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Newsletter Samuel Knight Chapter Society for Industrial Archeology Issue Number 9 September 7, 1999 |
Contents:
This Issue
Upcoming Tours and Events
Knight Foundry Progress Report
Recent Tours and Events
Anachronistic Industries Conference
Fire at the Alameda Point Ferry Terminal
This Old Flat Car
A Beginners Brief Introduction to the Chapter’s Electronic Mailing Lists on
Industrial Archeology
Industrial Archeology at Legoland
Notes and Queries
Mail-In Ballot: Director's Election
Pledge, Donation and Legacy
Contact and Membership Information
Copyright © 1999-2003 Samuel Knight Chapter of the Society for Industrial Archeology
The
Newsletter is published whenever it seems appropriate. Members are encouraged
to contribute articles, letters to the editor and items for the Calendar. The Newsletter, Calendar of Events and Links
to IA Websites are available on the Chapter Website: http://reality.sgi.com/csp/knight_sia
(since relocated to http://www.sia-web.org/chapters/knight/knight.html)
THE SAMUEL KNIGHT CHAPTER OF THE SOCIETY FOR INDUSTRIAL ARCHEOLOGY IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY ENTERPRISE
Design services donated by Bear River Associates
This Issue
Since the last Newsletter, there have been a large number of Chapter related events, as well as two all-consuming projects which have engaged the energy of a sizable number of Chapter members: the saving of Knight Foundry and the building of This Old Flatcar at Railfair 99. The progress toward saving Knight Foundry has been solid, but not as rapid as your Editor hoped; the flatcar project was a triumph.
Some of the tours planned in the last Newsletter were lightly attended; maybe we were overdoing it. The Annual Meeting at the Western Railroad Museum featured a really nice tour, but we didn't come near to the quorum required for the election of Chapter Directors. You will find a mail-in ballot on the back page of this issue; members-in-good-standing please be sure to send it in.
The Samuel Knight Chapter has developed a wealth of ambitious projects - some active, others just waiting for that moment of synergy when the right combination of talent and opportunity appears. Ripe for development are the investigation of the underwater remains of the Alameda Point Ferry terminal (see new member Chris Brown's article below), the Chapter website and the development of other Internet communication resources, and the shaping of the 2002 national SIA Annual Conference. There are Chapter members who have expressed interest in each of these projects; what is needed is the formation of task forces to do the job.
Our tour programs also always depend on the suggestions and involvement of the Chapter members. Members Sue Brock, Dick Alvarez and Alan Langmuir have put a wonderful tour together for next month. Read on, and, as you do, consider how you might become actively involved.
Andy Fahrenwald, Newsletter Editor
Upcoming Tours and Events
THIS OLD FLATCAR: COMPLETION WORK DAY
CALIFORNIA STATE RAILROAD MUSEUM,
FOOT OF "I" ST., OLD TOWN, SACRAMENTO
September 25th, all day
As those of you who participated in the flatcar construction during Railfair 99 know, we didn't quite finish the car. Almost, but not quite. One coupler needs to be installed, the trusses need to be tightened up, the trucks finished and the whole thing assembled. So, for that great sense of closure, join us for a work party in the Central Pacific station shed on the river at the foot of "I" Street. Give Randy Hees a call to let him know you're coming (and to confirm last minute details) at 650 347-5055
MARIN HEADLANDS AND POINT
BONITA LIGHT HOUSE FIELD TRIP
October 16-17, Saturday noon to Sunday noon
Chapter members Sue Brock, Dick Alvarez and Alan Langmuir have put together a wonderful two day tour of lighthouses and historic military installations in the setting of the Marin Headlands. The tour is limited to just twenty people, with preference to Chapter members. If you want to take part, phone your reservation in early.
Schedule:
Saturday noon: Meet at the Fort Cronkhite lower parking lot, by the beach. Directions are given below.
Saturday afternoon: With the guidance of a military historian, we plan to explore a World War II gun battery, base end stations (little bunkers almost buried in the hill-sides, from which enemy ships were sighted and aiming angles were measured), and, if possible, the plotting room (where the gun aiming angles were computed from the angles measured at the base end stations). At the conclusion of our tour, we will gather for wine and cheese on the beach, weather permitting.
Saturday evening: Stay in the American Youth Hostel at Marin Headlands. Enjoy a pot-luck dinner, followed by a presentation of World War II headlands military activity.
Sunday morning: Breakfast will be provided at the hostel. At 8:30 AM, we will adjourn to Point Bonita Light House for a special docent-led tour.
Sunday noon: The planned activities end. Participants are at liberty to gather for lunch, and/or explore the many facets of the area: the civil war era gun batteries, the Nike missile site in the valley and the radar tracking station, the World War II barracks, hiking, bird-watching, and the Marine Mammal Center, or explore Sausalito.
This is a wonderful opportunity to explore the different aspects of this area. It also is a chance to gather and really get to know other members of the Society.
Cost is $30 per person, and includes over-night dormitory accommodations at the hostel, wine and cheese, breakfast, fees, and honorarium for our tour guide. Payment should accompany your reservation. Twenty places are available, and will be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis, except that preference will be given to SIA paid-up members and their families.
You must make a phone reservation with Dick at 650 325-1345 and confirm with a check made to the Samuel Knight Chapter, and sent to: Richard Alvarez at 1345 HillviewDrive, Menlo Park, CA 94025-5512.
Bring warm clothing, sturdy shoes, and drinking-water for hiking. You may want to bring a camera, and paper to take notes. A sleeping-bag or bedding, towels, and personal items, are needed for the hostel. Bring your favorite dish to share at the Saturday pot-luck dinner; it should serve approximately 4 to 6 people. If you plan to stay at the headlands on Sunday afternoon, then you will need to bring lunch. Refrigeration for food will not be available until Saturday evening, and not after 8:30 AM on Sunday, so you may need to bring your own ice-chest.
Route directions: From the Golden Gate Bridge, heading north on US 101, take the Sausalito turn-off. That is the first turn-off after the over-look. On the road to Sausalito, pass the first left turn, which leads through a tunnel under US 101 and back to San Francisco; do NOT take that left turn. The next left turn from the road to Sausalito, is signed "Marin Headlands"; turn left there, and go through the one-way tunnel, heading west. After exiting the tunnel, stay within the valley, on the right (north) side of the valley, still heading generally west. Stay to the right (north) of Rodeo Lagoon. The road ends in a parking lot to the right (north) of Rodeo Lagoon, almost at the beach. We will meet in that parking lot. -DA
Gold Fever, Sacramento
Through October 31
The Gold Rush Sesquicentenial exhibit "GoldFever" which opened at the Oakland Museum this spring has reopened in Sacramento. If you missed the first run, don't miss it now. It's a rich, well produced show. It is playing at the Sacramento Memorial Auditorium at "J" and 15th Streets every day from 10am to 5:50pm, Thursdays to 9:30pm.
Knight Foundry Progress Report
The Save Knight Foundry Task Force has been dissolved; the Knight Foundry Preservation Society has been incorporated under the provisions of Chapter 501 (c) 3 of the IRS Code. From the launching of our efforts, it was the intent of the Chapter to act as an incubator for a new independent organization to be launched when plans and preparations for acquiring and operating Knight Foundry had been shaped. That stage has been reached and the nest is empty. The founding directors of the new group are Tom Innes, Bill Braun, Marianne Massengale, Lora Change, Andy Fahrenwald, Randy Hees and Alan Langmuir.
Upon incorporation of the Society in July, we began formal purchase negotiations with the Borgh Family Trust. We have reached substantial agreement on overall terms and options and are now in the midst of putting the financing package together. Our principal potential partners are the National Trust for Historic Preservation, The Bank of Amador and the City of Sutter Creek, all of whom have offered their help. The parties to the negotiations want to wrap things up quickly and hope to have completed the process over the next several weeks.
The most important factor is that everyone wants us to succeed; you can't ask for more than that. The process has taken twenty months so far. That time has been spent gathering support and allies, exploring funding sources and creating as complete planning documents as is practical at this stage. We are going to have to borrow a substantial amount of money to make the purchase and guarantee that we have adequate start up capital. It is our intent to continue to raise money from sponsors, foundations and grants, in part to eliminate the debt burden, primarily to grow a healthy educational institution. The objectives of the Knight Foundry Preservation Society are clearly stated thus: our mission is to preserve Knight Foundry, Historic Water-Powered Iron Works, for posterity as a metal working skills-preservation training center, operating historic industry and living history experience.
The Samuel Knight Chapter and the Society for Industrial Archeology will continue to be important bases of support for this project. We have already received generous support from both groups and our thanks go out to all of you. Our pledge program is still in place. We will call in pledges as soon as the purchase agreement and financing package have been finalized. That's soon and whatever amount you can pledge now will help us reduce our initial debt burden. You'll find the pledge form at the end of this Newsletter. -AF
Recent Tours and Events
Since the last Newsletter, the Chapter has sponsored and/or been involved in many interesting events:
• The Anachronistic Industries Conference in Shepherdstown, West Virginia (reported below).
• A tour of repurposed facilities at the former Alameda Naval Air Station led by Fred Quivik, which everyone reported as fascinating.
• Randy Hees and Andy Fahrenwald made a formal presentation on the Alameda Point Ferry Terminal at the Navy Hearings on their Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Alameda Naval Air Station(reported below.)
• Andy Fahrenwald took part in a Southwest Labor History Conference session chaired by labor historian Archie Green on "Labor's Monuments." Andy's theme was that the workers of Knight Foundry themselves constitute a monument to labor, as do all skilled workers, and that labor history has largely neglected the fact that the organizational acumen of skilled labor (who have always been close to 15% of workers during the Industrial Age) has been an important factor in the evolution and success of unions. This critique generated impassioned debate.
After the conference, there was another Maritime History Boat Tour which we helped facilitate; well attended by the Chapter; this time taking in the Oakland waterfront, as well as the San Francisco side; entertainment, again, by the infamous Babar Jug Band.
• The tour and annual meeting at the Western Railway Museum was a real nice get together. The museum is making steady progress on their ambitious visitor center project.
• A tour of White Brothers Lumber in Oakland; a 100 year + old firm still producing historic moldings; an important restoration resource.
• A Knight Foundry benefit auction and demonstration bronze pour at the Art Foundry in Sacramento. We were heartened in particular at the number of foundry industry representatives who turned out to express their support. The centerpiece of the auction was David Weitzman's original artwork for his childrens' book on Knight Foundry, Pouring Iron: A Foundry Ghost Story.
• Gold Rush Days in Sutter Creek, a community festival featuring a two day open house at Knight Foundry and underground tours of Sutter Gold Mine. Our public foundry events, this one included, have all been successful in building local support for and involvement in our efforts there. (We also conducted a series of special tours for a group of magazine editors, the Huntington Library docents and a vintage auto club.)
Sutter Gold is a unique working gold mine, both for hosting public underground tours (which we will schedule in the near future) and for having, under the regimen of environmental controls endemic to California, created the "greenest" gold mine in the world, eliminating entirely the use of toxic processing chemicals and also taking a sensitive approach to the disposal of mine spoils. The old Union Mine on the site, dating from the 1850's, was one of the principal sources of Leland Stanford's fortune; he changed the name to Lincoln Mine and owned the majority of shares between 1861 and 1873.
• The culmination of This Old Flat Car at Railfair 99 (reported below).
Anachronistic Industries Conference
This three day conference was organized by the Institute for the History of Technology and Industrial Archeology at West Virginia University and by the Historic American Engineering Record (HAER). The purpose of the meeting was to bring together historians and documentary media professionals to examine the problems of 1.) identifying and listing still operating "anachronistic industries" in America, 2.) documenting historic industrial processes and 3.) recording the associated skills. It was held at the sumptuous new campus of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services' National Conservation Training Center. The participants were historians of technology Dr. Emory Kemp, Eric DeLony, Robert Vogel (three of the "founding fathers" of American industrial archæology), Duncan Hay, Richard O'Connor, Chris Andreas and our own Kyle Wyatt and representatives of the media technology world Michael Hamilton, David Goldsmith, and Samuel Knight Chapter Members Lora Change and Andy Fahrenwald.
The conference organizer, Dan Bonenburger from the Institute, had made a sensitive assessment of what the conferees were bringing to the table and structured a well thought out agenda which effectively utilized our expertise and experience. The group was small enough to allow for an ongoing round table discussion as the argument unfolded. Everyone had fascinating movies to show as well. Our goal was to define the problems more than to develop solutions. In this we succeeded quite satisfactorily, and outlined a development program to be pursued over the next year and then possibly revisited in a second conference next year.
The media folks attending provided an overview of the current state and economics of media production, with the prevailing opinion being that costs have come down so radically that the type of documentation the historians desire is well with in reach. Problems of format multiplicity and archival stability were explored as well, the consensus being that these problems need a lot of attention, which is beginning to happen. One undercurrent of the conference was that motion picture tends almost inevitably to broaden the history of technology by injecting related cultural themes.
From my own very rough notes, here (broadly paraphrased) are some of the ideas and experiences, debates and dialogues presented.
Eric DeLony, Chief, HAER: Thirty years ago, the Smithsonian began identifying 'anachronistic industries'. HAER has long looked to expand into using motion picture documentation to supplement the measured drawings, photographs and histories which are the constituents of the Historic American Engineering Record. HAER did two productions with the National Park Service Audio Visual unit (one on metallurgical coke production, which we saw, one on lead crystal ware). Eric expressed great frustration at not being able to do more over the last 30 years.
'Our goal for this conference is to get a sense of direction for the National Park Service and the West Virginia University Institute in utilizing motion media. Funding and cost issues have been paramount.' The NPS Harper's Ferry unit specializes in recording in-house processes in 375 NPS units. Had done "Level 1" HAER package and then added film. All HAER documentation is currently being scanned into digital formats. Has approached History and Discovery channels but without getting much interest. They need a "hook". Andy asked about "market" and getting information to the public. Andy suggested that the National Archives, Library of Congress, etc., be searched for archived motion picture elements that could be incorporated into the already existing 7000 HAER files as low cost means of establishing a precedent for inclusion of motion pictures into the three traditional HAER recording. (Eric DeLony has provided an illuminating feature article for the recent issue of IA [Vol. 25. No. 1] on the history of HAER, and the development of industrial archæology in America.)
Dr. Emory Kemp, Institute Director: Some industries are quirky, not really significance for the history of technology. Elaborate (and expensive) documentary support can tend to give exaggerated elevation to the industry portrayed. Certain things are truly epochal: iron and coke in 1709, the Newcomen steam engine in 1712, iron rolling in the 1770s. Certain surviving industries are important to the history of the Industrial Revolution. How do you evaluate significance when prioritizing subjects for documentation? We move into social history when approaching documentary film. "Engineers have been the greatest revolutionaries" rather than the few so-called inventors. He showed a very fine film documentary of an archaic centrally powered oil field pumping operation in West Virginia.
Lora Change: Suggested thinking creatively about media formats, e.g., using flipbooks to teach about some industrial processes. She noted that women, while generally excluded from skilled industrial work historically, have a great interest in the work of their fathers and grandfathers. Preserved and operating historic industries present an opportunity, not only for young people, but for women of all ages to share in the hands-on experience of skilled work.
Michael Hamilton, industrial film producer: Notes that past 'industrials' have been lost to the public through decay or absorption by exorbitantly priced commercial film archives. Must be stored at 50˚F./30% humidity. Raised concerns about standards of video formats and the cowardly failure of the FCC to choose among 19 proposed standards. In the future, today's standard NTSC will be unplayable. Proposes a facility to preserve equipment.
Robert Vogel, past Curator of Engineering at the Smithsonian Institution: Cost is a key issue. He documented "The Last Wheel Works" which was still working in 1969, a major mechanized industry which, at its height, employed 3 to 4 thousand workers making wooden wheels. Very frustrated at inability to do recording of endangered industries.
Chris Andrea, Canadian historic site surveyor: Cost is almost secondary to understanding why to do it at all. Did Canada inventory of anachronistic industries and is documenting archaic operating centrally powered oil wells.
Dan Bonenburger, conference organizer, showed films of the Newcomen Engine and liquid fuel rocket test films to show the lessons of "seeing it in action." Andy made the distinction between recording a process and telling a story, as different modes of learning. Robert Vogel commented that you just had to get in there and "record everything." Andy observed that the filmmaker starts editing when she turns the camera on and off, and has, perforce, to be operating under some set of categories of inquiry in making those editorial decisions and that those categories were further crucially determined by the intended viewers. The discussion then focused on the identities of those intended viewers and audiences ("posterity" not being an effective definition for this argument.)
David Goldsmith, filmmaker showed wonderful work-in-progress footage of fishermen (more focused on 'the life and times' rather than work process), talked of the difficulties of doing general documentation without a "hook" to get network support up front and the personal impacts of going ahead without support.
Duncan Hay, past SIA President: Issues are what you film and how you fund. He shot seven hours of documentation of a water powered window frame mill under color of producing a museum show interpretive component. So what to do with all this footage? He showed the completed film, which was lovely. Showed kid's show, "Let's take a trip" piece on an anchor chain forge. Made the case for intelligent and straight forward presentation of industrial topics for young audiences. He himself filmed the forge for HAZMAT remediation purposes.
