Thursday, July 10, 2008
Rail buffs reach out
A group hopes to raise money to save the rail pieces in a scrap yard.
The latest from The Ticker blog
A group of rail buffs is on the verge of announcing a fund drive to save a collection of abandoned railroad equipment sitting in a Roanoke scrap yard.
One piece, a 105-year-old steam engine, left Roanoke on Wednesday, bound for a new home in Ohio.
Now, motivated Roanoke area rail buffs are marshaling efforts to move the rest of the equipment to safety -- noting that the property is pegged for redevelopment.
"One of these engines has been saved. Let's go out and save the others," said Andrew Martin, president of the Western Virginia Railroad Preservation Society.
Martin said the objective is to raise $400,000 to $500,000 "to save the rest of the equipment in the scrap yard. Get them out of the scrap yard and get them to a place where they will be safe."
The fundraiser is envisioned as a cooperative effort involving various rail heritage groups and related organizations, Martin said. Some groups have not yet been contacted, he said, but a brochure is in the works.
"Hopefully, we'll have those ready by the weekend," Martin said.
Martin, of Natural Bridge, works at the heating and cooling plant at Washington & Lee University. He said the society has about 30 registered members.
Interest in the engines appears much wider, though, as shown by a discussion about the equipment taking place in an online chat room.
Wednesday, Terry Byrne of Lexington, Ohio, hauled off Norfolk & Western Railway engine No. 917 with permission of Virginia Scrap Iron and Metal Co. from the company's former property at 1600 S. Jefferson St.
He plans to restore it, couple it to a rail car and caboose and open a restaurant attraction near Bellville, Ohio.
Remaining at the site are three steam locomotives, two diesel engines and other items.
The Virginia Museum of Transportation has received written rights to those items, good through the end of the year, said Bev Fitzpatrick, the museum's executive director.
Those rights will be honored by the Roanoke Redevelopment and Housing Authority, which bought the former scrap yard property June 27 for future redevelopment, said Glenda Edwards, the authority's executive director.
The site is scheduled for attention from a hazardous waste cleanup crew. After that, the authority has agreed to sell the land to Carilion Clinic. Carilion has not announced specific plans.
