Author: Webmaster Wmnrhs

MAY 17 BUSINESS MEETING will be held at 7 PM in the Cumberland Railroad Museum at 17 Howard Street, among the shops at Canal Place in Cumberland MD. Nearest parking is available in the area beneath the Interstate Route 68 bridge on the north side of Howard, opposite the historic Footer’s Dye Works building. Parking is free on a first-come basis. Be careful when crossing Howard Street because motor vehicles do not always fully stop at the bottom of westbound Exit 43B ramp.

Regular reports will be given by chapter officers and committee chairmen. The status of membership renewal for 2022 will be discussed, and applications from prospective members will be read. Plans will be presented for social meeting programs on June 21 and July 19. Also, a report will be given by WM Chapter President Tom Biery on the Cumberland Railroad Museum, which has just begun its fourth year as a growing tourist attraction. All WM Chapter members are urged to attend this meeting.

APRIL 19 SOCIAL MEETING PROGRAM will feature Wesley Heinz, WMSR executive director, who will give an informative talk about the 1309 steam engine and the 2023 excursion train season to guests and members of the WM Chapter NRHS attending the next monthly meeting, which will be held at 7 PM in the Cumberland Railroad Museum at 17 Howard Street, among the shops at Canal Place in Cumberland MD. Admission is free and open to the public. Nearest parking is available in the area beneath the Interstate Route 68 bridge on the north side of Howard Street, opposite the historic Footer’s Dye Works building. Parking is free on a first-come basis. Be careful when crossing Howard Street because motor vehicles do not always fully stop at the bottom of westbound Exit 43B ramp.
Heinz, who has been the executive director of the WMSR during the past 22 months, will discuss the impact that will be made when the massive 1309 Mallet-designed 2-6-6-2 steam locomotive is providing motive power for WMSR trains during summer and autumn. When it is operating on WMSR tracks between Cumberland and Frostburg, the locomotive will be America’s largest articulated compound steam engine active in regularly scheduled excursion service.
Heinz will also talk about the various excursion train experiences that are scheduled throughout 2023. There are several exciting events planned for the scenic railroad during the next eight months ahead. Everyone who attends this meeting will hear what is coming down the track. Don’t miss out on this very informative and interesting event.

MARCH 15 SOCIAL MEETING of the WM Chapter NRHS will be held at 7 PM on Wednesday evening in the Cumberland Railroad Museum at 17 Howard Street, among the shops at Canal Place in Cumberland MD. Admission is free and open to the public. The nearest parking is available in the area beneath the Interstate Route 68 bridge on the north side of Howard Street, across from the historic Footer’s Dye Works building. Parking space is free on a first-come basis. Be careful when crossing Howard Street because motor vehicles do not always fully stop at the bottom of westbound Exit 43B ramp.

Railroad photographer and author Tom Biery will show his Kodachrome slide collection of the Western Maryland Railway in the Cumberland area. The photographs will be projected on a large screen; they cover the 1960-1970 era, before Wild Mary was absorbed into the Chessie System.

The program will feature an interesting railroad video selected by Meeting Program Chairman Jeff Geiger, who will show the 2010 Green Frog Production about the nearby narrow-gauge steam-powered railroad based in Orbisonia PA, the EAST BROAD TOP. This social meeting will begin at 7 PM on Wednesday evening, February 15, in the Cumberland Railroad Museum at 17 Howard Street among the shops at Canal Place near the historic Footer’s Dye Works building. Admission is free and open to the public.

All WM Chapter members, family and friends are cordially invited to attend the holiday party that will be held in the Puccini Restaurant at 12901 Ali Ghan Road NE, about three miles east of downtown Cumberland near Exit 46 on eastbound Interstate Route 68, on Wednesday, December 21 at 6 PM (please note the hour-earlier time). The party will take place on the second floor of this historic building that was once a roadside inn on the old Baltimore-Cumberland Pike. The two and a half story brick structure was built in 1819 by Jacob Hoblitzel, on land that was a grant to Colonel William Lamar after the Revolutionary War. The house was later owned by George Hinkle during the Civil War, and on 1 August 1864, the Battle of Folck’s Mill took place nearby. After the battle, the Hinkle home served as a temporary battlefield hospital for wounded soldiers, both Union and Confederate.
Civil War graffiti can still be seen on the walls and slanted ceilings of the attic dormitory. For more in-formation about the building’s history and the restaurant’s menu, visit the website (puccinirestaurant.com). This occasion will be a strictly informal event with good food and fine fellowship, celebrating the completion of yearly activities and the beginning of the winter season. No individual reservations are required; just come enjoy the festivities. Best wishes are extended for a joyous holiday season and for happiness that continues throughout the coming year! Let’s make 2023 a year to remember.