This is a story of people; railroaders, photographers, politicians, preservationists. Learn more about some of them here.
F. Nelson Blount
Founder and president of the MS&N, Green Mountain Railroad, Steamtown, U.S.A; Chairman of the Steamtown Foundation, 1963-1967; Owner of the Edaville Railroad, 1955-1967
“F. Nelson Blount wanted more than anyone for Steamtown to survive, to show future generations what the great age of steam was all about.”
Robert W. Adams,
Vice President, Monadnock, Steamtown & Northern Railroad
Perhaps one of the most overarching and recognizable names in the modern history of American railroading is Francis Nelson Blount. Nelson, as he would be called, was born May 21, 1918 in Warren, Rhode Island to Willis and Ruth Blount. Growing up, Nelson and his elder sibling Luther aided their father at the family ice company, established by Willis in Barrington, RI, in 1919. When he was not helping his father or going about the usual activities of a child, Nelson frequented the New Haven Railroad yard located near his home. For Nelson, the New Haven Railroad was the spark and Nelson was hooked.
On May 23, 1933, just after his fifteenth birthday, Blount played hooky to see the famous British steamer, Royal Scot, on exhibition in Providence en route to the Chicago World’s Fair. Here a surprised Nelson happened upon schoolmate Frederick H. Richardson. The two became fast friends united around railroading; they traded photos, worked on models, argued over the superiority of local railroads (Nelson was a New Haven fan; Fred liked the B&M). The pair co-authored one of the first popular railfan books on the subject, Along the Iron Trail, in 1938. Their railfan travels brought them to the rural stretches of the state of Maine, wherein the late 1930s the last of its famous two-foot narrow gauge railroads were finally shutting down. The boys’ helplessness to stop it had such an emotional impact on the two that they began to discuss dreams of saving the memory of steam railroading. It was perhaps these experiences that did the most to plant the seed which would eventually grow into Nelson’s personal railroad collection, the Monadnock, Steamtown & Northern Railroad, and Steamtown, U.S.A.
Nelson continued through his high school years and into his twenties railfanning with Fred, working hard at his father’s ice business, swimming, and attending school. A casual acquaintance with Ruth Palmer led to a friendship in 1938 and about a year later, courtship. To provide for his growing family, Nelson began to work with the U.S. Army on contract to provide ice for the many camps and installations in Rhode Island and Cape Cod. Working with his uncle, Byron Blount, Nelson was soon supplying clams to the Army as a supplement to the oyster industry ravaged in the Hurricane of 1938. Demand exploded and following the war all of Blount’s seafood operations were reorganized as the Blount Seafood Corporation, with Nelson as president and treasurer, Uncle Byron as vice president, and Fred Richardson — back from the Coast Guard — serving as secretary. A lucrative partnership with Campbell Soup as a supplier of clams came not long after. The business, now Blount Fine Foods, is family-run to this day. By his thirtieth birthday in 1948, Nelson Blount was a millionaire.
To help preserve the family’s wellbeing from external social and business pressures, the Blounts moved to Dublin, New Hampshire in 1954. There they homesteaded in a Cape Cod-style main house built in the late 1700s, nestled in the shadow of Mount Monadnock on what became known as “Staghead Farm”. The yearning of his railroad youth called and he set out to preserve the “iron horses” which had been a formative part of his upbringing and identity. In November 1955, Nelson Blount and Blount Seafood offered to purchase the Edaville Railroad, a two-foot narrow gauge operation in the cranberry bogs of South Carver, Massachusetts. Edaville had been founded in 1947 by Ellis D. Atwood, a distant relative of Nelson, to haul supplies on his cranberry plantation. The Edaville hosted a roster of narrow gauge equipment repatriated from Maine; much of which Nelson had experienced in the 1930s. In the mid-1950s, Nelson also began to use his new land and wealth to assemble a massive collection of standard-gauge steam locomotives, rolling stock, and steam equipment. Much of this collection was saved directly from the scrapper’s torch.
