You history buffs may recall a monumental conclusion that occurred 150 years ago. If not, let me spike your memory. This May marked the 150th anniversary of the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad at unlikely Promontory Summit, Utah. In celebration of this anniversary, 150 parties took place around the state. Jason and I were delighted to be part of one of these and to be able to visit Promontory Summit itself during its three-day celebration.
The Heber Valley Railroad (Heber Creeper) is the sole historic railway in Utah; it’s the only place in the state you can ride a 100-year-old train. So, it was a perfect track for one of the many sesquicentennial festivities. Before the Heber Creeper rolled down its 15-mile line hauling eight cars filled with 400 people, our vintage dance group enlivened those riders with moves from the 1860s. On the platform, we taught them to chasse and skip along with us.
During the ride through Provo Canyon, our twirling troupe traversed cars and chatted with attendees. Their passion was contagious. With so many train enthusiasts from all over the world aboard, the Heber Creeper was feeling the love that night. I enjoyed wandering the compartments and conversing with people, but it was a challenge to fit my hoopskirt though the aisles and even harder to sit down. Apparently, train cars aren’t built to accommodate 4.5-foot-wide passengers.
We managed to get tickets for the Sesquicentennial Celebration the following day at Golden Spike National Historic Park. The weekend’s festivities were completely sold out with thousands of attendees. On the way to Promontory Summit, we stopped in Ogden to see Big Boy, the largest and heaviest steam locomotive ever made. Decommissioned in 1959, Big Boy No. 4014 was restored to operating condition in honor of the sesquicentennial by the Union Pacific Railroad. The crowds to view Big Boy were dense, even thicker than the throngs we encountered later that day at Promontory Summit. It was worth the wedging though to examine that beefy chunk of a bygone era.
We made it to Golden Spike in time for the afternoon reenactment, which was packed but entertaining. We heard some true tales about the completing of the railroad, ate from a plethora of food trucks, and visited “Hell on Wheels.” The working replicas of the Jupiter and No. 119 locomotives, although not new, were new to me. I loved how they breathed tangible steam and smoke into the stillness of the past.
As a history nerd, I was super excited about the sesquicentennial, and it did not disappoint. Being a part of the revelries with our dancing group made it even more extraordinary. It was surprisingly easy to get swept up in the momentum of an occurrence that changed this continent 150 years ago.