SPEAKER SERIES
July 15, 2021: 7:00 pm: John W. Maples - President, Everett Railroad Company
As part of the Oakland B&O Museum’s continuing effort to bring education and entertainment to our railroad enthusiasts it is our pleasure to present to you our July 15th speaker, Mr. Alan Maples, owner and President of the Everett Railroad Company and a short line freight railroad in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, which also operates seasonal passenger excursions. Mr. Maples is a native of Washington, DC. He now resides in Scottsboro, Alabama. He serves on the board of directors of the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association and the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum, and has previously served on the board of the Keystone State Railroad Association.
His presentation will include the history and development of the Everett Railroad Company and their steam excursion trains.
Please plan to attend this presentation Thursday, July15, 2021 at 7:00 pm at the Oakland, B&O Railroad Station, 117 E. Liberty Street, Oakland, MD 21550. Come early, you won’t want to miss this one.
His presentation will include the history and development of the Everett Railroad Company and their steam excursion trains.
Please plan to attend this presentation Thursday, July15, 2021 at 7:00 pm at the Oakland, B&O Railroad Station, 117 E. Liberty Street, Oakland, MD 21550. Come early, you won’t want to miss this one.
June 17, 2021: 7:00 pm: FJR INTERPRETATIONS
Photography by Dr. Frederick J. Ripley
The Oakland B&O Museum is pleased to present the nationally-acclaimed photographer of American railroads Dr. Frederick J. Ripley on their Speaker Series this month. At 7:00 PM on Thursday, June 17, at the Museum at 17 East Liberty Street in Oakland, MD, Ripley will project and speak about some of his images from the famed former B&O “West End” between Cumberland, MD, and Grafton, WV, territory which he has been photographing for 30 years. Included are looks inside many of the interlocking towers, now all closed and most torn down, when still in use, and lots of fascinating images of operations all along this ultra-rugged route set in some of the most striking mountain scenery in the eastern U.S.
Ripley exhibits and speaks widely about railroads and his photographic work, and is particularly known for his colorful and dramatic 20” x 30” framed enlargements, some of which he will have on hand on June 17 in Oakland. For an opportunity to see a complete exhibit of the photographer’s work, 27 of these large pieces, all accompanied by detailed captions and all for sale, are currently on display at the West Virginia Railroad Museum in Elkins, open Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through October 30.
Don’t miss this compelling look at a great mountain railroad, held in a wonderful museum inside the route’s most distinctive depot!
Ripley exhibits and speaks widely about railroads and his photographic work, and is particularly known for his colorful and dramatic 20” x 30” framed enlargements, some of which he will have on hand on June 17 in Oakland. For an opportunity to see a complete exhibit of the photographer’s work, 27 of these large pieces, all accompanied by detailed captions and all for sale, are currently on display at the West Virginia Railroad Museum in Elkins, open Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through October 30.
Don’t miss this compelling look at a great mountain railroad, held in a wonderful museum inside the route’s most distinctive depot!
July speaker is Alan W. Maples, President of The Everett Railroad Company
History of Railroads In Garrett County
History of Railroads In Garrett County course schedule at the station will be every other week as follows:
Each session is 3:30pm – 5:00pm . Registration is handled through Jean Tumbarello at Garrett College, (301) 387- 3781 or 387-3069.
Wed. April 17
Wed. May 1
Wed. May 15
Wed. May 29
Each session is 3:30pm – 5:00pm . Registration is handled through Jean Tumbarello at Garrett College, (301) 387- 3781 or 387-3069.
Wed. April 17
Wed. May 1
Wed. May 15
Wed. May 29
2018 Summer Speaker Series
August 16, 2018: 7:00pm Jim Porterfield
Join us as we learn about some of the more "colorful" stories of the railroad from Jim Porterfield, Director for Railway Tourism, Davis & Elkins College.
The Pennsylvania Railroad formed the nation's first private corporate police force in 1865. From that date until 1908, when the FBI was created, railroad police were the only law enforcement officers who had "horizontal authority." That is, they had the power to make arrests along the railroad's right-of-way, wherever it ran. Railroads worked hard, meanwhile, to establish good relations with the local law enforcement so that, when it was necessary for railroad police to step off the company's property, they were willingly deputized by local law enforcement to continue their work.
As a result of their authority on their employer's property - including the trains - railroad police were involved in some fascinating cases. This presentation by James D. Porterfield (pictured) will delve into the engrossing stories of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and the birth of the Posse Train; the role of Robert E. Lee Folkes in a decapitation murder on board a passenger train; the "Baker's Dozen," one of America's largest unsolved serial killings; the death of "Maricopa Slim," a mean-spirited railroad cop who died at the hands of circus train employees; "Railroad Bill," the blues legend and Robin Hood all-in-one who died in a hale of railroad bullets.
Attendees will also have an opportunity to sign up to receive a free 17-page bibliography of railroad crime fiction and non-fiction via email.
Jim Porterfield is an author; a columnist, feature writer and Contributing Editor for Railfan & Railroad magazine; the creator and host of "Journeys for a Railroad Tourist," a website and blog from the National Trust for Historic Preservation's Heritage Travel division; and the creator of the website "The Railroad Tourist: A State-by-State Guide," a growing catalog of all manner of locations for travelers interested in railroad heritage, preservation and tourism.
His six books include Dining by Rail: The History and the Recipes from America's Golden Age of Railroad Cuisine, and he edited and introduced Jack Orr's acclaimed biography of O. P. Orr, Set Up Running, about a Pennsylvania Railroad engineman from 1904 to 1949, and the reprint of Harry Bedwell's classic railroad novel, The Boomer: A Story of the Rails.
