ANGOLA, Ind. — Steam locomotive No. 765 turned in another successful operation during Father’s Day weekend while steaming through Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan. Saturday, June 17, introduced the shorter Donuts & Dads and Summer BBQ trains out of Angola, while Sunday saw a repeat of last year’s Tri-State Scenic all-day excursion from Edon, Ohio, to Hillsdale, Mich. The 1944-built 2-8-4 is currently in its second year of the Indiana Rail Experience, a program of events and excursions in partnership with the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society and the Indiana Northeastern Railroad.
Kelly Lynch, vice president of the Fort Wayne organization which owns the locomotive, says the society is heartened by the public’s hope for additional Tri-State Scenic runs this summer, but says there are two reasons for the all-day excursion’s limitation in 2023.
“The first is that we want to put extra emphasis on our first-ever fall color trips that will occur in October,” he explains. “From a marketing standpoint, we wanted to push sales further out near the end of the season and drive up demand.
“Lastly, we’re hoping that the Fall Color Train and others like the Tri-State Scenic become our ‘tentpole events’ — the kind of dependable, repeatable events that our passengers make traditions out of year after year.”
Besides being limited to one turning facility on the Indiana Northeastern in Hillsdale, the all-day trips to the Michigan town are almost perfect from an excursion standpoint, according to Lynch. He looks to expand the Tri-State Scenic excursions to one weekend in both June and July while building on the Fall Color Train in 2024. “As we fine-tune the operations and experiences, we want to try to give passengers the best bang for their buck because this is one of only a handful of railroads where you can run all day behind mainline steam for this duration and length.”
No. 765 is scheduled to operate between July 13 and 15. Once again, a series of new and repeated events and excursions will be provided in the weekend’s itinerary. On July 13 and 14, the first-annual Indiana Railcamp for attendees – ages 13 through 17 – will take place in Pleasant Lake, Ind. Another repeated excursion from 2022, the Wine & Whiskey Train out of Angola will follow on July 15.
“We plan to have our Railcampers help fire up and service No. 765, and likely run a trip for them,” said Lynch. “While all our experiences help bring people into the world of railroading, the Indiana Railcamp will be one of the purest educational enrichment programs we’ve ever offered in our history.”
Visit the Indiana Rail Experience website for more information and to purchase tickets.
Historic steam locomotive no. 765 is a high-stepping, fourteen-wheeled, time machine that stands 15 feet tall, weighs 404 tons and can go over 70 miles an hour. It was one of famous class of steam locomotives called the Berkshire; one known for its “superpower” technology and aesthetic charm.
Once a fast-freight and passenger engine for the New York, Chicago & St. Louis Railroad – more commonly known as the Nickel Plate Road – the 765 is now a celebrated icon of American innovation and goodwill ambassador.
Powered exclusively by volunteers as part of the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society’s educational programs, the locomotive has been restored to the way it looked and sounded when it was originally built by the Lima Locomotive Works. The 765 -almost 80 years old- is remains one of only a handful of mainline steam engines that still operate in North America.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün