volume 33, no. 2 october 2019 · national railway historical society chapter no. 188 founded in...

- THE ARKANSAS SCRAMBLER October 2019

Volume 33, No. 2 October 2019

Official Monthly Publication of the

ARKANSAS-BOSTON MOUNTAINS CHAPTER NATIONAL RAILWAY HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Chapter No. 188 founded in 1987

Contributing to THE ARKANSAS SCRAMBLER: Submis-

sions to the newsletter are welcome. Send content (articles, sto-

ries, photos) for the monthly SCRAMBLER newsletter to editor

Mike Sypult at [email protected] DEADLINE for the

SCRAMBER is the 9th day of each month. The editor reserves the

right to edit, hold or omit material at his discretion.

The restored depot at Mammoth Spring, Ark. The section closest to the displayed caboose once housed the Rail-

way Express Agency office. The larger section housed two waiting rooms and the railroad office. Since there was

no indoor plumbing, at one time there were outhouse facilities. - J.L. Gattis photos

mailto:[email protected]


THE ARKANSAS

SCRAMBLER Volume 33, No. 2 - October 2019

THE ARKANSAS SCRAMBLER is

published 12 times each year by the

Arkansas Boston Mountains Chapter,

National Railway Historical Society

Inc, PO Box 1303, Springdale, Arkan-

sas 72765-1303. Opinions expressed

herein may not reflect the official posi-

tion of the ABMT Chapter or the Na-

tional Railway Historical Society.

Editor…………………..Mike Sypult

Every effort is made to provide accu-

rate and complete information in THE

ARKANSAS SCRAMBLER monthly

newsletters. Please send corrections to

[email protected]. We welcome

your input!

Arkansas Boston Mountains Chap-

ter, National Railway Historical So-

ciety Inc. is a non-profit, 501(c)(3)

educational organization incorporated

under the laws of the State of Arkan-

sas.

Meetings of the membership are open

to the public on the third Thursday of

each month at 7:00pm at the ADA

compliant Reilly P. McCarren Railroad

Museum at the Arkansas & Missouri

Depot located on Emma Avenue in

downtown Springdale, Arkansas. Meet-

ings in winter months are not held

when the Springdale public schools are

closed due to inclement weather. Visi-

tors are welcome at all chapter meet-

ings. Visit our website at:

www.arkrailfan.com

WELCOME ABOARD all new and renewing members!

MEMBERSHIP: Local chapter membership is $12 per year. Please make

checks payable to ABMT NRHS. Regular membership for the National Rail-

way Historical Society is $50 per annum and Family Membership is $54 per

annum. Please refer to the NRHS website www.nrhs.com for complete de-

tails.

2019 DIRECTORY OF OFFICERS

President………………..Gary McCullah

Vice President…………..Larry Cain

Secretary………………..Malcolm Cleaveland

Treasurer………………..Rose Ann Hofer

Membership…………….Malcolm Cleaveland

Dist.7 Nat. Director…….Ken Eddy

Nat. Representative……..Jim Gattis

Editor ……………….....Mike Sypult Program Director……….Hugh Harris

From the President… - Gary McCullah

Union Pacific has announced 4014’s schedule and

it will be in our area in early November. I hope to

see it.

The manufacturing downturn has impacted rail-

roads large and small.

I mention this to remind us all that whether we are watching trains of

one of the big carriers (UP, CSX, KCS, et al), a regional like the

A&M, or a local short line, we should not be surprised at shorter

trains, fewer trains, or less service. This is the reality of the business.

I recently purchased the A&R Productions Arkansas-Missouri Rail-

road video. The footage encompasses several different years and you

can see the changes that occur during the years. There is a brief view

of the final KCS depot in Fort Smith as well as coverage of the Jensen

Tunnel. If it sounds interesting, you might want to get a copy.

Finally, I want to mention a couple of items that are not rail-related.

First, get your flu shot. Cases of the flu have already been reported so

it may be a rough winter. Second, keep in mind that you may have to

administer CPR or the Heimlich maneuver on someone. They are not

hard to learn and you may save a life.

