January 11th, 1960

  Mr. Hutton took a sip of his hot chocolate. He always loved that drink, whether from a mix or homemade, the sweet drinks always warmed him up. Monday was a calm day, but today marked the start of limited operations for the winter, from January 11th to the 17th. Passenger trains will start this month. Clair would handle the Monday to Thursday trains, while Roger would handle the Friday to Sunday portion. It was simple, and people could see two types of engines in one week. It was also to test for potential full-time paid staff on the railway. When Elizabeth arrived on the railway after her overhaul, she would be tested more of the full-time staff operation.

  Just then, his wife came in with a man; ever since the office was built, many folks came to see Mr. Hutton in person, mostly to host photo charters. It was easier doing this than on the phone. The man was older, and by the looks of his face, he was quite nervous, though Ben couldn’t blame him; his Preservation Society is famous, and many railfans and regular folks want to visit the line and meet Roger. The man sat down and looked at him.

  “Love, this is Byron Hiatt,” Lizzy told her husband.

  Mr. Hutton has heard of this person before; he built a two-foot gauge railroad in Iowa in 1950, before the Preservation Society was formed, the Byron Railroad. While many other two-foot gauge tourist lines would be called the first, the Roger Railway was the first in North America to be preserved by volunteers, and the second preserved railway in the world. Ben was quite curious about why Mr. Hiatt was at his railroad.

  “Hello, Mr. Hutton,” Mr. Hiatt smiled, “I hope I didn’t interrupt you and your work.”

  “It’s no big deal, it was mostly paperwork,” Mr. Hutton waved his hand, “This happens all the time, but is there a reason why you’re visiting?”

  “Yes,” Mr. Hiatt nodded, “I know you heard of me through my own railroad, but I was one of the earliest donors to your railroad in 1950.”

  Mr. Hutton remembered that he had many donations outside of Pennsylvania, and one of the donors mailed him a check of 5,000, which was a lot of money 10 years ago. Ben looked at the man and realized the connection.

  “You’re the one who donated 5,000 dollars?” He asks, to which Mr. Hiatt nods.

  “Yes, I am,” He smiled, “And I’m here to invite Roger for our spring event at the Byron Railroad at Martinsdale, Iowa, especially since it’s his 80th birthday year, and our railroad's 10th anniversary year.”

  Mr. Hutton knows that this year is 80 years since Roger was delivered to the Roger Railway, and it’s the 10th anniversary of the formation of the Preservation Society. Ben is planning to operate a few special trains to commemorate those two special years, and having Roger travel to the Midwest from Pennsylvania, far from his home, is daunting, but knowing that the man did donate 5k to the railroad, Mr. Hutton feels like he owes it to Mr. Hiatt.

  “There’s not much traveling for our engine, Roger, except for the opening of my Hutton Steam Company and Museum this summer,” Mr. Hutton put his pencil down, “I’ve heard of your railroad from my volunteers, and they’re impressed by it, knowing that your railroad has some interesting engines and rolling stock.”

  He stopped and thought for a bit. He stood up and walked around. He could see Roger in the yard, for the folks who came to ride on Clair’s train, he looked at Mr. Hiatt again, and sat back down.

  “I’ll do it,” Mr. Hutton told the older man, “But only for a week, make sure your engines are in their best behavior, and this is more of your opinion, but do you want Roger to bring his coaches or let him operate your coaches?”

  “Don’t worry,” Mr. Hiatt assured Ben, “I’ll make sure that my two engines are in their best behavior, and as for the coaches, I’ll let Roger bring his coaches, since it’ll be a great show to show off the heritage, but I’ll like Roger to operate an Employee and Volunteer Special during his visit.”

  “Hmm,” Mr. Hutton thought for a bit, “That doesn’t sound like a bad idea. From the stories I’ve heard from my volunteers, it’s a great little line, but I think we need a date for when the time comes so I could take Roger out of service for maintenance before his Midwest trip.”

