Are you ready for Railroad Days 2011?

On Saturday, July 16, and Sunday, July 17, Lauritzen Gardens, The Durham Museum, the Union Pacific Railroad Museum, the RailsWest Railroad Museum and the Historic General Dodge House will come together to celebrate Omaha and Council Bluffs rich railroad heritage during Railroad Days 2011.

The theme for this fun-filled weekend is Railroaders: Then and Now with each venue offering a variety of family-friendly activities. At The Durham, visitors will have a unique opportunity to see a Genset Switcher, an environmentally friendly diesel locomotive created by Union Pacific and used in rail yards. A $15 family pass allows admission to and transportation between all five locations. A $5 pass is also available for one additional adult with the purchase of a family pass.

Railroad Days is made possible thanks to the generous support of the Union Pacific Railroad and a grant provided by the Iowa West Foundation. Media support is provided by KETV.

There is free parking at all the locations, and a family pass provides bus or trolley service between locations. Additional details are available online at www.omaharailroaddays.com.

Click here or on the video below to learn more about Railroad Days venues via videos courtesy of CBTV17 and Iowa Western Community College. (2010 video)

Wild, Wild West Day set for July 23 at The Durham Museum

Mosey on down to The Durham Museum for some old-fashioned fun!

Saturday, July 23, 2011, has been proclaimed the National Day of the Cowboy by Gov. Dave Heineman. To celebrate, The Durham Museum is teaming up with Wild West Creations to bring back the Old West!

· Witness old-fashioned gun fights

· Learn about famous cowboys such Wyatt Earp, Pecos Pete, and Curly Bill as portrayed by Wild West Creations’ reenactors

· Watch “An Epic Journey in Bronze” to learn the history behind First National Bank’s sculpture park

· Enjoy whip cracking demonstrations

· Learn about train robbers from the Old West

· Take part in games and crafts such as horseshoes and create your own vest

· Learn how to lasso

· See leather craft and blacksmith demonstrations

· Take photos with the cowboys of Wild West Creations

· Purchase old-fashioned favorites such as sarsaparilla and BBQ beef sandwiches in the Soda Fountain

· Receive a FREE bandana compliments of First National Bank, while supplies last

Wild, Wild West Day is sponsored by First National Bank

Summer fun with photos!

Are you out and about doing fun things this summer? Be sure to take your camera and click away! We want to showcase the best photos area readers take this summer - whether it be around town or while you’re on vacation! Best of all, there are prizes!

To visit the contest website to learn more, click here.

Railroad Days 2010 recall era of passenger travel

On Saturday, July 17, and Sunday, July 18, Lauritzen Gardens, The Durham Museum, the Union Pacific Railroad Museum, the RailsWest Railroad Museum and the Historic General Dodge House are coming together to celebrate Omaha and Council Bluffs’ rich railroad heritage during Railroad Days 2010.

The 2010 theme is a celebration of passenger travel, when riding the rails was king! Each participating venue will offer a variety of family-friendly activities in addition to the venues’ ongoing programs and exhibits. A family pass is only $10 and includes entrance into all five venues for the entire weekend. There is free parking at all the locations, and a family pass provides bus service between locations.

The participating venues are open from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. during the festival. Additional details are available
at www.omaharailroaddays.com. Railroad Days is made possible thanks to the generous support of the Union Pacific Railroad and a grant provided by the Iowa West Foundation.

LAURITZEN GARDENS
100 Bancroft, Omaha, NE 68108
(402) 346-4002
www.lauritzengardens.org
Lauritzen Gardens, Omaha’s Botanical Center, features more than a dozen outdoor display gardens on a 100-acre site, along with a visitor and education center housing an indoor fl oral display hall, café, gift shop, classrooms and a horticulture library. Also at the garden is Kenefick Park, which features two of the greatest locomotives to ever power Union Pacific Railroad - Centennial No. 6900, one of the largest and most powerful diesel-electric locomotives ever built, and Big Boy No. 4023, one of the world’s largest steam locomotives.
Visitors are invited to hop on board a trackless train as it rolls through the garden or check out the inside of the Mobile Nobles Train. No one will want to miss a stroll through the enchanted model railroad garden buzzing with seven train lines and Omaha landmark building replicas created with exquisite detail from natural elements like twigs, leaves, bark and seedpods. All can learn about passenger travel and its exciting destinations while viewing remarkable train memorabilia on display. Children can watch a massive model train display running and make a train engineer hat to take home, and families can listen to railroad-themed music by the Union Pacifi c Railroad Chorale while enjoying food from the café. This is a truly unique way to experience man and nature where botanical meets mechanical.

