I have been involved in railroad preservation for the last 12 years. When it was time to go to college I studied recreation management. I had applied and interviewed for an entry level position at one rather large museum. I all but had the job when the position was expanded and the upper ranks wanted someone with more steam experience. I then interviewed for a site man ager positionwith a smaller museum. The smaller museum decided to promote from within. When the position reopened I had already accepted employment elsewhere and relocated out of commuter range. Neither of those experiences has discouraged me from seeking employment in railroad preservation. After I make this post I will call for more information on a position with another group. I won't give up one day I will find the ideal position. Heck i am only 25 I have lots of time. While I wait I will just try to hone my skills in between 14 hour shifts at my current job.

Michigan Transit Museum
sutterd@hotmail.com

> Maybe the really stupid way I got my interns
> isn't so stupid after all - just invited
> aybody interested to come down and go to
> work. No resume's, no references, just come
> down and try out. Retaining one third with
> no selection process is a better rate of
> retention than many rigourous selection
> processes provide.

Hey, if works, don't knock it--sounds brilliant to me. Little overhead, no staff time taken up interviewing, and good results (one complaint I had about the CSU system of rating a program (like the museum management one) was that placement of the graduates wasn't a factor. Seemed to me they were missing the entire boat!).
I work to publicize the local history museum here, but my efforts are overshadowed by one volunteer who just calls into the "open line" section of the local paper. Whenever he does (promoting the museum) we get more visitors! Hmm. Might as well chuck this ad campaign stuff I created. . .
S'
David D.


djdewey@cncnet.com

> Matt - i am not in a managerial position,
> just a hired brain and ooccasional wrench.
> Send a resume and cover letter to Ralph
> Justen at Roundhouse Railroad Museum, 601
> West Harris St, Savannah GA 31401. I believe
> there are some positions going to be
> developing soon, but it isn't all rolling
> stock stuff. Willingness to do building work
> and gift shop sales and whatever is required
> for the crisis du jour is.

You think I can pick and choose the volunteer jobs I work on at SCRM? The fun job is playing with.. er, running the trains. I've worked on track, painted equipment, built exhibits, and I'm currently doing the thankless grunt task of being the Board of Trustees secretary. I'm not proud, the only requirement I have is that the job pays enough to live on.


mconrad@compuzone.net

> I donÂ’t believe that there are young people,
> or anybody for that matter, who are
> interested in steam railroading, and want to
> have a career in it that are going begging.
> If there are, they donÂ’t want a job very
> bad.

> Last fall, we ran the following ad on the
> Rypn Interchange:

> The Strasburg Rail Road is accepting
> applications in the mechanical department,
> for machinist, mechanic, welder,
> electrician, carpenter, cabinet maker, or
> painter. Combinations of the above skills a
> plus. Must be a self-starting team player
> who can work from verbal instructions,
> sketches, or blueprints. Salary commensurate
> with experience. Call 717-687-8421 for an
> application.

> This ad was read over 300 times, and I would
> assume that some of those readers informed
> their friends about it. The ad resulted in
> three calls to the Rail Road for
> applications. ThatÂ’s it, three. Of those,
> one was never returned, and one person was
> no longer interested when we called.

> After that turned out to be a dry well, we
> ran the same ad in the local paper. The
> unemployment rate in Lancaster County was at
> about 3% then, but we still received over 75
> applications! From that there were about 10
> that we interviewed, and we hired an
> excellent machinist, and an excellent
> carpenter/painter, nether of who had any
> particular interest in steam railroading. We
> considered hiring more from that group, but
> held back to avoid too many new faces at
> once. Right now, we feel that we are fully
> staffed.

> The reasons that I can imagine to be behind
> this are as follows:
> 1. Everyone who is interested in working on
> this equipment already is affiliated with an
> organization that satisfies their level of
> interest.

> 2. Those who donÂ’t fit into the above
> category donÂ’t have the desire necessary to
> justify (to themselves) relocating to our
> area.