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.arkrailfan.com/


The Depot Museum at Mammoth Spring, Arkansas

by J. L. Gattis

In northeastern Arkansas, the State of Arkansas has developed a day-use state park around the mam-

moth spring in Mammoth Spring. Among the park’s facilities are the restored 1886 railroad depot, now called

the “Depot Museum”, and the adjacent Frisco caboose No. 1176. Both are separated by a fence from the active

BNSF track (formerly Frisco) linking Springfield, Mo., to Memphis. The railroad that passes by was built in

1883, and construction of the present depot began in 1885.

The station is No. 92000617 in the National Register of Historic Places. Park Superintendent Dave Jackson

said this may be the oldest standing depot in Arkansas – if any reader knows of one older, please contact him

at [[email protected]]. Hope lays claim to an 1873 Cairo & Fulton depot, but not in its original lo-

cation [https://www.arkansas.com/articles/train-day-hope].

How It Was Saved

The demise of passenger trains in the 1960s, combined with the Frisco’s desire to jettison no-longer-

needed assets, led to the depot’s closure in August 1968, with agent Curtis Roarke being reassigned to second

trick operator at nearby Thayer, Mo. Upon learning of plans to demolish the building, the City of Mammoth

If you have a news story about a railroad place, submit it to the editor at [email protected]

A perch atop a now-long-gone trackside building (Campbell-Thorpe Grocery Co.) provided a grand view of not

only the depot, but also industrial operations attracted by the spring-fed lake. - Photo courtesy of Arkansas State

Parks

https://www.arkansas.com/articles/train-day-hope


The depot, circa 1910. - Photo courtesy of Arkansas State Parks

Spring leased the station from the Frisco that December to preserve it. The Mammoth Spring Lions Club in-

stalled temporary roll-roofing to help stabilize the structure. Meanwhile, the State was embarking on a pro-

gram to purchase a number of parcels in order to create a state park with the spring as its centerpiece.

The State became the holder of the building’s lease, and hired a company to renovate the interior and

exterior in 1971-72. Reflecting Jim Crow laws that began to arise in Southern states in the late 1800s, the de-

pot had vestiges of two segregated waiting rooms; the park manager painted over the word “Colored” on the

A 1973 derailment dinged but fortunately did not obliterate the depot in the background. - Photo courtesy of Ar-

kansas State Parks


waiting room door in the 1970s. The depot served as park office and visitor center until a purpose-built struc-

ture opened in 1987. In 1998, the State matched discretionary funds in the Federal transportation bill to restore

station’s interior and exterior, and provide exhibits. In 2006, addition funds were secured to restore the ca-

boose, including matching the original paint. More recently, the State has funded a new roof on the station and

minor upkeep.

The close proximity to active rails does come with problem potential. In 1973, there were two derail-

ments in the same vicinity near the depot, which sent freight cars into the adjacent lake fed by Mammoth

Spring. Apparently, these derailments come in pairs, as 2008 again saw two near-by derailments in a span of

less than a month, also in which a few cars took a dunk.

The Garden Club Grew the Collection

In the 1970s, the State entered into an agreement with a local garden club to operate a museum in just a

portion of the building; during this era, it was dubbed the “Bicentennial Room”. Mammoth Spring Garden

Club members put out a call for relevant artifacts, which jumpstarted the current collection. A 1972 Arkansas

Gazette article mentions contributions from “Paul Denning of Thayer, Mo., a young railroad buff”. Among the

items donated was the Frisco caboose, which came down from Springfield in 1972. Eventually, the garden

club involvement was transferred to State Park.

This beginning, combined with the resources of the State, enables the Depot Museum to offer a very respecta-

ble interpretive experience. The waiting rooms recreate the atmosphere from the early 1900s, complete with

mannequins in period attire. The baggage room houses a number of rail artifacts, along with train crew manne-

quins. Interpretive videos, audios, and a brief narrated tour explain how the railroad operated and what it

meant to the life of communities it served.

