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Mission
and Goals of the Hill Country Railroad Association,
as stated June, 2002
The bylaws set forth 3 primary missions:
To encourage and stimulate interest in the preservation of the
tracks of the railway and eventual operation of train to the
city of Llano.
To promote tourism in Llano and Llano county.
To be of service to the people of Llano County and the Hill
Country area in educational, historical and to encourage
economic development of the entire area.
Preservation of the Historical Rail District
Goal - Ensure a viable rail line used for commercial
freight traffic and tourism.
Goal - Preserve the scenic beauty of the line.
Goal - Expand the existing right-of-way and facilities
for improving commercial viability.
Develop Tourism along the rail line
Goal - Work to develop destinations on both end of the
rail line
Goal
- Promote the development of an excursion train between Llano
and Kingsland
Support historic education of the rail line
Goal - Create a transportation museum in
Llano adjacent to the rail
Specific Objectives:
Ensure integrity of the design and construction of the facility
Assist in examining all options regarding the operation of the
museum, including partnership with the Llano County Museum Board
Collect artifacts and documents for eventual display in museum.
Investigate the inclusion of scale model of the line during the
early 20th Century
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hcra
who are these
people?
They are a 501c(3) non profit working to save the "end of the
line" on the old Southern Pacific Llano Branch.
In 1991, the Austin and Northwestern Railroad was the freight
operator on the old Llano Branch. At that time the railroad was
owned by the City of Austin - purchased from Southenn Pacific in
1986. Capitol Metro had a management contract with the City
of Austin and had contracted with A&NW to operate the freight
service.
Citizens in Llano were surprised to hear that A&NW had
embargoed the last 29 miles of the line, extending from Fairland
to Llano. Embargo means that the line would no longer be in
use and might be abandoned and torn up. Some folks even
suggested that a unit of the National Rails to Trails Program
might use the right of way as a hiking trail after the rails
were removed.
A group of citizens from Llano County formed an organization to
save the railroad. Freight operations, at a minimum in the
1980s, ceased. Maintenance of the right of way ended in
1992. Rails got rusty, weeds grew, cattle grazed. The Llano
County folks took the first step, forming the Hill Country
Railroad Association as a non-profit, IRS 501c(3) organization
to “bring the railroad back to Llano County, also in 1992.
Capitol Metro was pursuaded to delay filing for abandonment or
removing the track.
The HCRA organization inventoried the historic assets of the
Scobey-Llano section of track, and, in 1996-97, after five years
of work, succeeded in having the entire western segment
of the line entered in the National Register of Historic
Places. This designation made it much more difficult to
abandon the railroad. A copy of the complete National
Register Application is in the Llano County Library.
A hopeful sign in 1996-97 was the $330,000 worth of repairs to
the railroad branch made by Capitol Metro. In April, 1997, a
caboose train made a run to Llano during the peak of bluebonnet
season. With a 72-passenger coach borrowed from the Austin
Steam Train Association, the trip was repeated in 1998, a sign
of things yet to come.
Beginning in 1994, the HCRA made application for federal/state
transportation funding to upgrade the railroad. Although
unsuccessful in 1994 and 1995, HCRA recieved federal and state
funding of $2.2 million dollars for track upgrades and bridge
repair in 1996. HCRA raised the $433,000 of local matching
funds, with a tremendous boost from a $240,000 grant from the
Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA)
800 carloads of new ballast and 28,000 new ties were installed
by the repair contractor, Queen City Railroad Construction
Company of Knoxville, Tennessee. Lightweight 61 1/2 pound rail
(the original 1892 rails) were replaced by modern 90 pound rail
in the last six miles of the line from the site of old Bessemer
into the Llano yard. Those repairs were completed in 2001.
A second proposal for a TEA-21 federal & state aid for $1.49
million dollars was submitted in 1999, and the Texas Department
of Transportation awarded the funding in February, 2000. Local
matching funds of $298.000 were raised by the end of 2002.
These funds were used to build a Museum/station on the old
historic railroad district site. A 45,000 square foot site,
just west of the wye, was donated to HCRA by Robert Summers,
the developer of the Railyard project, and the land will be used
as part of the matching funds. A 2400 square foot
station-museum was completed in 2006 and HCRA will operate the
Museum under a contract with the City of Llano, the owner.
In 2005, the beginnings of tourist rail operations began. With
the cooperation of Austin Area Terminal Railroad - furnishing
the locomotives - and Austin Steam Train Association -
furnishing the operating crews, excursions are being offered
along the magnificent Llano River. And the NARCOA people - the
rail motorcar enthusiasts, hold several rallies on the line each
year.
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