murray Chilton and Jay Chilton, delegates from the Oklahoma Railway Museum, accept the Cultural Heri-tage Stewardship Award from Susan McVey, Oklahoma Department of Libraries Director, and Dr. Bob Blackburn, Oklahoma Historical Society Executive Director, along-side Representative Mike Shelton on May 1 at the Okla-homa State Capitol. (story page 2)

left to right Rep. Mike Shelton, Anne Murray Chilton, Jay Chilton, Susan McVey, Dr. Bob Blackburn

2014 "Top 10 Artifacts: Saving Oklahoma's Heritage”

I had the opportunity to be a guest of the Union Pacific Railroad for a trip from near Bass Pro Shops to just past Yukon and return. The train consisted of three cars from their Heritage fleet. Riding in the observa-tion car “Columbia” was my first time ever in a dome car.

(continued page 6)

Founding member passes Edwin “Ed” King Birch, Sr.,

Sept 7, 1923 -June 13, 2014page 4

Page 2 the DispatcherOklahoma Railway

Museum, Ltd.

Board of DirectorsStan Hall, President

Larry Dodd, Vice President

and Program Chair

Drake Rice, Secretary

Charles Price, Treasurer

Bob Nantois, NRHS Director

Bob Cossairt, Director of

Buildings & Static Displays

Bob Hussey, Director of

Track Maintenance

Terry Birchett, Director of

Mechanical Operations

Harry Currie, Director at

Large

Greg Hall, Director of

Museum Activities

Bob Cook, Director of

Museum Displays

Ed Birch Jr., Train Show Chair

Gary Taber, Membership

Chair

Gary Githens, Dispatcher Editor

Stan Hall

The Presidents Column

Oklahoma Railway Museum 405-424-8222

Photographs and stories by Gary Githens unless noted otherwise

2014 "Top 10 Artifacts: Saving Oklahoma's Heritage”

The Oklahoma Cultural Heritage Trust

The Oklahoma Railway Museum was recog-nized for its work to preserve and protect the Porter Steam Engine #7466, one of the last steam engines to operate in Oklahoma, and was accepted into the "Top 10 Artifacts: Saving Oklahoma's Heritage" program in a May Day ceremony at the Oklahoma State Capitol on May 1.

In addition to being accepted into the program, the Oklahoma Railway Museum was present-ed with a Cultural Heritage Stewardship Award signed by Governor Mary Fallin, Senator Con-stance Johnson and Representative Mike Shel-ton. The award recognizes the Oklahoma Rail-way Museum’s commitment to the preservation of Oklahoma’s rich culture and heritage.

The 50 ton saddle tank style locomotive built by H. K. Porter company in September 1942. Builders number 7486. Original owner was U. S. Army Corps Of Engineers - road no. 5006, PO 57198, C of E spec T-1557. Sold to Oklahoma Gas & Electric who used it at the Horse Shoe Power plant in Harrah OK. switching coal cars.

I want to thank Larry Dodd for running the parking lot for the Na-tional Womens Softball World Series Tournament. He did a great job of organizing the museum workers and parking the cars. We had a new addition this year, Harry Currie found us a new Lot to the East and cleared, cleaned and set up parking there. With more museum members, we parked there also. Overall the Museum received about $24,000 for parking and the members who participated had a good time with our visitors from all over the United States. We also had a good time visiting with each other after the lot was full.

The Members picnic was a lot of fun. Thanks to all of you who came to enjoy a lunch, train ride and see all the improvements since last year. Special thanks to chef Richard Robinson who was assisted by his daughter Angela and son Jonathan.

Page 3the DispatcherMuseum Update by Drake Rice

July is the 15th Anniversary of the purchase of the ORM propertyThanks to the many volunteers and donors that have contributed

If you can help, even once, with car hosting or flag-ging please contact Anne at 424-8222 on Thurs-days or Fridays to schedule

Day out with ThomasSep 26,27,28 and Oct 3,4,5

Please consider volunteering Your ORM needs your help.