> 3. Among people interested in a steam
> railroading career, there is something about
> the Strasburg Rail Road that makes it
> unattractive.

> 4. Among people interested in a steam
> railroading career, there is a wide spread
> lack of the basic skills that are needed,
> causing potential applicants to never try.

> Everyone in the industry has complained
> about the lack of young people interested in
> this industry. Possibly this comes from
> being a generation too far away from the
> real thing. I got a lot of encouragement
> from my mother who traveled widely by train
> in the ‘30’s, and 40’s. Other possibilities
> are modern railroadÂ’s increasing
> invisibility, and inaccessibility, which do
> nothing to encourage younger people. It
> could be that they just arenÂ’t interested in
> a hard, hot, dirty, relatively low paying
> job, when there is serious money to be made
> elsewhere.

> In general, IÂ’d say that we might get six
> unsolicited applications per year from
> people wanting to work here because of what
> we are. You would think it would be more,
> but it isnÂ’t

Couldn't agree more, Kelly. There is almost a total lack of interest in steam locomotives/preservation among the folks that are in their teens thru late 20s. I hope that some of the young ones who show up wide eyed to see "Thomas" will have the seed of interest planted from the little blue 0-6-0T.



drotarinoh@webtv.net

> Couldn't agree more, Kelly. There is almost
> a total lack of interest in steam
> locomotives/preservation among the folks
> that are in their teens thru late 20s. I
> hope that some of the young ones who show up
> wide eyed to see "Thomas" will
> have the seed of interest planted from the
> little blue 0-6-0T.

I would not say that there is a total lack of interest among people in their teens and 20s. I myself looked the ad that was on here but was not in a position to respond for employment. I would love a job at a place like Strasburg but I am only 17 and have one more year of high school before I can think of that. The main problem is the lack of communication between youth and adults in today society and bacuase of that many people look elsewhere for jobs. Also I know it is not impossible for people with minimal experience to get a job with tourist/preservation railroads. I have two friends in the industry now and they both have urged me to look for employment one at Strasburg and one at New Hope and Ivyland.
Kevin

wok3002@aol.com

Well, in about 5 months, let me know if you can use an RPLS with strong rail background. ;-)

> Dave you ask a good question. Our work falls
> in two basic categories, consulting and
> engineering. You are correct that the
> consulting can be handled and is handled
> remotely by field trips and email and file
> transfers. Usually just a couple of site
> visits can cover a project and then the
> Project Manager goes back to their computer
> and puts together a report. Sure they need
> to interface with the various resourses in
> our office, but for the most part they can
> work on their own.


tnold@bigfoot.com

I, like Marty and others, have given this a lot of thought. It very difficult, in answer to what Marty said, to not attack from the young person's point of view. There is (and seemingly always will be) and inherent distrust of youth. I know from talking with many of you who are now within the ranks of some of the greatest museum and steam operations in the country (IMHO) that you probably received the same comments ten times more than I. The days of "it was done to me, so I'm going to do it to others" has got to stop though, or we will be ringing our own proverbial bells for the funeral of rail preservation.

By the way, we were one of the museum's to turn down Dave Sutter, much to my disgust. Someone gave me the chance, and lord knows I wanted (and still want) to do the same. We realized the error of our ways a bit too late; but I honestly assummed that someone like Dave would be hired somewhere, if not with us. I'm sorry that Dave hasn't been hired yet, and if we ever get another position to open, I will go after him again.

The fact of the matter is that more often than not, the assumption is that we are skateboard-toting, unwilling to work lazy young people who want to sit around and watch everyone else do something. It happens with any generation.
I remember not too long ago an opinion from a man I once knew and respected in a very repitable industry magazine that made comments very similar to the way this thread has moved, that "because we never saw mainline steam in class one operation, we will never take interest." Grow up. PLEASE. My two-year-old has just as much interest in steam as some 80-year olds do; you'd better believe I will do my best to foster that.

