Pennsylvania Group Will Steam Into Civil War History
ABOUT A DECADE AGO, William H. “Bill” Simpson and D. Reed Anderson were at the Yorktown Hotel in York, Penn., discussing over dinner how to raise the public’s awareness of York County’s role in the Civil War. Their thoughts turned to the abandoned Northern Central Railway that once ran south from York to the Mason-Dixon Line and on to Baltimore. Dormant since the Liberty Limited dinner train stopped running out of New Freedom in 2001, the line passed through Hanover Junction and was a key bit of rail infrastructure during the Civil War, which Abraham Lincoln was known to have ridden. In fact, a photo by Matthew Brady (or an assistant) in the Library of Con- gress collection shows a train on the Hanover Branch stopped at the station while passengers mill about. Among them appears a very tall man wearing a stovepipe hat. Is it Lincoln? Many historians think it is. Some don’t. That long-ago conversation between friends
has culminated in today’s Steam Into History, a tax-exempt, nonprofit educational organiza- tion which will begin to run steam-powered ex- cursions over ten miles of the route in June. Three times a day, a newly-built replica of Northern Central Railroad 4-4-0 No. 17 will pull a passenger train staffed by Civil War re- enactors, actors, and musicians on a two-hour, 20-mile round trip between New Freedom and Hanover Junction, where the original Civil War-era station survives along with the adja- cent hotel, now a residence. Operations are ex- pected to begin in June to coincide with the 150th anniversary of York’s invasion by Con- federate forces and the Battle of Gettysburg.
22 FEBRUARY 2013 •
RAILFAN.COM
The Railroad
The Northern Central is one of America’s oldest railroads, having been chartered in 1832 as the Baltimore & Susquehanna and completed in 1838. It was an important transportation link during the Civil War, moving materiel and troops during the conflict and also evacuating 14,000 wounded after the Battle of Gettysburg. After the war it was taken over by the Pennsyl- vania Railroad, which added a second main track and turned it into a busy link for passenger and freight traffic between Harrisburg and Bal- timore. Today’s wide right of way and sturdy stone arch bridges are the PRR’s legacy. After Hurricane Agnes washed out parts of the line in 1972, Penn Central abandoned it. The county bought the right of way and track between York and the state line, and in 1992 the northbound track was torn up to make the Heritage Rail Trail County Park. Both tracks have been lifted on the Maryland portion, which is now the Northern Central rail trail.
4-4-0 No. 17 York
The centerpiece of the Steam Into History ex- perience will be a replica of Northern Central 4-4-0 No. 17 York, which is now taking shape at Kloke Locomotive Works in Elgin, Ill. (The locomotive will be dedicated to the memory of Mr. Simpson, who passed away last year.) No. 17 is being built to the same plans as the Na- tional Park Service’s replica of Central Pacific No. 60 Jupiter, built in 1979 by O’Connor En- gineering. In 1999, David Kloke used the drawings to build his replica of Jupiter’s sister CP No. 63 Leviathan, which was finished in
2009. The original Jupiter was a woodburner, and while all three replicas originally burned oil, the National Park Service locomotive has been converted to burn wood. To comply with FRA requirements, York and the passenger cars will be fitted with air brakes and auto- matic couplers, which did not come into use until the late 19th century.
Rolling Stock
Reader Industries, owner of the Reader Rail- road, will build a Civil War-era combine and three coaches mounted on freight car frames, similar to the equipment Reader provides to movie companies. In fact, for the 2013 season SIH will lease two of those movie cars, a com- bine and coach which are currently in service on the Tavares, Eustis & Gulf Orange Blossom Cannonball. They’ll move north by truck after the Florida tourist season. The new combine will have an ADA-compli- ant wheelchair lift at the baggage door, with space for chairs in the coach compartment. Bike racks will be provided in the baggage sec- tion for those who want to ride the train to Hanover Junction and return by bike. Chief Operating Officer Bob Gotwols wryly notes that cyclists who choose this option will be rid- ing upgrade on their way back to New Free- dom. The four-car train will seat about 200 passengers and, while patrons will be encour- aged to use the facilities at the stations, will have at least one restroom. No food or bever- age service will be provided, as the ride should take no more than 45 minutes each way and there are plenty of places to grab a bite and a
STEAM INTO HISTORY
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