The Four Friends

The Wickersfeld Railroad Opens! (31 May 1992, Sunday)

On 31 May, the Wickersfeld Railroad re-opened as a tourist attraction. It ran passengers from Wickersfeld up to Tannersville and back, as well as down to Spring Junction and back.

The Tannersville ride cost $12.00 for adults and $8.00 for children and senior citizens.

The trip lasted for an hour and a half, including a half hour stop-in, during which passengers could de train to visit and explore the old engine house and “pub bunkhouse,” both of which were still undergoing restoration. Some passengers did not de-train but rode out to the wye where the train turned around for the return trip.

The Spring Junction ride cost $20.00 for adults and $12.00 for children and senior citizens.

It was considered the more scenic of the two rides, and included a lunch or supper, depending on which run you were on, either served in one of the two dining cars or at the re opened “Railway Inn” in Spring Junction. It was a 2.5 hr. round trip, 1.5 of these hours being spent on the train and 1 hour being spent in Spring Junction.

As with the Tannersville run, some passengers stayed in their seats or walked up and down through the cars as the train went to the wye and back for the return trip. The WRR will be open all summer, running trains on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

- Source: The Wickersfeld Gazette, 2 June 1992

THE FOUR FRIENDS

At the time of this story:

Lori Ann Grayson (b. 1929; 62)

Retired public schoolteacher, now teaching at the Barn School on Deer Hill. Lives on Deer Hill in a bungalow at Norwest Farm with her son Eric and his wife and their children.

Vincent Lyman (b. 1931; 60)

Labor Organizer and Arbitrator. Works at the Wickersfeld Historical Society. Writer on local labor history. Lives at his old family home in Wickersfeld. Owner of the Wickersfeld Hotel; closed since 1989.

Robert Werner (b. 1938; 54)

Poet; grew up on Deer Hill in a house up the lane from the First Whittier House. His family worked for the Whittier Christmas Tree Farms and became good friends with the Whittiers. Now lives in a secluded house north of Wickersfeld with his adopted son, his son’s wife and their children.

John Smith (b. 1920; 72)

Retired Wickersfeld Railroad engineer and hostler. Began work on the WRR in the 1940’s; Worked until the railroad closed in 1969. Lives at the Mechantman Hotel In Spring Junction; a retirement home WRR pensioners. After the Whittier Reunion He became an enthusiast for the history of the WRR.

The Wickersfeld Railroad—First Full Weekend!

(5 June 1992, Friday – 7 June 1992, Sunday)

On Friday June 5th the Wickersfeld Railroad opened for its first full weekend. It opened at 8:30 AM each day, closing at 11 PM on Friday and Saturday nights, then at 6 PM on Sunday.

The WRR will hold to this Schedule until sometime in the Fall; date to be announced.

The attendance was well above expectations, for each of the three days, and the offerings to the public were increased, including, each day:

(1) Tours of the facilities (9 AM, Noon and 3 PM),

(2) Hand-car rides around the yard (hourly between scheduled train runs),

(3) A demonstration of the Round-About (12 Noon and 2 PM), before the next scheduled train) with chances for visitors to try their hand at moving it.

(4) An Old-Fashioned Dinner Party in the revamped dining car (4 PM and 6M) in the railyard, with performers in ‘period dress’ representing uniforms and clothes from the 1890’s. (Clothes and Uniforms provided by the Wickersfeld Historical Society and the Wickersfeld Downtown Theatre).

(5) A new film by the Wickersfeld College Cinema Club called “A History of the Wickersfeld Railroad (10 AM, 1 PM, 4 PM and Fri and Sat only at 7 PM), filmed over the course of ten months and including historical footage donated or provided by railfans and the WC Historical Archive.

(6) A Night Ride on the Train, featuring three engines pulling three different train line-ups (Friday and Saturday night only, at 9 PM).

Trains ran every two to two-and-a-half hours, starting at 9:30 in the morning, leaving the Wickersfeld Station and heading either down to Spring Junction and back, or up to Tannersville and back.

As last weekend, the Tannersville ride was of about 1.5 hours duration; one-half hour being spent at a rest stop in the Tannersville yard, visitors being able to get refreshment at the pub-bunkhouse which was still under construction.

The Spring Junction ride was just shy of 2.5 hours round trip, an hour being free for either lunch or dinner at the Railway Inn.

Source: The Wickersfeld Gazette, 8 June 1992

Introduction