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FCMA Lunch & Learn: "Cole Creek Train Wreck" with Con Trumbull Saturday, September 23rd Optional Lunch at 12:00 pm (with RSVP by 9/21) Lecture begins at 1:00 pm
On an unusually stormy September evening in 1923, 69 passengers boarded train No. 30. Departing the Burlington Depot in downtown Casper, the train was scheduled to reach Denver, Colorado, the following morning. Just an hour into its voyage, disaster struck: the locomotive and most of the passenger cars plummeted through the dark night into a void left by the washed-out Cole Creek Bridge. The result was Wyoming's worst passenger rail disaster.
Con Trumbull, president of the Fort Caspar Museum Association, is a fifth generation Wyoming rancher from Casper. His love of history and railroads led him to the Nevada Northern Railway in Ely, Nevada, where he is the Trainmaster as well as the Archivist. He brings first-hand knowledge of operating century-old steam locomotives and passenger cars to provide a unique insight into the Cole Creek Wreck. He co-authored “Images of America: Casper” and was the author for “Images of Rail: Central Wyoming Railroads as well as a children's book series “The Adventures of Dirt the Shop Cat.”
An optional lunch will be served at 12:00 pm, followed by the lecture at 1:00 pm. Reservations are required for the lunch and must be made by September 21 (call 235-8462). The cost for lunch is $5 for FCMA members and $8 for non-members; the lecture is free with paid lunch or free with paid Museum admission. The lunch will feature a buffet of fried chicken, sides, dessert, and beverages.
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