Current Activities

      Although the history of the Bucksgahuda and Western Railroad is interesting, the railroad is still an up and running place that is being worked on every weekend.  Before mentioning what the crew did this Saturday (10/4/14), I think it is important to realize that the railroad just had their open house.  Because of this, Otto was operated recently which also happened to be for the last time this year.  Since it was the last run until next year, the crew spent the day preparing Otto for winter.  The main part of this involves removing the coal and draining all the water out of the saddle tanks and the boiler.  If the water remained in Otto over winter, there is potential for the water to freeze and expand which could crack parts of the engine.  The water can also cause rust which would lead up to deterioration of the inside of Otto.  For both of these reasons, the water is drained for the winter and a fan is run constantly to keep the inside of Otto dry.  With all of the preparation for winter completed on Otto, it was considered a rather successful day at the Bucksgahuda and Western Railroad.   
     

 

Picture taken by Scott Bauer

 

Finishing Otto's Repairs

      Once there was a dry space for Otto to be worked on, it was time for the restoration to begin.  Repairs for Otto took place between the years of 1966 till 1971.  In 1971 when Otto was once again in operating condition, the Bucksgahuda and Western Railroad had about 200 feet of track laid which Otto ran on several times back and forth.

Although none of the gas locomotives were there in 1971, this is still a picture of Otto after her restoration.

     After all the hundreds of hours spent successfully restoring Otto, it was time to focus on laying track in order to enjoy their great accomplishment.  In the year 1972, 1,200 feet of track was laid before the end of fall.  Because the Bucksgahuda and Western Railroad crew enjoyed their hobby so much, they wanted to show it off to family and friends by having a day of running Otto for the sole purpose of entertaining other people.  This first open house occurred in October of 1972 with Otto giving rides to all the guests for the whole day.  The open house received such positive feedback that the Bucksgahuda and Western Railroad now has two open houses a year.

Above photo taken by William Bauer      

Introduction

          This blog is all about the Bucksgahuda and Western Railroad which is a two-foot narrow gauge railroad.  It will be updated twice a week with one post about its history on Thursday and another post about current activities taking place on Saturday.  Since this is the first post I believe it is important to start from the beginning with how the railroad came to be.
         The Bucksgahuda and Western Railroad is located in St. Marys, PA and was started by the Bauer brothers who saw an advertisement for a German-built steam engine in Trains magazine.  In the spring of 1966, the steam engine, soon to be named Otto, departed Germany on the American Merchant ship.  A few months later, Otto arrived in Philadelphia, PA where it was lowered onto a lowboy truck for her journey to St. Marys, PA.  After arriving in St. Marys, a crane was used to place Otto on a twenty-foot section of track.  In October, a building was erected to house Otto just as the first snowfall arrived. 

Otto being unloaded from the ship

 

 

 

 

 

Getting ready for the trip on the lowboy from Philadelphia, PA to St. Marys, PA

Set down on the twenty foot section of track

Above photos taken by William A. Bauer