To house his growing collection, Nelson ran into several logistical problems. His property at Edaville was several miles from the nearest railhead, and after the headache of trucking in some of his collection, he eagerly sought a more suitable location. He found it, albeit temporarily, on the grounds of the Pleasure Island Amusement Park in Wakefield, Massachusetts. After working out an agreement with the ownership, Blount temporarily displayed several pieces in an exhibit called “Engine City” until 1959-1960. It was in this period that Blount also became deeply involved in Evangelical Christianity, and his faith became a very pronounced part of his life.
In December 1960, Blount purchased an engine facility in North Walpole, New Hampshire from the Boston & Maine Railroad. It was here that he envisioned a grand museum: “Steamtown, U.S.A. – A Cavalcade of Steam Power”. This unparalleled museum would educate the youth of the future on the splendors of the steam era which he had known and which they would be fated to miss out on. With his land at North Walpole limited, Blount dreamt of opening the museum nearby with a 40-stall roundhouse, exhibit hall, locomotive backshop, steam facilities, stations, a rail yard and extensive accommodations.
Blount established the Monadnock, Steamtown & Northern Railroad in April 1961 to provide train rides for his museum, and entered into talks with the state of New Hampshire to establish a state-funded Steamtown, U.S.A. museum in Keene, New Hampshire. The MS&N operated briefly in the Lake Sunapee region in 1961 while kinks for the museum and passenger operations in the Keene area were worked out; the MS&N finally operated out of Keene in 1962. Unfortunately, a change in state government, heat from those opposed to state involvement, and the hesitation of the Boston & Maine to sell their local line killed the plans to build Steamtown, U.S.A. in Keene. Backed instead by a new nonprofit foundation, the museum opened for the first time in 1963 at Blount’s North Walpole railyard.
Meanwhile, Blount conversed with the state of Vermont and its newly elected governor, Philip H. Hoff, to secure a plot of land along the Connecticut River just north of Bellows Falls, dubbed “Riverside”. He also secured rights to operate on a stretch of the old Rutland Railroad between Bellows Falls and Rutland, establishing the Green Mountain Railroad to relieve the strike-weary freight customers and employ his excursion staff in the off-season. From 1964 onward the Monadnock, Steamtown & Northern operated in Vermont, and Blount focused on developing the new plot of land for Steamtown. Funded out of his pocket and with donations and revenue from passenger excursions, he hoped to complete his dream museum by 1970.
An avid pilot, Blount often flew the short distance from Steamtown to his home in Dublin. In the evening of August 31, 1967, he was tragically killed during an attempt to make an emergency landing off Old Chesham Road in the town of Marlboro, New Hampshire. Lost at only age 49, Blount proved to be the essential keystone to his operations; during his lifetime, he was involved in nearly every decision and his financial contributions made mostly everything possible. Sadly, Nelson’s dreams for Steamtown, U.S.A. were never realized. The Riverside location was not developed beyond a station, turntable, small railyard and handful of simple shelters for the collection. The Steamtown Foundation made a noble effort in Vermont until 1983, when a move to Scranton, Pennsylvania was undertaken. A majority of Blount’s collection in Pennsylvania found federal protection with the creation in 1986 of Steamtown National Historic Site.
Historically, Blount has been analyzed in many different ways. His broad enthusiasm, larger-than-life personality, multitasked focus, and his deep devotion to religion divided some yet attracted others. Early on during his locomotive acquisition and planning for Steamtown, there was occasionally minor criticism and skepticism of his grand schemes due in part to his eagerness; this was usually reversed upon greater conversation and elaboration. Those that he worked with regularly often testified to his genuine motivations, personal friendliness, involvement, and ability to delegate tasks to those qualified to carry them out.
