Click on an image to play the video clip. All require RealPlayer. Best if you have a high
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Old Wakarusa Railroad
LaPorte County Historical Steam Society
Indianapolis Zoo Train
Little A-Merrick-A Railroad
Riverside and Great Northern
Milwaukee Zoo Railroad
Sandwich, IL
Wabash, Frisco and Pacific
Casey Jones Village

Old Wakarusa Railroad

Please Note:

The owner of the Come & Dine Restaurant and the Old Wakarusa Railroad, Delton Schrock, died on May 2, 2001 at age 41. He is survived by a wife and 5 daughters.

As a result, the steam engine has been sold and is now at the Riverside and Great Northern in Wisconsin.

The Old Wakarusa Railroad was located at the Come-And-Dine Restaurant in Wakarusa, IN. The engines that have run there include steam engine 98 that was built by the Sandly Locomotive Works in Wisconsin for the Hoot Toot & Wistle in Elgin, IL and a diesel that was built in the Old Wakarusa Shops from parts supplied by the Little A-Merrick-A shops.

I spent several years working as an engineer at the Old Wakarusa Railroad. Here are some clips from those years. Click on the image to play the clip.

• Shows the train leaving the station. (0:57)
• Shows the train crossing one of the bridges. (0:35)
• Shows the train comming around a curve and across the second crossing. (1:08)
• Shows me at the throttle of old 98. Filmed by Tim Bainter. (2:53)
• Shows the train leaving the station and climbing the first hill. (1:53)
• Shows the train leaving the farm stop and going into the tunnel. (1:58)
• Shows the diesel engine at the Old Wakarusa Railroad. (1:29)
• A look at the Chistmas Train running at night. (3:14)
• Another look at the Winter Wonderland train running at night. (5:52)
• Engine 98 fresh from a rebuild and paint job in 1997. (2:16)
• A video showing a complete trip arount the track. (9:57)
• This is part of a wedding video made at the Old Wakarusa Railroad, I'm playing Engineer Casey. The film was made by my friend Tim Bainter who was the manager of the railroad at the time. (3:00)
• On June 14, 2000 the railroad was hit with strong winds that blew over the train. There were no injuries since no one was on the train at the time and only minor damage to the engine. Here is some video by Tim Bainter showing them re-railing the train. (10:05)

LaPorte County Historical Steam Society

The LaPorte County Historical Steam Society is located in Hesston, IN. They have a dual gauge 3'/2' railroad, a 14" gauge live steam railroad, and a 7 1/2" gauge railroad. In addition, they have live steam tractors, cranes, and a saw mill. All are in operation during their annual steam show on Labor Day weekend.

• A look at 2 foot, 14 inch and 7 1/2 inch gauge trains running. (7:01)
• Video from the annual Labor Day Steam Show in 1990. Shows 2 foot, 14", 7 1/2" gauge trains as well as the steam powered sawmill and steam traction engines. Filmed by Tim Bainter. (14:04)

Indianapolis Zoo Train

A trip on the Indianapolis Zoo Train. (6:55)

Little A-Merrick-A Railroad

Little A-Merrick-A is located in Marshall, WI. Along with a number of amusement rides, they have a 16" gauge railroad. Recently, they built a 4-6-2 engine in their shops.

• A look at the Christmas tree trains at Little-A-Merrick-A in Marshall, WI. Video by Tim Bainter. (18:32)
• A look at the new 4-6-2 built for Little A-Merrick-A in Marshall, WI. Video by Tim Bainter. (5:05)

Riverside and Great Northern

The Riverside and Great Northern Railroad is located at the site of the old Sandly Light Railway Equipment Works as a demonstration of their equipment. After Sandly's closed, the railroad was preserved by a local group.

Some footage from Tim Bainter's "Small Gauge" video of the Riverside and Great Northern Railroad at Wisconsin Dells (8:48)

Milwaukee Zoo Railroad

The Milwaukee Zoo railroad is a 15" gauge railroad with equipment from the Sandly Light Railway Equiptment Works. The zoo train runs from April to October, weather permitting.

A look at the Milwaukee Zoo railroad. Video by Tim Bainter. (2:44)

Sandwich, IL

Augie Otto built a 15" gauge CB&Q Hudson engine. This engine is now located at the fairgrounds at Sandwich, IL and runs every year during the fair.

Augie Otto's 15" CB&Q Hudson live steam engine at the fairgrounds in Sandwich, IL. Video by Tim Bainter. (7:27)

Wabash, Frisco and Pacific

The Wabash, Frisco & Pacific is a 12" gauge railroad in Glencoe, MO near St. Louis and operates from May through October.

The Wabash, Frisco and Pacific 12" gauge railroad. Video by Tim Bainter (6:02)

Casey Jones Village

Casey Jones Village in Jackson, TN has a 1/4 mile ride on an park train. If anyone can identify who made this train, please let me know. At last report, this train has been sold and is no longer at the Casey Jones Village.

The park train at the Casey Jones Village. (7:01)