Issue 08-4, Winter 2008 - foxtrolley.org

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file:///C|/Users/Matt/Downloads/FRL-08-4beab.htm[3/29/2012 5:24:43 PM]

Issue 08-4, Winter 2008

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What Is a MuseumOne of the best times of our Museum year is spring. That is when activity atthe Museum ramps up to get ready for opening day. The time goes fast, and,before too long, we are running our first Mother's demonstration trolley ride.In a couple of months we get ready for our season. There is a lot to do.Lubricating equipment, checking electrical systems, getting our train crewssigned-up and scheduled, operator training, track maintenance and car andgrounds cleanup. Spring work reaches its crescendo on the last Saturday ofApril-Spring Cleanup Day. It is a time when we invite all of our Members tocome out to South Elgin and lend a hand. It is exciting to see old friends,and it is exciting to meet and make new friends. The day is full of energy and promise for the season to come. Everyone workstogether to do his or her part to get the Museum ready to open. Everyonepitches in to get ready for our Visitors.

Our Museum is a pretty special place to us, and it's a special place for the1000s of Visitors that we host each season. But, what makes it special?What makes it a museum? What is a Museum?

Not too long ago, a museum was simply defined as a building or placewhere works of art, scientific specimens, and other objects of permanentvalue were kept and displayed. It's a simple and concise definition. Morethan likely, you probably have been to a museum just like that. You lookedat display after display of specimens and objects that someone else thinksare valuable. Also more than likely, you only visited that type of museumonce-maybe twice at the most. This kind of "museum" seems to hold littleinterest to most people. It doesn't touch people, so they rarely come back

But here is an interesting statistic. According to the American Association ofMuseums, there are an estimated 16,000 museums in the United States thatreceive over 800 million visits a year! That is a lot of people to just look atdisplays of specimens and objects. There must be something going on in themuseum community that attracts and holds people's interest. There must besomething that brings museum visitors back for visit after visit, becausethose 800 million people are not rushing out to simply look at dull drydisplays.

There is something else. Those 800 million annual museum visitors alongwith the 1000's of annual Fox River Trolley Museum Visitors are visitingmuseums for an important and powerful reason. They come to museums,because today a museum is to a place of participation, a place of excitementand a place to connect with the world around them. Museums today are notjust buildings and places with stuff; they are community-centered placeswhere visitors can remember, discover and learn. And whom do they learnfrom; they learn from us-the Members and Volunteers. We are the realreason that Visitors return again and again. Our collection, as unique and asexciting as it is, would just be stuff on display without our Members andVolunteers creating an experience for our Visitors. Our work and effort hascreated a very special place where our Visitors can remember, discover andlearn, again and again.

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This concept of a museum is not that old-it seems to have gotten its start inthe early to mid-1970s. It's a new concept to many museums, but not to us.Since 1966, the Members and Volunteers of the Fox River Trolley Museumhave been creating a community-centered place. Our Visitors and Membersparticipate together to create a place of remembering, discovering andlearning. It's Education through Demonstration! So as we get ready for the2003 season, think back on how our Museum was a pioneer in a new way ofthinking about Museums. That's pretty special.

Edward KoneckiThis President's message is being repeated because of its timeliness. -Ed.

MissionTo preserve and interpret Chicago's electric transport era thatbegan in the 1890s and peaked before 1950. The electrictransport era is significant because electric railways,including interurban, rapid transit, and streetcars, helped theChicago region grow to be one of North America's greatmetropolitan areas. The Museum strives to show that electricrailways were more than convenient, they were and are away of life for generations of people from all walks of life.

The Museum fulfills this mission by preserving, interpreting,and operating historic railway vehicles on its demonstrationelectric railway, over the Aurora, Elgin and Fox RiverElectric route at South Elgin, Illinois. Furthermore, themuseum preserves, displays and interprets smaller artifacts,photos, oral histories, and documents which help relate theimportance of electric transport in and around the ChicagoMetropolitan Area, putting them in context with theirsurroundings and era.

Board Meetings and Other Dates for2009The Museum's Board of Directors established the following dates and timesfor its meetings and other special member events in 2009.All meeting willtake place at the South Elgin Village Hall, 10 N. Water St., South Elgin.