June has continued to be busy with a lot of activities at our museum. We have had two operations weekends with good turnouts on both and then the special mem-bers train during the Annual Member’s Picnic. The Annual Member’s Picnic had a good turnout for grilled hot dogs, chips and soft drinks. A special thanks to Richard Robinson and his teenagers for the cooking and serving. ORM has enjoyed the working signals on NE 36th Street crossing. The signals have made a difference and helped improve the safety. Charles Price has becoming our signal switch person to active the sig-nals at the crossing when the trains are preparing to cross. In addition, Bob Hussey and Company has installed signals at the Grand Avenue crossing. Wir-ing will need to be run to provide power to the signals and we will be looking forward to Larry Dodd and John Emery getting the relays hooked up and activating the signals in the future. The overall plan is to get the signals at NE 30th op-erating and then signals at NE 16th Street. We have signals for NE 16th and we will need to make im-provements to the NE 30th Street signals prior to put-ting them in service. So we still have a lot of work to do and as always the museum could use help with these projects, so if you have some time we always welcome help.

In the shop, work continues on the Rock Island Caboose rehab work that has been ongoing for over a year. Work is nearing completion on the exterior that will allow paint-ing in the future and the carpentry department is working on the inte-rior. The caboose will look like new when completed and will allow us to have a Rock Island Caboose that can be used for special occasions. The mechanical folks are nearing completion of the work over of ORM 301, the 45 Ton GE switch-er. Brake work is completed and new batteries have been received and will be installed and the engine will be ready to leave the shop after its six months of rest on track one.At the present time the area in front of the shop is the location for a lot of construction. The improvement will take care of drainage issues that have been occurring where in heavy rail, water runs in the front of the build-ing and or stands in front of the Murray Shop building. Once the drains are installed then asphalt will be put down which will help keep gravel from being kicked in the building by our visitors especially during DOWT. As always, we hope to see you at the museum where there is always a project needing some help.

Page 4 the Dispatcher

All rail fans owe a debt of gratitude to Ed Birch, Sr. A group of modelers began meeting at his house back in 1968. From that group the Central Oklahoma Rail Fan Club was formed which later became the Oklahoma Railway Museum and the Oklahoma City Train Show was started.

During his years of working for the railroads Ed had his camera busy. His library of railroad photographs is outstanding and appreciated. Thanks for his contribu-tion to rail fans.Gary Githens

In memory of Mr. Ed Birch, Sr.

Sept 7, 1923 -June 13, 2014 Edwin King Birch, Sr., 90, of Oklahoma City, went home to be with his Lord and Savior on Friday, June 13, 2014. He was born September 7, 1923, in Pittman, NJ to Edwin and Helen Birch. He served in the Army from 1944 to 1946 and was a World War 2 veteran. He married the love of his life, Beatrice, on May 28, 1948. She preceded him in death earlier this year. Edwin spent 30 years working in the railroad for the Santa Fe and Rock Island companies and 30 years working at Whistle Stop Trains. He had a love for photography and was always taking photos of his family and trains. Edwin is survived by his three children, Edwin Birch Jr., Wayne Birch, and Darlene and Greg Shoopman; nine grandchildren (including spouses) and seven great-grandchildren; all of the Oklahoma City area. Funeral services were held at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, June 18, 2014, at the Chapel Hill Memorial Gardens Cem-etery at 8701 NW Expressway in Oklahoma City.

I recall going down to Union Station with my dad around 1962 interested in getting information on what trains were running on the Frisco, and Rock Island. Ed was working the ticket window in those days. He provided plenty of timetables and then introduced us to the stationmaster who took us on a grand tour and provided a fat envelope labeled educational materi-als, all of which I have to this day. He was a treasure trove of information, had a fond-ness for and knew all the eastern lines, was always helpful in finding that unusual photo you might be looking for in his collection. Steve Davis

Ed Birch Sr. realized early on that America's trans-portation system was going to change. Fortunately for us he did not stand idly by while it happened. He painstakingly documented that change with his cam-era. Because he did so, we now have his collection of photos to enjoy and remind us of what came before.

