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WILLIAMSVILLE DEPOT - 2015 UPDATES



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Williamsville Depot 2015

ALONG THE LEHIGH TRAIL - 2015
by Hal Douglass

January - March
         The Williamsville Depot steering committee met in January for planning of further restoration and improvements in 2015 and the fund raising necessary to bring these projects to completion. In addition to restoring the loading dock on the east end of the depot, tiles will be replaced on the bathroom walls. The existing toilet will be outfitted with a faux water cabinet and pull chain (appropriate to the time of construction of the building), and an ornate vent for the bathroom installed.

Among other activities scheduled for the spring is a scrapbooking event ("scrapcation") under the guidance of Art Toale, aided by Nancy Lutot and Barbara Stilwell, this will occur on Saturday March 14th, at the Cleveland Heights Christian Church.

A spaghetti dinner will be held at the Cleveland Heights Christian Church on April 18. Last year's event sold out early. So to make a night of it, participants are invited to also attend a production of the Homewood Theater at the Williamsville Meeting House. Discounted tickets will be available for those attending both events.

We hope to complete the loading dock in time for Marty Bauer's Homestead Theater Company to use it as a stage for the group's summer production at the depot on June 12 and 13 and again on August 14 and 15. Art Toale will hold one flea market this year, on May 30, with Barbara Stilwell taking over the accompanying book sale this year. There will also be a plant sale held alongside the flea market.

In the future, plans are to bring a box car to the site for display, which would also provide badly needed storage space.


ALONG THE LEHIGH TRAIL - April - May
by Hal Douglass

         Well over a year ago, Mary and Bill Barren donated a very old Regulator clock to the Williamsville depot, to be hung in the passenger waiting room. The Barrens had suggested that the clock be serviced before installing it. It was received one year to the day later. Now hung on the waiting room wall, you must agree that it was well worth the wait-----and the clock keeps perfect time! Thanks to Mary and Bill for this marvelous donation.

         Tom Stackhouse announced at the March meeting of the Williamsville Steering Committee that the Western New York Railway Historical Society had been awarded a $2000 grant from the Tom Dailey Foundation Inc. of Chicago, specifically designated to help upgrade the security system at the Williamsville Depot. Volunteers of the Society have made great strides in the restoration of the depot and Society resources have helped to bring the aura of the railway depot back to the site. The current security system is outdated, difficult to use and provides a grainy picture. Updating this system will help to protect our restoration efforts. Thanks to the Tom Dailey Foundation.

HELP WANTED
STATION AGENT FOR THE WILLIAMSVILLE DEPOT
Must be: ADULT MALE (MANNEQUIN)
Work Schedule: FULL TIME, HOURS 24/7/365
HOURLY RATE: NONE BENEFITS: NONE VACATION: NONE RETIREMENT: NONE
MUST HAVE CLEAN-CUT APPEARANCE---SOCIETY WILL PPROVIDE UNIFORM
Call 633-7002 for interview


         The second annual scrapbooking event to benefit the Williamsville Depot was held March 2nd under the guidance of Art Toale, at the Cleveland Heights Christian Church. Thanks to Bob and Nancy Lutot for facilitating the arrangements through the church. On March 20th and 21st, The Homewood Players presented Marty Bauer's original production of "A Play on Words" to an enthusiastic crowd at the Williamsville Meeting House on Main Street in Williamsville, proceeds will benefit the reconstruction of the loading dock at the Williamsville Depot. The performance was repeated again on April 17th and 18th. As a new twist on our fund-raising events, the April 18th presentation was combined in a "dinner and show" combination with a spaghetti and meatballs dinner which was held at the Cleveland Heights Christian Church, again thanks to facilitation by Bob and Nancy Lutot. On May 30th, we are holding our fourth annual flea market and book sale, this year combined with a plant sale, at the Williamsville Depot. Y'all come, y'hear.

