The Cotton Belt Railroad Symposium: Railroad Legacy and Lore will be held Saturday, August 16, 2008 at Texas A&M University-Commerce in Commerce, Texas
This event will document and continue to preserve the legacy of the St. Louis Southwestern Railway.
A special invitation is extended to all former and current employees of the Cotton Belt Railroad and their families to come and share recollections of their railroad days. Everyone is encouraged to bring and display historical photos depicting people, places, equipment, and rail operations to display. With permission, we would appreciate the opportunity to scan images for historic preservation. The event will recorded on videotape for historical documentation and preservation.
Anyone interested in the history of railroading in Commerce, Northeast Texas, or system wide on the Cotton Belt is welcome.
Program
8:30 Registration
9:00 Opening Remarks – Gregory Mitchell, Dr. Jason Lee Davis or other EdL rep., Admin. rep., etc.
9:10 Cheryl Westhafer, Commerce Public Library
9:35 Dr. Otha Spencer - The community and the Cotton Belt in Commerce
10:00 Jonathan Gerland - Railroading in East Texas
10:45 break
11:00 Panel Discussion
12:30 lunch break
1:30- Oral Histories videotaped (scheduled with panelists and others)
Historical Railroad Artifacts displayed by...
Arkansas Railroad Museum - Pine Bluff, Arkansas (pending confirmation) Commerce Public LibraryCommerce, Texas Gee Library Special Collections TAMU-Commerce, Commerce, Texas
Hosted by...
The TAMU-Commerce Department of Educational Leadership, the James G. Gee Library Special Collections, and the Commerce Public Library
Dr. Jason Lee Davis - Assistant Professor, Dept. of Educational Leadership, TAMU-Commerce Jason_Davis@tamu-commerce.edu
Dr. Jim Conrad - Head of Special Collections, TAMU-Commerce
James_Conrad@tamu-commerce.edu
Dr. Harley Davis - former Cotton Belt fireman KC5PFR@aol.com
This program is made possible in part with a grant from Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Location...
James G. Gee Library (bldg #16)
Texas A&M University-Commerce
Commerce, Texas 75429
Primary parking in front of Young Education North (bldg #17)
and Student Services Building (bldg #20) in Lot L.
How to get here...