  “I was thinking around spring time, the weather is just perfect, but not too crazy,” He told Ben, “16th of April to the 26th of April, 10 days, a little over a weekend, but it’ll be fun, and the weather will be great.”

  Mr. Hutton thought for a bit. This would be over a weekend. 10 days seems like a good day, not too short, not too long, and it’ll give many historical societies a chance to operate Roger during his stay, including the Iowa Chapter of the NRHS. Ben has lots of ideas that could work, but are limited to the 10 days of operation. This would be tough to compile in four months, but he has been through thick and thin for the last almost 10 years of operating the Roger Railway, and he knows that this type of challenge won’t be a problem for Roger and the crew.

  “You got a deal,” Mr. Hutton smiled and shook his hand.

  For the past few hours, Mr. Hutton and Mr. Hiatt have been discussing plans on how many days Roger would get to operate, since 10 days seems long to anyone; 10 days is also short for railfans who are excited for any event. April is a good month for the Roger Railway since it’s 3-4 weeks after the main season opens, and since Roger won’t be operating during the winter and early spring months, this was a hard decision, because the old Porter has never missed the beginning of the season train. This was tough.

  After discussing for a few hours about the excursions that Roger is going to operate, the two call it a night, and Mr. Hutton bids farewell to Mr. Hiatt before leaving his office, to which Mr. Hutton ran towards the yard, safely, to the shed, where Lizzy was giving Roger a nice polish, motherly polish, the old Porter was happy to see his general manager and owner.

  “Mr. Hutton! How are you doing tonight?” Roger smiled as Lizzy came and kissed her husband.

  “Quite well,” Mr. Hutton smiled. He looked at his wife, then at Roger, “Say, Roger, how do you feel about visiting the Midwest?”

  “The midwestern United States?” Roger asks, to which Ben nodded, “Uh, I don’t know, is there a narrow gauge line there?”

  “Yep, in a small town of Martinsdale, Iowa,” He smiled at the old Porter, “You’re visiting the Byron Railroad!”

  Roger's eyes are wide.

  “What’s that?” the old Porter asks Ben.

  “It’s a two-foot gauge tourist line in Iowa,” Ben told Roger, “The owner of the line is inviting you to his railroad for 10 days in April, we’ve been discussing excursions for a few hours, and I’ve seen photos of his line from the volunteers, and I think it’s a chance to show the midwest of our Preservation Society.”

  “And it’ll show how good we treated you, sweetie,” Lizzy grinned.

  The old Porter pondered for a bit, then looked at Ben.

  “I think it’s a wonderful idea,” Roger smiled, but fell, “Will I be ready for the 80th Birthday Event?”

  “I’m planning to give you a two-week rest and general maintenance,” Mr. Hutton told the old Porter, “That’ll be enough rest before that big day.”

  Roger smiled.

  “It’ll be a first for me,” the old Porter admitted, “But I can’t wait.”

  April 14th, 1960

  The railway was quite busy for the last few months, with Elizabeth's overhaul being completed, and currently being shipped to America later last month, and with Roger not operating after the January limited operations, only operating for the beginning of the regular season, it was busy for the railway, the old Porter was given general maintenance, which during that time, Mr. Hutton assemble a team of talented folks, one of them is Carol, who left the railway when she was 18 for college, and now working at an office is part of the team, which she had a whole week off thankfully to help with this visit.

  Roger and his coaches left on April 13th, early in the morning, with Mr. Hutton and Lizzy following the lowboy truck. Traveling numerous times throughout the years wasn’t new at this point, but traveling through the Midwestern states for this visit was extraordinary. Many of the people from those Midwestern states were quite surprised to see a steam locomotive and his coaches going through the road passing their state and city.

  Roger and his coaches arrived in Martinsdale in the evening of April 14th. It took a much longer ride compared to the other trips he took outside of Pennsylvania. The city was small, with only a population of 316 people; it was a small town, and Roger was quite surprised how a railroad could survive in a small town like this. Nighttime came as the old Porter arrived at the engine shop after a long 10-plus-hour drive from Pennsylvania. Roger was glad to be here.

