The Laws Railroad Museum provided a nice setting for the newly restored SP 18. The museum has only about 2000 feet of "mainline" track but a lot of well preserved infrastructure including a gallows turntable and oil and water tanks. The 18 lives at Independence, CA down the road and was trucked in for the event. Both the museum and the folks at Independence who restored the 18 deserve a lot of credit. I was at the museum in 1960 when it opened and it was a barren location in the middle of nowhere. The folks in charge have added trees, grass, and a lot of general interest exhibits to make the museum attractive and interesting to a broader group of visitors. But the basic ambience of the rail yard has been largely maintained, a nice balancing act. And the 18 is a wonderful example of what a small group of dedicated people can do with vision, ingenuity, and much hard work. What I found amazing about the weekend is how authentic my pictures look. I chased the last run of steam on the ng. back in 1959, and the new pictures taken 57 years later fit right in.
