City to hold celebration for new museum site Aug. 3

LANDRUM —  The rail car for the city’s new railroad museum will be offloaded onto the new platform on Friday, Aug. 3, said Landrum City Administrator Rich Caplan during the Landrum Area Business Association meeting Tuesday.

Caplan said the city will hold a small celebration and christening of the Pullman coach at 3 p.m. that afternoon.

“Of course, [the car] won’t be open to the public right away,” he said. “The outside is in relatively good condition, but the inside has been closed up for 50 years.”

The city has been working on the rail car museum project since last fall. The car itself, “The Pacolet River,” is an 85-foot-long Pullman sleeper car that is being donated to the city for the museum.

The city is using funds from a Municipal Association of South Carolina grant to cover the costs of shipment and to set the car up as a museum.

Caplan said the contractor has started building the foundation on which the car will rest.

“The concrete has to cure for several weeks before we can put the rail car on it,” he said.

The city will also add three or four new parking places on North Trade Street just for the museum.

Under new business, LABA President Diana Winkler announced the Airing of the Quilts event on Saturday, July 21. She said the quilts will be displayed from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on North Trade Street.

There will be quilts, quilt samples and quilting supplies for sale.

The committee also discussed the Hogback Mountain Day celebration, set for Sept. 8. Winkler said LABA members get first choice for booth space at the cost of $35. Booth space for nonmembers is $75.

“These will be handcrafted, up-cycle, vintage artists,” Winkler said. “We still needed volunteers to help with the event.”

In other business, Winkler announced that the Great Scarecrow Contest is set for the month of October, and the Halloween Stroll would take place Oct. 31. The Christmas Stroll is Thursday, Dec. 6, and Saturday, Dec. 8.

The Whimsical World Gallery, located at 116 Jones St., is hosting the next LABA Meet and Greet at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, July 19. The public is invited to the event.