         Plans for a quilting party and for another Homewood Theater production are planned for June, but the dates had not been confirmed at press time. In July, an auto cruise featuring antique cars will be held at the depot from 5PM to dusk. However, Marty Bauer's Homewood Theater Group will present at the Williamsville Depot August 14th, 15th, 21st and 22nd, using the hopefully completed first stage of the loading dock as a stage.

The Williamsville Depot Committee is looking for people interested in the following: Construction & Maintenance, event planning, tour guides, marketing, data base management and finance/budget knowledge. We would welcome any and all help you may have to offer.

Call the Depot at 716-633-7002 or   eMail Art T.   Thank You!


ALONG THE LEHIGH TRAIL - June - July
by Hal Douglass

         We had to have the depot closed for several Sundays due to renovations being done to the interior of the building. A "new" (old style) sink is being installed in the bathroom. The 'new" (old style) pedestal sink will be more in tune with the age of the building. Walls are being painted and tile is being installed on the lower walls about half way up from the floor.

         The new milled wooden trim in the agent's office has been stained. This trim around the win-dows, doors etc., has been temporally installed and can easily be taken down when the office will be refinished like the waiting room. It is a great improvement over the bare wood we had before.

         The recent heavy rains have exposed a problem that will be addressed shortly. Pooling water on the road on the north side of the building runs off and down to our foundation. We will be installing drain tile around the depot.

I'm pleased to announce that the updated security system is up and running. The images on our monitor are in HD – very clear and sharp in detail. Let's hope the only images we will see are our own selfies. Again, we have to Thank the Tom Dailey Foundation Inc. of Chicago, for their $2000 grant specifically designated to help upgrade the security system.

Don't forget Cruise Nite at the Williamsville Depot, Monday, July 27th, 5:00pm - dusk. Featuring Classic Cars, Food & Drink. Presented by the Lake Erie Region of Antique Auto Club of America.

And on August 14th & 15th and 21st & 22nd at 6:30pm - "The Homewood Theatre Company" will be at the Depot presenting "The Great Caboose Mystery" bring a lawn chair!


ALONG THE LEHIGH TRAIL - August - September
by Hal Douglass

         How quickly the summer construction season is passing. The new security system from Eastern States Security was installed in the late spring and is a vast improvement from what we had before. Cameras now point inside as well as outside, give higher definition pictures and infrared vision capability at night.

Completion of the bathroom had top priority for this season. After the walls were repainted, tiles on the lower four feet of the walls were installed by Larry Brenton and Jerry Styn. The old (newer) sink was replaced by one donated by Don Boyd III, taken from a house built around 1900, and thus an ideal period piece for this restoration. Installation of the sink by Marty Visciano and Mark Klepadlo required modification of the plumbing, including piping below the depot floor.

When Mark Klepadlo climbed down into the dirt floored crawl space beneath the depot floor, he was met by a visitor, one whose age was not appropriate to the vintage of the building. Mark also discovered a water leak, requiring replacement of a segment of the water pipe leading to the bathroom. Apparently the visiting ground hog decided that Mark, on his hands and knees, was no immediate threat, and left him alone to tend to his work, but did continue merrily digging along the foundation. Mark plans to trap and relocate the visitor elsewhere. Good thing the visitor wasn't a skunk!

         A new sign graces the track (trail) side of the depot. Construction was ordered and paid for by John Bond, who went to Olean to retrieve it. Made from a single piece of wood, it is 11' 2' long and replicates the sign that would have been there in Lehigh Valley Railroad days. Note that on the southeast end, the sign indicates a distance of 441 miles to New York City while the northwestern end shows 21 miles to Niagara Falls, information that was present on the original sign. Once the North River tunnels were built under the Hudson River, the Lehigh Valley was the only railroad that
actually entered New York City. The DL&W and Erie Railroad ended in Hoboken and Jersey City, and required passengers to take a ferry across to Manhattan.

