The museum purchased the land we had leased from the railroad plus some additional land south of the carbarn that will be used to build the engine house to house the Frisco 4003 steam engine. The land adjacent to the museum that our parking lot and several pieces of rail equipment are stored has gone through two owners with tentative agreements to sell that never materialized.
The new owner, Neil Lampe, of Fort Biscuit Company has promised to donate the parking lot and the area the cars are parked on in exchange for being released from a contract with the museum to purchase about 3 times as much land from the company. This will finally give ownership to the museum of all the land it occupies.
The chief difficulty is that the city abandoned the 4th street access to the museum and we have no direct access to the street without crossing land that doesn't belong to the museum.
Negotiations continue for satisfactory ingress and egress to the museum. Help has been requested of the city in solving this problem.
In the middle of the sign was originally a 24 inch diameter electric
clock. This clock was for the drivers to synchronize their watches but
has been missing for years. Now we are looking for the original 24 inch
clock or one that can take its place. We would appreciate any
information
regarding the clock or one of the same size.
Already this year there have been riders from sixteen states and four foreign countries that have registered. Registration is optional in the museum and no effort is made to keep a record of rider's origin. Ridership has trailed slightly since our neighbor, the National Historic site, is undergoing a major remodeling. Completion of the tornado damaged visitors center, Miss Lauras, is a definite stimulus for tourism.
We are grateful to our volunteer operators that make this all possible. The operators are: Leon Taylor, Mervin McMillion, Ervin Glenn, Jim McCauley, Vernon Stewart, Claude Groves, Bud Watson, Tom Porter, Haskell Jeffries, Bill White, Dale Kesner, Guy Overman, Walter Harrison, Tom Ross, Henry Moore, Chuck Girard, Jim Baker, Zack Hilton, Bill Kimmons, Ralph Kramer and relief operators, Bradley Martin and Art Martin.
Http://www.fstm.org
The Fort Smith Trolley Museum now has its own domain name. Our web page has a permanent URL.
Our home page designed by Sally Hobbs in 1996 has been revised and
updated
by Nathan Martin. We plan on several additions as time allows. for
information
E-mail may be sent to info@fstm.org
The museum's collection of cars and shop equipment has grown until the current shop space is entirely too small and there is not storage room for parts of the restoration projects. The shop area is totally inadequate for the equipment that has been obtained by donation and through the Arkansas Federal Surplus Program. The list is impressive allowing about any type of work to be done at the museum
A 28ft X 52ft metal building that was attached to the Midland Valley freight house, was donated to the Trolley Museum by the Fort Biscuit Company in exchange for dismantling and removing from the property before it was demolished. The building will be erected adjacent to the carbarn. It will house the welding and metal machine shop and a 18ft X 20ft storeroom for parts of projects. The original shop will be light wood working. Heavy woodworking will be done at the museum's annex at 65 South 3rd.
We plan for the construction of the addition will begin in August
1999.
Several years ago, another wedding was performed in the museum's dining car. The car was decorated for the occasion and the reception was held in the car. Following the wedding several rode the trolley. One of our regular trolley operators was recently married. A wedding in the trolley will have to be an option if that occurs again.
Have considered requesting that my casket be towed on a work car behind the trolley for my last ride. The National Cemetery is one of the stops on the trolley line. Doubt if my family would go for that.
Mr. Sharum Sr (1888-1966) was employed by the Fort Smith Light and Traction from 1912-1933 as a conductor and motorman. His employment was interrupted by World War I, and by a brief stint in Los Angeles, California, as a trolley car worker. Mr. Sharum worked on many of the different routes in Fort Smith, including the Grand Avenue line, on which he drove and conducted car No. 224. His employment ended with the advent of busses in 1933.
We appreciate this information and gift to the museum. We have very little information about any of the streetcar employees. If you have family history of family members that worked for the street car company, we would appreciate their story and any memorabilia that the museum could preserve.
Information regarding The Journal of the Fort Smith Historical Society, now in its 23 year, can be obtained from the Fort Smith Public Library, 61 S 8th St. Fort Smith, AR 72901 or the Trolley Museum.
The most physical requirements is changing the trolley pole at the end of the line. The history and information given to the riders is available to the operator in written form. There is no real skill needed except learning the use of the air brake which is different to any other system.
The operators have enjoyed the interest of the riders, particularly the young, and the older riders who remember the trolleys and add their own stories.
If you have an interest, contact Art Martin at 783-1237. Usually a few rides with one or more of the operators will give a good picture of what is needed. The operators can give you good instruction by allowing you to operate with his help. Most museums have female operators. We have yet to have one that would stay until they were competent enough to operate alone.