V&T’s Tom Gray — Video Star Rising? “Steam Built”
Our graphic artist Donna showed me this video from the VCBelowTheSurface website run by the Virginia City Tourism Commission:
Tom is our beloved, fearless leader at the Virginia & Truckee Railroad 😆 Actually, his title is President of the Virginia & Truckee Railroad Company, Inc. His full name is Thomas: the famous British TV train show was named after him. Or was it the other way around? (spoiler alert: neither, Thomas the Train is a lot more famous)
Steam’s Back — Return of the #29 Steam Locomotive
After his youthful days at the early V&T, Tom had a busy career in construction management. He also earned an MBA from University of Nevada Reno. While he worked for Granite Construction on infrastructure projects he learned how to run a backhoe like nobody’s business. Tom returned to the V&T Railroad over a decade ago. One of his earliest achievements was to bring the “Robert C. Gray” #29 steam locomotive back into service after an absence of many years. In my early days of being a pesky railfan* making train videos, I did a series on Youtube called Steam’s Back:
You can view the entire playlist — Parts 1 to 5 of Steam’s Back on Youtube
F Street Depot Purchase
Another major milestone under Tom Gray’s watch was the acquisition of the original 1870 passenger depot on F Street. If you know Virginia City, you knew the private residence next to the old V&T Depot where the three cabooses are parked. Once the depot was acquired, it was opened for ticket sales and as a gift shop.
Rebirth of the Virginia & Truckee by Ted Wurm
Tom’s father, Robert “Bob” C. Gray, rode the last V&T railfan special in 1938. He was then a wartime photographer and now is enjoying retirement in the sunny, temperate hills of California. In the 1960s Bob Gray began acquiring property from the former V&T rail line from Gold Hill to Virginia City. In 1976, he ran the first trains, in time for the United State bi-centennial. At first he lease a trainset from Short Line Enterprises — in time the V&T has purchased and maintained a full fleet of steam and diesel locomotives.
If you are interested in the story of how Bob and Tom Gray brought the VTRR back to life in the 1970s, you can see the book, Rebirth of the Virginia & Truckee by famed V&T Railway photographer Ted Wurm. Among other stories of the restoration of this famous shortline railroad, this book tells the story of how the “Robert C. Gray” came to the railroad from Oregon. This locomotive is the iconic V&T #29.
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