         Staining of the wood around the stained glass and track viewing windows in the agent's office (see photo) was completed in the spring and is a vast improvement on the bare wood present before.
         The increasing numbers of Sunday visitors to the depot have apparently been stimulated by depot events such as the flea market and cruise night spearheaded by Art Toale. Sales of hot dogs and chips, and of soda and water have provided some financial support. An important addition to the flea market this year was a plant and flower sale, overseen by Marty Visciano and his wife. The flowers were donated by Spoth Farms. This turned out to be an overwhelming success.


         The Homewood Theater Company productions featuring Marty Bauer's original plays, "A Play on Words" and "The Great Caboose Mystery" with Marty and Mary Sue Bauer in leading roles, had another prosperous season. Marty is donating the profits from these productions to the depot for the reconstruction of the loading dock, which incidentally might serve as a stage for a future production.

A new twist this year was a dinner-and-theater ticket, Marty Bauer's show presented at the Williamsville Village Hall following a depot sponsored spaghetti dinner at the Cleveland Heights Christian Church, a facility arranged by Bob and Nancy Lutot. Next year, Marty may present the play in the same building as the dinner.

On Saturday, September 26th we hosted another hayride from the depot down the Lehigh Trail, celebrating October Fest. Marty Visciano has had great success with this event in the past.

Since the Depot is not heated, the water will soon be turned off and pipes drains filled with biodegradable antifreeze, a situation that currently rules out winter activities, but maybe at some time in the future will be rectified. Thanks to Bob Lutot for his photography expertise.


ALONG THE LEHIGH TRAIL - October - November
by Hal Douglass

         How quickly the summer has come and gone. Another restoration season has come to a close. This past year, much of the work has been focused on the grounds outside. The telltale hangs over the track warning that standing on the caboose roof is not safe. Our semaphore signal now stands directly in front of the agent's office window warning trains to stop there. Thanks to Larry Brenton and others for arranging and erecting these items, and painting them!

         The road between the trail and the Highway Department now hosts a railroad warning sign with flashing lights (crossing gate to be installed later) where the track the caboose is on would cross the road. A new mile post near the depot identifies the distance to New York City on the Lehigh Valley as 441 miles.

         The one project we did not complete is the restoration construction of the loading dock at the east end of the depot. This has been deferred to number one priority for next year. Its completion will help Marty Bauer and the Home-wood Theater Company by serving as a stage for some of their productions. Marty presented "The Great Caboose Affair" in the depot at the end of August, and found the depot quite satisfactory for his original plays. Marty Bauer is donating a portion of the profits from these productions to the depot's restoration effort and toward the construction of the loading dock.

The new color and night vision security system has already started to pay for itself. It caught three teenagers on the roof and cupola of the caboose carving their names into the roof. Amherst police located them and two of the families have already agreed to pay their share of the estimated cost of repair.

Marty Visciano's hayride, in conjunction with the Williamsville Village October Fest was a big success this year, as was Art Toale's Cruise Night. We were sorry to see two of the Williamsville Steering Committee's most active members step back at the end of the season: Don Boyd Jr., who proudly holds Western New York Railway Historical Society membership certificate number ONE, the first non-charter member, and Art Toale, who had taken on the spring and fall WNYRHS Train Show at the Fairgrounds this year.

The Committee will finish the year with a Christmas party on December 10th, 2015 after the meeting on December 8th to organize the activities for next year. Future possibilities for the Williamsville Lehigh Valley Historic Site include the movement of a CSX 40 foot boxcar from Ebenezer to join the caboose on site if funds for moving it can be raised, and movement of the Lehigh Valley Section House, built shortly after the depot, several hundred feet to the site (pending all necessary approvals), and again if funding can be found.

The Steering Committee is always looking for new members interested in the restoration of the Lehigh Valley depot site, particularly among those who live in the city of Buffalo, Cheektowaga or in the North Towns. We need people interested in working on the restoration projects and those who could assist with fund raising activities. Come join us! Contact Marty Visciano (martyvisciano@gmail.com) or Tom Stackhouse (Stack4483@aol.com) and sign up!




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