My friends at the Rockhill Trolley Museum tell me they expect a modest bump in patronage this year. People who come to Rockhill Furnace to ride the EBT and find it closed will take a trolley ride instead. However, as word spreads that the trains aren't running, I'm afraid the trolley museum's patronage will take a big hit.
I was fortunate to visit the EBT for the first time in 1966, for the first of the fondly-remembered Winter Spectaculars, and I attended every one from then right up to the final event in 1981. I was a volunteer at the trolley museum during that period, and I was one of the people who gave shop tours for several years. In fact, in the mid-1970's, I was deeply involved in planning the event, coordinating the trolley museum and the railroad operations. In 1981, EBT management decided the cost of bringing in crews and the added wear and tear on the equipment occasioned by cold weather operations did not offset the income derived from the event. In my opinion, the Fall Spectaculars were a pale substitute, even though I completely understand and agree with the reasoning behind the change.
