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Mills to speak in Rapid City January 8th

12/29/2014

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CONTACT:                                                                                    

Susan Braunstein
Programming Librarian
Rapid City Public Libraries
605-394-6139 x2215
sbraunstein@rcplib.org

 
Community Voices – Looking Down the Tracks: Dakota Railroad Photography

Rapid City, SD – December 29, 2014 – Don’t miss the train!

On Thursday, January 8 from 6 – 7:30 p.m. upstairs at the downtown library (610 Quincy St.), we invite you to ‘hop on board’ for an informative and entertaining evening of railroading history and stories. Rick Mills, director of the South Dakota Railroad Museum in Hill City, will present railroad photos throughout the years featuring images of railroading in Rapid City and the surrounding area since the first ties and rails were laid in the 1870s. View photos of the Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley, the Crouch Line, the Chicago and North Western, and several others that have served the state in the past. Rick will also share images of today’s railroading and tell a few railroad stories. Be sure and bring your own family railroad memorabilia and remembrances to share.

This program was made possible with a grant from the South Dakota Humanities Council, an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The Rapid City Public Libraries have served the Rapid City area since 1879, and now have three locations, the downtown library at 610 Quincy Street, the north partner library within General Beadle Elementary School at 10 Van Buren Street, and the east partner library at Western Dakota Tech at 800 Mickelson Drive. All offer print and electronic resources for adults, young adults and children, as well as computers, internet access and a variety of programs and events. In March 2008, USA Today named the Rapid City Public Libraries’ downtown library as one of the nation’s 10 greatest places to “Find a Nook and Read a Book.”
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A Christmas Tradition – TREES AND TRAINS 2014

11/1/2014

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Annual Train Show and Christmas Celebration
Wonderfully decorated Christmas trees * Operating Scale Model Trains
Train-related Art, Gifts and Treasures * Historic Exhibits
Local Artists on Select Dates * Holiday Fun for All Ages


November 28th through December 28th, 2014

Friday, December 12   10am-4pm

*Saturday, December 13   10am-6pm
: Burlington Northern Heritage Day
Sunday, December 14   12-4pm

Friday, December 19   10am-4pm

*Saturday, December 20   10am-6pm
: Chicago and North Western Day
*Sunday, December 21   10am-6pm


Monday, December 22   10am-4pm

*Tuesday, December 23
10am-7pm

December 24 and 25
: CLOSED – MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Friday, December 26   10am-4pm

Saturday, December 27  10am-4pm

Sunday, December 28   12-4pm


* 1880 TRAIN Holiday Express Trains operating (Train times/reservations call 605-574-2222)

Admission – Adults – $5 each * 12 and under – FREE

 

Video from KNBN-TV interview with Rick Mills – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAFB9hjnczA


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Thank You All So Much! CHEW-CHOO BBQ and Concert a GREAT Success!

9/24/2014

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Artist Dede Farrar poses with her magnificent donated
acrylic original – Prairie Flight – purchased in the live
auction by Kelly Bail of Buffalo, South Dakota.

Thanks to all that attended and sponsored our FIRST Annual Chew-Choo BBQ and Concert!

What can I say? Great Food, Great Friends, Great Music, Great Auction Items, and Great Weather – AMEN! Smiles for Miles – Just another thing that we strive for here at the SDSRM. THANK YOU to our great chefs Bob, Moni, John and Kris, our helpers from the Hill City Boys and Girls Club, our amazing musical talents Hank and Kenny, and also to our event sponsors and donors- SD WHEAT GROWERS, BNSF Railway, RCP&E Railroad, SD Arts Council, Coca-Cola, Action Mechanical, Great Western Tire, and Time Tool and Equipment.
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Two Positive South Dakota Railroad Notes

9/16/2014

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With a new page we start with a new logo – the new logo for the Genesee and Wyoming Corporation’s Rapid City, Pierre and Eastern Railroad which began operations on June 1st.
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RCP&E’s Dynamic Duo ready for duty on the locomotive service track at Pierre, South Dakota  June 17, 2014 - Rick Mills photo/SDSRM

With rail service problems affecting rail traffic and commerce across the Upper Midwest, there are two pieces of good news for South Dakota this week.

