Re: Thomas the Tank Engine pulls into Edaville

Folks,
The Thomas the Tank Engine visits have made so much money for various museums that the volunteers have started calling him Thomas the Bank Engine!

The original American Thomas is owned by the Strasburg Railroad and is a former 0-6-0 from Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal. I saw him at the Railfairs 1991 and 1999 in Sacramento.

The other standard gauge fake engine is at Illinois Railway Museum for the next couple of weekends. they expect 20,000 visitors.

The three foot gauge Thomas will be at the Colorado railroad Museum in September.

I assume that the two-foot Thomas is at home in Edaville for their grand opening.

The older Edaville locomotive is the Colonial Sugar Refining company #21 Ann Elizabeth from 1921. She is a Hunslet-Clarke 0-6-0 locomotive.

They just built an 8 stall round house in the Island of Sodor style; for the new additions to the Thomas family; and they all have smiley faces!

I am not much of a kids person; but some of those kids will grow up to be the next generation of volunteers at real railroad museums; some of them will even be interested in narrow gauge history, like we are.

Ted Miles
Member of WW&F
and several others