ROLLING HISTORY:

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Rolling history
Monday, October 10, 2005
By JERRY NUNN
Times WRITER
Appearing as an apparition from the past, the 440-ton locomotive thunders down the rails in billows of smoke and steam. And while the Grayling Steam Special departing Kawkawlin this weekend is no phantom from yesteryear, for the 1,600 people who booked a berth aboard the train - and for those who watch it pass on its round-trip through Northern Michigan - the excursions may seem like a journey to a bygone era.

Led by the ex-Pere Marquette No. 1225 steam locomotive, made famous by the Warner Brothers movie, "The Polar Express," the Grayling Steam Special with its 21 antique passenger rail cars will be a rail-bound, autumn-color tour through Michigan's heartland.

Loading passengers and departing Kawkawlin at 8 a.m. both days, the train will arrive at Standish around 9 a.m. before taking on more passengers and departing there at 9:30 a.m. Arriving in Grayling between noon and 1 p.m. the train will begin its return trip at 4 p.m., arriving in Standish at 6:30 p.m., and in Kawkawlin at 8 p.m.
Times are approximate, officials said, noting the train's travels will take it through Linwood, Pinconning, Sterling, Alger, West Branch, St. Helen, Roscommon and Grayling.

The first-ever excursion down the Central Michigan Railway comes thanks to the Steam Railway Institute, of Owosso, owners of the 1225, and the Bluewater Michigan Chapter of the National Railroad Historic Society, owners and renovators of nine of the train's 21 passenger cars.

"It is rolling history," said John Dobelstein of Warren, a member of the Bluewater group and the Pullman conductor aboard the train.

"It is not like a museum where you bring people in to look. This is rolling history where they can climb on and ride for a real hands-on experience," he added.

It is also a chance for track-side towns along the Central Michigan Railway to celebrate their own history.

In Standish, folks are using the train's arrival to hold Depot Days - a celebration to highlight planned renovations to their historic train depot.

With the help of a Michigan Department of Transportation grant, the building is slated to become the welcome center for Arenac County and the Sunrise Side Heritage Route, the national auto tour tracing US-23 north from Standish to Mackinaw City, according to Ruth Caldwell, secretary of the Depot Preservation Committee.

While a band will welcome the train to Standish, festivities will include antique displays, a 4-H farmer's market, a bake sale and other activities.

"Ever since I was a kid, I would stand there looking at that building, wishing I could go in," said Caldwell, of the Standish depot. "This was a farming and logging community. The depot was everything to the town at one point. That is where the soldiers went off to war."

It was also a rural town's connection to the outside world, Caldwell said, adding steam engines much like the 1225 hauled in the town's supplies as well as friends, family and news from afar.
Grayling, too, plans to roll out the red carpet for its long-awaited guests, according to Kay Cosgray, chair of the Crawford County Historical Society.

Prior to the train's arrival, the movie "The Polar Express" will be shown at Grayling's old converted opera house - the Rialto Theater, located in downtown Grayling.

"You can see the movie and then talk to the engineer and conductor to see how the movie was made," Cosgray said.

And while some members of the excursion take a two-hour side trip to view the Au Sable River Valley decked out in fall's splendor, those who remain will be treated to a celebration of history, Cosgray said.

The Graying train depot has been restored and is part of a five-building historical complex that includes a trapper's cabin, the old Grayling fire hall, the old Grayling military building and the village barn. All have been converted to museums where the town's logging history as well as antique military and logging equipment will be on display.

Also on hand will be the Grayling High School jazz band playing period music, as well as a restored 1934 Michigan State Police car.

Cosgray said the depot was a busy place during Grayling's lumbering heyday, with equipment and supplies arriving as finished lumber products were shipped out. And at one time, Northern Michigan's tourist industry drew more than 200,000 people annually who arrived here by train, she said.

We used to have the snow train that came up from Detroit," said Cosgray. "Every winter we had the snow festival. It was week-long festival and we had skiing, ski-jumping and other winter sports.

"The toboggan run was the most popular and well known. It had a steel track and could reach 100 miles an hour," she added.

It is all part of Michigan's railway history now, according to those from the Bluewater group.
"This will be the first steam engine Up North in 50 years," said Harold Frye of Mayville, chief mechanic on this weekend's trip.

"This is a lot different than getting on a train and going somewhere" he said. "This is a social event. People will talk to each other and visit each other."

As chief mechanic, the role Frye plays - and the conductor duties of Dobelstein - are rooted in history and still hold an important place.

One of two conductors aboard the train, Dobelstein is charged with the safety of passengers and crew. While the Pullman conductor knows the train, Dobelstein said the railroad conductor knows a certain length of track.

"There is a lot that goes into getting this thing on the road. When it comes to collecting tickets, it is more symbolic than anything," he added.

As chief mechanic, Frye and his crew are charged with the train's maintenance.

"Basically we work in conjunction with the railroad," said Frye, of both his crew and the conductor. "We tell them when we are ready to go, but we don't leave until they say we do."

And in many ways, there will little difference between those riding the Grayling Steam Special and their counterparts from nearly a century ago, according to Frye.

"Those riding the train will be daisy pickers," Frye said. "That's the name they used for tourists back then."

"The real railroad fans will be out making Kodak rich," he added. "They'll be outside taking pictures."