Much as with Marty, a mutual friend of Marty's and mine (John Knecht) gave me a similar bit of advice, and told me to go to college and learn everything I could about museum practices and archival techniques; in the short time I've been in the field, I see the wisdom in John's statement. Hunk's of iron mean nothing if we don't have the background and documentation to tell us where and how they were used, how they were maintained, and who did the work to maintain them. I have seen more records thrown away by people who seem only interested in saving equipment than in the materials and paperwork that surround it. Even on this site, (which is light years ahead of many other boards), 90% of what we talk about is equipment. Preservation of structures is about another 9%, and 1 % goes to everything else.

The other side of the coin is this; if you can't find a job in steam, keep looking in fields on the fringe. In my case, I'm a Curator of a museum that had railroads and rail history as a footnote before I started; my director and our board realized that hiring someone with a rail history background was a plus, but it was my knowledge of archival and curatorial practices that got me the job. Yes, I am a railfan and proud of it; most of the staff I work with begrudgingly knows that and tolerates it. It was the fact that I had the education AND the knowledge that got me the job. Having said that, I am still ashamed and astounded that we couldn't see through to continue hiring those starting in the field; somehow, I'm gonna change that. In the meantime, don't make our mistake; Dave and others starting out in the field are too valuable an asset for our us to lose.

TJ Gaffney
(27 and getting older and grouchier all the time)

> I have been involved in railroad
> preservation for the last 12 years. When it
> was time to go to college I studied
> recreation management. I had applied and
> interviewed for an entry level position at
> one rather large museum. I all but had the
> job when the position was expanded and the
> upper ranks wanted someone with more steam
> experience. I then interviewed for a site
> man ager positionwith a smaller museum. The
> smaller museum decided to promote from
> within. When the position reopened I had
> already accepted employment elsewhere and
> relocated out of commuter range. Neither of
> those experiences has discouraged me from
> seeking employment in railroad preservation.
> After I make this post I will call for more
> information on a position with another
> group. I won't give up one day I will find
> the ideal position. Heck i am only 25 I have
> lots of time. While I wait I will just try
> to hone my skills in between 14 hour shifts
> at my current job.


Port Huron Museum

tjgaffney@phmuseum.org

> Couldn't agree more, Kelly. There is almost
> a total lack of interest in steam
> locomotives/preservation among the folks
> that are in their teens thru late 20s.

HEY BILL, I'M 27. PLEASE don't throw out blanket statements, as it does nothing but drive people like myself, Angel, and others into fits of rage about olde geezers, which doesn't help either. I have been called and accussed of a lot of things; not having an interest in steam isn't one of them. Ask Hume; I probably post here too much already ;-)

TJ



Port Huron Museum

tjgaffney@phmuseum.org

While not an engineer, my all-too-brief visit with SC and Warren, PA was nothing but pleasurable. True, Warren is small; but the unbelievably wonderful treatment that my wife, son & I received upon our visit there was, in a word, wonderful. Beautiful historic homes; a local diner every bit as homey and wonderful as my beloved eatery here in Port Huron; people who actually cared about what you had to say, and listened as well as talked; wow. To those who are staring out, especially if you have a young family, remember that there is SO much more to life than money. Trust me, a museum curator's life ain't a high-paying gig. Yes, it can be tough (and take it from me, often is) but the rewards are friendships and experiences that change your life forever. Heck, I wish there were more places and employers like Stone and Warren, PA!

TJ

> We saw a similar experience to the first
> part. Unfortunately in the engineering field
> we also experienced the same responce to
> newspaper ads. An additional problem that we
> see is the limitation of families wanting to
> move. Although those of us in Warren, PA
> think that we have found a nice place to
> live and raise a family. Many spouses find
> this area too rural. When they hear that we
> are 30 miles from a major shopping mall, the
> phone goes dead. The reality is that we can
> still get there in 40 minutes, which is not
> much longer than a major suburban drive.

> The other factor is that engineers quite
> often expect $50,000 to $70,000 per year.
> Even out of collage $30,000 is common to
> start. When your customers are shortlines,
> tourist railroads and museums you can not
> charge the fees that big city firms charge.
> Therefore you also can not pay "the
> going rate". Our secret is that the
> cost of living in this rural area is also
> lower. So even at the lower wages we do all
> right.

