TITUSVILLE — The “woooooooo! woooooooo!” sound of the steam whistle and the clang of a brass bell are bewitching sounds to railroad fans everywhere.

Those sounds echoing in downtown Titusville on Friday morning drew people to the Oil Creek & Titusville Railroad’s Perry Street Station area to catch a glimpse of history from the early to mid-20th century.

“It’s something you don’t see every day,” said Ryan Maginnis, 27, of Titusville as he was snapping pictures of not one, but two steam-powered locomotives Friday.

“It’s pretty neat,” said Maginnis, who has enjoyed trains ever since he was a child. “They’re the first steam trains I’ve ever seen (in person).”

The steam locomotives are in Titusville for the OC&T’s first steam train weekend in the history of the excursion railroad that began in 1986.

They are the first steam-powered locomotives to operate in Titusville since 1953, according to OC&T officials.

The two locomotives will be part of extra and rare mileage excursion trains both today and Sunday in and around the Titusville area.

Their arrival already has meant about 2,000 reservations out of a possible 4,000 seats for the special runs, according to OC&T officials.

“We’re hoping for a sellout weekend,” said Betty Squire, the marketing director for the OC&T’s excursion runs. “We usually have the same amount of walk-up sales as we do reservations for any weekend.”

Rail fans from Pennsylvania, Ohio, New York and several other states, as well as Canada, have reservations, according to Squire.

“We’re drawing people from about a 500-mile radius (of Titusville),” she said. “We normally draw from about a 100-mile radius.”

Squire noted that both of Titusville’s hotels are booked solid for the weekend.

The two locomotives arrived Thursday via flatbed truck and were fitted onto the tracks.

The two engines are a Viscose Co. 0-4-0T No. 6, restored to operating condition by Scott Symans of Dunkirk, N.Y., and Flagg Coal Co. 0-4-0T No. 75, restored and owned by John and Barney Gramling of Ashley, Ind.

Both engines were used as small switch or worker engines years ago.

“They would be used in company (rail) yards,” said Robert Dingman, president of the Oil Creek & Titusville Railroad, which operates both freight and excursion service. “It used to be, years ago, the Class I or mainline railroads would drop a cut of (rail) cars and let you do the switching at your company.”

The engine owners, Symans and the Gramling father and son team, say they just kind of evolved into owning and restoring their locomotives.

“I haven’t figured that out yet,” Symans, 38, said with a laugh when asked what made him take on a steam-locomotive restoration project. “It’s definitely a disorder.”

“It was a great project for us because Dad and I did it together,” Barney Gramling, 41, said of the restoration work he did with his father. “For me, the fun part was to get to do it together and now watch it travel by.”

Seeing a steam train in operation is what intrigues people, say the men, and local rail fans agreed.

“I saw them when I was in town earlier this morning and I decided to bring the kids down,” said Ken Keller of Titusville who was with his grandchildren, Konner Looney, 6, and Kaylee Looney, 4.

“They’re cool!,” Konner said with a smile.

 “They’re probably something they’ll never see again,” said Keller.



 Keith Gushard can be reached at 724-6370 or by email at kgushard@meadvilletribune.com.



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The Oil Creek & Titusville Railroad plans to operate special steam excursion runs today and Sunday.

There will be three 90-minute “rare mileage” trips on the ex-New York Central Fieldmore Springs line through the city of Titusville to East Titusville. Those trips are at 9 and 11 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. both today and Sunday. Cost is $18 per person for first class car; and coach car cost is $12 for adults and $8 for children ages 3 to 12.

There also will be a three-hour trip run on the former Pennsylvania Railroad Chautauqua Branch between Titusville and Rynd Farm today and Sunday. The three-hour trip starts at 1 p.m. both days. Cost is $35 per person for first class car; and coach car cost is $25 for adults and $15 for children ages 3 to 12.

All excursions start from Titusville’s Perry Street Station at 409 S. Perry St.