22 October 2007
A Rare Piece of History Visits Mount Vernon
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Ex-CPR Pacific number
1293.
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Mount Vernon Ohio USA - Gary Keene of Mount Vernon and his
2-year-old grandson, Alexander Spaulding, both love trains, so their visit to see a historic steam engine at the Baltimore
& Ohio Railroad depot on Saturday was a special one.
People young and old showed up in droves for the open house at the depot on Saturday and Sunday to see the engine and tour the inside
of the newly renovated, newly reopened depot.
Gary and his wife, Mary Keene, also brought Alexander's 10-month-old brother, Jacob, to show them a rare piece of a
history.
"It's marvelous. I told my wife that looking at the steam engine almost takes me back to a time when things moved slower," he
said. "It's a visit for times past."
Rob and Amber Manly of Centerburg brought their children, Konner, Kirsten, Kylie, and niece Alexa, to the depot on Saturday to give
them something to remember, a piece of history they might not get the chance to see again.
"It's a part of history," said Rob. "Nowadays, everything is cars and trucks. It's weird to think this was the only
means of transportation from coast to to coast. It was either a horse or train back then."
The sharp smell of burning coal filled the air between the depot's entrance and the engine. Those standing near the front of the engine
when it let off steam were showered with fine bursts of water.
Scot Czigans, railroad engineer, jokingly warned people to beware of standing downwind of the engine. In his conductor's uniform, he
explained to people how the train works.
According to Czigans, the 150-ton Canadian Pacific steam engine was constructed in 1948 in Kingston, Ontario. This type of
train was common in the mid-1940s and early 1950s, and could get up to 90 mph. Czigans said people mainly ask him how the
engine is powered, to which he responds that the burning of coal generates steam to drive the engine.
LaChressa Blakesly, 10, was one of several local youngsters who had fun climbing on the side of the steam engine. She said she liked
the steam engine because it's old and it lets people get a look of what things were like in the past.
Visitors seemed to share equal time with admiring the steam engine and touring the inside of the depot.
Mike Derr of Mount Vernon was one of many local residents who took the time to look around inside the depot. He said the place looks
really sharp, and gives residents a place they can come back to again and again.
"I grew up just around the corner and was used to seeing it the way it was. You just cruised on by. I think it will be a staple of
Mount Vernon," he said. "It will be great for the community."
Derr said the railroad memorabilia on display in the old freight office at the north end of the building lets people see the tools of
the trade that were in use in times past.
Phil Samuell, coordinator of the depot restoration project, was pleased with the turnout.
"I estimate, very conservatively, that 3,000 people showed up over the weekend," he said. "The weather was great, the
steam locomotive was great, the depot was shining."
Ex-CPR Pacific number
1293.
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