> As an example the average house costs
> $65,000 here. While near Denver it is over
> $250,000. That equates to about $1,000 per
> month less in mortgage payment alone. So
> even when we find someone who might be
> interested we seldom get to explain the
> whole story. Their second question is how
> much would you pay and the phone goes dead.


Port Huron Museum
tjgaffney@phmuseum.org

Way to go, T.J.! I am 29.5 years old, employed at one of the most prominent railroad museums in the country and I can attest to the "generation gap" that exists. My average volunteer is 80 years old. I have noticed that our paid staff is getting younger--after me, the curator is 27, the visitor services supervisor is 24, the guides range in ages 18-23. I think having young people involved is a very good thing--especially ones who have been trained in museum studies and who hold MA's. They have fresh, new ideas to replace the old. It will do nothing but help professionalize the railway museum movement, something IMHO that has been sorely lacking for a very long time.

For those who feel frustrated in pursuing a career in railway museums, consider my background--at the time I only had a BA in 1995, had volunteered for years at various tourist railroads (W&W, Passumspic RR, NH&I et al), did my internship at the RR Museum of PA for a summer, then took the first available job opening there as a part-time volunteer program coordinator for three years (at only $8,000/year, a pittance), lived on peanut butter sandwiches and tuna, worked part-time on the Strasburg for five years (great work but living an impoverished lifestyle) and hung on for dear life. Finally in 1997 I was promoted to a full-time position as Librarian/Archivist--wheew! Now i am working on my MA in History/Museum Studies at University of Delaware part-time to keep advancing up the ladder. The secret is to be persistant and don't ever take no for an answer. Expect to make sacrifices and be resigned to not making too much $. You must love this line of work or you'll be disappointed. Plus I have an extensive research and public speaking background and have published many articles on railroad history and preservation. When you establish yourself as an "expert" others will follow--people are like sheep. Publish a few articles, get your MA, apply for the dream job and see what happens. You might be surprised.

K.R. Bell
Archivist
Railroad Museum of PA

> I, like Marty and others, have given this a
> lot of thought. It very difficult, in answer
> to what Marty said, to not attack from the
> young person's point of view. There is (and
> seemingly always will be) and inherent
> distrust of youth. I know from talking with
> many of you who are now within the ranks of
> some of the greatest museum and steam
> operations in the country (IMHO) that you
> probably received the same comments ten
> times more than I. The days of "it was
> done to me, so I'm going to do it to
> others" has got to stop though, or we
> will be ringing our own proverbial bells for
> the funeral of rail preservation.

> By the way, we were one of the museum's to
> turn down Dave Sutter, much to my disgust.
> Someone gave me the chance, and lord knows I
> wanted (and still want) to do the same. We
> realized the error of our ways a bit too
> late; but I honestly assummed that someone
> like Dave would be hired somewhere, if not
> with us. I'm sorry that Dave hasn't been
> hired yet, and if we ever get another
> position to open, I will go after him again.

> The fact of the matter is that more often
> than not, the assumption is that we are
> skateboard-toting, unwilling to work lazy
> young people who want to sit around and
> watch everyone else do something. It happens
> with any generation.
> I remember not too long ago an opinion from
> a man I once knew and respected in a very
> repitable industry magazine that made
> comments very similar to the way this thread
> has moved, that "because we never saw
> mainline steam in class one operation, we
> will never take interest." Grow up.
> PLEASE. My two-year-old has just as much
> interest in steam as some 80-year olds do;
> you'd better believe I will do my best to
> foster that.

> Much as with Marty, a mutual friend of
> Marty's and mine (John Knecht) gave me a
> similar bit of advice, and told me to go to
> college and learn everything I could about
> museum practices and archival techniques; in
> the short time I've been in the field, I see
> the wisdom in John's statement. Hunk's of
> iron mean nothing if we don't have the
> background and documentation to tell us
> where and how they were used, how they were
> maintained, and who did the work to maintain
> them. I have seen more records thrown away
> by people who seem only interested in saving
> equipment than in the materials and
> paperwork that surround it. Even on this
> site, (which is light years ahead of many
> other boards), 90% of what we talk about is
> equipment. Preservation of structures is
> about another 9%, and 1 % goes to everything
> else.

> The other side of the coin is this; if you
> can't find a job in steam, keep looking in
> fields on the fringe. In my case, I'm a
> Curator of a museum that had railroads and
> rail history as a footnote before I started;
> my director and our board realized that
> hiring someone with a rail history
> background was a plus, but it was my
> knowledge of archival and curatorial
> practices that got me the job. Yes, I am a
> railfan and proud of it; most of the staff I
> work with begrudgingly knows that and
> tolerates it. It was the fact that I had the
> education AND the knowledge that got me the
> job. Having said that, I am still ashamed
> and astounded that we couldn't see through
> to continue hiring those starting in the
> field; somehow, I'm gonna change that. In
> the meantime, don't make our mistake; Dave
> and others starting out in the field are too
> valuable an asset for our us to lose.

> TJ Gaffney
> (27 and getting older and grouchier all the
> time)


http://rrmuseumpa.org

> HEY BILL, I'M 27. PLEASE don't throw out
> blanket statements, as it does nothing but
> drive people like myself, Angel, and others
> into fits of rage about olde geezers, which
> doesn't help either. I have been called and
> accussed of a lot of things; not having an
> interest in steam isn't one of them. Ask
> Hume; I probably post here too much already
> ;-)

> TJ

T.J. Read my post. I said ALMOST. In 25 years in this biz, from age 13 mind you, I have never seen a period until recent years where there is the lack of younger people coming up through the ranks. I'm NOT making a blanket statement at all, only telling you what I see every day at work. I'm not an "old geezer", yet, but I don't see many "younger people" beating the doors down, eager to learn the trade. I'm not saying they're not out there, but there is a decline, I'm sorry to say. To borrow a favorite phrase, in part, " No one wants to be zookeepers for dinosaurs. " Some of us still do, however.

drotarinoh@webtv.net

> Way to go, T.J.! I am 29.5 years old,
> employed at one of the most prominent
> railroad museums in the country and I can
> attest to the "generation gap"
> that exists. My average volunteer is 80
> years old. I have noticed that our paid
> staff is getting younger--after me, the
> curator is 27, the visitor services
> supervisor is 24, the guides range in ages
> 18-23. I think having young people involved
> is a very good thing--especially ones who
> have been trained in museum studies and who
> hold MA's. They have fresh, new ideas to
> replace the old. It will do nothing but help
> professionalize the railway museum movement,
> something IMHO that has been sorely lacking
> for a very long time.

> For those who feel frustrated in pursuing a
> career in railway museums, consider my
> background--at the time I only had a BA in
> 1995, had volunteered for years at various
> tourist railroads (W&W, Passumspic RR,
> NH&I et al), did my internship at the RR
> Museum of PA for a summer, then took the
> first available job opening there as a
> part-time volunteer program coordinator for
> three years (at only $8,000/year, a
> pittance), lived on peanut butter sandwiches
> and tuna, worked part-time on the Strasburg
> for five years (great work but living an
> impoverished lifestyle) and hung on for dear
> life. Finally in 1997 I was promoted to a
> full-time position as
> Librarian/Archivist--wheew! Now i am working
> on my MA in History/Museum Studies at
> University of Delaware part-time to keep
> advancing up the ladder. The secret is to be
> persistant and don't ever take no for an
> answer. Expect to make sacrifices and be
> resigned to not making too much $. You must
> love this line of work or you'll be
> disappointed. Plus I have an extensive
> research and public speaking background and
> have published many articles on railroad
> history and preservation. When you establish
> yourself as an "expert" others
> will follow--people are like sheep. Publish
> a few articles, get your MA, apply for the
> dream job and see what happens. You might be
> surprised.

