Author: Renee Hughes

Westminster Christian Academy Volunteers

Posted on by Renee Hughes

Students from Westminster Christian Academy will be volunteering with The National Museum of Transportation Fall 2020 as part of their Senior Service program. This week, they are working near the Orthwein Center. (Note: This group was not wearing vests because the Museum was closed.)

TNMOT appreciates WCA’s dedication to the Museum and to teaching their students the importance of community volunteerism for a charitable 501(c)(3) organization, especially in these challenging times. Thanks to Westminster’s staff and students for choosing to support our landscaping team to keep a St. Louis jewel polished and welcoming as we provide transportation history!

In”SPIRE”ing

Posted on by Renee Hughes

We had a productive workday with an energetic team of socially-distanced volunteers from Spire! Together the small group cleared a trail through the Museum rain garden and mulched trees along the main garden walk.
Thank you, Spire!

One of our pollinators took to a volunteer’s hat and perched thereupon. This was not photoshopped–just a great affirmation of the joy our volunteers bring to guests of all kinds!

Trolley Work is Never Done

Posted on by Renee Hughes

Constructing and maintaining the The National Museum of Transportation’s Demonstration Trolley Line and the trolleys/streetcars that ride thereon are no easy tasks. This work is on top of driving the trolley carrying customers who are greeted by our cheery volunteers dressed for the part.

The parts are not readily available for our trolley artifacts so some are cannibalized from surplus trolleys and streetcars or even fabricated. History may meet modern technology soon if a 3D printer needs to be employed to create a part that cannot otherwise be acquired. An intense amount of time and resources are spent planning and coordinating repair and restoration.

For instance when extending the trolley line at TNMOT, laying the track for the line extension was done by hand by the dedicated members of our track crew. This involved preparing the roadbed, laying gravel, ties, tie plates, rail, and spikes (which were driven in place using a pneumatic jackhammer), and finally, laying the ballast.

All that is left to do now is to erect the poles, string the wire, tie it into the existing system, add the 600-volt power supply and test it, still work but less time-consuming than laying track. Then, of course there is the ongoing maintenance and upkeep. It takes a lot! You will find the dedicated volunteer trolley maintenance crews very busy at work on Thursday and Saturday mornings. 

Trivia: Railroad ties are cut to the same size and evenly spaced center to center. According to the American Association of Railroads, it takes 3,200 ties to lay one mile of track!  

Caterpillar Alert!

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Look around and you might find caterpillars munching in the gardens at The National Museum of Transportation! They also pop up wherever their momma butterflies can find a larval food source.

The two caterpillars in the photo were spotted nearby the administrative office which is located at 2967 Barrett Station Road, St. Louis, Missouri, just east of and outside the Museum’s perimeter fence. As we increase our use of sustainable native plants, we provide additional habitat for butterflies like black swallowtails (the greenish one with black stripes and yellow dots) and monarchs (the one with yellow, black and white stripes).

Please leave the caterpillars you see to eat the food we have provided for them at the Museum! 

The black swallowtail caterpillar is chomping on golden alexander, a heart-leaf native perennial with yellow flowers that can endure drier soils. A late season black swallowtail caterpillar can overwinter inside a chrysalis. Be careful before you disturb limbs or trim bushes outside–there may be a pupa hiding there preparing for a butterfly release come warmer weather.

The monarch caterpillar is devouring sand vine, also known as climbing milkweed, a vigorous, aggressive climber covering fences and shrubs. Flowers are in round clusters on stalks from the leaf axils. At end of season our Midwestern super monarch butterflies migrate to the Sierra Madre Mountains in Mexico to overwinter, and returning to our area of the United States late spring. It is essential they bulk up before their journey. Our master gardeners at TNMOT work hard to make sure they have the proper nutrition for their massive self-transportation journey of close to 3,000 miles down south.

Sherwood Forest Donation

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Landscaping Update 

A BIG thanks to David Sherwood of Sherwood’s Forest who donated a carload of native and perennial plants to The National Museum of Transportation. His donation will help us continue to add to our beautiful gardens (pictured are April from our staff and David from Sherwood). 

TNMOT has dedicated staff and volunteers who maintain our Pollinary Park chock full of Missouri native plants. Ever wonder what might fit in well in your home garden, thrive in the Missouri heat, humidity, cold, snow, etc., cycle, and what the plants look like when mature? Our pollinators visit often; we hope you might “bee-come” a regular visitor, too, throughout the seasons! Our master gardeners frequent the gardening areas and are on hand to answer questions and make recommendations.

