I am going to visit Huntsville and Birmingham this coming Sunday and Monday. Any advice on seeing the railroad museums and the Frisco Mikado in Birmingham?
Thanks,
Eric

I'd advise you to make sure you see Sloss Furnace. You can visit park hulks in many places.

dave

The Huntsville Depot is a must see and the local NRHS Chapter runs an excursion train at Chase that's worth riding. They also have some equipment on display and what is considered to be the smallest 'Union Station' anywhere.

Chase is on two Railroads and the station there served both of them.

If they're running you can even chase the train to 'Chase'.

Bob H

Dave speaks wisely. While 4018 is in better shape than many, a park hulk is a park hulk, and John Gramling's photo at steamlocomotive.info sums things up nicely.

http://steamlocomotive.info/vlocomotive.cfm?Display=7

You can see the pavilion and its relation to the roads at this link:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&o ... 002704&t=k

It is visible from Highway 11 or Avenue W (4018 is under the brown rectangle just to the left of that "flag"), but I don't think the gates are open unless there's an event in progress.

JAC

In Huntsville. That rebuilt roundhouse (I think near the depot), that I've been trying to get a photo of for 20 years, with no results.. Is it on an original foundation? Is the turntable the original?

No, and no. The original Memphis & Charleston roundhouse was on the north side of the railroad. The present "roundhouse" is a replica, located on the depot property on the south side. I don't think there is any track in the building now, although there was when first constructed. I have a note somewhere on the turntable history, but it is not from Huntsville. The orginal turntable center pier was unearthed during some construction work a few years ago and I think went to the North Alabama Railroad Museum at Chase for display.

Alan Maples

I just went to google earth and looked at the roundhouse. There is a lead to the table but I could see no tracks going into the roundhouse.

It is kind of cool to use this progam to look for steam engines. I have found many this way and did not have to leave my office.

Have a Merry Christmas everyone,

JD Johnson, Morehead and North Fork Railroad Historian

From Google Maps, could you see the steam engine on the turntable at Huntsville?

It really should be inside..... but the people in Huntsville want to use the building for something else.

(We were there for an NRHS function about a month ago this year, so my information is fairly current)

Bob H

Does anyone have any info on this turntable, as it appears to have been moved for reuse and would be #90 on my listing of such tables. What railroad and location did it come from, how long is it, and when did it get moved? Any additional info on who build it and when would also be appreciated. Who would have thought that 90 of these things would have been moved for reuse by museums or tourist lines?

I believe it came from Oakdale TN on the Southern. There is an inspection pit one side of the roundhouse. The late Ed Hauber told me that he escorted a freshly painted locomotive to Huntsville for the dedication ceremony. During the ceremony the pit started to collapse, threatening to take the locomotive with it. Ed stood by nervously and ran the engine out as soon as the ceremony was over.

Tim Andrews
Chattanooga

I must second the advice to visit Sloss Furnace, one of the holy places of industrial archeology in the U.S.

And metalworking fans shouldn't miss the statue of Vulcan on a hill overlooking Birmingham. This is a 19th-century cast-iron statue. I'm not sure it's there right now, having had to be reconstructed after being filled with concrete during the 1930's. While you contemplate this statue, recall the art criticism of S. R. Zuiderveen, who points out that the breechclout-wearing Roman god is turning his buns of iron on the yuppified suburbs north of B'ham while facing the iron furnace.

It's been completely restored - definitely worth a visit.

http://www.vulcanpark.org/

Vulcan actually faces North, and the fair City of Homewood is the lucky community. See "Moon Over Homewood," a novelty song recorded in the 80s. My lovely bride once lived, in her own words, "under Vulcan's butt."

Edit: I should point out that Vulcan Park is adjacent to the L&N's Red Gap branch, which crossed over Red Mountain at this point (the bridge abutments over 20th St. are probably still there). You can clearly see the old ROW in this aerial view:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q ... 5&t=k&om=1

I also remember the late Ed Hauber, who is missed. Can you tell me what year that dedication took place, as it will help date when the turntable was moved?

In the version of the story I heard from Ed it was during an Operation Lifesaver presentation that the Geep was testing both his nerves and the compression strength of the inspection pit walls. When I'm home after the holidays I can get you more specific information about the turntable and its installation.

Alan Maples

Alan Maples sent an e-mail to say that the turntable is from Oakdale, TN, on the Southern Ry. It was moved to Huntsville in 1976. Can anyone tell us how long it is?