A station agent at Maydelle holds out a hoop with train orders for the engineer of Texas State Railroad's 2-8-2 No. 30. The engineer (not in view) will lean out and grab the paperwork on the fly negating the need to stop the train while en route to Rusk, TX.
No. 30, in actuality, is former Magma (Arizona) No. 7, nee Tremont & Gulf Railway Co. No. 30. The T&G Railway purchased the locomotive new in 1917 and operated her nearby in Louisiana. The original, but long gone depot was built in 1909. It has since been replaced with this structure which, incidentally, was built for the 1985 Roy Clark-Mel Tillis movie, Uphill All the Way. I took the liberty of removing a cellular antenna that currently adorns the top of this station. The ROW, however, is part of the original Texas State Railroad, and dates back to 1883. Part of a Lerro Productions charter. Click here for a similar scene, captured at speed later that night!
