November 5, 2009

Vendors, activities fill Ritzville

gym at annual train show

Charles Jingling, organizer of the fifth annual Great Northwest Train Festival last Saturday, noted at the day’s end that the event was a success from vendors to attendance.

“It was predominantly out-of-town people, I’d guess about 85 percent,” Jingling said Saturday.

About 55 vendors spent the day at Gilson Gym in Ritzville as did two active modular railroad clubs and two individuals demonstrating telegraphy.

Activities during the day included a coloring table, a special visit from Morticia and Wednesday of the Addams Family, three beginning railroading seminars, a raffle for a $50 gift certificate valid that day only with show vendors/$30 second prize and an opportunity to guess the location of a photograph taken of a train.

Roy Clinesmith submitted the correct guess in the photograph contest, which featured the old Sprague depot. He received a $10 gas card for the winning entry.

In a coordinated venture with the Morse Telegraph Club, Inc., Ritzville Museums Volunteer L.R. Keith organized an inter-city railroad telegraph event between Ritzville and the Sprague Depot.

Keith was stationed at Sprague while Del Klakken, a regular at the train show, served as the train dispatcher in Ritzville.

For most of the train show hours, Keith tracked every westbound and eastbound train including time, type of train and number of units as well as clock time checks and weather reports using dial-up Morse telegraphy through the phone lines. While at Sprague, Keith sold three tickets to the Ritzville train show.

One of the newest members of the Morse Telegraph Club, Inc., Lloyd Whipple of Sprague, had planned to serve as the telegrapher at Sprague but was unable to participate due to illness.

In addition, Gary Dunn of Lind and Todd Hackett of Montana demonstrated the modern era of train dispatching with the Association of American Railroad’s Advanced Train Control System, which allows people to graphically monitor train traffic using a personal computer.