<DFW>Historic Texas State Railroad,Rusk, June 7

Upcoming MB Club event - may be interesting to tag along or run down ahead of the MB group:


Historic Texas State Railroad, Palestine / Rusk, Saturday, June 7, 7:45am

Click to sign up via e-mail.

Pack a picnic lunch and enjoy one of East Texas' biggest attractions, the Texas State Railroad. The railroad is located deep in the Piney Woods of East Texas and has Victorian-style depots outside the towns of Rusk and Palestine. The 25 miles of track meanders through some of the most beautiful forests in the East Texas Piney Woods and crosses the Neches River. Founded in the late 1800s, the railroad was originally conceived to transport timber and iron ore to the East Texas Penitentiary in Rusk, where a foundry to make cast iron was built. This proved not to be economically feasible, but the railroad continued to provide freight and passenger service and ended its commercial days hauling timber for the Temple Lumber Company. In 1972, the moribund railroad was taken over and restored by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department which operated it as a state attraction until 2007. Today, American Heritage Railways, a private company, operates the railroad under contract from the Texas State Railroad Authority. Due to budget cuts and increasing operating costs, there are concerns that this valuable piece of Texas history will not be with us for much longer.



We have booked reservations for seats in a climate-controlled coach scheduled to be pulled by the venerable No.300, an antique Baldwin 2-8-0 steam engine of 83 tons, built 1917. We will take the train from Palestine to Rusk, have a picnic lunch at the Rusk Depot, then take the train back to Palestine. We will take a country road detour on the way back to the Metroplex, and stop at Waxahachie for an optional dinner at Cafe di Roma, a neighborhood pizza and pasta restaurant conveniently located near Highway 77, Highway 287 and I-35E.



Agenda, Saturday, June 7:

7:45am - Meet for briefing at the McDonald's in Waxahachie, 1200 N Highway 77 Waxahachie, (972) 935-9592 (see map below).

8:00am - Caravan departs.

10:30am - Approximate arrival time at the Palestine depot, Texas State Railroad, Park Road 70 Hwy 84 East, Palestine, (888) 987-2461.

11:00am - Train departs from Palestine depot.

12:30pm - Arrive Rusk. Lunch at the Rusk train depot. Bring your own lunch.

2:00pm - Train departs from the Rusk depot.

3:30pm - Arrive Palestine depot.

3:45pm - Country drive from Palestine to Waxahachie.

6:15pm - Optional dinner at Cafe di Roma, 507 N Highway 77, Waxahachie, (972) 937-9300.

7:30pm - Head home on your own.



Meeting Place and Time:

At 7:45am, we will meet for a briefing at the McDonald's in Waxahachie. Arrive earlier if you wish to have breakfast. The McDonald's is located at 1200 N Highway 77, Waxahachie, (972) 935-9592. See map. Please arrive on time, with a full tank of gas, and ready to go. We MUST depart by 8:00am to assure we arrive by boarding time. The Texas State Railroad will not issue refunds should we miss the train.



Lunch:

Please do not forget to bring your own lunch. We will have a picnic lunch at the Rusk depot. Picnic tables under shade trees are available on its grounds. We have not made arrangements for lunch at Palestine or Rusk. Surprisingly, there are no concessions which serve lunch on demand at either the Palestine or Rusk depots. The depots are located outside of town so there are no restaurants near the depots.



Optional Dinner:

We plan to stop for dinner in Waxahachie at Cafe di Roma, a neighborhood pizza and pasta restaurant conveniently located near Highway 77, Highway 287 and I-35E. It is located on 507 N Highway 77, Waxahachie, (972) 937-9300. We have reserved part of the restaurant so our group can sit together. Pay your own.



Cost and Signup:

The costs for the train ride are as follows (group rate, round trip, climate-controlled coach pulled by antique steam engine, taxes included):

Adult 12 and older: $40.92 per person

Children 3 to 11: $24.90 per child

Children 2 and younger: Free