Take a look at the Virginia Museum of Transportation!
October 2014
Saturday, October 18 and
Sunday, October 19
at the VMT!

Let's get excited about passenger rail
service returning to Roanoke in 2017!
The Amtrak Exhibit Train will have
you longing for travel by rail.


Also, see the Norfolk Southern Exhibit Car!
Sit in the engineer's seat and
see what it's like to operate a diesel locomotive.

Reduced admission: $5 per person.
Museum members free.
Infants 2 and under free.
NORFOLK SOUTHERN EMPLOYEES FREE!

Giveaways! Activities for the kids.
Fun for the whole family!


Generously sponsored by the
Norfolk Southern Corporation!


The Signal and Horn Displays on the
Amtrak Exhibit Train



VMT NEWS
SAVE THE DATE!


 
Candy Cane Express

Saturday, December 6 and
Sunday, December 7

The most affordable (and awesome!) family holiday event in the Roanoke Valley. TRAIN RIDES! Take your own picture with Santa. Make an ornament for your holiday tree. Hear stories about life in the North Pole from Evvy the Elf. Enjoy a special program in our N&W Safety Car Theater presented by the Roanoke County Children's Library. 
Exclusive 611 Merchandise available in our Museum Store! 

Come see the VMT Booth at the
Virginia Science Festival on Saturday, October 11!


The Virginia Museum of Transportation is a proud participant in the Virginia Science Festival October 4 - 11 throughout Virginia.

On Saturday, October 11, the VMT will display Transportation Exploration: Fossil Fuels and States of Matter at our booth in the Wells Fargo Plaza in downtown Roanoke.  Through fun hands-on lessons, kids will learn how fossil fuels and the three states of matter -- solids, liquids and gases -- are important to transportation. They'll observe changes in states of matter, touch coal, shoot rockets, splash in water, observe liquid fossil fuels, and much more.

Answer a question correctly and earn a FREE child's admission
to the Museum.  

 

Visit the VMT booth and come away with a better understanding of the changes in states of matter and how they are important in fueling steam engines, automobiles, planes, and rockets.

 


Roanoke Valley Mustang Club donates
time and money to keep the
Advance Auto Parts
Automotive Gallery beautiful!

On September 20, the Roanoke Valley Mustang Club roared into the Virginia Museum of Transportation's Advance Auto Parts Automotive Gallery for a morning of shining cars. The group also made a generous donation to the Virginia Museum of Transportation so we can develop new exhibits in the Gallery.

The Roanoke Valley Mustang Club is a group of Mustang-loving enthusiasts who work to preserve and celebrate this all-American brand of automobiles.

The club meets monthly and is open to everyone who loves Mustangs. Car ownership is not required! Thank you for spending your day with us, Roanoke Valley Mustang Club!




 
 
611 Restoration almost halfway complete 
 
The Virginia Museum of Transportation and the Fire Up 611! Committee are pleased to report that the restoration of the Norfolk & Western Class J 611 Steam Passenger Locomotive is approximately 45 percent complete.

"We are pleased with the professionalism, technical expertise and passion our mechanical team and volunteers are bringing to this project," says Beverly T. Fitzpatrick, Jr., executive director of the Virginia Museum of Transportation.

On September 30, Wick Moorman, Chairman and CEO of Norfolk Southern got a close up look at the 611 restoration. "We were happy to host Mr. Moorman and let him see the progress our team has made to this point," Bev says. "We appreciate his support and dedication to this project."

Busy weeks ahead  

In the next few weeks, the mechanical team, led by Scott Lindsay and Tom Mayer of Steam Operations Corp., will install a new rear flue sheet and finish installing the stay bolt caps. Bob Yuill is continuing the repairs to the superheater units. The air compressors are close to being reassembled and the feed water systems are being inspected and made road ready. Work also continues on 611's tender. Within the next few weeks, the tender's stoker screw and tender deck will be made as good as new.  

611 Restoration Tours continue at the  
North Carolina Transportation Museum in Spencer, North Carolina
 
The behind-the-scenes tours begin with a presentation of the locomotive's history and restoration, and includes a walking tour to see the engine's progress close-up. Please wear closed toe shoes to visit 611! Tours are led by Preston Claytor, chairman of the Fire Up 611 committee, or other committee members who are experts in the history and technology of this iconic locomotive!

Tours are offered every Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 1:30 pm. Some blackout dates apply. Tours are limited to 30 participants.  
 
For more information and to order tickets in advance, visit the North Carolina Transportation Museum.



Become a member of the Virginia Museum of Transportation!


The Virginia Museum of Transportation offers the most affordable memberships in the Roanoke Valley. For just $50 per year, a family membership offers free admission year-round (including special events), discounts in the Museum Store (online too!), reduced prices for our popular Wings & Wheels Summer Camp programs and birthday parties.

Any Museum Member can purchase Anybody Passes -- 10 passes for just $20 -- to bring extended family, friends, neighbors -- anybody! -- at a deep discount.

Not a Museum Member? Get on board and join today! You're already a Museum Member? Tell your friends about memberships at the VMT!

Happenings: Road. Rail. Air.      

October 3 - 10: C&O Heritage Society: Archives Work Session.

October 9 - 12:
Norfolk & Western Historical Society: Archives Work Session. 

October 11-12: Appomattox Railroad Festival: A family-friendly festival that commemorates the Norfolk & Western Railroad's donation of the Appomattox Depot to the Town of Appomattox in 1973. The two-day festival includes a parade, arts & crafts vendors, live bands, train exhibits, a fine art show, fireworks, food and activities for the entire family.
 
October 18: Norfolk & Western Historical Society: GOB Work Session.

October 18: Advance Auto Parts Pit Stop Cruise-In.
Festivities kick off at 4 pm and end around 8 pm. Cool cars, great people and good music. FREE! Located at the Advance Auto Parts Store Support Center Parking Lot, 5008 Airport Road, Roanoke, VA 24012.

Monthly - Second and Fourth Thursdays at 7 pm: The International Plastic Modelers' Society, Roanoke Valley Chapter hosts building and business meetings at the Museum each month, and competes in area shows. The entrance is on the back of the Museum just off the Rail Walk and around the corner from the Jupiter Rocket.   
 
Weekly - Tuesdays:  The Roanoke Valley Model Engineers work on their ON30, HO, Lionel and N scale layouts each week in the basement of the Museum from 6:30 to 8 pm. The entrance is downstairs at the back of the Museum around the corner from the Jupiter Rocket. The club also welcomes younger hobbyists ages 8 - 18 to learn about model railroading. New members welcome!   
 
Monthly - Second Wednesday:  Blue Ridge Chapter, National Railway Historical Society meets at Charley's Restaurant, 707 Graves Mills Road, Lynchburg, VA. Dinner begins at 6 pm. Official chapter meeting begins at 7:30 pm.
 
Monthly - Third Thursday: Roanoke Chapter, National Railway Historical Society meets in the auditorium at the O. Winston Link Museum at 7:30 pm.
 
For more information about events, attractions, and lodging in and around the region, visit the Roanoke Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau.     
 
Virginia Museum of Transportation, Inc. 
540-342-5670 | http://www.vmt.org
303 Norfolk Ave
Roanoke, VA 24016

 � Virginia Museum of Transportation, Inc. 2014. All Rights Reserved.