  He was lifted by crane to the tracks. Touching steel rails was a calm feeling for the old Porter; he was pushed to the engine shop by the railroad staff, where the railroad’s steam locomotives are usually kept. Roger got a good glimpse of the two steam locomotives in the shop. He could see that they’re numbered 2967 and 2968, one was a 2-6-0, Mogul Type, and one is a 2-6-2, Prairie Type, and Roger doesn’t know if he was bigger or the same size; it was an interesting design.

  Roger could see that they’re sleeping, which is understandable since it’s already nighttime, and everyone is exhausted from the whole trip, especially Mr. Hutton and Lizzy, since they traveled on the road to the Byron Railroad, while the volunteers flew to Iowa. Roger decided it’s best to get some shut-eye, since it’s going to be a busy day tomorrow.

  April 15th, 1960

  Roger woke up with the sound of people talking and the warmth in his fire, indicating that it was time to leave the shed. He was pushed by the Preservation Society volunteers out into the open. The Midwest air hit him; this was different, but this was a calm feeling. Roger looked to his right and saw the engines, one in steam and one on display. There were many folks in the yard; the old Porter could see the volunteers of the Roger Railway, with Ben and Lizzy, with other folks, with overalls, indicating they’re from the Byron Railroad.

  “Good morning, sweetie,” Lizzy smiled at her favorite engine.

  “Good morning, Lizzy, Ben,” Roger smiled back, “Are we having a test run?”

  “Yep,” Mr. Hutton nodded, “Being a tourist line, you don’t have to pull your coaches or have a freight train, but we’re going to operate just you, without anything.”

  “Wow, that is something,” Roger smiled, “I can’t wait.”

  Mr. Hiatt came up to Roger.

  “It’s finally nice to see you,” Byron said as he looked up and down, “What a nice engine, Ben and his team have really done a great job, made me impressed. Anyway, here are my two engines, Byron and Manford.”

  “Hello,” Roger said to the engines, “I’m Roger.”

  “Morning,” said Byron, who was numbered 2967.

  “Hello,” Manford smiled at the visitor, who was numbered 2968.

  “I built them,” Mr. Hiatt smiled, “It took me a while to get the parts, chassis, and all, but I got them running in the summer of 1950.”

  “That’s impressive,” Roger smiled.

  Mr. Hiatt gave a piece of paper to Mr. Hutton.

  “This is the map of the railroad, it’s only 2 miles with a passing loop at the end, two trestles, and a section called Mocking Bird Hill,” Mr. Hiatt told Ben.

  “Thank you,” Ben nodded, and looked at his wife, “Let’s go on the railroad.

  After getting fueled with coal and water, Roger left the engine shop yard and headed onto the Byron Railroad mainline. He blew his whistle, which had been recently worked on back at home, and it sounded good at the Roger Railway, and now whistling in the vast, plain fields of Iowa, this was something that Roger never seen back home, fields, during his time running excursions on the Southern had a culture shock, since fields were mostly no existent where his home is, and with the Southern Railway Narrow Gauge Division operating in these valleys and plains, it was a different feeling for Roger.

  Roger picked up speed since he didn’t have any passenger coaches behind him. This was a level railroad with no forms of gradients, at least, that’s what the old Porter thinks as he rolls along the track. The tracks felt nice, despite being a short railroad in the middle of rural Iowa, the railroad has some quality to it. Mr. Hutton and Lizzy were quite impressed.

  “It makes me wonder if these plains can be scenic from the passenger's point of view,” Lizzy asks her husband while passing the 70ft trestle.

  “It can be,” Mr. Hutton told his wife, “The Southern Pacific Narrow Gauge is a good example, middle of nowhere, but railfan excursions are popular in Owens Valley, and look at last year’s excursion on the Southern, despite being in the rural Midwest, the engines are a star of the show.”

