| Posted by Dana M. on March 30, 2015 | |
It is a wonderful experience to visit AC (Atlantic Crossing) Tower - as the Marion Union Station Volunteers and staff have restored both AC Tower AND Marion Union Station to almost original look and condition. The Station still has several things to be done for sure - but you still feel like you have stepped back in time to a part of Railroading history that is now mostly lost to time. The staff that maintains both the station and tower have an entire room in the station that has "operational" signals that - when volunteers are available - visitors can play with and "line up" a train. From Dwarf signals, CPL's, Searchlight, and an operational Semiphore signal - one can spend some time and forget the world outside while "dispatching" a train and throwing some signals. In the tower - although the circuits to the signals have been severed - the tower operators board is still "functional" and as a real train is going by two stories below you - you can follow it's movements on the board in AC Tower with a volunteer or yourself - lighting the board with some well organized lever action and a few buttons to illuminate the trains progress. If there are volunteers present - the telegraphers key still can "talk" to the station and back to the tower too as it IS fully functional and connected. If you and a buddy know Morse Code - you can talk to each other while one of you is in the tower and the other is in the station.
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