Although Mr. Birch is departed from this life, his leg-acy will remain in crystal clear black and white (and some Kodacolor) images. Even though he took a great manyimages of rail equipment, sadly he did not spend enough time in front of the camera for some. Let's all take this lesson with us. While out photo-graphing, be sure and get images of your friends and fellow railfans. You never know.Larry Dodd

Ed Sr. was a great guy and I enjoyed his photo work. He always had a great photo of something in the OKC area I was looking for. My favorite is the Katy switcher working the Turner Yard here in Oklahoma City. His pictures are great and filled with detail.Drake Rice

the Dispatcher Page 5

photo Bob Cossairt

Article from ORM website

Picture of the rail bus during operational days

There was not much left of the rail bus when brought to Okla-homa.

Builder Winter - Weiss, Denver, Colorado Built 1924 Acquired 1985 Previous owners Southern San Luis Valley Railroad subsidiary of Colorado Aggregate Company History The car had the truck axle added for \"traction\" sometime in the 1950s.. The initial location was between the front and rear truck just ahead of the lead axle of the rear truck. The car still looked the same as your photos as late as Sept. 1949. A photo in the book shows the extended front end was added by 1960. I suspect this extension was added to accom-modate an air compressor to operate the train brakes on the cars as there are brackets and piping still in place that indicate a compressor was once located there. The M-300 is very light and freight cars loaded or unloaded would not have any problem pushing it down the track once they got to rolling. The SLVS ex-perimented with the rubber wheel drive system when the steel wheels (on the rear truck) proved to provide inadequate traction. The rail bus was used to replace a mail/passenger train. The problem with the rubber tire system was the tires heated up on the rail to the point they last only a couple of round trips of the line. The same problem occurred with the first D-500 that was built with rubber wheels. Replacing a blown tire on that thing would be downright exhausting, partic-ularly at high altitude. It seems that both the M-300 and the first D-500 were quite adept at blowing tires. The M-300 also had a steel trailer car of narrow gage dimensions (standard gage axles however) that was used infrequently and finally finished its days as the pump house for the SLVS water well. As for how the car came to Oklahoma City. One of the traveling mem-bers of the Oklahoma Railway Museum (then called the Central Oklahoma Railfan Club, also called the Central Oklahoma Chapter of the NRHS) happened onto the SLVS at Blanca about 1985. He caught sight of the M-300 and asked the railroad if they would part with it. About 6 months later the M-300 was loaded on the back of a flat bed semi-trailer and trucked back to Oklahoma. The car earned the name \"The Mouse\" because of its silver/gray paint and the fact that a whole troop of mice could be seen falling out of the M-300 and running all over the deck of the trailer as it was towed over La Veta Pass.

SAN LUIS VALLEY SOUTHERN RAIL BUS

A Colorado group is currently raising funds to return the rail buss to Colorado for restoration.

photo Bob Cossairt

Rail bus data plate

the DispatcherPage 6

View of downtown OKC from the Columbia observation car

Union Pacific Public Safety Train in OKC on May 22nd

View of I-40 and BNSF tracks Guests of the Union Pacific disembark train

Skydance bridge

An exciting project the Union Pacific Railroad has under-way is the restoration of Big Boy #4014.

There is considerable cov-erage on You tube of the preparation and moving of the locomotive from Pamona, California to Cheyenne, Wyo-ming.

This is a major undertaking at the Cheyenne steam shops. Restoration may take 5 years before the locomotive goes on tour under it’s own power.

Continued from page 1Jeromie Jones, Union Pacific Manager of Operation Practices from Chickasha explained the purpose of the event is to express the companies dedication to public safety. Significant safety resources are avail-able at “UnionPacificCares.com.” Not only does this site have safety resources but you can request a rail-road safety presentation. Please mention this site to anyone and organizations when you have the oppor-tunity. The Union Pacific Railroad expends consider-able resources toward safety.

