IRON MOUNTAIN RAIL DEPOT GETS NEW LOOK WITH PERIOD DETAILS

JACKSON -- The St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern Railway Company's Jackson depot has a new look -- outside and inside -- that will take you on a journey back in time.

The tourist railroad depot is located at the intersection of Highway 61-34 and Highway 25 in Jackson.

The exterior of the depot has been remodeled to look like the old Iron Mountain Railroad depots at Jackson and Gordonville, complete with a bay window where the railroad telegraph operator-ticket agent once sat as trains went by.

The interior was transformed into a 1950's "Whistle Stop Soda Shoppe" complete with an authentic, early 1900's operating soda fountain and 1950's jukebox with appropriate hit songs of the era.

The project was conceived and designed by Mary Strong and Trisha Wischmann, both of Jackson. Strong is manager of the tourist railroad, and Wischmann is a volunteer with the Friends of Steam Railroading, a support group associated with the tourist railroad. Wischmann also owns and operates a tourist-oriented bed and breakfast business in Jackson.

"Trish and I had been talking for a long time about ways to improve the railroad, and at the same time add food service at the depot," said Strong.

Wischmann originally wanted to open a tea room, using a converted stationary railroad coach that would be spotted on the depot grounds. She said: "We found an old coach, but it wasn't for sale. The more we thought about it, the more we felt we needed to improve the railroad depot, since it hadn't really been remodeled since the railroad purchased it."

After eleven weeks of work and $50,000 worth of materials and volunteer labor, the "Whistle Stop Soda Shoppe" will open this weekend, with a number of special activities, including 1950's contests, door prizes, and music of the 1950's.

The soda shop features hand-dipped ice cream sodas, malts, milkshakes, sundaes and ice cream cones, plus short-order menu items such as chili, soups, salads, hotdogs, hamburgers and fries. The soda fountain, which dates back to 1906, will dispense cherry Cokes, vanilla Cokes and chocolate Cokes.

Strong said the soda fountain was purchased from Steve Roth of Scott City.

"It was originally owned by Hartner and Corder when it was a confectionery store in Illmo in 1916. It eventually became a drug store and was later purchased by the Amrhein family in 1948," said Strong. "Steve Roth purchased the soda fountain and operated Viola's Soda Fountain and Sundries until it was closed in 1992. When he found out we were looking for a soda fountain for our soda shop he agreed to sell it to us, especially when he found out it was going to be restored and used in another `railroad town.'"

Wischmann said the soda fountain at Jackson is only one of three still believed to be in operation in Southeast Missouri. One, dating back to the late 1960s, is located in Piedmont. The other, a smaller two-piece fountain, is located in Poplar Bluff.

In addition to exterior remodeling, Strong said there are other surprises. "We've added a large-scale model train that operates in and out of the depot. We're going to install a semaphore train order signal that can be operated," she noted.

Strong said the remodeling of the depot and opening of the soda shop fits in nicely with the railroad's winter operations. The railroad acquired a diesel locomotive several years ago, in addition to its steam locomotive. With the addition of the diesel locomotive and heating of the passenger cars, the railroad now operates throughout the winter between Jackson, Gordonville and Delta.

Said Strong, "The response to our winter operation has been very positive. We're getting a lot of bookings from tour bus operators. Our last dinner train was sold out."

Strong said the remodeled depot and soda shop now gives passengers a warm, dry place to wait before boarding the train.