Vintage train trips have returned to Northwest Georgia, and officials and residents in both Summerville and Chickamauga are making sure passengers from Chattanooga feel welcomed.
Powered by steam engine trains, the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum’s trips run most days, but the trips to Northwest Georgia had been paused since the pandemic. But since mid-September, the museum’s rail line has been running weekend passenger train rides to Georgia.
“To have two different cities holding on to their historic depots ... servicing a train, it’s just really cool and unique,” Zack Gilmore, operations supervisor for the museum, said. “We’re so glad to be a part of that.”
A train day trip to Chickamauga is scheduled for Oct. 29, while longer trips to Summerville are scheduled for every weekend this month and into the first weekend of November.
A lot of Summerville residents have been showing up at the depot to greet the train, Summerville Mayor Harry Harvey said in a phone interview. The train trips have lined up with events like a chili cook-off and a craft fair, and a Renaissance festival and other events are planned for the rest of the fall.
“I want to invite everyone to come to Summerville,” Harvey said. “We’ll have plenty for you to do, and you will enjoy it.”
Vendors and food trucks are also stationed at the depot for train passengers, Harvey said. The mayor would like for train passengers to stay for longer than the 90-minute layover, and he is discussing that with museum officials, he said.
In Chickamauga, city officials have organized shuttles to city sights as well as residents dressed in historical costumes to help train passengers enjoy their stay, Eric Pullen, director of economic development and events, said in a phone call.
Downtown Chickamauga, where the train depot is located, has seen a lot of business growth recently, he said. In the past year or so, downtown has added a book and record shop, a bohemian plant and clothing store, and a comic book store.
A local pizza restaurant and a Mexican restaurant are also open for guests when the trains arrive, Pullen said, and a new restaurant called Liberty Tavern and Bistro will open later this month.
Two train trips have been made since a bridge over Chattanooga Creek, near Rossville, was repaired, he said, and one was during the same weekend the Ironman marathon was in Chattanooga.
“So we had a very bustling downtown that weekend,” Pullen said. “We had people all over the place walking around. It was great.”
Gilmore said the museum runs the train trips but coordinates with city officials — and in both towns, people have been excited and cooperative.
“We’re super excited to be back. Both Chickamauga and Summerville are glad to have us back,” Gilmore said. “Finally through COVID and finally through bridge repairs.”
Credit: Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum
Credit: Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum
In the late 1930s and early 1940s, train depots were crucial parts of towns and a meeting point between townspeople and the outside world — for travel, mail and freight, Gilmore said.
Even though the train runs on steam technology, it’s still a fully functioning, federally permitted railroad. The track is inspected multiple times a week, and the bridges have been modernized, but the train’s operation is kept as historically accurate as possible.
“There’s nothing quite like a steam engine though. You’re hearing the chuffing, you’re seeing the wheels turning, the steam and the smells and all that,” Gilmore said. “It’s a really captivating experience.”
Coal is expensive, he said. A trip from the museum in Chattanooga to Summerville and back takes between 5 and 7 tons of coal, all shoveled into the boiler by museum workers.
Another challenge is keeping the trains running, Gilmore said. The museum has an in-house repair shop, and many of the parts the trains use are crafted there by employees of the museum.
Along with the museum’s other regular routes throughout the region, there will be one more trip to Chickamauga this fall on Oct. 29, he said, while the rest of the fall season will be focused on trips to Summerville.
In the spring, Chickamauga will be the primary Georgia destination and receive passengers almost every Saturday. Train visits to Summerville will ramp up again next fall.
The trip to Summerville is popular in the fall as the trees change colors, Gilmore said. The museum’s busy season is near Christmas when it runs its Santa train called the North Pole Limited.
Contact Andrew Wilkins at awilkins@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6659.
Credit: Chattanooga Times Free Press
Credit: Chattanooga Times Free Press
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