We went next to the railroad bridge over the highway.
Reverse 1 at MP 29.5 at the railroad bridge over the highway.
Photo Runby 1.
The photo line here,
Reverse move 2.
Photo Runby 2.
The sky before we left for Ludlow.
The Rutland Railroad Ludlow station built in 1887.
Reverse move at Ludlow.
Ludlow photo runby.
They spotted the passenger cars then cut off the freight cars into the siding here.
Ludlow station.
We formed a photo line at the Bridge Street Rutland Railroad bridge and waited for the RS-1 to return.
Photo runby at the bridge.
Our train was now ready reverse to the Luzenac Talc Mine at MP 25.47 so we all reboarded.
Here we are leaving the Luzenac Talc Mine before running to Cuttingsville for the final posed pictures of the trip.
The rear of the train at Cuttingsville at MP 42.6.
The posed pictures at Cuttingsville Fire Department. After reboarding, the train ran back to Howe Center in Rutland, ending out first pre-2015 NRHS Convention trip.
The train at Howe Center at Rutland.
Robin and I drove at go Wilson Castle west of Rutland.
Wilson Castle 6/14/2015Wilson Castle is a three story house, home to five generations of the Wilson family. Located on a 115 acre estate, the house was built in the middle of the 19th Century with a unique style and design. Today, part of the estate is owned by the Wilson Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization with the goal of preserving the complex.
The house was originally built by Dr. John Johnson and his English wife beginning in 1867. John Johnson was from Vermont and he met his aristocrat wife when he went to England to study medicine. They returned to Vermont and began to build the house using the money of Johnson's wife. It took more than seven years to build the house and support facilities such as barns and dairy, spending more than $1.3 million. The story turns sad quickly as Mrs. Johnson soon died and the place became known as "Johnson's Folly" due to his inability to pay taxes and upkeep, and soon much of the furniture and antiques were sold off or given to workers to settle the debt.
The property changed hands at least four times between 1880 and 1939 until Herbert Lee Wilson acquired the property. Wilson was a pioneer in the AM radio business and had built radio stations all over the world. He was looking for a new location to build a station as well as a summer home for his family. He bought the former Johnson home and installed a radio station - WEWE - on the property. Herbert Lee Wilson joined the Army Signal Corps in 1941. He retired in the 1950's with the rank of Colonel and returned to his home near Proctor. In 1962, he began offering tours of the house. Wilson died in 1981 and the operation of the home has passed through several generations of the Wilson family.
The house, now known as the Wilson Castle, is three stories tall and consists of 32 rooms. The interior features 13 fireplaces finished with imported tiles and bronze. Furnishings include Far Eastern and European antiques and museum pieces, complemented by statuary, Chinese scrolls and Oriental rugs. Many of the rooms are used for special events, including wedding parties. The exterior facade of Wilson Castle is set with English brick and marble, and is dominated by nineteen open proscenium arches and shadowed by a towering turret, parapet and balcony. There are 84 stained-glass windows. On the grounds are cattle barns, stables, the carriage house and the glass house.
My Visit to Wilson Castle
Wilson Castle. We left here to explore southern Vermont from a railroad perspective.
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