SOUTH DAKOTA DOT RECEIVES TIGER GRANT

PIERRE, S.D. – The South Dakota Department of Transportation has been awarded a $12 million U.S. Department of Transportation TIGER grant.

“This grant is the culmination of a lot of effort from the Department of Transportation, the Legislature and many local citizens who supported this project. Thanks also go to Sen. (John) Thune and the rest of our federal delegation for their support for the project,” says Gov. Dennis Daugaard. “Now more than ever, our state needs good rail infrastructure to move grain to out-of-state markets.”

The grant will go toward the reconstruction of a portion of the state-owned MRC Railroad between Chamberlain and Presho. The rail [line] will be improved by repairing bridges and culverts, and replacing ties on the 41.6 miles route. The longest bridge spans the Missouri River at Chamberlain. The state acquired this former Milwaukee Road line in 1980.

“We will be replacing roughly 1,300 ties per mile. We will add approximately 1,000 tons of rock per mile and fix all the bridges to be able to carry rail cars that weigh 286,000 pounds,” says Bruce Lindholm, director of the Air, Rail and Transit Division of the state DOT.

A major customer will be South Dakota Wheat Growers, who is planning a new multi-million dollar shuttle facility for grain and fertilizer shipments near Presho.

DOUBLE-DIGIT TRAFFIC GROWTH FOR GENESEE AND WYOMING

DARIEN, Conn. – Genesee & Wyoming Inc. is reportin double-digit grown in traffic volumes for August 2014.



The shortline holding company’s traffic in August 2014 was 179,184 carloads, an increase of 17,083 carloads, or 10.5 percent, compared with August 2013. G&W owns and operates 112 shortline and regional railroads in the U.S., Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, and Belgium.

Much of the growth can be attributed to the startup of the Rapid City, Pierre & Eastern, which contributed 3,008 carloads of agricultural products traffic, 1,249 carloads of minerals & stone traffic, 666 carloads of chemical and plastics traffic, and 248 carloads from all other commodities. The railroad began operation June 1, 2014, and so does not have comparable numbers for 2013.


For railroads in operation in 2013, North American traffic increased 12,894 carloads in August, or 9.1 percent, primarily due to increased overhead Class I railroad shipments and increased coal, agricultural products, and mineral and stone traffic. Australian traffic decreased 982 carloads, or 4.8 percent, primarily due to decreased agricultural products traffic.



Coal and coke traffic increased 3,999 carloads, or 14.8 percent, primarily due to increased steam coal shipments in G&W’s Central and Ohio Valley regions. Minerals and stone traffic increased 2,539 carloads, or 13.1 percent, primarily due to increased shipments in the Ohio Valley, Northeast, and Central regions.
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Please Save The Date! CHEW-CHOO BBQ and CONCERT September 21st

8/29/2014

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Call for your tickets to a great afternoon of BBQ food, Music by South Dakota performing legends Hank Harris and Kenny Putnam, Live and silent auction action, FREE admission to the Museum, Fun entertainment for the family, and an exciting announcement about an unprecedented SDSRM promotion scheduled for 2015! YOUR ticket is only $25 for Adults – Kids 10 and under are FREE with a paid adult.

You are invited to dress in your favorite railroad attire – All Aboard!
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A Dinner in the (Museum) Diner

7/26/2014

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It was a pleasure to welcome Jo Roebuck-Pearson, Bill Walsh and their guests into the “Museum dining car” on July 24th for an special evening – an evening of champagne,  fine wines, and an authentic five-course meal featuring actual railroad dining service cuisine  as researched and skillfully presented by hostess and Museum board member Marcia Mitchell.

The courses you ask?

Cream of Peanut Soup, Crab Imperial, Pennsylvania Salad, Escallops of Veal Piquante, and a delicious slice of Cantaloupe Pie… and five fine wines from our partners at Prairie Berry Winery.

