The Valley Railroad has just received word that Steve Bogen died this past weekend. Steve was very infulential in the developement of the Railway Preservation movement as we know it. He was one of the founders and editors of the Steam Passenger Service Directory (which evolved into Kalbach's "Guide to Tourist Railroads and Museums"). The Steam Pasenger Directory sponsored the first joint meetings of tourist and museum railroad organizations in the 1960s'. From these meeting grew the present "TRAIN" industry trade association. He was a fixture at the annual "TRAIN" convention for many years. For many years Steve served on the Board of Directors of the Empire State Railroad Museum and helped orchestrate the transfer of their collection to the Connecticut Valley Railroad Museum (later Railroad Museum of New England). He has served on the Valley Railroad Co. board of dirctors for many years. Steve owned Quadrant Press, which specialized in railroad subjects. A memorial service for Steve is being planned for by the Valley Railroad.

jdconrad@snet.net

The passing of Steve Bogen reminds me of how quickly the first generation of railway preservationists "pioneers" are fading from the scene. Only three of the original 24 Strasburg RR vice-presidents are still alive (from the 1950s), and I know of at least three other early railway museum founders from the 50's and 60's who have Alzheimer's or Parkinson's. If you haven't already done so, I strongly encourage all of you to start doing oral history with older veteran members to preserve your museum's early institutional history. Once they are gone, so is the museum's early history.

> The Valley Railroad has just received word
> that Steve Bogen died this past weekend.
> Steve was very infulential in the
> developement of the Railway Preservation
> movement as we know it. He was one of the
> founders and editors of the Steam Passenger
> Service Directory (which evolved into
> Kalbach's "Guide to Tourist Railroads
> and Museums"). The Steam Pasenger
> Directory sponsored the first joint meetings
> of tourist and museum railroad organizations
> in the 1960s'. From these meeting grew the
> present "TRAIN" industry trade
> association. He was a fixture at the annual
> "TRAIN" convention for many years.
> For many years Steve served on the Board of
> Directors of the Empire State Railroad
> Museum and helped orchestrate the transfer
> of their collection to the Connecticut
> Valley Railroad Museum (later Railroad
> Museum of New England). He has served on the
> Valley Railroad Co. board of dirctors for
> many years. Steve owned Quadrant Press,
> which specialized in railroad subjects. A
> memorial service for Steve is being planned
> for by the Valley Railroad.


http://rrmuseumpa.org

I got to know Steve in the late 1960's. When as a teenager I had this grand scheme to save the West Shore Branch of Penn Central between Rotterdam Jct. and Fort Plain, NY, Steve was bold enough to support me and agree to be on the board of directors. This was in spite of all resonable logic that at 18 I had no experience to pull this off.

Later in life when I actually became the General Manager of a railroad, with a smile on his face Steve said supportingly that he always knew that I could do it. He was that kind of person. He believed strongly in his principles and was willing to take action to show it.

Gary Landrio
VP Rail Operations, Stone Consulting & Design
VP Engineering & Development, WNY&P Railroad

Stone Consulting & Design
garylandrio@stoneconsulting.com

Although a number of people combined their talents to establish the Valley Railroad, I believe that Steve Bogen was the most important. He had the knowledge of the tourist rail industry and the connections with the volunteer groups that helped make it happen: the Connecticut Valley Railroad Association (which evolved to the Railroad Museum of New England) and the Empire State Railway Museum. He also owned the former Birmingham & South Eastern 2-8-0 #200, later renumbered #97, which introduced steam power to a new generation of New Englanders. This locomotive operated on the newly established Vermont Railway prior to its move to Connecticut in 1966. #97 reintroduced main line steam to central and western Connecticut for the next three years, running on the New Haven Railroad from Hartford and Danbury.
Following the end of the ESRM's operation on the Middletown & New Jersey Ry in New York, Steve began a search for a new venue which led through the Canaan and Collinsville areas of Connecticut and eventually to Essex, when the Valley was opened in 1971 using mostly ESRM equipment. His #97 also moved to Essex and re-entered service a few years later, and now has operated almost as many years in preservation as it had operated commercial freight service.
Steve's presence in the rail preservation and tourist railway communities will be missed. He will always be remembered as being one of the crafters of the heritage railway movement.



wdsample@snet.net

> I got to know Steve in the late 1960's. When
> as a teenager I had this grand scheme to
> save the West Shore Branch of Penn Central
> between Rotterdam Jct. and Fort Plain, NY,
> Steve was bold enough to support me and
> agree to be on the board of directors. This
> was in spite of all resonable logic that at
> 18 I had no experience to pull this off.

I see I'm not the only one Steve encouraged. I, too, met him in the late sixties. He was always polite and positive, never talking down to anyone. I would see him at various RR functions in NJ and we would always chat a while, catching up on news and who was doing what. He was more of a "behind the scenes" type - I knew him for a couple of years before I found out he owned his own locomotive. He will be missed!


Martyhuck@aol.com