Rich O'Connor, HAER historian showed window glass industrial films from 1908, surely one of the earliest such films ever done. Never could find more film, so, "This is what we have left." This film was crucial to fully developing the HAER file on the Chambers-McKee Window Glass Company site. Readers of the journal "IA" will recall his remarkable illustrated piece in the November, 1997 issue. It was the film which enabled the HAER team to reconstruct the site and processes in such detail.
Andy showed segments of adult and children's steam locomotive tapes to address issues of audience segmentation. Andy also showed some of "Pouring Iron" and gave a detailed presentation on the problems of skills preservation in the context of Knight Foundry. (The conferees were surprised and pleased to learn how far we have progressed in preserving the foundry.) Suggested that focus be broadened from traditional documentary film to the possibilities of interactive and internet media: "movies that branch."
Benefits of attending this conference for the Knight Foundry effort were in bringing this group of prominent historians up to speed on our status and planned programs, the beginning of an active working partnership with the organizations sponsoring the conference and the opening of several new channels for spreading the word on a national basis. The collaborative work proposed opens possibilities for seeking grant support for documentation programs centered at the foundry.
The work many of us in the Samuel Knight Chapter have been doing over the last six years – both to develop an industrial skills preservation methodology and to apply computer and internet strategies in creating a skills archive – enabled us to make detailed suggestions for addressing the problems set out by the conference organizers. Knight Foundry provided a concrete context for elucidating those ideas. We proposed that the on-line inventory of anachronistic industries, which Dr. Kemp and his colleagues are developing, interactively allow free contribution of site nominations and information over the World Wide Web, with appropriate moderation established as a condition of final site inclusion in the inventory. This is the strategy we have developed for our historic skills website, "The Artisan at Work".
The last day of the conference was a field trip to the nearby 1866 Martinsburg B&O roundshouse. -AF
Fire at the Alameda Point Ferry Terminal
Early this summer the Alameda Journal, a free bi-weekly about the East Bay island community, featured an interesting story concerning a suspicious fire in 1902. The early morning blaze destroyed an enormous and vital ferry terminal, the smoking, melting mass with dozens of railroad cars collapsing into San Francisco Bay and leaving nothing but hissing and bubbling behind. The story related the surprising re-discovery of the terminal site, the end point of a narrow-gauge railroad that once served the island and stretched all the way to Santa Cruz. For one person, the Journal article set another fire -- which shows no sign of diminishing.
Quoted in the article, SIA Samuel Knight Chapter President Andy Fahrenwald explained the discovery: he overlayed maps of two different periods and realized that the burned terminal and its trove of narrow gauge cars, long believed to have been buried under a runway at the decommissioned Navy airfield, were probably sitting right offshore in open water -- exposed and waiting for recovery and restoration. A recently transplanted Florida filmmaker and cave diver named Chris Brown found the Journal story intriguing: who would dive on this supposed debris field of burned, submerged, railroad cars to get proof of its location? Who would prove the veracity of the research by examining and perhaps retrieving the unique artifacts -- the only remaining narrow gauge cars of their kind?
article
With the assistance of the Journal reporter and an initial call to Andy, the answer started to form: anyone who was interested, had the resources and skills, and the tenacity to track the process as far as it would go. Sounds like an SIA mission statement, doesn't it? Now a Chapter member, Chris is on the hunt. Through his participation in an underwater archaeology discussion group on the internet, he contacted Peter Pelkofer, Senior Counsel for the California State Lands Commission and found that, on the state level, there is no legal hindrance to diving the site.
With Andy's Rolodex providing more resources, Chris reached mining historian, consultant, Chapter member Fred Quivik on Alameda and together they tracked the city and Base Reuse authorities about diving the site. Unfortunately a serious obstacle exists -- but not an insurmountable one. The land access to the dive site is also an ordnance and radioactive waste dump. Can you say "Superfund?" More phoning and paperwork are underway to negotiate U.S. Navy permission to dive the site because, due to their continuing responsibility for the material there, the Navy controls both water and land site access.
When diving is allowed, what will happen then? We fully expect to retrieve enough material to positively identify the site as a submerged cultural resource. We may find burned wood, glass from the terminal's expansive roof, and/or metal from the cars or tracks. Of course such identification is extremely valuable to engaging recovery and preservation assistance from many quarters. Once actual material from the burned terminal is in hand we will learn and apply the process for having the site designated for preservation and develop a plan for mapping and recovery. This plan would include academic assistance while providing an excellent opportunity for students to gain field experience. Chris' numerous contacts in the world of professional and academic archaeology will be solicited for advice and assistance, especially some superb underwater archaeologists who conducted the excavation of the La Salle's shipwreck off the Texas coast a few years ago by building a coffer dam to create a dry sea-bottom work site.