Jim writes a marketing column for Railroad Museum Quarterly, the journal of ARM/TRAIN (Association of Railroad Museums/Tourist Railway Association, Inc.) and is currently completing an anthology of classic railroad fiction - On the Double Line - to be published in 2013. A popular presenter before both rail history groups and the general public, he is a regular guest on “Let’s Talk Travel,” a regional radio and Podcast talk show devoted to travel destinations. His background as a marketing executive in the entertainment industry and a sales and marketing consultant to various groups and organizations has resulted in a sales emphasis leaking into his perspective when presenting railroad history, travel and preservation.
A graduate of Edinboro State College (now Edinboro University of Pennsylvania), Jim was a marketing instructor at Penn State University's main campus for 25 years. He is taking up residence in Elkins, West Virginia, to teach courses in heritage tourism and to launch the Center for Railway Tourism.
Join us for this free event!
The Pennsylvania Railroad formed the nation's first private corporate police force in 1865. From that date until 1908, when the FBI was created, railroad police were the only law enforcement officers who had "horizontal authority." That is, they had the power to make arrests along the railroad's right-of-way, wherever it ran. Railroads worked hard, meanwhile, to establish good relations with the local law enforcement so that, when it was necessary for railroad police to step off the company's property, they were willingly deputized by local law enforcement to continue their work.
As a result of their authority on their employer's property - including the trains - railroad police were involved in some fascinating cases. This presentation by James D. Porterfield (pictured) will delve into the engrossing stories of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and the birth of the Posse Train; the role of Robert E. Lee Folkes in a decapitation murder on board a passenger train; the "Baker's Dozen," one of America's largest unsolved serial killings; the death of "Maricopa Slim," a mean-spirited railroad cop who died at the hands of circus train employees; "Railroad Bill," the blues legend and Robin Hood all-in-one who died in a hale of railroad bullets.
Attendees will also have an opportunity to sign up to receive a free 17-page bibliography of railroad crime fiction and non-fiction via email.
Jim Porterfield is an author; a columnist, feature writer and Contributing Editor for Railfan & Railroad magazine; the creator and host of "Journeys for a Railroad Tourist," a website and blog from the National Trust for Historic Preservation's Heritage Travel division; and the creator of the website "The Railroad Tourist: A State-by-State Guide," a growing catalog of all manner of locations for travelers interested in railroad heritage, preservation and tourism.
His six books include Dining by Rail: The History and the Recipes from America's Golden Age of Railroad Cuisine, and he edited and introduced Jack Orr's acclaimed biography of O. P. Orr, Set Up Running, about a Pennsylvania Railroad engineman from 1904 to 1949, and the reprint of Harry Bedwell's classic railroad novel, The Boomer: A Story of the Rails.
Jim writes a marketing column for Railroad Museum Quarterly, the journal of ARM/TRAIN (Association of Railroad Museums/Tourist Railway Association, Inc.) and is currently completing an anthology of classic railroad fiction - On the Double Line - to be published in 2013. A popular presenter before both rail history groups and the general public, he is a regular guest on “Let’s Talk Travel,” a regional radio and Podcast talk show devoted to travel destinations. His background as a marketing executive in the entertainment industry and a sales and marketing consultant to various groups and organizations has resulted in a sales emphasis leaking into his perspective when presenting railroad history, travel and preservation.
A graduate of Edinboro State College (now Edinboro University of Pennsylvania), Jim was a marketing instructor at Penn State University's main campus for 25 years. He is taking up residence in Elkins, West Virginia, to teach courses in heritage tourism and to launch the Center for Railway Tourism.
Join us for this free event!
July 5th, Thursday at 7:00
Allen Young is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) by trade, having working in the project management arena in many industries spanning a 40+ year career. He currently works as a consultant for the Engineering Project Management Office at Amtrak in Philadelphia PA. His primary hobbies are fitness (puts in 12 hours of intense training per week at the gym) and railroading, including modeling (HO and 3rd rail O scales, steam to diesel transition era), photography, and collecting dining car artifacts. His favorite railroad is the Baltimore and Ohio. His organizational affiliations include the B&O Museum (former car shop volunteer), B&O Railroad Historical Society (currently the Secretary), Reading Company Technical & Historical Society, Chelten Hills Model Railroad Club (currently the Secretary), Train Collectors Association, and the Railroadiana Collectors Association. He has given presentations about B&O china at B&O RR Historical Society mini-conventions, and is responsible for identifying and cataloguing B&O china that has been donated to the Society. He is currently working on articles about B&O china for possible publication in The Sentinel, which is the Society’s quarterly historical magazine. His topic that evening will be the history of the B&O china. The event is free and for more details call 301-616-0661.
PREVIOUS TALKS
Dr. Neal Brooks with Garrett College will have Railroads of Garrett County: A History
Kathleen Waters Sander, PhD and her book, John W. Garrett and the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad
Thomas K. Kraemer: Discuss his book "Baltimore & Ohio RR - Steam on the West Slope."
John Garner, General Manager of Western Maryland Scenic RR
Jim Porterfield – Davis & Elkins College – Director for the Center of Railway Tourism
Dr. Neal Brooks with Garrett College will have Railroads of Garrett County: A History
- Senator Henry Gassaway Davis & the WV Central Railroad
- The Cumberland Division: the"West End"
- The Cumberland Division: the"West End"