Rural Retreat recordings of December 1957

[NW Mailing List]

Dave:

You have captured the true meaning of these timeless
recordings. I stated that many times I have listened
to THAT recording (including last night) and most of
the time I do not hear the train come rattling into
town, so peaceful it is to my ear.

As you suggest, it really is transcendent; good for
anytime any place. He captured THE moment. That it
just happens to be a particular date is unimportant.
What is important is that it was captured at all.

There have been gazillions of train recordings but how
many people who recorded those train's sounds did what
Link did and choreographed the whole shebang? I can't
think of another who did it even close to the extent
he did. Sure, others have run trips and run-bys with
the whole idea making lots of smoke and whistle sounds
for the awaiting masses, but Link was there BEFORE
this was commonplace, before it was "the norm."

Thank you for sharing the truth of what did happen and
also for reminding us all of the genius of O. Winston
Link and the wonderful foresight he showed. Thank you
again.

Bob Cohen
 


O. Winston Link was busy during the days surrounding
Christmas 1957. The clock was running out for steam on
the Bristol line passenger trains, and the last runs
were scheduled for Dec 31. Link did not have a lot of
time to spare for photos or recordings.

On December 18, he was in Rural Retreat, recording
train #17. No photos were taken.


>From December 19 through 23, Link was in Max Meadows

and took a lot of pictures, but he didn't make any
recordings.

On December 24, Link started by recording trains #46
at Wytheville and #42 at Max Meadows, then late
Christmas Eve he worked his way south to catch the
chimes of the Lutheran church in Rural Retreat. The
recording at Rural Retreat wasn't to his liking
because he noted, Auto sounds should come out. Not
good for anything.  

Still, Link must have heard and seen something worth
remembering, because on December 26 he was back in
Rural Retreat and took four pictures (NW1628-1631). He
concentrated on the photo setup, and no recordings
were made. He posed Dallas Newman and his daughter
Elizabeth on the station platform and photographed
southbound train #17. He requested a slow order past
the station for northbound train #42, with lots of
steam and white smoke. Engineer W. W. Rickey, fireman
Doug Wohlford and Class J 603 delivered on that
request, and Link captured it all!

The photo is unpublished, but it may be the most
visually dramatic of all Link's photos at Rural
Retreat. Better yet, Mr. Wohlford is clearly visible
in the cab window.

However, Link was still not satisfied, and had one
more idea in mind before he had to move on to other
locations. There were only five days left.
 
Link returned to Rural Retreat December 27, with a
plan to put all the pieces together: chimes, train,
and people. There were seven artists at work that
night:  Link (cameras), Roy Zider (recorder), Mrs. J.
E. Dodson (chimes), J. L. Akers (lantern), C. H.
Hartshock, (the passenger who got off the train) and
the still unidentified crew on 603. Those combined
forces gave us what is likely the most memorable steam
railroad recording ever made.

But wait a minute. This recording has always been
?9:39 P.M. on Christmas Eve, 1957 in Rural Retreat,
Va. in the liner notes for all versions of The Fading
Giant, yet it was made three days later. Did Link try
to put one over on us? I don?t think so.

OK, so it wasn't recorded on Christmas eve; that's a
matter of history in Link?s own handwriting. But the
recording is much more than just a day on the
calendar.  Link's Christmas Eve in Rural Retreat is
what he wanted us to remember: carols from the nearby
church, the distant whistle and approach of The
Pelican, and the wonderfully long departure as 603
continues into the night. The sounds are transcendent.
It's really Christmas Eve anywhere we want it to be.
The recording doesn't need a location or a date or a
time. Just listen and you're there, 50 years ago
today.

Dave Stephenson

Sources:
Crew identification and description of events 12/26/57
- Doug Wohlford. Photo NW1630 (cropped) by permission,
O. Winston Link Museum Page from Trip Notebook #10,
from collection of O. Winston Link Museum


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