I know you’re busy with other projects, but I think I speak for MANY railroad enthusiasts when I say I’d love to read a book with more details behind all your adventures with the AFT and other projects you’ve worked on over an amazing career! I hope someday you sit down and write about it all. You have a unique experience in American railroading, and it really should be documented for future generations.

Chris, I've talked to you about this via private email before. What you said is just that..."history". Almost 10 years ago now we did have some problems with two or three individuals, so the board and membership did the right thing and did something about it, thus the lawsuits and police involvement (yes, that was necessary).
That is ancient history now and we are doing just fine thank you. Those individuals are long gone and it is actually a very enjoyable place to volunteer now. As far as I know you have never been a member of the Elgin County Railway Museum, so please don't judge us on the basis of what you heard through the grapevine a decade ago.

If you say the ECRM in St. Thomas is now a nice place to volunteer I will take your word for it. Just keep in mind that the antics that went on there earlier in the decade went far beyond the grumpy-member stuff seen at other organizations. My point in bringing it up here is to put it into the context of the odd journey of the 2100. Taking it to the already-strange kingdom that inhabited St. Thomas in the late 1990s was yet another stop on that journey. Are the firebox grates still there?

Chris.

Totally agreed! But as I said, what happened was caused by two or three individuals and we did something about it. I won't go into details, but what they did was very serious stuff. May I point out again though you don't know anything first hand. I think if you talked to ANY member today who was around at the time what was done about the problem was justified and any other group with a similar problem would have done the same thing.

The grates for 2100, as well as the stoker, are still here.

A book by Ross Rowland, starting with his earliest steam trips, reviews of how each locomotive handled, pitfalls, great moments, money traps, rebuilds, disaster, triumph, plans, people, what went right, what went wrong, insider photographs, hopes for the future and legacy to hand down to others. Yes, I'd buy a copy.

I would buy a copy too!

+1 for a copy of Ross' book! And I'll take a copy of Doyle McCormack's book too when he writes one.

I've often thought that some author should write a book on those folks that have personally saved steam. People like Ross Rowland. And others like Paul Merriman, Dick Jensen, Lou Keller, J. David Conrad, John Thompson, F. Nelson Blount, Ellis Atwood, and others. Some of their efforts were futile, but some examples are still with us today.

Les

By the way, can anyone explain how the Reading "rebuilt" a 2-8-0 into a Northern? Jack up the whistle and replace everything?

Isn't there a Mark 1 Video, "Ross Rowland: Giant of Steam" that would be kind of like that book idea?

However, I do agree that a book about all the other people who did their part to save steam would be quite a read

The Reading had really big 2-8-0's! I think they reused the boiler barrel and not much else. There is a book out from the 1960's about the Reading T-1s that explained the whole conversion, which 2-8-0s were donors, and the whole works. Unfortunately I can't seem to find my copy. If you find a copy for sale I would snap it up.

There was a section added to the middle part of the boiler. You are right. Not much else was used.

I can only imagine such a book would be more a "series" than a single book. I can't imagine it all fitting in a measly 300 pages or so.

I am honored by the requests to author a book recounting my many experiences involving mainline steam and perhaps someday I'll do that. At this time I'm hard at work attempting to find the financial support ( read corporate sponsorships) to get the Yellow Ribbon Express project funded. If ( perhaps in this economic climate a very BIG if??) we are successful I'm sure that operating an all steam ( NO dismals in the consist!!) train on a 48 state, 25,000 mile, 3 year journey over todays Class 1 railroads will produce many new and interesting challenges and novel ways around them!!!

Yes, the Giant of Steam DVD is available at ...www.mark1videos.com..... and no I get no royalties or other rewards from the producer. The late Mark Balkin produced the 60 minute piece at my request for use at the 2003 joint NRHS/R&LHS convention in Baltimore. I was asked by Bill Howes to speak for an hour on "my life with steam" and rather than talk for an hour I felt that the audience would much prefer to see a compilation of the projects I've been involved in vs. me blabbing for an hour. My take from the audiences reaction is that I was correct!! I thought Mark did a good job of capturing both the projects and some of the back story of what went into them behind the scenes.

Thanks for your interest. Ross Rowland

You have to remember that the T1s were war babies, and the USRA wouldn't approve the construction of new 4-8-4s the Reading felt they desperately needed. "Rebuilding 2-8-0s" was a much easier sell, and got the Ts approved. Plus they were REALLY BIG 2-8-0s. ;)