Golden Spike reenactment to take place Friday as part of anniversary

NPS Park Ranger David Kilton delivers a fact-filled, yet entertaining, presentation on the building of the transcontinental railroad and the Golden Spike Ceremony at the spot where the last rail was laid while Central Pacific’s locomotive “Jupiter” waits to do a photo runby. [5/22/2012] © Copyright 2012, ChasingSteel.com. All rights reserved.

<strong>LOGAN—</strong> The Golden Spike National Historic Site will celebrate the 144th anniversary of the completion of the nation’s first transcontinental railroad on Friday, May 10, and the sights and sounds of the driving of the last spike in 1869 will ring once again in western Box Elder County.

National Park Service Park Ranger David Kilton said the event attracts approximately 2,000 people to the area each year.

He said events marking the occasion include the reenactment of the driving of the last spike along with a commemorative program. There will be music by the Box Elder High School band, and a speech keynote speaker Utah State Senator Peter C. Knudson.

“The reenactment really gives you a sense of the history, especially sitting there with our replica locomotives in the background,” <a href=”http://610kvnu.com/assets/podcaster/328/2013_05_06_328_10597_2867.mp3″ target=”_blank”>Kilton said on KVNU’s Crosstalk</a>. “Our engine crew will actually be ringing the bells and blowing the whistles during parts of the reenactment. These reenactors do a really good job of just portraying the celebration and I guess the satisfaction of completing that event.”

Kilton said the anniversary program starts at 11:30 a.m. and that the reenactment of the driving of the last spike is scheduled for 12:20 p.m. He said the completion of the railroad has been compared with man going to the moon in the scope and the immensity of the project.

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