Park Entrance - Rusk, TX
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Park Entrance - Rusk, TX |
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The incentive for taking this excursion was provided by the Fant's encouragement and the fact that it was smack dab in the middle of the season for early Spring blooming trees. Most predominate were the Redbud and Dogwood. click on a photo for a larger view. Use your browser BACK arrow to return |
 Passengers
board the historic trains at either Rusk or Palestine. We were closer to
Rusk, so that's where we boarded. Both ends of the line have Victorian-style
train stations. The trip takes 1 1/2 hours to reach the opposite station.
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It
appears that Carolyne started getting serious about taking pictures after
our lunch at the Palestine Station as this photo was taken there. A real
treat was watching the engine detatch from the 'front' of the train, circle
around and reattach to complete the trip pulling the 'last' car first |
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David Really enjoyed watching the engines perform. |
Sylvia,
Amanda, Daryl and David must have been tired as this is one of the few
times they were all awake on the trip back to Rusk. |
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Below
are some fine examples of the scenery that we witnessed on our way back
to Rusk. |
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Pond with Oaks |
Redbud |
Pond with Lilies |
Rounding a curve |
Jarvis Crossing |
Engine steam exhaust rainbow over the Neches River |
One of the many crek crossings |
Trains passing |
The Whistle Stop |
The Maydelle Station TSRR Maintenance headquarters and the railroad's only turntable |
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Trading Post |
Redbuds from the rear car |
HISTORY:
The Texas State Railroad (TSRR) dates back to an 1881 purchase of land
dedicated to building a spur track. The purpose of the track was to connect
the state owned prison iron smelting facilities, then under construction,
with the Kansas and Gulf Short line railroad. The K&G was being built
from Tyler to Rusk at the same time. This connection would provide the
prison iron foundry with rail service to bring in raw materials and ship
products out. Increased need for rail service soon led the state to build
its' own railroad that eventually extended from Rusk to Palestine, providing
local communities with freight and passenger service. Today, the historic
state railroad is still maintained as a fully self-contained railroad
system. Its train crews maintain and operate four steam engines, four
antique diesel locomotives and a complete steam-engine restoration shop,
while its track crew maintains over 25 miles of track and 24 bridges.
The
Texas State Railroad is known as one of the nation's largest and most
unique steam-train operations. The TSRR is the only steam railroad that
runs two steam trains simultaneously each day of operation. The eastbound
and westbound trains meet twice daily at the mid-point of the run. This
gives rail enthusiasts a rare chance to see two historic steam engines
switch and pass. The track length is 25.5 miles; the longest trestle measures
1042 feet and crosses the Neches River. All 24 trestles are concrete. |
