A Learning Adventure in the Workshop

Riverfront Park Website Upgrade

I maintain a website for a relatively new local Sewickley, Pa. Park called "Riverfront Park" that includes a few full-size railroad artifacts (including an H.K. Porter steam engine and a "bobber-style" caboose).   Its also a great place for the rail fan because it has an overlook for one of Norfolk and Southern's busiest current rail lines.

I have recently moved the park's website over to the same Typepad style blog/website that I use for this blog.   I like Typepad and it is easier for me to maintain the site through this interface.   Also, Typepad's recently added "pages" function makes it easier to set it up like a more traditional website rather than strictly a blog.

If you are interested in see the new site, click www.riverfrontpark.org .

Riverfront Park Documents and Photos from Peggy Standish

These are Peggy Standish's notes/speech from the May 26, 2004 Riverfront Park Picnic.   I just scanned and OCR-ed them.  They outline much of the history of the park and how the trains came to be there.  This document will become part of the Riverfront Park page on the main site shorty. 

Click here to download the PDF of Peggy's speech.

I also scanned many pictures of the delivery of the HK Porter locomotive and the bobber caboose from Station Square to the park that Peggy took when that event occurred.  Click on the Riverfront Park photo album for these photos.

H.K. Porter 0-4-0T, 1897

Click on: H.K. Porter 0-4-0T, 1897

This site includes some photos of the Porter in place in the Sewickley Park that someone else has posted.

HK Porter Locomotive Research Begins

Porter Locomotive Page-- Last Updated 07/16/02

This is an excellent page listing a number of other websites that have info on the HK Porter Locomotive Works of Pittsburgh, Pa where the locomotive that is in Rivefront Park in Sewickley was built.  This is the beginning of my research into the local Porter locomotive.  Nothing here strikes me as the same exact model as the Riverfront Loco, but a few are close.

Here are a couple of other good link on Porters:
RR Extra Porter Page

Fallen-Flags Porter Page

My son and I repaint a caboose

My son Mason and I repainted a full-size P&LE bobber caboose for a friend that is involved with the park.  The caboose and a small Porter steam locomotive are on display at the local "Riverfront Park" in Sewickley.  An easy job as the paint was not yet in bad shape.  This caboose and the Porter locomotive displayed next to it were moved to the park last year when they lost their home at Station Square in Pittsburgh.  The locomotive needs work on its black paint also, and we will be back to take care of that in a week or two.