Two from Prairie Rivers Obtain Certified Professional Guide Titles

Two from Prairie Rivers Obtain Certified Professional Guide Titles

Two people from Prairie Rivers of Iowa (PRI) recently added Certified Professional Guide titles to their names through the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach’s Professional Guide Certification Program. Jeanie Hau, PRI’s byway Coordinator and Shellie Orngard, a Special Projects contractor, made presentations to State Tourism Specialist Diane Van Wyngarden as the final step in the certification process.

Jeanie Hau receives Professional Guide Certification

“To be able to share the stories of the people who have lived along our byways in the most interesting and engaging way possible was the reason I sought this certification.” Hau said.  Her presentation was about Charlie Reed and how the Lincoln Highway and the Jefferson Highways (which meet at the corner of where his farm was) enhanced his life and the people who he met at this crossing.

“I am committed to historic preservation along the Lincoln Highway in Iowa, and being able to tell the stories of the people and places along the Lincoln is the first step toward preservation,” Orngard said. Her presentation focused on the establishment and first decade of the Lincoln Highway, a story told through the traveling exhibit “Promise Road: How the Lincoln Highway Changed America,” she created in 2022 with funding from the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs.

 

Shellie Orngard receives Certified Professional Guide

Professional Guide Certification candidates complete a training program of best practices to deliver quality experiences to visitors. The final certification process is conducted at each individual’s location of choice, where they must effectively demonstrate the professional guide practices most appropriate for their unique organization or attraction. Individuals who achieve Professional Guide Certification work to provide quality Iowa visitor experiences, and earn certification from Iowa State University.

Hau’s and Orngard’s names have been added to a statewide list of certified guides. To see the list or get more information about Iowa State University Extension and Outreach’s professional guide training workshop and certification program, see https://go.iastate.edu/VAX4FG or contact ISU Extension Tourism Specialist, Diane Van Wyngarden at dvw@iastate.edu.

‘Big Boy’ visits Belle Plaine by Jeff Morrison

‘Big Boy’ visits Belle Plaine by Jeff Morrison

The Union Pacific’s No. 4014 “Big Boy” steam locomotive stops in downtown Belle Plaine, Iowa, on Thursday, September 5, 2024. The train’s trip across Iowa closely followed the Lincoln Highway. Photo by author.

BELLE PLAINE — Little boys love Big Boy. Big boys love Big Boy. On Thursday, hundreds of people turned out to see Big Boy.

“Big Boy” is the nickname of the 25 huge trains built in 1941 for the Union Pacific Railroad. The Omaha World-Herald introduced it as a “mastiff among puny terrier locomotives.” There are seven remaining in museums. That number used to be eight, but No. 4014 was pulled out of a California museum and restored in the 2010s. Five years after its initial excursion in 2019, the last Big Boy returned to Iowa as part of an eight-week, 10-state “Heartland of America Tour.”

John Sutherland, 75, of North Liberty was seeing Big Boy for the first time. “Railroading runs in my family’s blood. My grandfather worked for the Pullman-Standard Steel Car Co. and my great-grandfather was the line superintendent for the Michigan Central Railroad.” He’s not much of a train spotter, but the opportunity to see Big Boy was too good to pass up.

Belle Plaine, Iowa

The Iowa-Illinois portion of Big Boy’s 2024 trip followed trackage that was originally part of the Chicago & North Western Railroad and closely parallels U.S. Highway 30 and the Lincoln Highway. Its public stops were in Carroll, Belle Plaine and Grand Mound. Those stops doubled as service periods, since the world’s largest operating steam locomotive requires a high degree of maintenance.

George Kornstead of Iowa City was wearing a Hawkeye Model Railroad Club shirt. He grew up around the rail hub in Duluth and Superior. “Steam is incredible, it really is, to watch how back in the day when people were working on railroad, how hard it was and how intensive it was to keep steam available on the locomotive. Lot of work. The fireman really makes his money.”

