Nowhere is Atlanta’s love affair with trains more passionate than at the Southeastern Railway Museum in Duluth.
Operating since 1970 under the Atlanta chapter of the National Railway Historical Society, the museum is driven by the loyal cadre of volunteers who help educate visitors and the community on the significance of the collection.
Among the prized pieces is Engine 290, the locomotive that ran over Buddy Threadgoode in the film “Fried Green Tomatoes” as well as the 1911 Pullman private car “Superb,” which escorted Warren G. Harding on what he called a “Voyage of Understanding” from Washington D.C. to Alaska. The president died that year, and the car carried his body back to Washington and then on to his home in Marian, Ohio, for burial.
According to volunteer Larry Dyer, that car, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is currently being refurbished to come back to life with more period-proper pieces onboard. Dyer is also assisting with a project that’s near completion to restore a 1950s-era park train that ran in Birmingham. Ala. The museum is laying track and will soon offer rides aboard the train to the public.
Dyer has been a member of Atlanta’s NRHS since 1977. When he’s not working on projects at the museum, he’s traveling the Amtrak Crescent back and forth between Atlanta and New Orleans as part of the National Park Service’s Trails and Rails program that educates train travelers on rail and local history along all the stops.
Dyer’s love of trains goes back to growing up in Blue Ridge.
“The local freight trains ran in front of my house – about 75 yards from where I grew up. They intrigued me. I enjoy the camaraderie of rail organizations as well as train rides that take me to places I’ve never been before. It’s hard to explain. It’s a large group of people who all love different facets of railroading, whether it’s memorabilia, photography, model trains. Some people have golf. Train enthusiasts could talk trains all day.”
This weekend is a good time to catch up with the museum’s latest projects and bring along a young boy (or girl) to climb aboard a special collection of moving vehicles at the popular annual “Trains, Trucks and Tractors” event 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
“It’s a celebration of big, moving metal,” said the museum’s Marketing Manager Jeff Hildebrand. “It’s basically anything that will make your 4-year-old say ‘ooh!’”
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