Board of Directors

Saturday, March 14, 2009 - 1 pm Saturday, May 16, 2009 - 1pmSaturday, July 11, 2009 7pmSaturday, September 26, 2009 - 1pm,Saturday, October 10, 2009 - 7pm

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Annual Meeting - Members

Sunday, November 8, 2009 - 1pm, All members are invited to attend board of director's meetings.

Don MacBean

Many of us remember the old "Life Magazine." It was a "picture magazine"developed in the late 1930's which succumbed to television in the 1970's. Itfeatured reporting the news with pictures and extended captions but littlestory text. This issue of "Fox River Lines" continues that context and concept.

This last issue of "Fox River Lines" for 2008 features the Museum's biggestevents based upon ridership and membership participation. Trolleyfest is byfar the oldest, starting out as the "Electric Railroad Fair" in the 1980's. Thiswas followed by three other seasonal theme event operations - PumpkinTrolley, Halloween Hiawatha, and "POLAR EXPRESS." Pumpkin Trolleystarted in the 1990's and Halloween Hiawatha originally called The GhostStory Train and "POLAR EXPRESS" started in 2004. This is the story ofthese events in pictures.

This part of Fox River Lines is dedicated to the many Museum volunteersover the past five years who planned, administered and labored so hard manytimes under adverse weather conditions to make "POLAR EXPRESS" theMuseum's premier event and a tradition to be maintained. May their tribeincrease!

Don MacBean

Trolley Fest

which started out as "Electric Railroad Fair," has been the Museum'straditional event to display and operate our equipment. Past issues of FoxRiver Lines have featured these activities. But the last few years have seen anew feature added to the Trolley Fest . . . a hand car! Ed Konecki,(Roadmaster, President and hand car enthusiast) was in charge of theoperation in 2008. Participants enjoyed pumping their way up and down tracktwo at Blackhawk Station. For an additional charge the urge to exercise wassatiated on about 100 feet of level track. Ed was assisted by Phill Kovary,Rich Chappas and Bill Molony. Passengers arrived at Blackhawk Station onregular Museum trains and bought their tickets at the special "Ticket Office"then boarded their "special" pump car for a great ride.

Another recent feature of Trolley Fest is the "Trolley Bus" ferrying visitorsbetween the main "Riverfest" event in downtown South Elgin to the Museumand other historic places in South Elgin. This service is provided by theMuseum as part of its civic contribution.

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Pumpkin Trolley

has been going on for more than 15 years. It keeps gaining in popularity! Inthe past Fox River Lines has had pictures of the event from the groundshowing the kids picking out their pumpkins from the "ghoulish" displays.This year we pictured it from other points of view . . What it looks like ifyou are getting off the train, from the conductor's perspective , getting backon the train with the prize pumpkin! Decorations and set up were by DonMacCorqudale, Bill Minerly, Dan Kelly, Luke Helm, Bruce Moffat, JimGonyo and Bob Wayman. By the way who is that skeleton or who is themummy or who is/was the scarecrow? . . . Hey this is mine!!!

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Halloween Hiawatha

was originally called the "Ghost Train." This "ghost story train" has beenoperating successfully for five years. To get scared, get goose bumps, toenjoy a camp fire and "smores" with hot chocolate, and to be thrilled byghost stories and music, guests board one of our trains at Castlemuir for aquick trip to Jon J. Duerr Forest Preserve. On the way to Blackhawk, thetrain passes the appropiately decorated front lawn of member Ed and HelenTredup. Detraining at Blackhawk Station they follow a trail to the roaringcampfire where they are seated and greeted by a story teller (MarcieLautanen Raleigh has thrilled kids for five years) and musicians. After thestory, an old American tradition of "smores" (graham crackers, campfire

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toasted marshmallows and chocolate chips put together in sandwich form)and hot chocolate are gobbled down. Seconds are encouraged. Then a walkthrough the woods back to the waiting train and on to Castlemuir.

