Hall of Honor
Name |
Birth/Death Dates |
Membership Years |
Office Held/Miscellaneous |
| Ames, Howard |
07/16/1903 to 03/20/1986 |
Born in Wilmington, Delaware the son of Howard
Stillman and Emily (Butcher) Ames. Married Ruth Lykens on November 28, 1928 . Yardmaster, Altoona Classification Yard PRR, PCRR |
|
Amigh, Carl J. |
1936 to 1995 | Tower Operator, PRR, PCRR, Conrail Altoona Area | |
Amigh, James E. |
03/02/1912 to 12/11/1989 | ||
Arthur, Harry |
03/05/1900 to 11/28/1988 | ||
Arthur, Pearl |
08/20/1901 to 03/01/1997 | ||
Beefelt, Gary |
08/30/1941 to 11/17/1995 | Vice President | |
Behe, David |
11/3/36 to 7/23/24 | Member; David G. Behe graduated from Altoona Catholic High in 1954. He entered the United States Navy and proudly served his country aboard the U.S.S. Edisto where he traveled throughout the Arctic Circle. Upon his return home, he began working for Stockdale Mine Supply of Punxsutawney. David is mostly known for his 30-year career where he retired as a regional sales representative for U.S. Tobacco, Inc. Post retirement, David worked as a delivery driver for NAPA Auto Parts, a driver for Blair Senior Services, and lastly as a staffer for Senator Robert Jubelirer. David also proudly served his community for 18 years as a volunteer and chairman for the Altoona Fire Civil Service Commission. He is survived by three brothers: John Michael (Mick), Daniel, and Bernard; wife Christine; four sons: Christopher, Dennis, Brian, and Timothy. | |
| Briggs, Sherman | 10/31/1901 to 12/31/1988 |
Born in Bellwood,
The son of Brice Briggs. & Martha E. (Shields) Ames. Married 1st to Tressa K. Taylor in New
Florence, Pa. on June 23, 1923:
2nd marriage Hulda L. Griffith. he died in Tyrone, PA |
|
| Briggs, Hulda L. | 06/23/1912 to 05/18/1998 | ||
Burket, William E. |
12/24/1936 to 12/11/2017 | Chapter Member. | |
Burket, Harley Wayne. |
4/12/39 to 1/10/19 | Harley was a founding member of the Horseshoe Curve Chapter NRHS. He retired from Conrail as Foreman of the Materials Department. Harley and his son Kevin had a mobile HO scale train layout which they showed at many events in the area. | |
Burrows, Paul |
09/14/1914 to 01/22/1997 | Former steam locomotive engineer. | |
Campbell, Paul F. |
3/6/46 to 8/28/22 | Member | |
| Charlesworth, Max G. | 02/13/1912 to 03/24/1998 |
||
| Detrich, Paul | 08/28/1905 to 08/14/1987 |
Clerk, PRR, East Altoona Stores Dept | |
| Detrich, Mary H. |
07/06/1906 to 05/27/1995 |
||
| Garvin, Raymond G. | unknown to 10/16/1982 | 01/1968 to | Chairperson, Railroad Museum
Development Committee |
| Garvin, Elizabeth | 08/27/1923 to 01/10/2001 | 01/1968 to | |
| Gorsuch, Charles | 05/1923 to 03/08/2001 | Member of the Chapter and the Life Member of the Altoona Railroaders Memorial Museum | |
| Gundel, Ralph M. | 02/26/1921 to 08/14/1992 |
1st Chapter V.P.; Clerk, PRR, PCRR, Conrail - Trainmasters Dept | |
Hammond, Jeannie |
08/20/1951 to 01/22/1996 | Vice-President | |
Hollobaugh, Thomas W. |
02/27/1915 to 01/25/1997 | Railroad employee, Altoona Works; Accomplished railroad artist. | |
Hommer, Roy |
1920 to 1996 |
||
Hunt, Roy C. |
08/22/1927 to 02/15/1998 | Engineer, Everett Railroad Company. | |
Kelchner III, George C. |
7/8/42 to 11/24/19 | Kelchner was not a member of our NRHS Chapter but he certainly had roots in the beginning of that Chapter and the Altoona Railroader’s Memorial Museum. Mr. Kelchner graduated from Altoona High School in 1960 and Penn State in 1964 with a degree in His tory. He took a job as Director of the Blair County Tourist and Convention Bureau. In 1965, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania was looking for a site for the state railroad museum and he tried to get it located here in Altoona. That attempt was unsuccessful and it was built in Lancaster instead. In an attempt to built a museum in Altoona, Mr. Kelchner put a small ad in the Altoona Mirror inviting people interested in doing this to a meeting. Six people showed up for that meeting, mainly from a group called the Altoona Railway Museum Club. That group eventually became the Horseshoe Curve Chapter of NRHS and in 1967 Mr. Raymond Garvin came to Altoona to replace Mr. Kelchner as head of the Blair County Tourist and Convention Bureau. Mr. Kelchner continued to work in Altoona at Curry Cannon & Company and eventually Sky Bros. Later in life, he worked for Kraft Foods of Pittsburgh. Upon retirement he moved back to Altoona. Had it not been for him, perhaps we would not have a museum or a chapter here in Altoona. | |