In the meantime, more plans are in the works, including an outline for Alameda city and base re-use authorities describing the cultural and commercial value of an open-to-the-public archaeological dig; the value of recreating a scale model and/or working terminal as an interpretive exhibit; and the potential of erecting a multi-function interpretive center and tying it with an actual ferry terminal and an electric, light rail, computerized mass transit system now in development on Alameda Point within view of the submerged historic terminal site. -CB
For more information, and to add fuel to the flames, contact: Chris Brown, 510-814-1862.
This Old Flat Car
A high point for many, many of us this summer was the "re-building in kind" of a 1909 wooden flat car, as a demonstration project in the preservation of historic skills. This took place in front of tens of thousands of people at Railfair 99. Railfair is a once every ten years or so event held by the California State Railroad museum (CSRM). Dozens of volunteers from the Chapter and the Society for the Preservation of Carter Railroad Resources (SPCRR) turned out. This project was cosponsored by the Chapter, SPCRR and TEAMWORKS, a student-led project of the Engineering Department at CSU Sacramento.
The concept will not be unfamiliar to the readers of this journal – to build a flatcar in "production time," not "restoration time" using and demonstrating the tools and methods the original builders used; the realization and experience were inexpressibly fine. We started several weeks before Railfair with the inspection of SN32, a decrepit standard gauge wooden flatcar retired from maintenance of way service by the Sacramento Northern Railroad in the early 1960s. It has been sitting outside in the SP yards at the old Unit Shop as part of the CSRM collection longer than anyone could remember. (The "Unit" referring to steam locomotive superheater units serviced there in days of yore.) The CSRM donated the car, facilitated the project, supplied materials – most importantly, arranging the donation of lumber milled to size – and will have a "new" flatcar, which may end up in Sacramento or as an era-appropriate work car for the CSRM's operation at Jamestown, Railtown 1897.
The first view of the body was more than a bit dismaying; it was incredibly rusted and rotted. We decided that dismantling it before Railfair (plan A) was beyond the human resources available. We preped the car by doing detailed measured drawings, removing the wrecking equipment shed sitting on it and soaking the rusted parts with a penetrating oil. After several weeks of RGS brand oil, we were able to loosen most of the accessible threaded fastening elements, much to my surprise. When we moved the flatcar, using large forklifts and a flatbed truck, to the Railfair site, it was very tricky not to just break it in half. Some of us not only stepped through rotten decking; we stepped through rotten beams!
The overall plan was to dismantle the car for the first three days, continuing measurements and stripping out the iron parts for repair and re-use. Then, starting with newly milled wood, we would rebuild the car to completion by the end of Railfair; ten days start to finish. Opening day there were a lot of skeptical noises made by onlookers. We had our framed motto ready (thanks to Ann Bisio, Miramonte H.S., Orinda):
Is qui dicit id non posse fieri non debet numquam interrumpere cum qui id facit.*
Randy Hees did a masterly job of organizing the logistics of the reconstruction process. The genius of the project was that it was so easy for anyone looking at us to understand what we were up to. The curse of the project was hot weather, temperatures soaring over 100˚ day after day.
I think the most ultimately valuable aspect of the project was the involvement of young apprentices. Nate Shugars and his helpers recruited children from the crowd for work sessions as car builders twice a day. More than half of the detailed work was done by thus 'exploiting child labor'. One lad, Chris, about 11 or 12 years old, showed up at 9:30 on the second day, and stayed all day, came back almost every day and learned nearly all the skills we were practicing: artifact deconstruction, timber construction, car assembly, carpentry and blacksmithing, Chris did as much work on the car as any of us and coached a lot of other kids as well. He was one of several volunteers of all ages who emerged from the crowd and just wouldn't go away.
Well over 200 people, young and older, worked on the car. And not only did they learn by the experience; the project had a strong impact on the onlookers to judge by their comments. The other railroad museum and preservation people attending were properly amazed that we very nearly brought the car to completion by the end of Railfair. A number of them wanted to consult with us on doing similar skills demonstration projects at their facilities,
In the end, a shortage of iron nuts and bolts (we needed to keep better track at the outset of which original parts were truly unusable) and tricky problems of reconstructing the techniques of fabricating the wooden truck bolsters slowed us down. The trucks remain to be reassembled (most worn out or broken iron parts have been refabricated), one of the couplers remains to be installed and the trusses tightened up on the car body. That lowly flatcar became a thing of beauty to all who worked on it.