“Nelson had some tremendous people behind him. I have heard people say that Blount didn’t know anything. Well, he did know something because he knew how to get the right people. You have to give the man credit; he knew the right people to get to run the right things. This made his empire successful. He had that ability; that’s something that not everybody has,” Robert W. Adams once testified. Ron Ziel, who served as Steamtown’s photographer and penned the Steamtown/Edaville souvenir booklet, grew close to Nelson while spending time with him traveling and working. Though he recalled with some amusement Blount’s penchant to become distracted, Ziel later mentioned Nelson’s dynamic personality. “I hate the word ‘zeal’, but he had missionary zeal in all he did. I mean, he believed what he was doing was right, and nothing was going to stand in his way. And he was doing things that were right. He was doing wonderful things”. Perhaps the person who knew Nelson best, his widow Ruth, later remembered: “He was a very likable and very forgiving man; he just had a lot of foresight and he went after it and took risks like everybody does when they go into business. He had failures and he had a lot of good adventures. You couldn’t help but like him, because he’d laugh a lot. He just persevered”.
Though his dreams never fully materialized, Blount’s personal contributions can never be understated. Thanks to his foresight and personal financial expenditures, priceless examples of steam railroading history survive into the modern day; many still in operable condition. Thanks to his dedication, places like Bradford, Sunapee, Keene, Bellows Falls, North Walpole, and many others saw their final glances of steam railroading. Chapters in history exist today that never would have. Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton, Pennsylvania exists solely as a result of his actions; without Blount, his collection and the decades of build-up leading to the National Historic Site’s creation would vanish into thin air.
Frederick H. Richardson
MS&N, Green Mountain Railroad, Steamtown, U.S.A., Edaville Railroad
Born in Meredith, New Hampshire in on June 8, 1917, Frederick Richardson, or “Fred”, developed a passionate love for steam railroading along the Boston & Maine Railroad of his youth. Later becoming a schoolmate of Nelson Blount, the two struck up a close friendship which led to a partnership in business, faith, and railroad ventures.
Fred graduated from Barrington High School in 1935 and Brown University in 1939. He served in the US Coast Guard and was stationed in New Orleans during WWII. After his discharge from the Coast Guard he began work at Blount Seafood Corporation and served as its Vice President, President, Chairman of the Board and faithful Board Member until his death. Following Nelson’s death on August 31, 1967, Fred helmed the Edaville Railroad for a number of years.
He passed away at age 89 in Barrington, Rhode Island on April 5, 2007.
Robert W. Adams
MS&N, Steamtown, U.S.A., Green Mountain Railroad; President of the Green Mountain Railroad Corporation, 1967-1978
Born September 12, 1925, in Bellows Falls, Vermont, Robert “Bob” W. Adams was a Yankee through and through, a dedicated railroad man, and a great lover of local railroad history.
From 1944 to 1946, he served with the U. S. Army (R&R), and was stationed in the Philippines during World War II. Prior to and following the war, Adams was employed by the Rutland Railroad and worked in Bellows Falls. Mr. Adams was an avid rail fan and became an authorized Lionel electric train repairman.
With the Rutland Railroad on strike in 1961, Adams became Nelson Blount’s first railroad employee in the New Hampshire/Vermont area, officially hired on April 1, 1961. He worked directly with Nelson Blount, serving as the Vice President of both the Monadnock, Steamtown & Northern Railroad and the Green Mountain Railroad for many years. After Blount’s death, Adams was elected to President of the Green Mountain Railroad, a title he held for many years. In addition, he was involved in clock repair work and was a member of the Bellows Falls Historical Society.
He passed away Thursday, December 2, 2010, at Grace Cottage Hospital in Townshend, Vermont.
Clyde T. Sessions
MS&N, Green Mountain Railroad, Steamtown, U.S.A.
A “master mechanic”, Clyde T. Sessions served as mechanical superintendent and an engineer for the Monadnock, Steamtown & Northern Railroad and later for the early years of Steamtown U.S.A. He worked for Blount’s Green Mountain Railroad from May 14, 1965 until retiring April 30, 1973.
He passed away on October 2, 1984 following a long illness.
Robert Ashcroft
MS&N, Green Mountain Railroad, Steamtown, U.S.A.
