News from Flying Yankee Restoration Group, Inc.

(Editors Note) During this past Winter I was fortunate to make the acquaintance of Dr. Roger Temple and his wife of 50+ years. Mrs. Temple was generous enough to share the following story with us and her fond memories of the Flying Yankee and what it meant to them both and their courtship. They both visited and joined us at the Flying Yankee Railfest in June and look forward to riding the Yankee once again. Maybe Dr. Temple will enjoy this rather than "thumbing" back from Vermont. Truly quite a memorable story. Thank you Mrs. Temple for sharing with us. All of us wish you and Dr. Temple (particularly on his 3rd? retirement). Special thanks from me as well for all your care and patience.

Thank you so much for sharing all the material and history of the Flying Yankee or the Budliner as we always called it.

What joy I had seeing the wonderful pictures of the train itself as well as the Greenfield, MA train station. The station was a lovely old typical station with rows of dark wooden seats that were very firm if you had to wait long for someone to pick you up after your train ride from North Station in Boston. The station also had a stately clock tower that rose like a sentinel above the station. However, the station and all its antiquity is long gone. I do remember when it was leveled but not the year.

Reading about the history and restoration of the Budliner warmed my heart and brought back such wonderful memories. The Budliner was such an important part of my life from 1953 through 1956. I was in school in Boston and my boyfriend, Roger, who now is my husband of fifty three years, was in college in Middlebury VT. That is a long distance apart even today. Long distant "courting" was very difficult. As a student nurse with varying schedules it was hard to find free weekends. However, if one is determined and persistent it can be done. Many trains were nearly missed in Boston. The Budliner took approximately two hours with speed and comfort to arrive in Greenfield while the old coach train, called the milk train, took about four hours. Friday nights the train would always be packed with young people, therefore, many of us late boarders would spend much of the trip in the isle sitting on our upright suitcases. I made this trip at least once a month. The Budliner would arrive in Greenfield around six in the evening. Middlebury was about one hundred and ten miles from Greenfield. Roger would "bum" home Friday afternoons. Depending on how the 'pick ups' were, it usually took him about four hours to make the trip. The weekends went too quickly, of course. On Sunday it would be time to part ways. Roger would take the bus back to Vermont and I would take the train back to Boston. However, it was all worth it and the Budliner helped make it possible.

We are both pleased that there is such interest in the restoration of 'our train', and hope to actually see it in the near future.

Thank you again for making us both aware of this special and worthwhile restoration project which has also brought back such happy memories to the both of us.

Jean Coombs Temple/Dr. Roger Temple