By Railfan & Railroad Staff
IRVINE, Ken. — The Kentucky Steam Heritage Corporation — the group that is currently restoring Chesapeake & Ohio 2-8-4 2716 — announced Thursday it would be turning its former Louisville & Nashville yard in eastern Kentucky into a 40-acre event venue and museum called “The Yard.” The facility will “celebrate the region’s railroad heritage while championing regional arts, food and music” as well as be a home for the restored 2716 and other historic equipment.
The non-profit group also announced that it had received a $120,000 contribution from the Commonwealth of Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet and an investment commitment by a local company to kick off the effort. The local company, Hardy Oil Company in Irvine, will get the naming rates for a 4,500-person capacity multi-use venue that will be built on the site.
“While it is our hope this project may act as a catalyst for future endeavors, its intent is to provide a place for people to come together,” said Michael Hardy, vice president of Hardy Oil. “Whether it’s an outdoor classroom, a stage for community performances, or a filled-to-capacity concert, if you leave with a smile on your face, it will have served its purpose well.”
The plan to revitalize the rail yard began to take shape in 2017 when members of the Kentucky Steam initiated talks with CSX Transportation about purchasing the property for a rail-based tourism and historical development. In late-2018, Kentucky Steam purchased the property, initially focusing on utilizing the retired CSX shop to house and restore equipment. In 2019, 2716 moved from the Kentucky Railway Museum to Irvine. The shop will be transformed into an interactive railroad museum and Kentucky Steam plans to partner with area vocational schools in the future to give students unique and valuable skills.
A rendering of “The Yard.” Courtesy of Kentucky Steam.
Kentucky Steam President Chris Campbell said that the project couldn’t have gotten off the ground without community buy-in and in-kind donations from companies like Sherman Carter Barnhart Architects of Lexington, who contributed site plans and designs for the campus in 2018, as well as renderings for the newly-announced Hardy Pavilion.
“When we pitched the idea to local community leaders, they were supportive but cautious, simply because of the large scope of our plans,” Campbell said. “Now, as we enter a new phase of the project, I think the entire county can see what impact a fully-funded initiative such as this could do for not just Estill, but many surrounding communities in the area.”
The only original building on the site — a former storage house and yard office dating back to the 1910’s when the rail yard was originally built by the Louisville and Nashville Railroad — will host the Kentucky Rail Heritage Center, a rail museum focusing on the area’s rich railroad heritage, which will help tell the stories of railroaders and coal miners who made Appalachian Kentucky boom. The building will also host a gift shop, ticket office, and meeting spaces, and will be the center of operations for the Kentucky Steam Heritage Corporation. It will also integrate a 1940s-era train platform adjacent to the tracks for loading and unloading passengers for potential rail excursion operations.