The main waiting room. - J.L Gattis photo


ABOVE: The interior of Frisco caboose #1176 on display. BELOW: An aerial view of the depot and Frisco ca-

boose. - Photos courtesy of Arkansas State Parks


Acknowledgments

In addition to acknowledging the help from Park Superintendent Dave Jackson in preparing this article,

the efforts of others who decades ago stepped up to preserve the depot and create its collection deserve recog-

nition.

TO VISIT

The Mammoth Spring State Park’s Depot Museum is open 8 am to 5 pm Tuesday through Saturday, and 1

to 5 pm on Sunday; it is closed on Monday and on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas, and New Year’s

Day. The Park telephone number is 870-625-7364. Admission is free.

The site is east of US Highway 63. About 400 feet south of the state line, turn east at North Park Road,

which curves around and evolves into State Line Road – the only thing that apparently changes is the street

name. In about 0.4 mile after leaving US 63, veer to the right, then almost immediately turn right onto Frisco

Lane. If you cross the train tracks, you went too far. If only one park staff person is present and is at the other

end of the building, the door may be locked, so knock.

Two miles to the north of Mammoth Spring is the center of Thayer, Mo., which hosts a small BNSF yard

and is a crew change stop between Springfield and Memphis. In Thayer, from US 63 turn west onto Walnut

Street.

About 16 miles to the south is the tourist town of Hardy, complete with a quaint downtown street lined with

shops.

If you drop in on the Thayer yard, we cannot guarantee that you will find Federal Railroad Administration Of-

fice of Safety DOTX 219 waiting for you under the Walnut Street overpass. September 26, 2019, Thayer, MO. -

J.L. Gattis photo


Backtracking: The Story Behind the Railroad

The line alongside the Mammoth Spring depot that is now BNSF was built in the early 1880s as the

Kansas City, Springfield & Memphis RR, which was controlled by the Kansas City, Ft Scott & Gulf RR. The

original intent of the “ancestor companies” was to build southward from Kansas City to … no, not Memphis,

but rather Indian Territory and Texas. In the 1860s, the line was controlled by James Joy and others who also

had their thumbs in the pies of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, the Hannibal & St Joseph, and yet another

“Joy Road” headed toward Indian Territory, the Leavenworth, Lawrence & Ft Gibson. But in a well-known

story, the Missouri, Kansas & Texas won the race to the Kansas-Cherokee Nation border, and Federal courts

ruled that only one railroad was allowed to cross into Indian lands. The other railroads that had constructed

southward found themselves in the position of all dressed up, but nowhere to go.

In 1879, the Kansas City, Fort Scott & Gulf assumed operation after defaults on mortgages. By this

time, the KCFS&G was competing with the St Louis & San Francisco for control of territory and business. The

KCFS&G decided that its future lay in building first toward Springfield, then on to Memphis, a destination that

Kansas City leaders had long desired. In the typical practice of the day, the goal was reached by buying exist-

ing small railroads and creating new ones to push construction. Their rails to Memphis diverged from the route

An Official Guide of the Railways November 28, 1875 timetable shows that the MRFS&G was strictly a north-

south operation. - J.L. Gattis collection


that started it all at Ft Scott, over 90 miles due south of Kansas City – nowhere close to a straight line from

Kansas City to Memphis, but it did avoid the hilly terrain due southeast of Kansas City.

In 1888, companies were merged to form the Kansas City, Ft Scott & Memphis, the “Memphis Route”. Places

names that survive today, such as Thayer and Nettleton, were names of high-ranking officials during this era.

In 1901, the Frisco chose to cope with the competition by acquiring it.

Sources:

Charles C. Glabb, Kansas City and the Railroads, The State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1962.

V. V. Masterson, The Katy Railroad and the Last Frontier, University of Missouri Press,1988.

H. Craig Miner, The St Louis-San Francisco Transcontinental Railroad, The University Press of Kan-

sas, 1972.

