~ City of Petersburg is only location on the train’s tour that has a layover for passengers ~
The City of Petersburg and Petersburg Area Regional Tourism (PART) are thrilled to announce that the very historic Norfolk & Western (N &W) Class J 611 Steam Passenger Locomotive will be bringing visitors to Old Towne Petersburg on Saturday, June 13, and again on Sunday, June 14. On each of those days the train will bring 850 passengers to see and experience historic Old Towne and enjoy lunch in one of the wonderful restaurants here. Additionally, there will be hundreds of train enthusiasts who will also come to Old Towne on each of those days to see and get a picture of the Class J 611 locomotive.
The simple lines, a bullet nose, a midnight black façade, a Tuscan stripe and a baritone whistle make N & W’s Class J 611 the most distinguished steam locomotive left in the world. She has recently been completely restored in North Carolina and will now be permanently located at the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke.
The excursions on June 13 and 14 are sponsored by the Virginia Museum of Transportation and will be coming from Lynchburg to Petersburg. The trains will arrive at 12:30 p.m. each day and will depart Petersburg at 2:30 p.m. Passengers will be disembarking behind River Street in Old Towne within easy walking distance to all that Old Towne has to offer.
Many of the region’s residents will recall the train excursion from Norfolk to Old Towne Petersburg a couple of years ago, which generated lots of excitement. This train will be twice as large and will offer a great “up close and personal” opportunity to see this amazing locomotive.
“We are excited and appreciative to the Virginia Museum of Transportation for selecting Old Towne Petersburg as the destination for these two excursions.” comments William E. Johnson, III, Petersburg City Manager. “We are sure that our great restaurants and attractions will offer them great southern hospitality while they are here and encourage them to find other opportunities to visit Petersburg and the entire region and of course, come back to visit.”
Rick Young, President of the Petersburg Area Regional Tourism Board of Director says, “the Virginia Museum of Transportation has made a wonderful choice in selecting Old Towne Petersburg as the destination for these excursions. The entire region welcomes these guests and hopes that they will enjoy their day and will return often, as there is so much to LOVE in the Best PART of Virginia”.
For more information on City of Petersburg services and programs, please visit www.petersburgva.gov. For more information on PART, visit www.petersburgarea.org and for more information about the Virginia Museum of Transportation, visit www.vmt.org.