Resources at Kalmbach and beyond

A couple of months ago, I blogged about Kalmbach’s in-house David P. Morgan Memorial Library. This got me thinking about other resources I have access to at Kalmbach. While there are many, it’s the people who make the difference. Here are some examples of staff and contributors who have helped me recently.

For instance, Kevin Keefe (now retired) was a big help when I was looking for some dates related to the library. Kevin was once Trains magazine’s editor, and he still writes a blog for Classic Trains called Mileposts. I emailed him my questions, and by morning he’d gone through decades of bound volumes to find the dates I was looking for!

And speaking of Classic Trains, I’m regularly in touch with J. David Ingles (contributing editor). Dave worked at Kalmbach for 47 years (wow!) and still helps Editor Rob McGonigal with editing and other projects. He and I meet for lunch about once a month, and we never run out of things to discuss. 

I recently wrote my first product review of a piece of rolling stock for Garden Railways (a hopper car). Cody Grivno, our Group Technical Editor, walked me through some of the railroad terminology. I also got a lesson in using the NMRA coupler-height tool (a learning experience for both of us. But that’s a story for another day!)

Most of you know that Bob Keller has written hundreds of product reviews for CTT, so after I’d written that first draft of the hopper car review, I asked Bob to take a look at it. He kindly read through it and offered a few thoughts.

Not long ago, the Big Boy made its way through Wisconsin. It had an overnight stay in Butler (sort of northern Milwaukee area), but there was no public access. My husband Jim was quite disappointed, as he really wanted to view this engine. Trains’ Editor Jim Wrinn to the rescue! Jim Wrinn sent out several companywide emails, announcing Big Boy’s arrival. On the day it stopped in Butler, he sent an email describing where best to view it. I called (my) Jim and read him the email. He was delighted and was able to get photos and video.

 There you have it. Just a few examples of what I have access to within the building (or slightly beyond it).

 And lastly, thanks to Roger Carp, who inspired this blog topic.