October 29, 2009

Train show to feature Ritzville, Sprague

inter-city railroad telegraph event

The fifth annual Great Northwest Train Festival set for this Saturday, Oct. 31, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Gilson Gym in Ritzville has expanded to include a live, active telegraph event with the depot in Sprague.

Admission at the train show is $5 for adults, $10 family and $3 for senior citizens/disabled and children ages 10-17. Children ages 10 and under are free.

Telegraphers stationed at Sprague and the train dispatcher at the train show will use dial-up Morse telegraphy through the phone lines to transmit every westbound and eastbound train including time, type of train and number of units as well as click time checks, weather reports and possibly a fictitious train order sent and copied.

Two or three members of the Morse Telegraph Club, Inc., including L. R. Keith of Ritzville and Lloyd Whipple of Sprague, will staff the Sprague depot where individuals may purchase train show tickets until around noon, watch the inter-city telegraph operate and enjoy refreshments.

Tickets purchased in Sprague will reflect a $1 discount for the train show. Sprague tickets will be stamped, and ticket holders will present the ticket to the front desk at Gilson Gym for admission.

“We will attempt to simulate, as far as possible in this modern era of railroading, early stages of train dispatching and operations,” Keith said.

In addition, people may ‘tap out’ their name in original Morse code using a hands-on practice telegraph set under the supervision of a Morse club member.

In Ritzville, show goers will have the opportunity to see the modern era of train dispatching. Gary Dunn, of Lind, will have a working demonstration of the Association of American Railroad’s Advanced Train Control System (ATCS), which allows people to graphically monitor train traffic using a personal computer.

ATCS has replaced the telegraphy for dispatching trains and is today’s state-of-the-art technology used by both hobbyists and for public safety. According to Keith, Burlington Northern Sante Fe has ATCS and all dispatching is handled in Forth Worth, Texas.

The system monitors and interprets radio data transmissions to a computer screen where the train movements are displayed. In addition, through a speaker system, people may also listen to cab radios of trains on the move.

The day is filled with active model railroad displays, railway safety display, model railroad clinic, raffle prizes and more.

The show will feature the entire layout of the Inland Northwest Garden Railroad Society’s G-scale active model railroad display. Last year, the group provided a scaled-down version to accommodate space limitations.

A beginner’s model railroading clinic will begin at 11 a.m. A grand prize raffle drawing is set at 1 p.m.

Additional active model railroad displays, professional and amateur vendors, concessions and a children’s activity area top off the day’s agenda.