Thank you! We count ourselves fortunate to count Bill and Jo as friends and supporters of the Museum.
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South Dakota’s New Railroad – Welcome to the RCP&E!

6/9/2014

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June 1, 2014, marked the first day of operations of South Dakota’s newest railroad – the Rapid City, Pierre and Eastern Railroad. The new company’s corporate offices are located in Rapid City – the base from which the railroad will operate over 650 miles of former C&NW/DM&E/CP and GN/BN trackage in South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming, and Minnesota.

The railroad’s first repainted locomotive – the RCP&E SD40-2 number 3420, is pictured leading train HURC (Huron-Rapid City) at Owanka, South Dakota, on June 4th.
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May 26th, 2014

5/26/2014

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It has been a memorable Memorial Day here at the Museum. On this day, we honor all of our Nation’s veterans and others that have served this country and touched our lives including family members, friends, and railroaders. While shooting the image of the Museum’s newest HO locomotive on the layout Kelly Christofferson and her daughters Dalaney and Sedona stopped by to visit. In visiting with Kelly, she told me that her granddad Charles Easley had worked for the CB&Q and later the BN out of Galesburg, Illinois, for many years before his retirement. Our Burlington items and other childhood recollections of him brought Kelly to tears – what fond memories!

Also, the new HO scale locomotive, the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern # 6359, the Mount Rushmore, is shown on the layout. As of May 31st, the real #6359 will remain a part of the Canadian Pacific Railway but the west end of the former DM&E in South Dakota will become the new Rapid City, Pierre and Eastern Railroad – a new era in South Dakota railroading begins… more memories for us.

Thanks to John Kilbride for locating this collectible HO model for us in New Jersey, and for its donation by Jack Stengel.

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Order Now! 2014 HO SDSRM Commemorative Car Kit

3/2/2014

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Reserve your limited edition car today!

$28.95 each*
$ 6.50 Priority Mail Shipping (per car)
*SD residents – please add $1.74 SD Sales Tax per car kit
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FREE DAYS at the Museum – Hill City Antiques Weekend Mar. 1 and 2

2/11/2014

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What: Free Days, Rail Memorabilia Seminar, Members Sale at the Railroad Museum
When: Saturday, March 1 and Sunday, March 2
Where: South Dakota State Railroad Museum
Time: Saturday – 9:00am to 5:00pm; Rail Memorabilia Program 1:00pm
Sunday – 10:00am to 4:00pm
Contact info: Rick Mills, 605-574-9000

What: 7th Annual Hill City Antique Sale and Evaluation Days
When: Saturday, March 1 and Sunday, March 2
Where: Hill City Senior Center
Time: Saturday – 9:00am to 5:00pm; Sunday – 10:00am to 4:00pm
Contact and table info: Pat Belczak, 605-574-2821

The South Dakota State Railroad Museum is proud to announce the dates for its Free Admission Days and Railroad Show on Saturday, March 1 and Sunday, March 2 as a part of Hill City’s Annual Antiques Show and Appraisals Weekend.

The Museum will be participating in the event on Saturday with FREE admission on both days with FREE magazines and other railroad items donated by Museum members. A railroad memorabilia identification program conducted by Museum Director Rick Mills and local rail experts will be held on Saturday at 1:00pm. The public is encouraged to bring model trains and railroad related items to the Museum to show and learn more about their history.

In addition to the Museum’s activities, the Hill City Senior Center will host the Antique Sale and Antiques Appraisal Days. The public is invited to visit to bring items for the professional appraisers to evaluate and offer other information on antiques and family treasures, and shop at the tables of our guest vendors coming in from around the region. A donation of $3 per evaluated item will be collected at the door, with all proceeds to benefit the Hill City Senior Center. Coffee and brunch items will also be available, also with the proceeds going into the Center’s operating funds.

Admission is FREE to the public for both days at the Railroad Museum and at the Antiques Show.
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