It was such a pleasure working with so many Chapter members on this project, as well as all the other car builders. On Saturday, September 25th we will reconvene at the CSRM to finish the job. The more hands the better; join us in sharing this remarkable experience. Call Randy Hees for details at 650 347-5055. -AF
* He who says it cannot be done should never interrupt he who is doing it,
From Behind Dooley’s Bar
Nate Shugars
[Note: the counter unit used to anchor the interpretive efforts for This Old Flatcar was built for an interpretive program entitled “Down Ta Dooley’s Place; hence...]
It was Hot. It was Dirty. It was Wonderful.
It was also a bit of a blur, so a chronological approach is nearly impossible. some early – and certainly not all – highlights:
• Realizing that staff volunteers were thin on the ground for the first couple of days, and wondering how we were going to get the car demolished – then watching in awe as a veritable army of 8 – 12 year olds attacked it with gusto.
• David Anton, the soft-spoken British gent from Riverside, arriving, scoping out the game, and subtly becoming part of the ‘brain trust’ leading the project – thanks for the exuberance and expertice, David.
• Leroy Burdick, grandson of Charles Burdick [of Centerville branch fame], being treated to Railfair on Father’s Day by a douple of dozen of this descendants, then returning 4-5 times later in the week so that he could work on the car.
• Christopher Gabriel, the first apprentice in the gate on the first Saturday, jumping right in and working hard – for five straight hours; returning the next day to put in another seven plus, showing up again for the last four days, being advanced first to ‘student’ , then to full, dues-paying member – that’s why we call him super-apprentice. We hope to see a lot of this one.
• Randy noticing a severely disabled youngster in a wheelchair watching the demolition form the rear of the area, bringing him around front and in, finding him a task he could perform successfully. We won.
[Although it doesn’t really matter, no, we did not complete the car. What we did accomplish was giving over 200 children the opportunity for some hands on railcar restoration; recruited a couple dozen adults who were paid admissions, at least six of whom returned several more days to do some more; provided a great number of our members the ability to attend railfair – and stay longer – than they might have otherwise been able to do. To everyone who selflessly threw themselves at This Old Flatcar, a very special thanks from the gent on the stool behind Dooley’s Bar.]
PHOTOS BY ANDY FAHRENWALD AND LORA CHANGE
A Beginners Brief Introduction to the Chapter’s Electronic Mailing Lists on Industrial Archeology
Anthony Meadow
Industrial Archeology at Legoland
Anthony Meadow
Visiting a theme park does not usually inspire an article, especially for this newsletter – but Legoland is different. To celebrate my son Jeremy’s tenth birthday, earlier this summer our family recently visited Legoland in Carlsbad, California (a little north of San Diego). Jeremy has attended a number of our chapter’s tours and some of his photographs have appeared in previous issues of this newsletter. This Legoland opened earlier this year. There are two other Legolands: the original in Billund, Denmark and another in Windsor, England.
There are rides for kids including a driving school. Kids get to drive in a small town, complete with traffic signals and signs. The roads have lane markers just like real life. The cars don’t go very fast (a good thing for novice drivers) and the driving period is short (10-15 minutes when we were there). Another attraction is the Lego Minstorms lab. Older kids can program “intelligent” Lego bricks in small robots than can react to their environment to play a kind of robotic basketball. The sessions are 45 minutes long and seem to quickly fill up. If you are interested register for a session when you first get to the park. Like every other theme park, there are a number of restaurants and stores. It is clear that there are a surprising number of adults who enjoy building Lego sets.
The industrial archeology content is located in Miniland, a 1:20 scale set of city scenes that use 20 million bricks. There are versions of San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington, DC, New York, New Orleans and a harbor scene. Each city has vehicles that move including cars, trucks and Mardi Gras floats in New Orleans. The highlight of the park for me was the New England harbor scene. There are a number of diesel trains with freight cars that move and stop, as well as a railroad bridge that moves up and down. There’s also a ferry that moves between two docks, complete with trucks that drive onto the ferry and drive off on the other side. There’s also several ships, including a large container ship, some at a dock with a crane moving containers around.
New York City includes several bridges, a moving subway beneath skyscrapers and Grand Central Station. Other cities included a number of vehicles too (San Francisco streetcars). Numerous people populate the streets, including a surprising number of policemen. Sound effects help make the scenes lively. Miniland is not an “active” exhibit. There are no way for anyone to contribute in any way. However Miniland was quite an impressive set of models.