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

  Roger chuckled. Mr Hutton is right, though, despite this, the railroad seems to be very well maintained. The old Porter passed another trestle, this one is 80ft, and blew his whistle very loud; the sound echoed a bit, nothing how rural this railroad is, the test run is doing quite well, running light engine seems the best decision ever, Roger charged up Mocking Bird Hill, despite with a name like that, it wasn’t that steep, and this coming from an engine that operate through the Southern Railway tough gradients.

  The telegraph lines on Mocking Bird Hill were an interesting feature. Roger felt like he was operating in a suburban neighborhood; it was an odd feeling, but he kept on going on his test run. Reaching the end of the line shows the end of the track, quite literally; it was just a passing loop with enough straight track to fit the railroad’s engines, and now with the test run completed, Mr. Hutton got out of Roger’s cab and came up to him.

  “You did well as usual, Roger,” Mr. Hutton smiled.

  “Proud of you, sweetie,” Lizzy smiled as well, and gave a kiss on Roger’s nose.

  Just then, a bunch of local kids who probably heard the loud whistle came up to the old Porter; they had an awed look on their faces, which was something quite interesting, and felt similar to his Edaville Railroad visit.

  “Are you that engine that blew that whistle?” a little boy asks, “You’re very loud.”

  “That’s me, I guess my single chime is quite powerful this year,” Roger told the little boy, “I’m Roger, I’m visiting from the Roger Railway?”

  “What’s that?” another little boy asks. Behind him was an older girl.

  “It’s a railway, sweetheart,” the older girl told the boy. She kissed the top of his head and hugged him closer, “When mom and dad have enough money, we could travel to it.”

  “Really?!” He asks the older girl.

  “Promise,” She smiled.

  “You’ll love it,” Roger smiled.

  “And, the tickets are cheap,” Mr. Hutton told the audience, “Everyone is welcome to the railway.”

  The locals, now adults, added to the mix and came to see what the fuss was all about. It seems like Roger’s test run seemed to attract the locals of Martinsdale. They were curious, Mr. Hutton let some folks get a tour in the cab, the old Porter felt happy for today’s test run, and now he’s excited for what Mr. Hutton and Mr. Hiatt has planned.

  The test run was quite successful, to which Roger was pleased, and after traveling back down to the engine shop, the old Porter was ready for his first excursion for his stay, officially starting his visit. With that, Mr. Hutton and Lizzy were in the engine shop to tell him and explain the excursions for the next 10 days.

  “The first one, tomorrow, will be sponsored by the Iowa Chapter of the NRHS,” Ben told Roger, who has an excited look, “The Sunday excursion will be sponsored by the Chicago and North Western; oddly enough, the trip will be the Kate Shelley Express. Then on Monday, you’ll operate a school field trip train for the St Mary’s Consolidated School before their merger. Tuesday and Wednesday are rest periods, Thursday is another NRHS trip, and Friday will be a special train for the Byron Railroad Employees and the volunteers of the Roger Railway Preservation Society. Saturday are the regular passenger trains, Sunday will be the last NRHS trip, and Tuesday will have a special triple header run for the finale of the visit.”

  “The C&NW one is special, because the railroad is donating their 0-4-0t tie plant engine for the Hutton Steam Company and Museum,” Lizzy excitedly told Roger, “There are many of these tie plant steam locomotives still operating by Class 1 railroads, and there’s one right close with us.”

  “Wow, three NRHS specials,” Roger was surprised by the trips being told by Ben, “And a special donation by a big railroad, not a bad 10 days.”

  “The Iowa Chapter wanted to have a chance to operate you since it’ll probably never happen again,” Mr. Hutton told the old Porter, “The Chicago and North Western is still quite a surprise for me when I got that telephone call, but they’re willing to sponsor an excursion, there’s still some C&NW tie plant steamers around the midwest, but slowly getting retired.”

