It was October 3, 1851, when the first train arrived in Elkhart. Now, the city is planning a series of events to mark 175 years of rail service. The National New York Central Railroad Museum will host monthly presentations, a special exhibit and a youth art exhibition — leading up to an all-day celebration on the anniversary itself.
Museum director Brent Holaway previewed ElkhartRail175 during a kickoff event Friday in a freight house that’s now part of the museum. “Through these wooden doors and out through these wooden doors, Elkhart was built, when you think about it, because the tracks went right alongside this building [and] unloaded freight on out to Freight Street,” Holaway said.
The railroad is also what brought many people to the Elkhart area in search of jobs. That’s an important story to tell, according to Jon Hunsberger. He’s the executive director of the Elkhart County Convention and Visitors Bureau, which is one of the sponsors of ElkhartRail175. “Bringing industry to this community but then also bringing individuals, communities, cultures to this community has really helped us be who we are,” Hunsberger said.
Mayor Rod Roberson said the railroad is what allowed Elkhart to become a manufacturing hub, and it remains important to the city’s economy. “To this day, we have many businesses that depend on a rail spur that’s connected to this same railroad that decided to locate itself right here in Elkhart, Indiana,” Roberson said.
He sees ElkhartRail175 as a way not only to help people understand railroads’ role in local and U.S. history, but also to start the process of revitalizing the area around the museum. Roberson said reconnecting the Downtown and Benham neighborhoods has been a major goal of his administration. "We have a plan for a density of apartments that would be just south of here right on Freight Street," Roberson explained. "We have an opportunity and we are advancing plans to re-densify our downtown."
Upcoming ElkhartRail175 programs include a keynote presentation on the New York Central’s famed passenger train, the 20th Century Limited, on April 18, and a screening of the documentary, “What Happened at Benham West” on June 27.
ElkhartRail175 will wrap up with a gala fundraiser on October 16.
