Let's keep digging back,

A couple of more pictures from the Ratliff Vault. More from the group; Joshua Tree & Southern Annual Meet 1980.

 The first one is yours truly on Francis Moseley's Fruit Growers Shay. As of November 1980 the lower end of the track is not to the what would be the bridge abutment at the steaming bays. Long before the switch to the High line, which will be about where the engine sits. Long Before the switch to the steaming bays which will be yet further down the track that is not yet laid.

The second picture shows all the activity and all of the equipment out that weekend. Working left to right. Greg Ratliff's four wheeled D&RG flat, a project between him and Rudy Van Wingen. The C&S 10, Rudy and Brownies hard working Mogul. The flats we haven't figured out whose they were. and to finish the first train is a Yankee Girl Mining Company dirt hauler. These two cars hauled the brunt of the early dirt from one end of the railroad to the ever expanding other end. The Steam crane with drag line of Jerry Brown. A two inch model that was a joy to watch Jerry operate. He was filling the Yankee Girl cars with it and kept the crowd enthralled with his skill at it. That is Bob Gantz's Steam Donkey with the pile driver attached. I am sure if we dig deep enough about that spot we could find a pilling or two. The engine behind the crowd is Harry Haas' 2-6-0, with a few flats and a Yankee Girl dump car too. Unloading out of the station wagon would be Francis Moseley with his Shay. It is loaded in the wagon on the 4 3/4" gauge trucks and had to be transferred to the 7 1/2" gauge trucks at the ramp. The background has changed a lot in 38 years. From a few camp sites to the Cope house changing and look at the uncluttered view across the valley. There are a lot more houses out there these days. 

The last shot is of Lorin Brown, one of the partners in the C&S 10 project. Lorin was the engineer and design trust of the project. Many of the switches and parts to switches we are still using along the railroad are from his jigs and plans.
Another view into the past from Joshua Tree.

A look back

Sometimes you need to give credit to the people that light a fire under your ass to get things done. Jim Kreider, I guess I can thank you, you referenced I needed to dig into the Ratliff Vault and pull out a few treasures. I grabbed four cubes of slides and scanned them to the computer; Joshua Tree & Southern Annual Meet, November 1980. We did not name it the Rudy Run, in his honor, till after his passing.  Quite a turnout for four hundred feet of track. Looks like we had three Steam engines, a Steam Donkey and a Steam shovel, and a plethora of talent and admirers. This a just a few pictures to whet the appetite to a look back on a weekend just past 38 years ago.
The first picture, riding the flatcar. That is Rudy Van Wingen, who's crazy vision to build a 7 1/2" railroad up a mountain instead of around a circle is why we are out here. Who said you couldn't have fun running back and forth on 400 feet of track, moving dirt from one end to the other? The next time out we would have 420 feet of track to do the same.

Those two distinguished gentlemen pictured had forgotten more that I will ever know. Francis Moseley and Dick Bagley. Francis owned the Corwin Shay and it enjoyed it's time on the mountain, working up a real grade. I think this might have been the only time Dick saw the railroad at Joshua Tree, it surprised me when I saw the pictures. It had been a while since I took them. Francis' generous donation from his Foundation allowed us to continue as we are today and his collection was the beginning of our Station- Museum.

Francis taking lunch while the Shay waits. This location would be by the power pole above the Shelter. Notice the breeziness of the Shelter in the pictures. Not protected as it is now.

Enjoy a slice of history, there are some interesting ones to come. See you in a few weeks for the New Years Weekend. December 28- January 1. Any questions, send me a line at ratsgarage@yahoo.com.