News about the 2015 Lincoln Funeral Train

[GARY POPOLO]

(09-02-2013 10:32 AM)RJNorton Wrote:  

‘Lincoln’ logs in time Railroad Extravaganza in Union

By Denise Moran For The Courier-News September 1, 2013 9:58PM

UNION — United States President Abraham Lincoln, portrayed by actor Fritz Klein, and Leviathan 63, the 1860s-era steam locomotive replica built by Elgin resident David Kloke, both made an appearance this weekend at Illinois Railway Museum’s Railroad Extravaganza.

While the event marked the museum’s 60th anniversary, Kloke, owner of Kloke Construction and Kloke Locomotive Works LLC in Elgin, has been busy with preparations for another anniversary.

Kloke built the Leviathan 63 locomotive in honor of the 150th anniversary in 2015 of Lincoln’s assassination and funeral train journey.

Lincoln served as president during the Civil War, which lasted from 1861 to 1865. Lincoln was recently portrayed by actor Daniel Day-Lewis in director Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln.” The role won Day-Lewis an Academy Award in 2013.

Kloke first became interested in building the Lincoln funeral train around 1999 after watching a documentary about Lincoln. The 16th president was assassinated by actor John Wilkes Booth on April 14, 1865. The railroad car that carried Lincoln’s body, along with the body of Lincoln’s son, Willie, was originally the presidential car that Lincoln never rode in while alive. It was the 1865 equivalent of Air Force One, according to Leviathan 63 publicity director Shannon Brown.

Lincoln’s funeral procession began in Washington D.C. on April 21, 1865. It traveled over 12 days over 1,600 miles through more than 160 communities on its way to Lincoln’s final resting place in Springfield. The 2015 funeral train will travel the same route whenever possible and on the same dates, April 21 to May 3.

While the Leviathan 63 engine that will be used to recreate the journey in 2015 is completed, the funeral car is still being built.

“The steel for the funeral car was delivered one month ago,” Brown said. “They are now welding the funeral car frame in Elgin. There are also plans on building an officers’ car.”

Klein said that there is a major connection between Lincoln and the railroads in America.

“Lincoln was a strong advocate for trains,” Klein said. “Part of his political philosophy was to unite the railroads and bring prosperity to the country.”

“Lincoln was once an attorney for the railroads,” Brown said. “His eldest son, Robert Todd, also once worked as an attorney for the railroads and later served as president for the Pullman Car Company.”

After Klein as Lincoln rode into the Union Museum on the Leviathan 63, he gave a speech to attendees that included the famous Gettysburg Address.

Crystal Lake resident Ron Ziolkowski, who came to the museum on Sunday for the Railroad Extravaganza, did not know that “Lincoln” was going to make an appearance.

“It was a rather unexpected but pleasant surprise,” Ziolkowski said. “I appreciated hearing his overview of Lincoln’s war strategy. It was nice to hear of the significance of the Battle of Vicksburg, sometimes known as the forgotten battle.”

Sandy Wittman of Carpentersville said she came to the train museum on Sunday because she had read about it in The Courier-News.

“We watched trains as a kid,” Wittman said. “My dad, Russell Wittman, had Lionel trains in our basement. This event is incredible and the kind of thing we should be supporting.”

Linda Pesch of Elgin is the general manager of the Leviathan 63 store. It carries a variety of Leviathan souvenir merchandise such as hats, cups, engineer hats and baseball caps. Pesch first met Kloke when she was a clinical dental assistant and Kloke was a patient at Dr. William Holevas’s office in Elgin. She decided to retire from her dental career and run the store.

“Where the train goes, the store goes,” Pesch said.

The train will travel to Saratoga Springs, New York, from September 7 to 15.

Kloke founded the registered 501 © (3) Historic Railroad Equipment Association in Elgin to help fund the Lincoln funeral train. There will be a fundraising event at 5 p.m. on Saturday, October 19, at The Sanfilippo Estate in Barrington that will include a tour, dinner and auction.

For more information, call (847) 238-2015; http://www.The2015LincolnFuneralTrain.com.


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Roger, Thanks for sharing. I sure wish I could be there to see it run. One of my hobbies happens to be O scale trains and I have a model of a train almost exactly like the Leviathan. I love steam engines over diesels and to see them in person moving down the track is something I really enjoy. To see this one in person would be wonderful in more ways than one.