OCR Text |
Show TheSalt Lake Tribune H6 ADVENTURE Sunday, November 10, 2002 Narrow-Gauge Railroad May Be Running Out of Steam East Broad Top,a living hunkofrailroad history, maynotroll next year BY DAN LEWERENZ HE ASSOCIATED PRESS ROCKHILL FURNACE, Pa. Clouds of white steam change to thick gray smoke, fillingthe air with the greasy sme of burningcoal 4 as the East Broad Top Railroad's Locomotive No. 14 chugs and churnsinto motion Hundreds of rail enthusiasts cometo thistiny central Pennsylvania townfor the railroad's an nual Fall Spectacular. They ride in red velvet seats on the same passenger cars that once car ried people from towns like Robertsdale and Or bisonia to Mount Union, where they could meet up with the mighty Pennsylvania Rail Road. The visitors inspect the engines in the roundhouse that are undergoing renovations, They examine tools when the East that were left in the shop Broad Top stopped operating al most 50 years really about great this place is not just ride on it's a Photos by PatLittle/The Associated Press a EastBroad Top Railroad’s Locomotive No.14 pulls into Orbisonia Station in Rockhill Furnace, Pa.Its the last operating narrow-gauge railroad east of the Mississippi. train There's lots of places you can ride a train,’ id Fred Cox, 56, of Newark, Del., who at tended the Fall Spectac ular with his Fred Cox,54, of Newark, Del., takes son, Stephen. a ride on LocomotiveNo.14. “Here, you can get a real feel for what the railroad waslike. It's all here ‘The East Broad Top is more than just a tourist train it's a living pieceofrailroad history, the last original narrow-gauge railroad operating east of the Mississippi River. But while visitors revel in the past, the site’s future is less certain. Touristtrafficis falling off at this out-of-the-way junction about 60 miles southeast of Altoona in Huntingdon County, and recent talks between the owner andpotential buyers have broken off. railroads beganas narrow-gaugelines becauseit reduced startup costs. But whenshort lines met In 1960, officials in Orbisonia asked Nick Kovalchick if he would take oneof the engines up with majorcarriers, theyhadtotransfertheir cargo to standard-gauge cars, adding to operat out of retirement for the borough’s bicentennial. ing costs. Most s' ssful narrow-gauge carriers switchedto standard gauge. Unsuccessful carri ers went out ofbusiness and weresoldfor scrap. But the East Broad Top didn’t just survive, it thrived for several decades. During its heyday in the 1920s, the railroad shipped coal to Mount Union, where it was cleaned and shipped to points along the East Grove. That tourist train has been operating ev- up to capture imagesofthe historic train and to per year in the 1960s to around 10,000 in recent “We come downhere about every otheryear,” says Keith Hopkin, 55, ofToronto, who carpooled the most recent offer, saying it was millions of rgo, and oil and natural gas were replacing That's because unlike mostrail museums,the East Broad Top isn’t a collection of artifacts coal. When Mount Union’s brick industry began to flag, the East Broad Top,too, felt the strain. Thelast passengersrodein 1954, andtherailroad That’s when Nick Kovalchick, Joe's father, went out of businessin 1956. steppedin, buying the railroad, mines and 20,000 acres of property. Although the elder Kovalchick ownedand operated a scrap business, Joe Kovalchick says his father never intendedto scrap therailroad It was his modeltrainset that he was unable to obtain when hewas says achild,” Joe Kovalchick What's fun to you! LESS ee eT “It'sexactly: to an amazingdegree, like it was in 1950 or 1920. They were able to preserve and use that to create a very unique museumlike experiencethere.” track, one can see dozensof photographerslined hearthe scream ofthe whistle. placing rail for carrying both passengers and the cay were built right there in Rockhill Whatthey'll be able to preservein the future, though,is in doubt. Joe Kovalchicksays theline is losing money as visitation has dropped from some 20,000 riders ery June through Octobereversince. It's popular among rail enthusiasts. From U.S. Highway 522, which runs parallel to the some of the largest brick factories in the world, and hundreds of thousandsof passengers rode the line each year, according to Lee Rainey, authorof East Broad Top, a history ofthe railroad. By World War II, therailroad was falling victim to greater economic forces. Roads were re- refuses to say whether it will even operate next Huntingdon, Bedford and Fulton counties meet. the East Broad Top carried both passengers and freight for more than 80years. And it went its whole life as a narrow gauge railroad a rarity in the industry. Seve bisonia Station north a few miles to Colgate Coast; rock to Mount Union, which was hometo Although owner Joe Kovalchick, ofIndiana, Pa,, talks in loving terms abouttherailroad, he season Chartered in 1856 to move coalfrom the mines on Broad Top Mountain, near the spot where Kovalchick did one better — he called out some ofthe old train crews and ran a train from Or- original equipment,theoriginal cars, anda lot of with seven other Canadian rail enthusiasts to the Fall Spectacular. “It's like going back in time. Therail, the trains, the cars — there’s nothing else likeit. All the tools are in the shop. It’s like a time warp.” brought togetherto a centrallocation. “Everything that’s there now has been there continuously, in some cases for 100 years or more,” Rainey says. “The Kovalchick family purchased the properties of the East Broad Top Railroad and whatatthat time was Rockhill Coal Co. Theygot a complete turn-of-the-last-century railroadoutof it — a steam railroad withall the years. Several attempts to sell the railroad have failed in the past 20 years. Kovalchick rejected dollars below whatthe railroad was worth. Thelasttrains of the season ran Oct. 27, and Kovalchick won't say whether the East Broad Topwill operate nextyear. “To give you specifics on the future, I don't have any,” he says. “Under the right circumstancesto the right people, it could be sold.” Fansof the East Broad Top are encouraged by the Kovalchick family’s decades-long commitment to the line, including the current renova- tion of three locomotives in the roundhouse. But Henry Inman,presidentof the nonprofit Friends of the East Broad Top, says his organi- zation’s 900 memberswill feel better when more permanent arrangements are made. Getting away romit al 199is 099"w IBEROSTAR PARNISO BEAo @ Stay at one, play at all of the Iberostar resorts during the day! Prices valid for Tat Sat vacations 11/16/02 only! BRING A FRIEND PUERTO VALLARTA rE DAYS MAZATIAN 599% 9% 1999” WD 699" 19g RD You Recewe up (0 $4ibs ecufcotes (Gigi = |, mn rentals (valid Bil aid for 3 Fri vacations 12/2702 click away, The ThavelandRecreation Guide on Prices vad for 4nt Mon vacations 12/2/02 Uae) eee any | Brought to you by Che Salt Lake Pribune + Plan your next getaway — around the corner or across the globe. * Golf Course Directory: Play a round of golf on one of Utah's diverse courses. * Quickly locate camping and recreational areas. mat rep cant mt STERNThVatwe Sims cra nar peice ar OHA, Ta ACae THOMAS TRAVEL ws Wo spect ‘vets Fre vn bend toovcaie on 8 daparares td on bana on es pasergn fectycorpsoo SL tapnent tes ot pm spe pot nate Hed Bet ut wah baw parent Varo + rare Penaty Wier ft America RV & Travel Masters Steadman's RV Travel Desk Get ev ara orate contact Sherrie Bracke at (001) 237-2317 or shecria@utahcinyguide.com. | Wiutahcityguide.com |