> K.R. Bell
> Archivist
> Railroad Museum of PA

WHEW!!!!!! Kurt, and T.J., I think you may have both missed my point about the "age" thing on here. My point is, 15 years ago there was a younger crowd (of which I was one) hanging out making a nuisance of ourselves (to quote one of my mentors) trying to learn everything there was about steam locomotives from anyone who would teach. That does not seem to be the case anymore.

drotarinoh@webtv.net

WOW! K.R. you said everything in a nutshell, and much more eloquently than I ever could. Nice to know a fellow archivist/ curator whose in the same age bracket. You and I went through similar paths it seems. I looked very closely at the Hagley Program; as you know it was/is pretty competitive, and as it was I decided to go a different route, but I have heard nothing but good things about U od D! Me, got my B.A. in 1997 from Denison Univ. in Ohio, looked at Akron because Dr. Roger Grant was there, but ended up going to Clemson, where Grant became the Department head and Dr. Richard Suanders was also a prof. I couldn't have asked for a better paring of M.A. advisors; railfans, but with a grounding in history that tried their best to focus me on the study of history AS WELL AS the railfanning. Finished my M.A. in '99, tried to find work for about a year, no luck. Came back to Port Huron to help with my two grandmothers and a dad who had a stroke. Know the poor thing; had just enough for rent, bought a '50 pickup with money I saved (still drive it everyday; points and carbs are better than fuel injection and @#$#@$%# computers anyday) and got it back together, and fed myself and a VERY caring girlfriend/ fiancee (now wife)with ramon noodles and coffee (and when we were really lucky, eggs and hashbrowns at Waffle House......).
Kept at it though, trying to break in to the field and fit in. Eventually after getting married, selling steel doors and hardware, and experiencing the joy of parenthood, (which has proved to a very valuable experience, and I have a lifetime yet to go) got the job as the Curator at the PH Museum. Life is a real challenge, and getting/ staying in this profession is a greater one sometimes, but it worth it. I love my job, and although its a ton of work, I don't come home and kick the dog/ wife.kids because I hate my life. And you can't beat that with a stick. "I ain't ever gonna be no millionare, but at least I's got my job, my family, and a roof over my head." Keep it up over there; its nice to see that kind of interest from both the youth and those willing to hire them!

TJ

> Way to go, T.J.! I am 29.5 years old,
> employed at one of the most prominent
> railroad museums in the country and I can
> attest to the "generation gap"
> that exists. My average volunteer is 80
> years old. I have noticed that our paid
> staff is getting younger--after me, the
> curator is 27, the visitor services
> supervisor is 24, the guides range in ages
> 18-23. I think having young people involved
> is a very good thing--especially ones who
> have been trained in museum studies and who
> hold MA's. They have fresh, new ideas to
> replace the old. It will do nothing but help
> professionalize the railway museum movement,
> something IMHO that has been sorely lacking
> for a very long time.

> For those who feel frustrated in pursuing a
> career in railway museums, consider my
> background--at the time I only had a BA in
> 1995, had volunteered for years at various
> tourist railroads (W&W, Passumspic RR,
> NH&I et al), did my internship at the RR
> Museum of PA for a summer, then took the
> first available job opening there as a
> part-time volunteer program coordinator for
> three years (at only $8,000/year, a
> pittance), lived on peanut butter sandwiches
> and tuna, worked part-time on the Strasburg
> for five years (great work but living an
> impoverished lifestyle) and hung on for dear
> life. Finally in 1997 I was promoted to a
> full-time position as
> Librarian/Archivist--wheew! Now i am working
> on my MA in History/Museum Studies at
> University of Delaware part-time to keep
> advancing up the ladder. The secret is to be
> persistant and don't ever take no for an
> answer. Expect to make sacrifices and be
> resigned to not making too much $. You must
> love this line of work or you'll be
> disappointed. Plus I have an extensive
> research and public speaking background and
> have published many articles on railroad
> history and preservation. When you establish
> yourself as an "expert" others
> will follow--people are like sheep. Publish
> a few articles, get your MA, apply for the
> dream job and see what happens. You might be
> surprised.