  “The preservation movement is moving quite fast,” Roger smiled happily, “It’s an exciting year.”

  Then Lizzy came up with a rag and started cleaning the old Porter.

  “We’ll make sure to doll you up before the first excursion, sweetie,” Lizzy smiled and kissed his nose, “It’s important to look your best for these important folks.”

  The old Porter smiled.

  “I’ll do my best!” Roger exclaimed happily.

  April 16th, 1960

  The morning spring air made the steam bloom like clouds, but Roger was excited, his first passenger train on the Byron Railroad, sponsored by the Iowa Chapter of the NRHS, this special excursion would be the old Porter’s first passenger train over this line, the many members of the local chapter tried to make today’s excursion memorable and worth it, with even a barbecue lunch that will be served at noon. The Chapter members were at the engine shop yard, admiring Roger. It was a nice, beautiful day, and the old saddletank was ready to run.

  The station was built to a simple standard, but it was good station nonetheless, and that’s where the passengers would go on and disembark, the tickets for this chartered excursion were sold out, and the many passengers came to the station, it was interesting sight, a steam locomotive all the way from Pennsylvania is now operating a little line in rural Iowa.

  “There are a lot of passengers,” Roger commented.

  “Yep,” Mr. Hutton nodded, “Despite the new decade, I always keep the prices cheap for the tickets; we sold out all the excursions.”

  After the passengers got in, Roger blew his whistle, and slowly left the railway, being two miles of track meaning that the old Porter has to operate on a much slower speed, but still fast enough to operate a nice excursion, the weather was like the same yesterday and Roger knew that this excursions is going to be great, the smoke from his funnel billow out in the sky as he left the station.

  Roger arrived at the end of the line again, this time with his coaches, the whole ride was the same as yesterday, but with his coaches now, the end of the line still looks blank, the old Porter rested for a bit, the passengers got out and take some photos, it was a calm day, and Roger was happy that the Iowa Chapter of the NRHS sponsored this excursion. Ben and Lizzy got out to walk around and to stretch their legs.

  “What do you think of the railroad so far?” Roger asks his coaches.

  “It’s quite plain,” Mary told the old Porter.

  “The views are interesting,” Taylor commented.

  “It is,” Charlotte agreed.

  “It’s quaint," replied Anabel.

  “I know,” Roger smiled softly, “It’s a simple line at best, but it’s a nice railroad, and they kept it up to date.”

  Silence came, then Mary had an itch to ask.

  “How are you feeling, Roger?” She asks the old Porter.

  “For some reason…I feel…depressed,” He told the coach.

  “Depressed?” Taylor asks, “What are you depressed about?”

  “Well, I’m 80 this year,” Roger told Taylor, “I don’t know how long I could operate like this; this isn’t the 19th century anymore. I’m worried that bigger and more powerful engines are going to replace me.”

  The coaches were surprised to hear this.

  “I would never have thought I would hear you say stuff like that again,” Mary said with a shocked tone, “You know that Robert and Clair won’t replace you.”

  “I know, but with the passenger numbers growing, I can only haul you four without doubleheaders,” Roger told his coaches, “I don’t know about Clair, but Robert can haul 6 coaches, remember the summer of 1958 and 1959? He hauled 6 loaded coaches without breaking a sweat. I was very impressed and nervous.”

  The coaches could hear Roger’s worries, though this wasn’t the first time the old saddletank talked like this. It had been a while, but with the new decade and new operational changes, like getting the new Garratt locomotive, they had changed compared to almost a decade ago, when everything was so simple.

  “Oh, sweetie,” Mary smiled in her motherly tone, “While I am impressed by Robert’s hauling capabilities, and the new coaches replacing old ladies like us, I know Mr. Hutton how valuable we are, especially our heritage.”

  “He can’t get rid of us now!” Taylor laughed.

  “We are the pride of the Roger Railway!” Charlotte smiled happily.

  “Working with you and traveling with you is always a blast,” Anabel calmly smiled.

