Maine Narrow Gauge Museum Discussion

I have had good experiences there as well in the past few years. The person manning the gift shop was very helpful and I ended up buy a few books and a map over the summer. I thought the layout of the museum was good as well. I have not been for a ride in over 10 years. I had once read that the original plan of the MNG, when it was created, was to connect to the Union Branch so people could be moved from the ports to Hadlock Field. (I think the article was linked on here in a previous thread.) That never happened but I think the riders might have a better experience or more positive reviews if the ride was longer. There is nothing wrong with the current ride though. How long is the current ride one way?

I'm just glad the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad and Museum is there, operational and doing their best to preserve and restore their equipment. As for the young woman at the desk, she was probably having a bad day - we all do once in a while. I was there a couple of months ago and had a great time. The two women working behind the counter were delightful and very helpful.

Of course the first thing I did after passing through the door is make a beeline for the cars they have under restoration. I thoroughly enjoy chatting with the volunteer carpenters and mechanics who are always so generous in sharing what they know and giving special tours to rail buffs like us.

The way I look at it is, if you visit an operational railroad museum that has restoration shops and you don't go home with a little dust, grime and grease on you, well you just didn't have a very good time.

To the MNGRR employees and volunteers: Keep up the good work, you're doing a great job!

CGRLCDR wrote:The way I look at it is, if you visit an operational railroad museum that has restoration shops and you don't go home with a little dust, grime and grease on you, well you just didn't have a very good time.

More to the point, if you go into an operational railroad museum with an operating restoration shop in the same space as the general museum, and you don't see any dust or grease anywhere, the shop can't be doing much.

One of MNGRR's steam locomotives was damaged in a fire early this morning:

http://www.pressherald.com/news/Steam-e ... -fire.html

WTF????

Any more info?

I don't like to believe the media, since they are prone to inaccuracies on a massive scale.

Photos of the scorching are on RyPN website. Some damage, may not be fatal. But bad enough.

H.F.Malone wrote:Photos of the scorching are on RyPN website. Some damage, may not be fatal. But bad enough.

I'm happy to say the damage was NOT fatal! Visit the MNGRR website for more details.

Cowford wrote:Mr Brandes: thanks for your comments. I will be including them in my letter to Ms Davis. Some of your frustrations are, I'm sure, understandable, but your tone confirms to me that the attitude we experienced is not isolated to one employee/volunteer.

Cowford, did you ever end up writing/sending a letter to Ms. Davis? And if so, did you receive a reply?

A couple of weeks ago, I had a question about something at MNGRR, so I went onto their web site and sent them an e-mail.

Two weeks later and I've not received a reply.

Geez, I have been there quite a few times (Feb 2010) most recent and had a good time. The people seemed to be accessable and the place isn't a palace but it is a working restoration building so I wouldn't want to eat off the floor, anyway. We took a ride and they had pamphlets and such. Overall, it's worth a stop bye.

407, though we corresponded by PM, others may be curious. I did not receive a response. That said, I did submit my letter anonymously (but did say that they could respond to me by PM on this site).

In all fairness, I wouldn't respond to an anonymous letter either. If the writer doesn't have the conviction to stand by what they're writing, I don't have the conviction to take the time to read their letter.

That doesn't excuse them from not answering my e-mail, which certainly wasn't anonymous. Nor was it a difficult question to answer.

I've come to expect this sort of stonewalling from city councilors and the like, but non-profit organizations that are constantly begging for money and volunteers ought to at least respond to e-mails from potential donors and volunteers.

3rdrail wrote:In all fairness, I wouldn't respond to an anonymous letter either. If the writer doesn't have the conviction to stand by what they're writing, I don't have the conviction to take the time to read their letter.

My thoughts exactly. Sending a letter anonymously is an excellent way to insure you DON'T get a response!
To guarantee you DO get a response, try sending a letter in writing with your full address included, or better yet, a SSAE (Self Addressed, Stamped Envelope.) Doing this will show the recipient that you actually care about getting a response by taking the trouble to do so.

Just to clarify, the purpose of my anonymity was just that... to preserve my anonymity considering that I could be linked to the postings on this site. It had nothing to do with my lack of "conviction." I sent the letter without expectation of a response but I DID tell them how they may respond if they so wished.

MNGRR has been talking about leaving Portland for the past few years, but it looks like they're now actively pursuing such a move:

The Forecaster wrote:The Narrow Gauge Railroad Co. & Museum has been keeping the locomotive spirit alive for thousands of people a year on the city's waterfront, offering train rides and a museum along the Eastern Promenade since 1993.

But this could be the nonprofit's last year at 58 Fore St.

The organization is measuring interest from other communities about hosting either the railroad and restoration operations or the museum, or both.

Read more at: http://www.theforecaster.net/content/p- ... gerailroad