2014 ORM/NRHS MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION:

New Membership Renewal Membership (begin Jan 1st) Date __________________ $36.00 per year – Individual Membership in the Oklahoma Railway Museum, Ltd. (spouse included) Pro-rated dues $3.00 per month

$30.00 per year – Individual Senior (age 65 and up) (spouse included) and Individual Student (full–time student) Membership in ORM Pro-rated dues $2.50 per month $50.00 per year – To add Railway Historical Society (NRHS) Membership (add $5.00 for spouse) (Student Memberships: $16 per year) SEND NRHS DUES TO ORM ADDRESS BELOW, NOT DIRECTLY TO NRHS $500.00 - Lifetime Membership

Send your application and dues to: Oklahoma Railway Museum , Ltd. 3400 NE Grand Boulevard Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73111 Name _____________________________________________________________________________________________

Address ___________________________________________________________________________________________

City ________________________________________ State _______ Zip Code _______________________

Phone ________________________ Fax ______________________ Cell Phone_____________________

E–Mail __________________________________________________________________________________

Line 4

Line 3

Line 2

Line 1

the Dispatcher

Order Form – Engraved Platform BricksCost is $50.00 per brick.

Up to a maximum of 4 lines with 16 letters and spaces per line

Purchaser’s Name ________________________________ Phone No. (______) ________________

Engraved Platform BricksMore than one platform

brick can be donated to the Mu-seum and you can make cop-ies of the attached form. Mail completed forms with checks or money orders to: ORM, 3400 NE Grand Boulevard, Okla-homa City, Oklahoma 73111. If you have any questions call 405-424-8222 Thursday or Fridays.

The Oklahoma Railway Museum, Ltd. (ORM) has items available for both chil-dren and adults at the Depot Store. These include baseball caps, polo shirts, t–shirts, lapel pins, and post cards. Funds raised by donations for these items support the Museum projects.

The Depot Store, located inside the Oakwood Depot on the Museum grounds, is open during regular Museum hours – 9 am to 4 pm on the first and third Saturday opera-tion days of each month April through August. The store is also open for special events.

Crosstie Donations Friends and families of ORM continue to make dona-tions for crossties, equipment and facilities on the Museum property and on the leased track.

If you want to make a do-nation to purchase a crosstie, a donation of $50.00 will help purchase a new crosstie. You can donate a crosstie in recog-nition or in memory of someone. All donations should be made out to the Oklahoma Railway Museum Ltd.

Please note on the check what the donation is for, mail to: ORM Ltd., 3400 NE Grand Bou-levard, Oklahoma City, 73111

Become an ORM Member

ORM Depot Store

Page 7

Please continue to support your ORM by renewing your membership for 2014

Page 8

Oklahoma Railway Museum, Ltd.3400 NE Grand BoulevardOklahoma City, OK 73111-4417

RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

TIMETABLE Any changes to the following information or articles for “the Dispatcher,” should be directed to the Editor, Gary Githens,(e–mail: githens@cox.net). For information on upcoming programs, contact Larry Dodd email: dodd@airosurf.com).

Oklahoma Railway Museum (ORM) – Open Thursday, Friday and Saturdays from 9:00 A:M: until 5:00 P:M. except on major holidays ORM Train Rides - First and third Saturdays April through August at 9:15 A.M, 11:15 A.M, 1:15 P.M. and 3:15 P.M. ORM Board Meetings – Last Thursday each month at ORM, Oklahoma City – 7 pm.

Oklahoma “N” Rail – For information, call Rick Inselman, 405/412–1552.

Central Oklahoma Garden Railroad Society [COGRS] Contact information: Steve Lemcke (405) 703-0209 stevelemcke@att.net or Marshall Douglas (405) 376-4366 mdouglas515@yahoo.com

Passenger Rail Oklahoma – A grassroots advocacy organization. Meets every Saturday and Sunday morning an hour prior to the arrival of the Heartland Flyer in Norman. The depot opens at 7:50 am. Contact Evan Stair at sfrr@aol.com, www.passengerrailok.org, 405/366–8957, or 517 Claremont, Norman, OK 73069–5020. Depot volunteer opportunities are available.

Oklahoma S.W. Division NMRA – 2nd Saturday each month, 1 pm, Goldman Room, Kirkpatrick Center, Jim Heidon, President Yukon’s Best Railroad Museum – Thursday/Saturday/Sunday and by appointment. Located 1 block north of Main and UP tracks in Yukon. Call John Knuppel, 405/354–5079, for times and information.

