Roanoke Welcomes Proud Locomotive’s Return
They waited. And, they waited a little longer.
As most shielded their eyes as they gazed down the track, everyone was looking and listening for the first clue. The powerful chug, the distinctive whistle or the signature plume of smoke.
Saturday afternoon was all about getting an unforgettable glimpse of the newly restored Norfolk & Western Class J 611 steam locomotive as it made its 200-mile trip from Spencer, North Carolina into downtown Roanoke where thousands waited patiently.
And, if you thought you might avoid the throng in and around downtown by heading to a more remote spot on the route, forget it. Train lovers lined the tracks in virtually every accessible spot.
Along Route 460, east of Roanoke, cars were lined up bumper-to-bumper along the shoulder as viewers scrambled across fields to get a 60-second glimpse of the train where the tracks curved left before heading into the home stretch to Roanoke.
A short distance away, a quarter-mile off 460 at the Webster crossing, fans relaxed in lawn chairs, cars and even a golf cart as the locomotive’s pass came closer. Many had been there for over three hours, ready with cameras, iPads, cell phones and video recorders on tripods. Anything to capture the moment.
High above the crossing hundreds lined the Blue Ridge Parkway bridge that spans the tracks below.
One waiting with anticipation was A.G. Jayne, a retired N&W steam locomotive engineer who had come to see the Queen of his railroad days rumble down the long straightaway past the blinking, lowered railroad gates at Webster.
Jayne, now 80, told story after story about the heyday of steam-powered railroading at N&W.
“I was among the last engineers to be at the throttle of N&W’s steam locomotives before they were retired from service,” Jayne said. “The grades around this part of Virginia were something else. We had places where there were two engines pulling and two more at the rear, pushing. Sometimes, that still wasn’t enough. We’d finally back the train back down the grade and unhook enough cars to get the cars over the top in groups.”
Jayne recalled the signature lines in the 50s that serviced Roanoke, with fancy names such as ‘Shenandoah’ and ‘Pumpkin Vine’. Those days of railroading were often long and difficult.
“We could work 16 straight hours in those days and that usually meant I worked 16 straight hours,” Jayne recalled with a chuckle. “Eventually, they dropped it to 14 hours, then 12. That’s where it is today. And, that 16 hour shift was strictly enforced. When your 16 hours were up, the train was stopped no matter where you were. If it was in the middle of this crossing, that’s where it stayed until they got someone else to take over.”
Numerous people at the Webster crossing kept others informed of the train’s location as the arrival drew closer.
“She’s being held in Lynchburg until a freight train passes,” one man shouted. Later, another reported, “She’s passing through Forest, 20 more minutes.”
Around 4:20 the crowd scrambled into place as the engine came into sight far down the track. The red lights started blinking and the gates lowered as the 611, pulling 16 cars from various railroads throughout the United States indicative of passenger service, rolled by. The steam puffing from the smokestack, the sleek and shiny engine with the bright headlight, and a select group of passengers waving from opened windows made it a memory worth the wait for everyone.
Twenty minutes later, the 611 passed by the East End Shops where it had rolled into service exactly 65 years and one day before. One of 14 Class J locomotives produced, the 611 is the only one left.
A well-deserved homecoming for “The Spirit of Roanoke.”
Bill Turner