Stolen!

No, the train was not stolen. I stole this account of the arrival of Number 128 from Tom's blog. As he mentions, she arrived back in pieces, so it will be a while before she looks as good as she did in this old photograph.

Number 128 came home to the railroad yesterday, after a long absence, arriving on a truck, in pieces. It will take several years, and many thousands of dollars in donations, to restore the engine and tender to operating condition.

Number 128 was built in 1948, and ran at the Sandley facility until 1981, when it went to Knoxville for the World's Fair Railway. It was rolled, rebuilt, and then went to the Knoxville Zoo. Number 128 was eventually acquired by Ron Krawczak, a member of the preservation society, and it was donated to the museum by his widow.

Number 128's homecoming brings to five the number of Sandley engines owned by the RGN, which is a not-for-profit living museum dedicated to preservation of the facilities, locomotives and rolling stock made by the Sandley Light Railway Equipment Company between 1947 and 1980.

Each of the five locomotives -- an electric work engine, Number 1 (a Tom Thumb, built in the 1947), Number 98 (an American 4-4-0 built in 1957), Number 82 (an American 4-4-0, virtually the twin of Number 98, built in 1958), and Number 128 (a 4-4-2 built in 1948) -- was hand built by the Sandley works, and each is, in its own right, a work of art.

Number 128's homecoming brought back memories to many of the members who witnessed her arrival yesterday. Many of us had ridden behind her when we were younger, from the 1950's to the 1980's, when the Sandley works was in operation. Gary, one of the men who traveled to Milwaukee to bring her home, rode her on his honeymoon with his wife Bev. Jim, who was instrumental in working out the details of the donation with Mrs. Krawczak, had worked on Number 128 when he was a teenager.

We were all glad to see her come home.

When Tom says it will take many thousands of dollars to restore Number 128, he is talking about $50,000. That is no small change for this little non-profit volunteer operation. And as is so often the case with non-profits, it would be great if a major donor would step in and help, but it will probably be the pennies the kids drop into the donation jars that ultimately will make it possible for children who are yet to be born to have a chance to ride behind Number 128 the way Tom did when he was a boy.