Robert Ashcroft was born in Bellows Falls, VT on March 23, 1918. He was a 1936 graduate of Bellows Falls High School and served in the US Navy during World War II. He worked as a Special Duty Officer for the Bellows Falls Police Department, and for the Rutland Railroad.
Ashcroft was hired by Nelson Blount and worked for his Monadnock, Steamtown & Northern as its Assistant Supervisor and Bridge & Building supervisor. He later worked for and retired from Blount’s Green Mountain Railroad. Mr. Ashcroft was a founding member of the Bellows Falls Historical Society, served on the Board of Directors for the Bellows Falls Senior Center, was a trustee of the Rockingham Free Public Library, and was Curator of Adams Grist Mill.
He passed away Sunday, September 26, 2010 at age 92.
Donald S. Robinson
MS&N, Steamtown, U.S.A., Boston & Maine Railroad
For the Monadnock, Steamtown & Northern and Steamtown, U.S.A., Donald S. Robinson served as a conductor, flagman, and was in charge of putting together timetables and rulebooks. He was also responsible for lettering Monadnock, Steamtown & Northern 2-8-0 #15 as “Monadnock Northern” in 1962. As the story goes, Robinson did the lettering while Nelson Blount was away on a trip and thought the shorter moniker fit the locomotive’s tender better; there were apparently no objections.
Robinson was also an employee of the Boston & Maine Railroad for many years serving as a dispatcher, and a well-known photographer of New England railroads throughout his lifetime. He was a founding member and past president of the Boston & Maine Railroad Historical Society. Robinson passed away in 2002.
Edgar T. Mead
MS&N, Green Mountain Railroad, Steamtown, U.S.A.; Chairman of the Steamtown Foundation 1967-1973
Born in New York City on December 12, 1922, son of Edgar and Gertrude Hayward Mead, Edgar T. Mead grew up in Greenwich, CT. At the young age of only 18 he served as the president of the Bridgton & Harrison Railroad, one of the last operating two-foot narrow gauge railroads in the state of Maine. It was at the Bridgton & Harrison where Mead met Nelson Blount and Fred Richardson, and thus became united around the theme of steam trains.
After graduating from Williams College and serving with U.S. Army Intelligence in Europe during World War II, he worked for several Wall Street firms, including Moody’s Investor Service, and attended and taught at New York University Graduate School of Business Administration. He subsequently joined the investment firm of G. C. Haas & Co., from which he retired as a partner in 1968.
Mead worked alongside Blount during the establishment of the Green Mountain Railroad and Steamtown, U.S.A., and served on the board of directors of the Steamtown Foundation. Following Blount’s untimely death on August 31, 1967, Mead was selected to head the Foundation and served as Chairman until his retirement from the position in 1973. He was later appointed director at the New Hampshire Transportation Authority, serving from 1974-76.
Mead was also an accomplished railroad author, penning a number of well-known books on New England railroading including Over the Hills to Woodstock; The Up-Country Line; Through Covered Bridges to Concord; Busted and Still Running; and The Bridgton Narrow Gauge.
He passed away in Hanover, New Hampshire on Thursday, February 22, 2001 at age 78.
Frederick G. Bailey
Steamtown, U.S.A.; Green Mountain Railroad
Frederick G. Bailey (center) born on March 21, 1948, was a major figure in the history of Steamtown, U.S.A and New England railroading.
Fred met Nelson Blount in 1963 as a teenager, and became a laborer at Steamtown, U.S.A. from 1963 to 1966. He later served extensively in the post-Blount era as Audio Visual Manager in 1970; Summer General Manager from 1970 to 1972; Assistant to the Director 1972 to 1980; and Director of Operations from 1980 to 1987. Fred helped oversee the move of equipment to the new location in Scranton, PA and the development of the facilities there.
Fred later worked for the Green Mountain Railroad as their chief dispatcher and safety officer. He was an avid railfan, photographer, and promoter of railroading in the Connecticut River Valley.