A Kansas City, Ft Scott & Memphis maintenance crew paused to pose for a photograph. - Photo courtesy of Arkan-

sas State Parks


Comparing passenger timetables from not long after

through service to Memphis was inaugurated with just be-

fore merging into the Frisco. It seems that in the 1880s, the

trains called at every village, but by 1901 the powers that

be determined that not every hamlet merited a stop by eve-

ry train. ABOVE: May 11, 1884 Official Guide. RIGHT:

June 2, 1901 Official Guide. - J.L. Gattis collection


UPCOMING 2019 SPRINGDALE PROGRAMS October 17 - The Orient Express by Malcolm Cleaveland

November 21 - The Depots of Fort Smith, Arkansas by Chuck Girard

December 19 - Annual A&M Christmas Train Ride and Party

This 1898 Rand McNally

map labeled it as “Mammoth

Spring Sta.”

- J.L. Gattis collection

Mapped in a 1900 Official

Guide, part of the

KCFS&M system just be-

fore it vanished into the

Frisco. - J.L. Gattis collec-

tion


ABMT NRHS CHAPTER MINUTES ̶ September 19, 2019

Meeting of the Arkansas-Boston Mtn. Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society at the Reilly

McCarren Transportation Museum, A&M Depot, Springdale, AR. Meeting was called to order at 7:05 PM by

the President, Gary McCullah. 17 members and guests present, including Bill Bailey, who gave the presenta-

tion. August minutes were approved with no changes.

The Treasurer, Rosanne Hofer, gave the Treasurer’s report: Checking $2,165.38; Edward Jones total

$80,094.64 (CD $50,290.24, Money Market account $29,804.40).

Hugh Harris, NRHS National Membership Chair and in charge of presentations was not present, but he’s

looking diligently for people to present. His email is hughrharris @ aol.com.

Mike Sypult, the Scrambler editor, was present and said that his trip to Alaska was great.

The officer list at National is not up to date and the Secretary will rectify that.

Two of Alex Holtby’s photos from his RailCamp experience are included in the September Scrambler and it’s

possible that the NRHS may publish some.

Old Business: Mike reported that the Condrens’ basement flooded, and his book collection was damaged, but

the photos were saved. Sorting through the photos, trying to suss out possible copyright protection and get the

best photos scanned is going to be labor intensive and fraught with problems because Mr. Condren cannot

help much. The knowledgeable Dr. Louis Marre in Ohio has offered to help.

Al Kaeppel reported that only 76 Engineer’s certificates were given out at Frisco Fest. Lynn Cleaveland said

that wasn’t necessarily accurate because she helped out and some of the children ran trains but went away be-

fore they could be given certificates.

New Business: Al Kaeppel had an article about Chuck Girard’s new position as Interim Director of the Ft.

Smith Historical Museum that appeared in the NWA Democrat-Gazette August 30 edition of the ‘Sup supple-

ment on page 5B. Chuck is obviously not resting on his laurels in retirement.

Mike added that Steve Tharp is undergoing retinal surgery September 30. We wish him a successful outcome.

Train Talk: Gary talked about the Virtual Railfan YouTube streaming cameras across the U.S., where you

can see train traffic in real time. There is a new set of cameras at Santa Fe Junction, a very busy place.

CLICK HERE FOR LINK. Bob Stark talked about visiting the historical Decatur Depot. To get access you

must phone Janelle at City Hall. Jim Gattis said that on Saturday, October 12, admission to the Boone County

Heritage Museum in Harrison will be free, normally it’s $5. The museum has exhibits on the extensive RR

history in the county, including the fallen flag Missouri and N. Arkansas RR.

Al Kaeppel said the Christmas train will run on Thursday, December 19 as usual, cost $10/person. Cash/

check in his hand gets you a reservation. Be thinking about the Secret Santa festivity.

Program: Bill Bailey, on Western Union history. October may be Malcolm Cleaveland on the intersection of

model railroading and RR history if he gets back from a trip in time.

Malcolm Cleaveland, Secretary

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLMTV64fH2o

volume 33, no. 2 october 2019 · national railway historical society chapter no. 188 founded in...

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