Polar Express

is the Museum's biggest event most anyway you look at it. The number ofvisitors, revenue, the number of people required to operate the trains andprovide the food and entertainment involve the biggest number of people.The 2008 Polar Express was different in another way. We experienced thecoldest day the Museum ever operated -21 degrees wind chill on December21st! Note Ralph Taylor's (page 10) layers of clothing at CTA 40's doors.However the cold did not prevent Matt Del Giudice and Pat Storm (page 12)from posing by CTA 43 in their "spiffy" uniforms. And then there was Santaand Mrs. Claus (Ed Konecki and Laura Taylor, pages 7, 8, and 9) goingbeyond the call of duty by posing at the North Pole (Castlemuir) platform on

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that cold December 21st evening. The Museum had a new track inspectorpreceding the first trip. Not a reindeer but a moose. The reindeer were allharnessed up for Santa's Sleigh.

The most heart warming aspect of the whole event are the smiles on thefaces mom, dad, the children and relatives and our crews. We invited andsecured participation from the community this year and in particularmembers of the South Elgin High School Honor Society. It is not too early tovolunteer for the 2009 "POLAR EXPRESS."

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Santa's Sleigh vs. CTA 40 and 43The Museum has just concluded five unprecedented years of success of"Polar Express" both financially and in ridership numbers. Additionally,since its inception in 2004 it grew like "Topsy." The program involved mostof the active (Chicago area) members as well as volunteers from DuPageand Kane Counties. It's success was spread by word of mouth and a fewpress releases and without paid advertising. In the last four years trains anddays had to be added to accommodate the interest. Initial seat reservationswere sold out in late August or early September. Riders, almost entirely

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families were extremely enthusiastic and for the most part heard about itfrom friends, relatives, co-workers and neighbors. Approximately 25% ofthe reservations each year were "repeaters" two, three and four times. Somewrote in on their reservation forms how much they and their childrenenjoyed the event. Visitors came from places in states as far away asWisconsin, Missouri, Indiana and Kentucky. There were large groups fromchurches and Mom's groups. Weather was not always kind to us. There weredays of sleet, snow and sub-zero temperatures that had little or no affect onattendance. The "Polar Express" by any reckoning is and was a huge success- it worked!

Questions arise from the above. Can we sustain it and how? These questionsraise a bigger one - why was it so successful? What are the elements ofPolar's success? First there is the story and the season and the mass publicinterest produced by the book and movie and their ancillary promotions andwhat the public resonated to. Second, the book won the prestigious Caldecottaward for the best illustrated children's book; thirdly the movie featuredfamous Hollywood names as well as being shown in wide screen and IMAX.Fourthly, the story was about children and families and a powerful longestablished tradition. Fifthly, the Museum's production was superb! It notonly involved the "show" on the train but all of the associated activitiesneeded to make it happen. . . parking lot control, reservations, foodprovision, train operation and car maintenance.

So, in the case of the transportation vehicles involved who won, the sleigh orCTA 40-43? Clearly it was the sleigh. People came to enjoy the "show," notthe vehicles the "show" took place in. Would it make any difference if thecars were CTA 6101-2, CA&E 20, CNS&M 715 or 756? Probably not. CTA40 and 43, were warm, well lit, intimate/cozy in their atmosphere but werenot the stars as was Santa's sleigh of the story.

Is there a lesson for Fox River Trolley Museum in this event?

Don Mac Bean

Fox River Lines Staff

Managing Editor—Don MacBean, 817 College Ave. #5, Wheaton, IL 60187 (630) 665-2581 E-mail [email protected]

Associate Editor—Luke Helm, Jr.

Layout and Graphics— Jack Sowchin

Fox River Lines is the official publication of the Fox River TrolleyAssociation, Inc., an Illinois not-for-profit corporation. It is published fourtimes per calendar year for distribution to members and friends of themuseum. Reproduction of Fox River Lines, either in part or in its entirety, isstrictly prohibited without prior permission from the editorial staff or theFRTA board of directors. Entire contents Copyright © 2008 Fox RiverTrolley Association, Inc.

Submissions: Submission of stories from members and others is necessary

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to publish Fox River Lines. Feature length articles are always welcome andconsidered. Please contact the staff before undergoing a project. Contributorssubmit materials with the understanding that no monetary compensation isprovided.

Correspondence: Comments, suggestions, and corrections relating to FoxRiver Lines should be directed to Managing Editor Don MacBean at theaddress listed above. The editorial staff appreciates your feedback.

Issue 08-4, Winter 2008 - foxtrolley.org

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