Enthusiasts Delighted As Steam Train Chugs Through Town
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Freight trains pass each day near the banks of the Ohio.
But the track through Beaver County soon would bear the weight of a steam train from the past.
Word that Engine 765 was on its way from Ohio lured train buffs to railroad crossings up and down the line. They waited, cameras ready, for history to rumble down the track.
"It's a lot of fun and it gives the younger generation a chance to see what it was like in the old days," said Jeff Bartlett of Cranberry Township.
Above the Conway Rail Yard, they waited.
Steve Heister came down from his home near Cleveland.
"Ever since I was a little kid, I've wanted a toy train," he said. "Then I got involved with a trolley museum in the area, and decided twelve inches a foot was a nicer scale, but I still like this stuff."
The 765 arrives in a plume of steam, well worth waiting for. Next best thing to riding it.
This past weekend, Conway Yard employee John Ball did just that.
"It was really smooth," he recalls. "None of that clickety-clack you think of. But it was a really awesome trip."
Vintage rail cars speak of luxury long past. Memorial Day weekend, it will carry passengers up Altoona's Horseshoe Curve.
For more information on excursions: fortwaynerailroad.org
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