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2019 HeritageRail Awards

By Aaron Isaacs, HRA editor

On September 21 at its annual banquet, the HeritageRail Alliance presented its annual awards.

Significant Achievement–Steam
The locomotives must be revived from the dead, not previously restored and now receiving a federally required inspection and repair.
To Chris Baldo and Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad for the restoration of 2-4-4-2 locomotive Skookum

To Youngstown Steel Heritage Museum for the restoration of Jones & Laughlin Steel 2-foot gauge 0-4-0T #58.

Significant Achievement–Passenger Car
To National Railroad Museum for the restoration of Atlantic Coast Line modernized heavyweight diner Dothan.

Significant Achievement–Freight Car
To Everett Railroad for the restoration of Pennsylvania Railroad boxcar #571060.

Significant Achievement–Electric Car
To Fraser Valley Heritage Rail Society for the restoration of B C Electric interurban #1304 Connaught.

Significant Achievement–Structure
To Seashore Trolley Museum for the repair and expansion of Fairview Carbarn.

Significant Achievement–Archives
To Center for Railroad Photography & Art

Friend of Railway Preservation
This award goes to individuals and institutions who assist railway preservation although not directly involved in it.

To the John H. Emery Rail Heritage Trust, which has given grants totaling more than $1 million since its founding in 2015. Trust advisor Naurine Lennox attended and had the opportunity to meet about a dozen of the grant recipients.

HRA President G. Mark Ray with Naurine Lennox of the Emery Rail Heritage Trust.

Lifetime Achievement
This award goes to individuals who have contributed significantly to railway preservation over most of their adult lives.

To Kyle Wyatt, former Curator at the California State Railroad Museum. Wyatt served on the ARM and HRA Boards, and was previously curator at Nevada State Railroad Museum. He is acknowledged as an important scholar of railway history. Kyle was unable to attend the conference.

Kyle Wyatt

To Bernie Watts, owner of Backshop Enterprises, a rebuilder and manufacturer of steam locomotive components and appliances.

To Allen Harper, owner of the Durango & Silverton, Great Smoky Mountains and Mount Ranier Scenic railroads. He is also the owner of Rail Events, whose Polar Express events have supplied much needed revenue to tourist railroads and railway museums.

Al Harper (left) and Bernie Watts