The American Freedom Train left its assembly site at Cameron Station 32 years ago today -- through Alexandria Virginia and on to Wilmington, Delaware -- behind the 30 day miracle ... AFT #1.

Think about it ... a 20+ car, steam powered train filled with some of our country's most precious artifacts visiting every state in the union (excepting Alaska & Hawaii). Pretty darned amazing if I do say so myself.

Regards,
Burlington John

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AmericanFreedomTrain/

Thanks for jogging the memory John. Strange how life works, in some respects it feels like that event was a week ago and in other ways it seems far far away!!
Let's hope that the many many lessons learned (and earned) from the 25,000 mile journey of the AFT will be valuable contributors should there be a sequel!
Ross Rowland

Ross,

I think about you and AFT everyday as I walk by the Liberty Bell replica at Union Station in Washington, DC on my way to and from work.

Wesley

Ross,
As one who was trackside at Middle River, Maryland as the AFT steamed north (east) on the NEC that Good Friday, and who was able to visit the AFT some months later at the Martin-Marietta site nearby, THANK YOU for your efforts in providing a once-in-a-lifetime experience. -- Ray

Wesp, thanks for your post. You reminded me that I'd like to get a proper brass plaque put on that bell to tell its story. Do you have any advice on how I'd go about getting the proper permissions etc. or should I just go ahead and get the plaque made and mount it??
Sometimes its easier to ask for forgiveness than permission!
Seems a shame to have it in such a great display location and no explanation whatsoever about either the bell nor its travels aboard the AFT.
Any advice would be gratefully recieved. Thanks,
Ross Rowland

I am not sure who manages the plaza area where the bell is displayed. It could be our friends at Amtrak, NPS, or Jones LaSalle, management company for the retail operations at the station. You are correct about "just do it" sometimes. But then again, with all of the homeland security stuff in the city, it may be safer to ask. Maybe a staffer in your local congressional office could help start the ball rolling?

Wesley

Ross,
First off, I can't thank you enough for your efforts over the years. The AFT is a memory I'll always cherish as I saw the train when it came to my hometown of Tallahassee, Florida when I was a kid. Since then, I've done a lot of research into the history of the train and realized how massive a task this was for you to be able to pull off. My hat will always be off to you for that, sir, and I hope someday to meet you so I can shake your hand and thank you in person.
I wish I could assist you on the plaque, having just recently done something just like it for something non-RR-related (got a plaque at a commercial airport denoting a WW2 bomb group had trained there, on behalf of a veteran's group). In that case, what I did was approach the operators of the property, had a stack of documents and a sketch of the plaque and exactly what I had planned to do and the reason for it. I'd suggest doing pretty much the same thing, showing whoever operates the station with the documentation as to why the bell was made, who you are in relation to it and what you exactly have in mind. I'd imagine once they realize who you are (and I'd think anyone who runs an old RR station and is above the age of 40 would HAVE to know about the AFT), you might have a good shot at getting the plaque mounted. When I was stationed in Maryland, I used to go to DC all the time and saw that bell often. I even told a few people who were taking photos of it what it had been built for. One guy in particular, who wasn't even a train buff was shocked when I told him, and he said, "Gee, I saw that train back in 1975, they should have a marker on this bell saying it was built for the train!"
I gotta ask you this Ross, surely you know there are plenty of folks like me who are fans of the AFT, do you think that's odd after all these years that people still research the AFT and collect items from it, or does it seem to you to be a natural progression of normal railfan activity? I was at the Mt Rainer Scenic last summer, taking photos of the obs car used on the AFT, and someone came up and asked why I was bothering with "a rusty old coach," and I explained it's history with the AFT. The guy was amazed and started snapping his own pics! He made a comment wondering if the "guy who got the AFT going" knew (or cared) what happened to all the coaches and equipment other than the locomotives.
Lee Bishop

In July 1976, the 2101, as AFT 1, took the American Freedom Train east from Pittsburgh to Williamsport. Following the scheduled service stop near Tyrone, the '01 accelerated her consist northward on the Bald Eagle Branch. At the two-lane old US 220 overpass, with clear stack and zero wheel-slip, the '01 sent the loudest report skyward I have ever heard from any locomotive, anytime, anywhere, period.

It was, as Nero Wolfe might have said: "Satisfactory."

Thanks, Ross.

Bruce Manwiller

Thanks to all for their memories and compliments. I just had a post removed by Mr. Bailey as he said it contained "political" comments not germaine to the subject matter etc.
Therefore let me make a second attempt and see if I can get it sufficiently "pc" to allow it to survive and still make the point I was trying to achieve??
Firstly, as to the run from Pittsburg to Williamsport I remember well that we had a "heated" discussion with the RFE who wanted dismal helpers on that day as he was sure that the 2101 couldn't get the AFT over that piece of railroad unassisted. Fortunatly we had freinds in "higher places" who convinced him that the steamer could do the job. Fortunatly, the T-1 was up to the task and to his credit the RFE did come up to the head end at Williamsport and congratulate us on a good run. Thereafter we never had any problem with him.
I began making sponsorship presentations for the AFT in early 1970 and by late 1973 had made a total of 54 "pitches" to 54 Fortune 100 companies and got 54 negative responses. The magic number turned out to be #55 to Pepsi and soon thereafter we had the other 4 sponsors (Kraft Foods, Priudential Insurance, GM, and Atlantic Richfield)whose combined $5 million made the project financially feasible. One of the key reasons it was such a hard sell was the negative climate then prevailing due to the Vietnam War and the Watergate issue. Many corporate decision makers felt that the nation was so turned off by these events that the people would not come out in sufficient numbers to make the AFT work. Fortunatly the sceptics were proven wrong and the train was a huge hit in every one of its 138 display stops.
I've been wondering of late if it might be a propitious time to do a "Rocky11" to the AFT to help our fellow citizens celebrate our heritage and strengths as we approach the 10th. anniversary of 9/11??? Your thoughts would be appreciated.
Sure hope this post passes "PC" muster???

Ross Rowland

Ross, I read your "deleted" post and thought that it was an accurate observation on public opinion, not a "flaming" personal commentary. Many times in today's world we take political correctness way too far, and the judgement about whether someone's opinion is "offensive" or not is based on someone else's "opinion". As far as the concept of another traveling exhibit celebrating our national heritage, like "AFT", I am entirely in favor of it. We need more things to unify our society, there is enough partisanship trying to divide it. Unfortunately, I think the corporate attitudes that are prevalent today will make it a much harder sell than "AFT" was.