Virginia Museum of Transportation begins restoring tracks in Wasena Park
ROANOKE, Va. โ The Virginia Museum of Transportation started reviving a piece of Roanokeโs rail history Sunday afternoon. Volunteers began clearing a stretch of track in Wasena Park, known as the beltline, of plants and debris. Itโs so important to keep the knowledge passed down from one generation to another.โVolunteers begin clearing an abandoned rail track at Wasena Park in Roanoke. The beltline is owned by the museum and is where the museum first started in 1963. This is the first step in a long journey.โAdThe museum plans to return to Wasena Park at least once a month to work on the track.
Train history society builds structure to speed up rail car restorations
ROANOKE, Va. โ A new addition to a Roanoke rail yard will help keep the cityโs train history alive. Roanokeโs chapter of the National Railway Historical Society built a structure on its property to protect both train cars and volunteers from the weather. The structure will soon house Norfolk & Western car 512, a formerly segregated passenger car, as volunteers work to restore it. Chapter vice president Gary Gray said volunteers have often been interrupted in their restoration work by the weather. "Itโs going to be great to be able to not get wet.โAccording to Gray, the new shelter costs $50,000 to construct, which the chapter paid for themselves.
Historic steam engine leaves Roanoke after five years
ROANOKE, Va. โ Itโs the end of an era in Roanoke as one of what are known as โThe Big Threeโ class of Norfolk Southern steam engines leaves. Engine 2156 left Wednesday afternoon for the transportation museum in St. Louis. It had been loaned to the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke for the past five years to be with engines from the other two classes. โWe did work with the museum in St. Louis to try to come to an agreement on possibly keeping it. He said the museum may try to get it back in the future.