Big Boy pulls into Belle Plaine with Lincoln Highway Mural in background

The World-Herald in 1941 said at the first Big Boy’s launch, “A single tender loading of coal would heat a six-room home for three years.” This Big Boy has been converted from using coal to using oil.

Steven Ritchie, 6, wore a “Big Boy” T-shirt. His father, Roger, said Steven has seen a lot of train videos and sings “the Big Boy song.” Andrew Schamberger of Hudson wore a C&NW T-shirt. His sister, Becca Scott of West Branch, loves the old steam engines.

According to the UP’s website, No. 4014 racked up a million miles of travel in its 20 years of original service in Wyoming and Utah. It’s nearly twice as long as a standard diesel locomotive and more than half the length of a Boeing 747 jet. The Big Boys “had a 4-8-8-4 wheel arrangement, which meant they had four wheels on the leading set of ‘pilot’ wheels which guided the engine, eight drivers, another set of eight drivers, and four wheels following which supported the rear of the locomotive,” the website says.

The Union Pacific’s “Big Boy” glistens during a light rain shower in downtown Belle Plaine, Iowa, on Thursday, September 5, 2024. Engine No. 4014 was built in 1941, decommissioned in 1961, and restored in time for the 150th anniversary of the transcontinental railroad in 2019. Photo by author.

Big Boy’s visit was a way to connect with railroad history. Paul Duffy, 85, is from “Tama, really,” but now lives nearer Belle Plaine. He worked for the C&NW and then with UP after the two railroads merged. He had been stationed at multiple points along the railroad in Iowa through his career. His oldest of five daughters, Laurie Duffy, remembers going to the station in Tama with her children to wave at Paul as his train went by.

As Big Boy finally pulled into Belle Plaine 55 minutes after its scheduled arrival, the only rain in a week’s worth of weather showed up with it. It did not dampen the spirits of those who waited, although busloads of elementary school students were only able to get a short glimpse of the train before leaving.

On the other track, a modern UP train with a long line of double-stacked shipping containers prepared to resume its trip west. Freight trains have been going through Belle Plaine for more than a century and a half, and Thursday was no exception.

After the wheels had been greased up and spectators got their fill of pictures, Big Boy’s engineer pulled the whistle and rang the bell. The 83-year-old engine began to chug its way toward Cedar Rapids for the night.

Roll on, Big Boy, roll on.

My other work can be found on my website, Iowa Highway Ends, and its blog.

I am proud to be part of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative.

Jeff Morrison

Welcome Aboard Prairie Rivers Board Member Rick Dietz

Prairie Rivers of Iowa Board Member Rick Dietz is new to our board of directors, but certainly not new to our work. Retired from the City of Ames, Rick volunteers for many organizations including Prairie Rivers, Story County Conservation, the Story County Sheriff’s Dive Team, N-Compass and Project AWARE, the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation, the Iowa Wildlife Center, STAR 1 Search and Rescue, and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Rivers Program. Rick has been generous with his gifts, time, and talents as a Prairie Rivers supporter and volunteer. We look forward to the depth of experience and enthusiasm he will bring to the board, our staff, and our partners!
Rick Dietz During 2022 Ioway Creek Cleanup Event

More About Rick:
• Attended Iowa State (majoring in Horticulture) after getting an Associate Degree in Electronic Engineering Technology
• Retired from City of Ames Electric Services in 2015
• Interest in prairies began as a volunteer at the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge
• Member of the Panora Conservation Chapter of the Izaak Walton League and the Iowa Environmental Council
• Recipient of INHF’s Hagie Heritage Award (2020), the Olav Smedal Conservation Award, and an IOWATER Volunteer of the Year Award (both in 2006)
• Served in the Army National Guard, 1988-1993

Rick and his wife Carol Hansell, both Iowa natives, live just north of Ames where their home overlooks prairie, woodlands, and the Skunk River Valley.