Chicago Transit Authority Streetcar #44

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The Chicago Transit Authority #44 Elevated/Subway Streetcar is currently operational. #44 is a single-unit version of 6000-series cars; operator’s cab at each end; had both third-rail and trolley pole power pickup. Built by the St. Louis Car Company for Chicago’s elevated and subway lines, using trucks and controls designed for PCC-type streetcars.

Some components came from Chicago’s own PCC streetcars which were replaced by electric trolleybuses and diesel buses in the 1950s. Mostly on the Evanston line (today’s Purple Line) until 1993, and came to TNMOT in 1998. Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) Elevated Car #44 was built in 1959 with recycled parts from retired Chicago President’s Conference Committee (PCC) streetcars. This car originally ran with a trolley pole on the Evanston line and to the Loop using third rail. Many of the original placards or “Car Cards” as they are called, can be seen inside the car. Hear more here.

Signage Award of Nearly $45K

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A Sign of Support!
TNMOT has been awarded $44,901.00 from the federally funded Institute of Museum and Library Services – Museums for America Program – FY2020 to support the artifact sign replacement project.
Each outdoor artifact will receive a new sign. With over 155 signs needed, this project is expected to take three years. Look for the first group of signs to be installed soon. 

Aerotrain Restoration Completed!

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Chicago, Rock Island, and Pacific #3 “Aerotrain” Diesel engine and two passenger cars
The Aerotrain was a high-concept passenger train manufactured by the General Motors Electro-Motive Division. With its sleek and futuristic appearance, this mid-century modern train was built to appeal to commuters at a time when cars were increasingly replacing passenger train service. GM produced two demonstrator sets which they shopped around to several railroads. While they were tested by the New York Central, Pennsylvania, and Union Pacific Railroads, no additional trains were ordered. Testing revealed that the trains rode poorly at high speeds and the passenger cars, which were little more than widened bus bodies, felt uncomfortable and cramped. The Chicago, Rock Island, and Pacific Railroad purchased the demonstrator sets in 1958 for passenger service between Chicago and Joliet, Illinois where they lasted for less than a decade.

The #3 is exhibited at the Museum with two of its ten original passenger cars. As the Aerotrain has endured the outdoor elements for decades, a cosmetic restoration has been done. 
With funding provided by The Tom E. Dailey Foundation, Bluewater Michigan Chapter of the NRHS, and The National Railway Historical Society, TNMOT volunteers worked diligently to restore the Aerotrain.  
 
Did you know…the silver paint needed for this restoration project cost $300 per gallon? We are grateful to our donors who made this project possible. And, of course, we thank our dedicated volunteers.

Aerotrain #3 1955

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Here’s a video about the introduction of the Aerotrain that also mentions the first time the Aerotrain was restored by the Museum. In a fortuitous event, “The Wall Street Journal” featured the Aerotrain this past weekend in its July 25/26, 2020, issue, page C14, mentioning The National Museum of Transportation in St. Louis, Missouri. TNMOT is currently restoring the Aerotrain again. The design is incredibly unique and well worth preserving.

General Motors used lightweight construction concepts in the building of a futuristic locomotive and 10 cars, which resulted in the “Aerotrain.” It was an attempt to lure passengers back to rail travel vs. air or automobile travel. Unfortunately, at high speeds the coaches rode very poorly and were very noisy since they were little more than widened bus bodies. The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific ultimately used the trains for a decade as commuters from Chicago to Joliet, IL.

Dodge Coronet “Freedom Rider” Service Car

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Service cars operated in the same manner as buses and streetcars as they had regular routes with regular stops. Cab drivers and bus companies loathed these cars as they were cheaper to ride  and stole potential customers.

By the 1960s, most service car companies had shut and survivors operated limited routes in north St. Louis. The Consolidated Service Car Co. was the last to offer rides and was eventually bought by Bi-State in 1962. However, most drivers owned their cars and continued their service. With the support of the Committee of Racial Equality (CORE), they charged no fare but accepted ‘donations’ as ‘freedom riders.’ Bi-State added more routes to compete with the unlicensed service cars but the African American residents boycotted the buses in these areas. The dispute was settled in 1966.

This 1950 Dodge Coronet is the last running and remaining service car. Engine type: 6-cyl. L-Head; displacement: 230 cubic inches; horsepower: 103; built in: San Leandro CA; donors: Herman Perkins, Anthony Sansone, Consolidated Service Car Co.; acquired by Museum in 1967.