Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2015 - 15

COUNTRY ROADS
its own-at last count, the page had nearly 16,000
followers from 44 countries. The founders are now
working on two books to complement the project. Simmons hopes that in the future, TAP can
also serve as a platform to promote the talented
musicians and artisans of the region. To follow
the project, visit facebook.com/AppalachianProject.

Heritage in the Digital Age
The Appalachian Project, a multimedia venture founded
by Virginia natives Shane Simmons and Jason Barton,
uses technology to link Appalachia's past, present and
future. The project was initially conceived as a documentary; Simmons and Barton wanted to showcase
the rich heritage that makes the Appalachian region
unique by interviewing elderly Appalachians who
have lived through booms and busts, and who offer
insights into modern Appalachian culture.
When asked what has changed most in their lifetime, Simmons expected his interview subjects to
mention technology.
"It's almost never that," he says. "It's almost always interactions with people, how people don't
come by and visit with you as much as they used
to." Simmons established a Facebook page to generate interest in the film, but soon found that
TAP's social media presence had taken on a life of

Model Trains
Celebrate Tracks
through Virginia
Mountains

Luray's train depot in the Shenandoah Valley of
Virginia looks so shiny and clean that you would
expect it was open for passengers.
Well, for sure, it is open again to visitors-especially anyone wanting to see the newly opened
train museum sharing the story of "The Rail Road
Comes to Luray" and how "This depot once bustled with life..."
Look for two, new levels of model trains under

GEORGE SCOTT

Shane Simmons ,right, stands
with John VanArsdall.

JOE TENNIS

One focus of the Luray, Virginia's train depot model is education.

-Morgan Herbert

glass. "The lower level is supposed to depict the
passenger station when passenger service was in
the valley," says 81-year-old David B. Lipscomb,
the treasurer of the Page Valley Rail Historical Society. "The upper level shows the freight lines."
More than models, the train station museum
includes the re-creation of the ticket agent's office. "And that's where everything occurred in
the station," Lipscomb says. "The attraction, I
think, is basically more educational about what
trains used to be."
The Luray station was built in 1907, mysteriously burned and was rebuilt in 1908. It was restored, most recently, over a 15-year span, beginning in 2000 and culminating with the museum's
opening earlier this year.
Like Luray, the handsome train station of Pulaski, Virginia also caught fire-actually, a couple
of times. After the most recent fire, in 2008, the
Raymond F. Ratcliffe Memorial Transportation
Museum moved out. But its contents didn't chug
away too far. Today, an expanded "Ratcliffe" has
reopened within sight of the old station-and
boasts seemingly miles of miniature tracks, showing off the mountains of Pulaski County-about
200 miles down the line from Luray. New this
year at the Ratcliffe are lights scattered among
the museum's mammoth model train layout.
For more: theratcliffemuseum.com
downtownluray.com
- Joe Tennis
September/October 2015 15

http://www.facebook.com/AppalachianProject http://www.theratcliffemuseum.com http://www.downtownluray.com

Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2015

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