> K.R. Bell
> Archivist
> Railroad Museum of PA


Port Huron Museum
tjgaffney@phmuseum.org

Bill-

Point taken, and sorry to come from a point of attack, but the way I see it, its up to all of us, no matter the age, to try and bring other into the hobby. The other thing I see happening is that many babyboomers who either retire early or change jobs later in life seem to be busier as retirees than when they worked! TIME is an issue for everybody; Late 20-somethings (like myself) are often trying to raise a young family at the same time we are trying to be involved in the field. Also, (and if I'm wrong, tell me) I just don't see a lot of jobs for those who are in the field. Dave Sutter is a great example; here's a guy who any tourist railroad and museum should love to have, especially with his background in recreation/ parks management issues; yet he's still trying to get in the door. No, maybe it shouldn't be easy, but for someone as interested as a Hayes or an Angel or a Dave, there should be SOMEPLACE willing to give him a chance.

On the same token, those starting out HAVE to be willing to move. LISTEN to the people posting here; take note of who is talking and where they are at. If they are frustrated with our age group, prove to them YOUR the one their looking for. You have to go where the interviews and jobs are at the time.

Our museum is no different than any other; we have aging volunteers, and the majority of our staff is over the age of 45 or so (not saying that's bad; just that its fact). Eventually we are going to have to start getting much more serious about hiring younger people, and hiring more people. But Bill, your right in the sense that there aren't throngs of young teenagers waiting to for jobs in steam preservation. That means that those of us who are in there should start trying to get them interested if we can. Hayes, Angel, Dave, and the rest of us in the under 30's need to start talking this up too; its time to come out of the closet with our friends and convince them that this is important work that's being done, and show them through our own actions why they should be here too.

What other job can you do where you "Live" History every day?

TJ
> T.J. Read my post. I said ALMOST. In 25
> years in this biz, from age 13 mind you, I
> have never seen a period until recent years
> where there is the lack of younger people
> coming up through the ranks. I'm NOT making
> a blanket statement at all, only telling you
> what I see every day at work. I'm not an
> "old geezer", yet, but I don't see
> many "younger people" beating the
> doors down, eager to learn the trade. I'm
> not saying they're not out there, but there
> is a decline, I'm sorry to say. To borrow a
> favorite phrase, in part, " No one
> wants to be zookeepers for dinosaurs. "
> Some of us still do, however.


Port Huron Museum
tjgaffney@phmuseum.org

Bill, your point is well taken. I used to hang out with those guys...people like the late Ed Peters (NH&I, Steamtown), Bill Sherwood (Heber, SRR, NH&I et al) and many others who were hungry to learn, fix and run steam, and were in their 20s at that time. Some of these guys even "boomed" around, working on many tourist railroads over short spans of time. It's hard making a living working on steam these days unless you are working at a well established operation. Whereas I saw some guys "boom around" ten years ago, I no longer see anyone doing this anymore. TJ and I are rare for our generation; we love steam whereas most enthusiasts today are interested in diesels. The reason is simple--that is what the current generation grew up with and are nostalgic for, just like the older steam guys are. Don't expect steam to be a lasting trend, because history shows it won't be. Sad but true.

I have said it before and will say it again: interest in steam has peaked, the preservation momentum coasted in the early to mid 90's and from here on out, diesels will be the interest d'jour. Perhaps "Thomas" will extend the interest a little bit longer but even that may be unlikely.

> WHEW!!!!!! Kurt, and T.J., I think you may
> have both missed my point about the
> "age" thing on here. My point is,
> 15 years ago there was a younger crowd (of
> which I was one) hanging out making a
> nuisance of ourselves (to quote one of my
> mentors) trying to learn everything there
> was about steam locomotives from anyone who
> would teach. That does not seem to be the
> case anymore.


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