Legoland was designed for children from 2 to 12 years in age. Teens will probably find Legoland rather boring - the rides and other amusements tend to be sedate. To get more information about Legoland, check out their web site at http://www.legolandca.com/ or call 760 918 5346. Admission to the California Legoland at this time costs $32 for adults, $25 for children (3 through 16) and $25 for seniors.
Notes and Queries
This is a forum for research and developing resources of help for our membership. If there is any IA related project you would like to communicate with our readers about, please contact the Editor, Andy, at andylora@slip.net or 916 442-1636
Kennedy Mine Seeks
Archæological and Restoration Help
The Kennedy Mine Foundation was formed by local Amador County residents to obtain local ownership of the site and surface structures of Kennedy Mine and Milling Co. on 153 acres just north of the town of Jackson. It is in the process of being restored to the extent feasible to its condition in 1942 for most structures (when the mine was closed). Structures on the property include a residence of the prior owner, Sybil Arata, which fell into disrepair with her long illness. This house has a large crawl space that had been used for storage and a first floor used as living quarters for the managers of the boarding houses.
Although the house itself does not have a particularly interesting history (no different than older pier and post houses found in the area), the crawl space may contain artifacts of Jackson's colorful past. Most of the large items stored there have been removed and inventoried, but there is interest in combing the dirt floor to determine whether there are smaller items of interest located there. Unlike most crawl spaces, this one has adequate space for standing upright and there is good ventilation.
Current plans are underway to stabilize the structure and add or support the existing foundation. It is hoped that before any major reconstruction is undertaken, a crew of volunteers can be located soon to undertake the archæological search. An "archæological dig" supervised by Mike Doran for the basement and a "contractors day" organized by Rich are two events in the planning. In the meantime, Bob Devlin and his cohorts Gary Davis, Jim Baker and Mike Hewitt are cleaning up the place and inventorying all of the things found there.
Bob Devlin is also doing historical research on the building and so far the consensus seems to be that the house was not really a "boarding house" like we thought, but a residence for whomever managed the large boarding houses to the west. Attached was a cookhouse and the building next door (that we thoughts might be a place for the miners to play cards) was probably just storage for preparing all that food. If anyone has pictures or information on this building, Bob would be most interested in hearing from you.
The Kennedy Mine Board gave the okay for this ambitious project but very little money. So any contributions, financial or otherwise, would be greatly appreciated by them. Any contributions should be sent to The Kennedy Mine, P.O.Box 684, Jackson, CA 95642-0684 marked "Sybil's" and volunteers can contact Bob via his e-mail at bobkat@goldrush.com or 209 223-2069.
Knight Foundry Preservation Plan Research
The newly formed Knight Foundry Preservation Society is bringing a Year One Preservation Plan to completion. If you have any historic background material, photographs, know where surviving Knight products are, know people we should contact or interview, or general knowledge on The Knight Foundry or related topics, such as impulse water wheel development, Mother Lode industrial history, etc.; we are beginning the long process of gathering or knowing where everything is that pertains to the site and would like to hear from you. Please contact Andy Fahrenwald at 916 442-1636 or at andylora@slip.net
Phœnix Media, P.O.Box 327, Sutter Creek, CA 95685
Mail-In Ballot: Director's Election
All members in good standing are hereby requested to please fill out and return by mail this ballot to the Chapter Secretary. This year six of the nine seats are to be filled for a two year term. The present members of the Board are standing for reelection. Please vote for the members of your choice; you may write in any other Chapter Member who is also a member in good standing of the Society for Industrial Archeology.
__Andrew Fahrenwald __..................................................
__Randall Hees __..................................................
__Noel Kirshenbaum __..................................................
__Jay McCauley __..................................................
__Anthony Meadow __..................................................
__Nathan Shugars __..................................................
Pledge, Donation and Legacy Response Form
Please send your pledge, donation or legacy to: Knight Foundry Preservation Society, P.O.Box 1198, Sutter Creek CA 95685. .All donations are tax deductible. For information call 916 442-1636.
Yes! I will Pledge $______________ to Save Knight Foundry for Future Generations
Donations and Legacies |
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The amount you would consider bequeathing as a legacy to Knight Foundry, when we have established a foundry endowment program:
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Who are individuals, companies, groups or organizations, foundations or government grants you think we should approach for funding now? Please include detailed contact information: