It was a brisk, cool October morning in 2009 in Spokane, Washington. My brother Owen had wanted to go see a locomotive that was returning from Michigan and laying over in Spokane: the Southern Pacific 4449. This locomotive was chosen to lead the 1975-1976 American Freedom Train, and hauled that train for most of its journey across the Lower 48. Naturally, my parents took Owen, my other brother Noah, and myself to go see the locomotive from a bygone era. My dad, in particular, brought a camera along to take photos as the train departed for the final leg of its journey to Portland, where it would return home after three months on the road.
This trip more than a decade ago was my introduction to the world of trains, and in part, the world of historic preservation. Throughout the years, my love for legends of steam like the Southern Pacific 4449 were fostered by shows like Thomas & Friends, Dinosaur Train, home videos from Railway Productions and Greg Scholl Productions, and online through Youtube channels and sites dedicated to railroading. Part of it would accumulate 11 years later into me asking for a professional camera to take photos of trains, along with following the latest in preservation of all things historic.
According to both the National Park Service and US Department of the Interior, “historic preservation is a conservation with our past about our future.” Preservation ranges from buildings, works of art, and/or transportation, but I intend to just focus on transportation and trains, as that’s what I’m most interested in. The earliest instance of the preservation of rail vehicles dates back to the mid 19th century (1850s-1860s), when pioneering locomotives like the Liverpool & Manchester “Rocket” or the Stockton & Darlington “Locomotion” were withdrawn from revenue service and either sold or donated to the then Patent Office Museum, or private owners. The movement was slow, and was primarily something that rail companies did. All changed in 1951 when the Talyllyn Railway was revived by a completely volunteer organization. Soon, rail preservation was happening left and right. In the United States, donations of steam locomotives to towns and cities were the result of the railroads wanting a tax deduction, and some towns and cities wanting a locomotive of their own, as the railroad built many settlements into the bustling enterprises they became. Eventually, museums, organizations, and private individuals were purchasing steam locomotives from scrap lines, with 1st and 2nd generation diesel locomotives, electrics, and even a hydrogen-powered engine joining the ranks in various public and private collections across the globe.
Despite all collections that exist within preservation, a major contention has started to rise: the involvement of younger generations, or the lack thereof. As the Digital Age continues to have its influence over Generation Z, Alpha, and eventually Beta, technology (particularly phones and tablets) has become more of a daily occurrence. We’re sucked into the worlds of others through Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, or even Twitter. With professionals giving reasons on why we need a digital detox, our first instinct is to go outside and take a hike or go fishing. But in Montana, public lands are slowly being sold off to private interests, with Senator Daines introducing a bill that would essentially auction off public lands to oil and gas interests. In all of this turmoil, alternatives are to be sought. Fortunately, preservation groups do have the solution for the digital detox everyone seeks.
The National Railway Historical Society (NRHS) offers the RailCamp program and the Nevada Northern Railway Museum (NNRM) has the Railroad Reality Week, both experiences bringing people from all over the country and world together for one common love, interest, and to experience a bygone era of vintage railroading. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Lake Superior Railroad Museum started what would become an ongoing series of video tours detailing the pieces of equipment that are on display at the museum, using platforms like Youtube and Facebook to reach their audience. Trains Magazine has started to pick out the younger men and women that are involved with rail preservation through their on-going series “Young Guns In Preservation,” some being Mark Huber “Hyce”, Nick Martin, Braden Brickman, and Camren Stefan. Over in the United Kingdom, heritage rail groups are creating events around various themes like Bluey, Paw Patrol, LEGO, Dinosaurs, and Harry Potter to name a few. Other themed events offered by these historic groups are: Peanuts, Easter, Christmas, Halloween, dining experiences, hand on the throttle, and the homefront during wartime to name a couple. Events like these can help railroad preservation organizations keep their doors open and educate the curious public for years to come, with groups like the American Steam Railroad Preservation Association or Kentucky Steam Heritage Corp making strides in their restorations.
However, a major downside is trying to comply with federal & safety regulations for underaged volunteers, along with cultural norms and priorities,, like making sure young adults do well in school and have a healthy lifestyle best suited to them. But a twist is that not all preservation is a simple “restore it and run it on the mainline.” Cosmetic restorations provide an opportunity for younger individuals to be involved with preservation, thus keeping them safe within the bounds of regulations. These restorations typically take less time (only a couple of years) compared to those that are aimed for operation that can sometimes take up to a decade to complete. In 2019, the same year that Union Pacific 4014 finished its restoration to operating condition, Steamtown NHS began the cosmetic restoration of their own Big Boy, with the restoration being completed two years later. In Maryland, the B&O Railroad Museum began a cosmetic restoration on Reading 2101 (American Freedom Train 1) in the year 2023, with the work expected to be completed this year. Although not as thrilling as restoring a locomotive to operate on active trackage, cosmetic restorations still offer a glimpse into the history of America and its railroads that helped build a nation.
In Missoula, there are two rail preservation projects that are currently going on. This first is at the Historic Museum of Fort Missoula, being the restoration to limited operation of Anaconda Copper 3-truck Willamette 7, which starred in the 1955 movie Timberjacks and was the feature of a Trains Magazine article in January. The second project is the cosmetic restoration of Northern Pacific 1356 under the title of “Missoula 1356.” Both projects are in need of volunteers and donations to make these restorations possible, spread the word that these projects need the public’s help. The future depends on how we as the greater public can save what came before us. We cannot look forward to the future without knowing what came before us in the past.
