Re: Some of the 'Summer of Seventy' - and after - Volunteers (pics)

Ben Greathouse is the 3rd. from the left in the Governor's Special pic - far left in the "the morning after #483 arrived in Chama" pic.

Neither Andy A. nor I were in either picture. Andy had returned to Texas before the first train ran, and I had had to leave for a few days myself, a couple days before the first train made it through.

I had promised a volunteer friend, whose name I have since forgotten, that I would drive him down to Phoenix in time to register for college (his friend with whom he had come up to Chama had had to leave sooner) if he would stay the extra few days to help get the track repaired and see that first train run. It took several days for the first train to make it through, and I had to honor my promise before the train made it to Chama. I hoped that I could turn around and get back to Chama in time. But, there was a horrendous rain storm all over the Southwest that week and I got rained into Phoenix (all roads out were flooded for about 3 days) and missed the actual day of arrival in Chama! That was the same storm that washed out several miles of track on the Silverton.

I don't think that's me in the Governor's Special either, although the fellow that Russ thinks is me bears a resemblance. I think I missed hearing about the taking of the photo. And I never had such nice clothes as the fellow in the picture. I possessed no "railroad" clothes, just clothes I had brought on the camping trip that led to my stumbling onto the railroad and volunteering. By the time of the Governor's Special, they were pretty beat up and dirty!