THE DURHAM MUSEUM
801 South 10th Street, Omaha, NE 68108
(402) 444-5071
www.durhammuseum.org
Making its home in Omaha’s former Union Station, The Durham Museum is one of the country’s best examples of art deco architecture. Union Pacific Railroad donated Union Station to the city of Omaha in 1971, and four years later the museum opened its doors. Omaha’s Union Station was extensively renovated by The Durham Museum to capture the character and glory days - when 10,000 passengers would pass through the station daily. Today, visitors can explore exhibits that preserve the areas rich history including an extensive train car exhibit with steam engines, a Pullman car, Lounge cars and a caboose. There is also an impressive 100-foot O gauge model train layout representing Union Pacifi c’s double track main line during the 1950s.
During Railroad Days, visitors will receive a ticket to take their own trip around Omaha’s Union Station to discover firsthand visitor amenities while meeting memorable passengers along the way. Activities for the whole family throughout the museum include create your own travel postcards, pack your suitcase races, view original Union Station artifacts, watch historic train travel documentaries, see historic automobiles from the 1940’s and 50’s and enjoy musical performances by the Yesterday’s Kids Barbershop Quartet.
The Durham is pleased to host Union Pacific’s No. 2010 during Railroad Days. Created as a tribute to the organization’s centennial celebration, the No. 2010 honors Scouting’s 100-year impact on the nation and the many Scouting enthusiasts in Union Pacific’s work force and communities. A very rare honor, Union Pacific has created only 14 commemorative locomotives in its nearly 150-year history. The Boy Scouts-themed locomotive is decorated with a series of four distinct graphics:
• The national Boy Scouts of America logo;
• The BSA’s 100th Anniversary logo;
• The words “100 Years of Scouting,” and,
• Ten emblems representing stages of Scouting and an 11th emblem for the 2010 National Scout Jamboree

UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD MUSEUM
200 Pearl St., Council Bluffs, IA 51503
(712) 329-8307
www.upmuseum.org
Visitors to the Union Pacific Railroad Museum enjoy a trip through 140 years of railroading in the United States. The museum chronicles the race to build the transcontinental railroad and how Union Pacific became the country’s east-west artery, transporting passengers and freight across the American wilderness. Hands-on exhibits allow visitors to experience everything from a telegraph to being an Engineer on a locomotive simulator. Visitors discover how Union Pacific helped lead America’s technological revolution at the Union Pacific Railroad. The Union Pacific Railroad Museum is housed in the beautifully restored Carnegie Library in Council Bluffs’ historic district.
Over two years in the making, Union Pacific Railroad Museum’s new exhibit, America Travels by Rail brings to life the travel and destinations Americans enjoyed from the 1930s until passenger service transferred to Amtrak in 1971. Visitors will be able to put themselves in a dining car, a lounge car and a coach car; walk a Rail to Trail site; see thousands of artifacts on display, including Union Pacific’s extensive railroad china and silver collection.

HISTORIC GENERAL DODGE HOUSE
605 Third Street, Council Bluffs, IA 51503
(712) 322-2406
www.dodgehouse.org
Visitors to the Historic General Dodge House will meet Corporal Jack Provines of the Union Army and get a feel for what it took to be a real Union soldier. Visitors can meet the Sons of the Union Veterans of the Civil War including decedents of the soldiers from General Dodge’s own unit, the 4th Iowa. Also visitors will see soldier’s fire Civil War Era real cannons! Throughout the day there will also be old-fashioned gun fights with cowboys from Wild West Creations.
Inside the Dodge House, visitors will have the opportunity to enhance their knowledge of the Civil War in the new “Letters Home” exhibit highlighting General Dodge’s Civil War experience through letters written by him from 1862-1864. The Dodge House will also feature open-house tours of the 1869 Victorian home of Grenville Dodge, Chief Engineer for the Union Pacific Railroad. Inside the home, visitors will see several authentic steamer trunks in various phases of preparation.
RAILSWEST RAILROAD MUSEUM
16th Avenue & South Main Street, Council Bluffs, IA 51503
(712) 323-2509
The RailsWest Railroad Museum, housed in the historic Rock Island Depot, illustrates Council Bluffs’ rich railroad history. The Rock Island Depot is the last remaining passenger depot in Council Bluffs, and was built in 1899. Visitors experience real railcars and locomotives in the beautifully restored Depot and enjoy the extensive HO-scale model train display. Council Bluffs’ railroad past comes alive at the RailsWest Railroad Museum.
Visitors to RailsWest Railroad museum will see what people in the past may have seen from the window of a passenger train car! Bison, deer and more were all seen by travelers passing through the Great Plains. Visitors can also see real moving freight trains from the museum’s new rail viewing platform. Iowa Interstate, BNSF and UPRR all still operate along the lines next to the Rock Island Depot.

Lauritzen Gardens Events

April 29 through September 15 Outside Kaneko

Visit the largest outdoor exhibit by internationally renowned artist Jun Kaneko.

Mondays and Tuesdays During the Summer Months - Garden Twilight

Visit the garden during the twilight hours for a relaxing way to end the summer days.

Tuesdays, April 12 through October 25 Walking Club

Get your morning exercise with a walk through the garden.

Select Tuesdays in Summer Tempo of Twilight

Experience the refreshing breeze, gorgeous light and peaceful setting of the garden with wonderful musical entertainment.