(Chicago, IL 7/95) © 1995, Thomas K. KraemerContact Semaphores.com
Eric A. Schmelz and Thomas E. Ohnmeiss
Eric Schmelz. I grew up in Western New York, formerly a rail transportation metropolis choked with independent carriers, yards, interlockings and signals. I first became interested in railroads and the unique attributes of their physical plants while the last vestiges of a much earlier era were being removed. The few towers and semaphores signals which still operated provided potent fodder for daydreaming about a time that only my grandfather seemed to remember.
Immediately after my first memories of such things, the last remnants seemed to vanish almost overnight under the stewardship of Conrail. Curiosity grew as to whether or not any of these historic installations existed elsewhere. The readily available RR magazines provided little information on such things. At the very best you might find an article on the closure of some distant tower or semaphore installation. All this seemed to provide was disappointment. The articles might as well been entitled "Look at What You Just Missed!."
Eventually, my inquires where directed towards a few unscrupulous signal collectors in the Midwest. The question asked about possible semaphore installations still in service. The reply which followed involved mostly hand-waving, ambiguity and, in retrospect, outright lies. Through dogged perseverance and the help of people genuinely interested in signals, I eventually acquired a general knowledge of what remained.
During this process, numerous photographic opportunities were lost simply due to a lack of information. "I was only a few miles away and didn't even know it!". This classic yet painful revelation was often all too common. The purpose of this web site is to share this information with anyone who is interested, thereby maximizing the productivity of each railfan outing dedicated to examining these historic monuments. Currently, I am graduate student in Tucson, Arizona pursuing a Ph.D. in the Biological Sciences.
Thomas Ohnmeiss. I have always had a fascination with science, graphic design, computers, and computer programming. Being a long time friend of Eric's, I got introduced to semaphores and the railroad hobby, and was immediately interested in joining up with Eric in producing this web site.
Most of my free time is devoured by computers, namely the construction of this site. In 1996, I started a small graphic design business, Time-Consuming Productions, which provides web sites for small businesses and organzations. TCP also does its best to work with others to bring business opportunities to life for people with interesting and unique ideas.
Currently, I am working as a Computer Analyst at an Environmental Testing Laboratory here in Lancaster, New York, where I integrate analytical chemistry instrument data into a database.
Please send any information, corrections, or clarifications to: railfan@semaphores.com
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CONTACT US| For railroad-related issues: E-mail Eric directly at eric@semaphores.com |
| For web site issues: E-mail Tom directly at railfan@semaphores.com |
Contact us at railfan@semaphores.com
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