  Roger smiled, he loves his coaches, they've been with him throughout the years, 80 years and going, while yes, they are old, not as modern or young compared to the other coaches and engines, but they have each other, and their heritage is the reason why they kept on going.

  After the passengers got some relaxation time, they went back into the coaches. Ben came up to the old Porter and uncoupled him, and after that, he and Lizzy got into Roger’s cab, to which he blew his whistle, and went backwards around the train, coupling behind Charlotte. He blew his whistle once more and left the end of the line, going back to the station. He could say that the passenger excursion is going great.

  April 22nd, 1960

  It’s been a successful 6 days on the Byron Railroad. Roger has pulled many excursions throughout his stay, and the employees were quite impressed with his hard work. The Chicago and North Western excursion was an interesting one, not only because of the donation of their tie plant steam locomotive, but also because of the donation of the railroad ties and track that was told by a worker after the excursion. Mr Hutton was planning to ask the Pennsylvania Railroad if they had any abandoned ties and track, but it seems like he already took that part off the list.

  The employees were also quite impressed with the excursion trains, the local school was delighted to have an enjoyable field trip before their merger, and so far, the railroad was impressed with Roger and his team. During this Employee and Volunteer Appreciation Special, the old saddletank is permitted to use his coaches instead of the railroad’s impressive scratch-built passenger cars. The volunteers of the Roger Railway Preservation Society were given invitations months in advance, and they were able to come to the rural railroad, same with the Byron Railroad employees.

  “We’re having a big party,” Mr. Hutton smiled, “It’s been a good visit so far.”

  “Not too bad for a 10-day visit,” Roger joked, “I’m glad that I’m able to use my coaches.”

  “I’m glad too,” Mr. Hutton smiled, “No offense to Byron and his coaches, but having your coaches that define your heritage is something special.”

  “It is,” Roger agreed, “Though it’s not a bad railway.”

  “I agree with that,” Lizzy nodded in agreement, “It has a calm atmosphere, despite the ruralness, it’s a charming little railway.”

  Roger agreed, the volunteers and employees arrived at the stations, and with the many people seen here, it was going to be a loaded passenger train. The old Porter could see which person was a Preservation Society member and volunteer. The railroad has many T-shirts that are for the members to wear, from children's size to adult size. They were simple, really, with a small art of Roger, and a text that says ‘Roger Railway Preservation Society’, with a small bottom text that says, ‘Est in 1950’, simple, but tells a great story.

  The volunteers and employees thank Roger as they got onto the train, the weather was nice out, and being on a Friday, meaning that the weekend will be busy, after getting into the coaches, the old Porter blew his whistle before slowly leaving the station, with a train full of happy volunteers and employees of the Byron Railroad, this visit was going great so far.

  The whole run went extremely well, with the volunteers enjoying the rural beauty of the Iowa countryside, with the Byron Railroad employees enjoying a nice relaxation, Roger was doing well, his first mixture of volunteers and paid staff appreciation train is doing quite well, and the old Porter is wondering if this type of train will happen on the Roger Railway, though, the thought stop at Roger arrived at the end of the track, completing the first part of the run.

  “The Byron Railroad employees told us that you’re a great engine, Roger,” Mr. Hutton smiled at the old Porter, “They told me that you’re the greatest steam locomotive that ever ran on this track ever since the railroad’s own engines, in terms of mechanical performance.”

  “Wow,” Roger beamed, “I’m honored. It seems like everything is doing so well.”

  “With this passenger train success, and getting the rails and ties for the Hutton Steam Company, this year so far is doing great,” Lizzy smiled, “The museum plan is doing so well.”

  “How far have you funded?” Roger asks.

  “About 50k,” Ben told the old Porter, “The NRHS and the American Rail Society have given the project 10k each, mostly since the process has been doing well, and the Narrow Gauge Railway Society donated around 22,000 pounds, which is around 30k in American conversion. This helps us at least to buy tracks and build infrastructure, but to convince folks to ride the train and donate, I decided to open it this year, though the engine shop is just an airplane hangar.”