Fred was interviewed by the Park Service in the 1990s, sharing much of his knowledge of the history and workings of Steamtown. Transcripts of that interview are available through the National Park Service.
Fred passed away in Enfield, NH on December 15, 2022 at the age of 74, surrounded by his family.
Patrick B. McGinnis
President, Boston & Maine Railroad
Daniel Benson
President, Boston & Maine Railroad
Wesley Powell
70th Governor of the state of New Hampshire
Born October 13, 1915 in Portsmouth New Hampshire, Wesley Powell was an American lawyer and Republican politician who served as the 70th governor of the state of new Hampshire from 1959 to 1963. Prior to his political career, he served in the U.S. Army Air Corps in World War II and practiced law.
In late 1960, Powell and his administration entered into talks with Nelson Blount regarding the ill-fated idea of establishing of Steamtown, U.S.A. in Keene. He championed the idea, defending its proponents from fire in the media. Powell was not reelected in the election of November 1962.
Powell passed away of natural causes on January 6, 1981 at the age of 65.
Philip H. Hoff
73rd Governor of the state of Vermont
Philip Henderson Hoff, born June 29, 1924 in Turners Falls, Massachusetts, was an American politician from the state of Vermont. He served as the 73rd governor of Vermont from 1963 to 1969, the state’s first Democratic governor since 1853.
Hoff enters the story in 1962-1963, during the time when Nelson Blount’s attempts to establish Steamtown USA in Keene New Hampshire were ending. Blount had initiated discussions with Hoff’s predecessor, Ray Keyser, about establishing the museum and passenger excursions in Vermont instead of New Hampshire. Subsequently, Hoff had taken up the charge to save the Rutland Railroad, which had applied for total abandonment of its extensive network in Vermont following employee strikes and financial difficulties.
After the state of Vermont succeeded in purchasing the former Rutland Railroad system, Hoff assisted Blount in acquiring the land at Riverside for Steamtown USA and helped foster operating rights over the old Rutland Railroad’s Bellows Falls Subdivision. He helped mediate the creation of the Green Mountain Railroad to serve the beleaguered freight customers in the area, and smoothed over tensions between the Boston & Maine and Blount regarding operations in Bellows Falls. Blount provided campaign trains for Hoff’s reelection bid for governor in 1966.
Hoff later campaigned across the country to promote Robert F. Kennedy’s effort to obtain the 1968 Democratic presidential nomination. He also served in various advisory and honorary positions and as President of the Board of Trustees at Vermont Law School as well as continuing his work as a lawyer in private practice.
He passed away in Shelburne, Vermont on April 26, 2018, at age 93.
Thomas P. Salmon
Attorney for F. Nelson Blount, Incorporator of Steamtown Foundation and Green Mountain Railroad Corp., 75th governor of the state of Vermont (1973-1977)
Thomas P. Salmon was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on August 19, 1932 and was slater raised in Stow, Massachusetts. He earned his undergraduate degree from Boston College in 1954, and earned a J.D. from Boston College Law School in 1957. In 1959 Salmon was elected as Town Councilor for Rockingham, Vermont, serving until 1972.
It was in Rockingham that Salmon became affiliated with Nelson Blount, whose activities were centered around North Walpole and Rockingham’s village of Bellows Falls. Salmon served as legal council and attorney for Blount’s operations, serving also as an incorporator for the Green Mountain Railroad Corporation and the Steamtown Foundation. He represented Blount’s interests during the legal battles with the Boston & Maine Railroad of 1963 and 1964.
From 1963 to 1965, he served as a municipal court judge in Bellows Falls. He was a member of the Vermont House of Representatives from Rockingham in 1965, and from District 13-1 for 1966, from 1967 to 1968 and from 1969 to 1970. He served one year as House Minority Leader. In 1973, Salmon won a surprise election for governor, having only entered the race a few before the general election. He served one term in the office.
He currently resides in Vermont.
Steamtown Historical Collective 