Mangiancarne, Henry |
10/10/1911 to 05/02/1993 | Conductor, PRR Passenger Operations from altoona | |
| Nail, Clyde | 11/01/1933 to 10/10/1998 |
||
| Oessenich, Frank | 03/21/1934 to 07/1/2004 | ||
| Price, Barbara "Bobbie Jo" | 04/13/1957 to 01/10/2018 |
Chapter Member; Life member of the Altoona Railroaders Memorial Museum; Spouse of Gary Price | |
| Price, Roy G. | 10/25/1923 to 08/29/1989 |
K-4 Project Engineer, 1986 | |
Reese, Wayne T. (Tim) |
08/05/1940 to 01/17/1992 | Chief Mechanical Officer | |
Seidel, David W. |
01/04/1938 to 03/11/2022 | Charter member to 2022 | He was employed by the Pennsylvania Railroad in its last 2 years of operation until 1968, which confirmed his life-long interest in railroad history. He became a founding member of the Altoona Railway Museum Club, Horseshoe Curve Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society (serving as Chapter Historian) and the Railroaders Memorial Museum. He maintained an active association in these interests during his lifetime. David was an active member of the Blair County Historical Society, from whom he received “The 2017 Lifetime Achievement Award: Railroad and County Historian,” Blair County Genealogical Society, Bellwood Historical Society, Tyrone Historical Society, and Pennsylvania Railroad Technical & Historical Society. In addition, he authored the following histories: “Horseshoe Curve” and “Altoona-Post Card History Series”; and was co-author with friend, Leonard E. Alwine of “Altoona & Logan Valley Electric Railway.” He consulted on production of a DVD about the Altoona & Logan Valley Electric Railway. He particularly enjoyed volunteering at the Railroaders Memorial Museum. |
Seidel, William J. |
08/02/1914 to 12/03/1993 | Former Car Repairman/Machinist Altoona Works | |
| Seidel, Catherine Venance (Maricq) | 09/03/1914 to 03/23/2008 | Husband: William J. Seidel; sister and brother-in-law: Bernice M. “Babe” Wahl and Joseph F. Wahl; niece: Mary Jo Wahl; son: David Seidel; Grandson: Christopher Behe; Son in law: David Behe | |
| Speck, Robert L. "Bob" | 12/3/42 to 12/4/18 | Retired as a Supervisor for Amtrak in Washington D.C. He had also worked for Conrail. | |
| Smay, Robert E | 07/05/1939 to 11/06/2004 | Secretary | |
Thompson, Patricia L. |
10/01/1938 to 06/03/1991 | Secretary | |
Vauclain, Charles |
04/15/1905 to 02/03/1977 | Descendant of Baldwin Locomotive's Samuel Vauclain | |
Vauclain, Letha |
07/03/1909 to 06/12/1996 | ||
Wahl, Bernice Mary (Babe) |
02/02/1916 to 02/08/1994 | Charter member and energetic supporter of early Chapter activities. | |
| Wahl, Joseph F. | 06/03/1914 to 07/29/2007 | Charter member; Exhibit Builder. Model Railroad Builder. History enthusiast. | |
| Wahl, Mary Josephine | 2/13/1941 to 7/31/2003 | 01/68 to 07/31/03 | A native of Altoona, PA, Mary Jo had resided in Albany for 27 years. Founding member of The Altoona Railway Museum Club, 1965-1968
Founding member of the Horseshoe Curve Chapter,1968 to 07-2003 Founding member of the Altoona Railroader's Memorial Museum ARMM Board of Directors 1972 - 1976 |
Westbrook, Paul W. |
01/27/1919 to 01/30/1994 | President | |
| Wolf, Arlington I. (ARLEY) | 03/18/1910 to 04/09/1989 |
Born in Wolfsburg, Pa. on March 18, 1910 the son of Daniel and Hester (Harclerode) Wolf;
Married Mabel Lingenfelter on Jan. 29, 1927 in Cumberland, Md. |
|
| Wolfe, M. Mabel |
05/23/1909 to 09/05/2000 |
||
| Wright, Howard E. |
unknown |
Broadcast journalism cinema photographer for Altoona CBS affiliate in television. Producer of many documentary films now in the Chapter's Library. |
