MONDAY DAILY

THE LaMOTTE NARROW GUAGE RAILROAD DEPOT, IS NOW NEAR THE CLINTON ENGINES MUSEUM IN MAQUOKETA  AND IS PROUDLY OWNED BY THE JACKSON COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY.   THE LAST DEPOT OF ITS KIND IN THE NATION.    AFTER BEING MOVED ON TRUCKS FROM LaMOTTE AND COMPLETELY RESTORED, YESTERDAY THE RIBBON CUTTING AND CELEBRATION WAS HELD AT 1 P.M. ON THE BACK SIDE OF THE
DEPOT.   A BIG AUCTION AND DINNER FOLLOWED.

 

THE SOUTH END OF THE DEPOT

THE NORTH END

THE WALKWAY FROM NORTH SIDE OF DEPOT 

 ON THE NORTH SIDE IS ALSO AN  OUTDOOR EASEL THAT TELLS ABOUT THE RAILROAD.     BECAUSE IT IS LONG, I TOOK  3 PHOTOS OF 3 SECTIONS

AND THEY ARE BELOW...LEFT, MIDDLE AND RIGHT SECTIONS. 

THIS IS THE SIDE OF DEPOT WHERE THE TRAIN STOPPED TO LOAD OR  UNLOAD PASSENGERS OR FREIGHT.    NOTE THE WINDOWS ABOVE AND

BEHIND THE FOUR TALKING THAT EXTEND OUT FROM THE BUILDING A FOOT OR TWO.  SITTING INSIDE,THE DEPOT AGENT COULD LOOK BOTH WAYS AND WATCH FOR THE TRAIN ARRIVING OR WATCH IT DEPART. 

THE BLEACHERS WERE FULL ON THE WINDOWS-SIDE AND THE VISITORS

YESTERDAY WERE WAITING FOR THE RIBBON CUTTING.   

DAVID KENDALL, RURAL BELLEVUE AND A BIG TRAIN FAN, GAVE A GOOD

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE NARROW GUAGE RAILROAD, THAT WAS CONCEIVED

BECAUSE THEY THOUGHT ALSO HAVING SMALLER RAILROAD TRACKS AND CARS WOULD SAVE MONEY.    THE TRACKS WERE 3 FEET APART INSTEAD OF THE REGULAR TRACKS OVER 4 FEET.   BUT, IT TURNED OUT THAT IS WAS NOT

A CHEAPER WAY AS TIME WAS WASTED WHEN CARGO HAD TO BE MOVED

TO LARGER CARS (HANDLED A SECOND TIME) TO COMPLETE THE JOURNEY WHENEVER A NARROW GUAGE RAILROAD DID NOT GO TO THE FINAL

DESTINATION OF THE FREIGHT.    

RICK AND DIXIE CLASEN OWNED THE DEPOT NOT FAR FROM THEIR POPULAR BAR AND RESTAURANT IN DOWNTOWN LaMOTTE.    RICK DIED A FEW YEARS

AGO AND A COUPLE YEARS LATER, DIXIE BECAME ILL AND SOLD THE RESTAURANT AND DECIDED TO GIVE THE DEPOT TO THE JACKSON COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY.   SHE HAS SINCE ALSO DIED.

AFTER THE GIFT WAS ACCEPTED, THE DEPOT WAS CUT IN HALF AND MOVED

ALONG SIDE THE PARKING LOT AT THE CLINTON ENGINES MUSEUM.   MONEY

WAS RAISED TO RESTORE IT AND A FEW GUYS, NOW REFERRED TO

AS THE  "DEPOT GUYS", SPENT HUNDREDS OF HOURS MAKING THE OLD

WORN DEPOT INTO ONE THAT LOOKS BRAND NEW.    ABOVE, DIXIE'S MOTHER AND DAD WERE GIVEN THE HONOR TO CUT THE RIBBON YESTERDAY.    JIM AND LOIS BRADLEY HAVE LIVED NEAR LaMOTTE FOR 67 YEARS.    THEY DID A GOOD JOB WITH THE SCISSORS, BUT I DIDN'T GET A PHOTO OF THEM DOING IT.   SORRY.

OH YES, A SPECIAL SONG ABOUT THE DEPOT WAS SUNG AND SOMETIME SOON, WE WILL PLAY IT A FEW TIMES ON KMAQ. 

WITH RIBBON CUTTING DONE, EVERYONE WENT INSIDE TO TAKE A LOOK.

SO DID I WITH MY CAMERA AND I'LL  HAVE SOME INSIDE PHOTOS OF THE 

DEPOT ON FUTURE "DAILY REPORTS".

IT IS A GREAT MUSEUM!    TRY TO SEE IT IN-PERSON SOON!

"IT" DID $117 MILLION DOLLARS OVER THE WEEKEND IN OVER 4,000 U.S. THEATRES,

A RECORD SEPTEMBER OPENING.   IT ALSO

DID WELL HERE IN MAQUOKETA.

THE BLACK VELVET BAND

MAQUOKETA'S  "BLACK VELVET BAND"

PUT ON A GREAT FREE CONCERT LAST NIGHT IN DOWNTOWN MAQUOKETA, SPONSORED BY THE

MAQUOKETA ROTARY CLUB.   MEMBERS ARE LEFT TO RIGHT:   DAVID MANNING, DALE KILBURG, CHUCK JORGENSEN, DAN CARAWAY AND

CURT LICHTER.  A BIG TURNOUT STAYED UNTIL 8:15,  FIFTEEN MINUTES LONGER THAN THE ANNOUNCED TIME.   WOULD BE NICE IF THEY CAME OUT WITH A NEW CD OF THEIR MAINLY IRISH MUSIC AS THEIR ONLY CD IS NOW  8 YEARS OLD.   ENCOURAGE THEM!    THE ABOVE PICTURE WAS TAKEN ON THE BARNSTORMERS STAGE ON CODFISH HOLLOW ROAD WHERE THIS

WEEKEND, THEY HAD A RECORD TWO0-NIGHT CONCERT.    THE BLACK VELVET BAND APPEARED THERE EARLIER THIS SUMMER.  THE PHONE BELOW TAKEN LAST NIGHT IN MAQUOKETA.

TOMORROW IS SCHOOL BOARD ELECTION DAY IN IOWA.   POLLS OPEN
AT 7 A.M.    FOR THE MAQUOKETA SCHOOL DISTRICT, THERE ARE 2 OPENINGS AND THREE CANDIATES.    IT WILL BE WRITE-IN ONLY.
THE CANDIDATES ARE:    TANYA ROEDER (I ) AND TWO NEW..TERRY CREGAN AND KRISTI BECKER.

DENNIS VOY