JOHNSON CITY – The final summer Heritage Day event at East Tennessee State University’s Carter Railroad Museum will focus on the history of railroads in the American West.
Visitors will enjoy replicas of specialized equipment that passed through some of
America’s most dramatic scenery, including the Grand Canyon, Great Salt Lake, the
Redwood forests and Yellowstone.
The “Way out West” event is Saturday, Aug. 27.
“The impact these railroads had on establishing a cohesive and united nation on our
continent is what helped make America a great country,” said Geoff Stunkard, Heritage
Day coordinator for the museum. “The opportunity for growth through employment and
agriculture, the important resources of raw materials and manufacturing and comfortable
travel to remote places like Yosemite and Puget Sound played into this. Today, our
nation is still bridged by these railroads.”
Open Saturdays from 10 a.m.-3 p.m., the Carter Railroad Museum includes model railroad layouts, a special child’s activity room and ongoing programs.
There is no admission fee, but donations are welcome.
The museum can be identified by a flashing railroad-crossing signal at the back entrance
to the Campus Center Building. Enter ETSU’s campus from State of Franklin Road onto
Jack Vest Drive and continue east toward 176 Ross Drive, adjacent to the flashing
railroad crossing sign.
For more information about Heritage Day, contact Dr. Fred Alsop at (423) 439-6838 or alsopf@etsu.edu. For disability accommodations, call the ETSU Office of Disability Services at (423) 439-8346.