  “We got a good price for a used one for two,” Lizzy told Roger, “One will be an engine shed, one will be the museum shed, temporary until we build both buildings.”

  “Sounds like the museum is going very strong,” Roger smiled, “I remember almost 2 years ago that you announced that you’re planning to open a museum, look at now.”

  “It’s flowing nicely like a free river from a dam,” Mr. Hutton smiled, “Hopefully, before the summer ends.”

  After saying that, Mr. Hutton looked at the distance, maybe the future, but what’s important currently is taking the train back to the station. Roger was uncoupled from the train and moved through the passing loop to be coupled up to Charlotte, going cab first. After the passengers got into the train, the old saddletank blew his whistle before leaving the station, another successful excursion.

  April 26th, 1960

  After 10 days of operating this narrow gauge railroad, the 26th was the last day of Roger's visit to this line. The railroad marked this special day with a triple header with the railroad’s own engines, though in the morning, Roger was awake with a fire ready for some fresh coal. Still, the two engines next to him didn’t feel that good.

  “You two look sick,” Roger said as look at the two engines.

  “My boiler feels like shit,” Manford groans, “It’s like those food poisons that our staff get.”

  “My front trailing truck feels like burning fires of hell,” Byron grumbled, “It was burning like shit yesterday.”

  That wasn’t a good sign, boiler troubles and bearing problems. Roger remembered that 2102 would tell the old Porter about his bearing issue, which can overheat and cause the engine to feel a burning sensation. Depending on the engine, it’s the worst feeling ever. Boiler trouble is also another problem, especially for an old engine like Roger's. Although even with good maintenance, boiler illness is akin to a stomachache, and it’s mostly something that passes by, it's different from all other engines, but it’s not a pleasant experience altogether.

  Roger was quite surprised. He remembered the excursion runs on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, that they were operating well, no problems, though it must’ve crept last night, since the shop crew from the two engines were working on the engines all night, making it hard for the old Porter to sleep, though that would’ve explained their tired, grumpy looks.

  “It seems like you have a failed bearing,” the shop staff told Byron, “Luckily, these problems are an easy fix, but it’ll take a day or two, but your brother…I hate to be that kind of person who brings bad news, but your brother would need a boiler overhaul.”

  “Shit,” Manford groaned, “And during the last day of your visit.”

  “Passengers are excited for the last day, and now two of us are out of service,” Byron sighed, annoyingly.

  “I could handle the passenger trains,” Roger told the two brothers.

  Manford looked at the old Porter.

  “Are you sure?” He asks, “It’s pretty demanding service.”

  “Manford, remember his old railway, he was the only one operating for over 70 years,” Byron told his brother, “I have trust in faith that he’ll give our passengers one last hurrah before leaving our railroad on a high note.”

  Manford looked at his Byon, then at Roger. He looked out of the open shop door, then at Roger. He smiled.

  “We’re at your service,” Manford smiled at the old Porter.

  Roger smiled as well.

  “I’ll do my best!” He told the two engines.

  After the shop crew told Byron that his engines needed repairs, and one of them possibly needed an overhaul, after talking to Mr. Hutton, Lizzy, and Roger as well, it was decided to operate the old Porter on the passenger trains, which means that special triple header special is cancelled, which was saddening to the people of the the Roger Railway Preservation Society and the Byron Railroad, but these incidents happened, and sometimes, changes can happen to the last minute, but this is a good thing as well, since this is a good opportunity for the employees of the Byron Railroad have a chance to see how the Roger Railway Preservation Society operates their trains.

  Roger quickly coupled up to his coaches, and left the yard and backed into the station, the passengers were quite shock to see the old Porter this out early, mostly because they were expecting to see him during the afternoon, Roger told the passengers about what happened, and they were surprised, but also saddened for the two engines, the old Porter told the passengers that he’ll be operating the regular trains, as a last hurrah before he leaves the railroad, which they also understand.

