PHILADELPHIA – Steam impresario Ross E. Rowland is promoting a steam-hauled exhibition train that he hopes will visit 125 cities and towns in the U.S. between 2017 and 2020.
The idea is an updated version of his highly acclaimed 1975-1976 American Freedom Train. "It's a clone of the Freedom Train," Rowland says. That train, bearing hundreds of historic artifacts and documents, was seen by more than 7 million people.
Rowland says that the Yellow Ribbon Express has two goals. The first is "a national loud and proud thank you" to American military veterans, especially those who have served since 9/11. The second, he says, is to raise $1 billion to aid wounded veterans of the wars who have fought since 2001. "It's a thank you from the 99 percent of us to the 1 percent of us who have done the heavy lifting," he adds.
Rowland is currently seeking 10 corporate sponsors willing to invest $2 million a year each for five years, so that all admission income from the traveling exhibition will go directly to what he calls "A Billion for the Brave."
The train will be steam-powered, Rowland says, so it is more than just a train. "It will be a spectacle," he says. "Steam will draw people to the train. It will be a happening." He is seeking support of several Class I railroads, and one, which he will not name, is already on board with the idea.
The primary locomotive will be former Chesapeake & Ohio No. 614, a 1948 Lima 4-8-4 that Rowland has owned for three decades. He revealed that he and his engineering team are considering converting the locomotive to burn natural gas. Other main line locomotives will double-head with No. 614 on the tour, according to Rowland, so that a live, steaming locomotive will be on hand every day at every exhibit site. "There are quite a few large, mainline locomotive available around the country so we can have alive locomotive on site every day," he says.
"It's a tall mountain to climb, and there are no guarantees," Rowland says. "I'm modestly optimistic that we can do this.