OUT OF TOWNRailroad Museum of Oklahoma – Tuesday thru Friday afternoons 1 pm to 4 pm, Saturdays 10 am to 1 pm, Sunday 2 pm to 5 pm, or by appointment, HO, N and Lionel layouts, Meets 3rd Tuesday at 7 pm at Old Santa Fe Freight Depot, 702 North Washington, Enid Waynoka Station/Waynoka Historical Society – 202 South Cleveland, Waynoka Call Sandie Olson, 580/824–1886.

the Dispatcher

Oklahoma Railway Museum, Ltd. 3400 NE Grand Boulevard Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73111 Museum Information Contact us-Thursday and Friday. We have someone to answer your questions 405-424-8222. Our museum is open every Thursday, Friday, & Saturday 9:00am to 5:00pm. Admission to the museum is free. The Museum is an outdoor museum and MAY BE CLOSED for inclement weather or when the temperature is below 40°F.

Find us From I-35 North take the NE 36th St. exit, at the stoplight on NE 36th turn left and go west about 1/2 mile. At the stoplight for Grand Blvd turn left for about two blocks, we are on the left at NE 34th St. Regular Trains Train Rides are scheduled the First and Third Saturdays of the month from April through August. The trains leave the Station at 9:15 AM, 11:15 AM, 1:15 PM and 3:15 PM. Ticket Price is $12 for Riders 13 years old and up, $5 for Riders from 3 to 12 years old, Children under 3 are free when carried on adult lap. Special Trains Thomas the Tank Engine will be here on September 26,27,28 and October 3,4,5, 2014. We recom-mend that tickets be purchased in advance. Tickes are available from TicketWeb toll free call 866-468-7630 Tickets for groups of 20 or more are $14 on all trains if purchased as a group All Tickets are $16 on the Friday Trains. These leave the Station every 50 minutes starting at 9:50am All Tickets are $18 on Saturday and Sunday Trains. These leave the Station every 50 minutes starting at 9:00am Halloween Train October 25, 2014 Tickets $15, Two dollars off if you are in costume. Children under three are free on lap of parent The trains leave the Station at 9:15 AM, 11:15 AM, 1:15 PM and 3:15 PM. Smiley O’Riley the Clown will be here. This is for Children, no scary stuff. Christmas Train December 20, 2014 Tickets $15 Children under three are free on lap of parent The trains leave the Station at 9:00, 10:30, noon, 1:30 and 3:00. Santa Claus will be here, hot chocolate, candy canes, songs and more fun. Birthday Parties We offer you two unique venues to host a birthday party. You supply the cake, presents and the guests while we supply tables and chairs. Also included are paper engineer hats and a rail safety activity book. We have a 1921 wooden caboose which can accommodate up to 25 people and a 1921 Party coach which can accommodate up to 60 people Time and date must be held with a 50% depos-it. The balance is due day of the party.

Birthday Party package options and membership information next page

Package One includes two hours for the party and an approximate 40 minute train ride for 20 guests on historic railroad passenger cars. Additional train tickets can be purchased for $5.00 each. The train rides are available on the schedule for regular trains above. The costs are: Birthday Caboose: $200.00 Party Coach: $250.00

Package Two is a two hour party without a train ride. This package is available throughout the year on most non-operating Saturdays. The costs are: Birthday Caboose: $100.00 Party Coach: $150.00 Bookings and date/time availability are available on our website -www.oklahomarailwaymuseum.org -and can also be made with our party coordinator Chuck Shinn. He can be reached at 405-850-0597 or by email -chuck@oklahomarailwaymusem.org Membership -Membership benefits include: Two free train rides on regular run days (Does not apply to Day Out with Thomas, Halloween and Christmas trains) Emailed copy of the ORM newsletter The Dispatcher Member Picnic and train ride Memberships are available at the following rates: Regular Membership – $36 per year (spouse included) Senior Member (age 65 and up) – $30 per year (spouse included) Student Member (Full-Time Student) – $30 per year [these are prorated if you join during the year]. Lifetime Member – $500. If you wish to join the National Railway Historical Society, dues are an additional $50.00 per year. This organization’s due are not prorated.

Note: Events, dates, times and charges subject to change without notice.

Birthday Party package options