  “This is exciting,” Mary smiled.

  “I agree, sis,” Charlotte agreed with her sister.

  “A full train of happy passengers!” Anabel grinned.

  The passengers quickly got into the passenger coaches and were also quite excited. Mr. Hutton gave the Byron Railroad conductors flyers of the Roger Railway as a way to promote the railway, with permission from Byrin Haitt. Roger blew his whistle and slowly left the station. The railfans who didn’t get to be on the train were taking photos; this was a rare moment, but also an exciting one. The old Porter knew that this operation would go down in history, like the other adventures that he had; this was a moment for new memories.

  Roger operate the regular passenger trains for a whole day, this was tiring work, but not the first, with news of the the two engines of the Byron Railroad were out of service, and another steam locomotive is going to pull the passenger trains, everyone flocked to the railroad to see Roger, which he was surprised to see so many passengers at the railroad, he would never thought like a simple engine switch can cause so much attention compared back to his old railway, where this stuff is common, Mr. Hutton have to check on Roger to make sure he wasn’t overdoing it, but he did quite well. At the station, in the afternoon, Mr. Hutton was very pleased with the old Porter.

  “The passengers are very happy, and we did ourselves quite well out there,” He happily told the old Porter, “With the ticket sales, it’s going to help the two back in service.”

  “I’m pleased,” Roger smiled, “I’m glad to do a nice job, and visiting here was a great start to the year.”

  “Well, with this, we may get more passengers on our own railway,” Mr. Hutton told the old Porter, “I think this decade will be our golden year.”

  “Maybe,” Roger smiled.

  After the last passenger got out of Mary, the old Porter pushed his coaches to the passenger car shed, uncoupled, and went back to the yard. At the yard, everyone cheered for Roger and his team. Mr. Hiatt came up to Roger with a big smile on his face.

  “I remember when I first visit your railway,” Mr. Hiatt said as he he smiled at the team, “It was after the war, and I got a ticket to ride the summer tourist train, and seeing you operating on your little line has inspired me to create my own railroad, I’m happy that you helped up, and a thank you for visiting our railway.”

  Roger smiled.

  “I’m happy too,” the old Porter smiled, “This railway is simple, but quite enjoyable.”

  Mr. Hiatt turned to Mr. Hutton.

  “Ben, what you have done for the last decade made me impressive, and now seeing your engine in the flesh has made me change my look for two foot gauge steam locomotives like Roger,” Mr. Hiatt said as he shook Mr. Hutton’s hand, “And I’m happy to say that you and your crew are welcome anytime to our railroad, you really operate such a wonderful engine.”

  Mr. Hutton also beamed happily.

  “You’ll keep half of the profits from today’s run to help you build your museum,” Mr. Hiatt added, “Someone like you who loves preservation needs the funding to do so.”

  Roger blew his whistle as a salute, despite what happened this morning, despite what happened this morning, the old Porter knew that he and crew could do it, and do it so well.

  April 27th, 1960

  Roger was lifted onto the lowboy trailer. He was going home now, after 10 days, and being on this railroad had changed the old Porter in a good way. The Byron Railroad employees and locals were in the yard, saying goodbye to the old Porter.

  “Come back soon!” a young girl shouted.

  “We’ll visit your railway and tell our friends about it!” a young boy also shouted.

  “Thank you, Roger, for visiting!” Byron, the 2-6-0, cried out, “You really changed our life!”

  “Please don’t forget us!” Manford cried out.

  Roger could feel tears coming out of his eyes.

  “Don’t forget me as well!” Roger happily cried out, “I’ll come back someday!”

  With that, the lowboy backed onto the road and started to leave. The old Porter could see the railroad in the distance, disappearing as the truck moved further away. Roger could feel the warmth in his boiler; he knew that the memories wouldn’t be forgotten.