WEBVTT

00:00.200 --> 00:02.001
[gentle orchestral fanfare]

00:02.101 --> 00:06.001
♪

00:07.267 --> 00:09.800
[resonant strings
lead building orchestration]

00:09.900 --> 00:17.334
♪

00:17.434 --> 00:19.800
(male narrator)
Welcome to "Our State,"

00:19.900 --> 00:22.401
a production of UNC-TV

00:22.501 --> 00:25.500
in association
with "Our State" magazine--

00:25.600 --> 00:27.267
for over 70 years,

00:27.368 --> 00:29.800
bringing the wonders
of North Carolina

00:29.900 --> 00:31.667
to readers across the state.

00:31.767 --> 00:33.533
On this edition,

00:33.633 --> 00:35.167
riding the rails--

00:35.267 --> 00:37.034
see the state
from a vantage point

00:37.134 --> 00:39.534
not too many
get to see these days...

00:39.634 --> 00:41.633
a visit with a man
well-positioned

00:41.734 --> 00:43.633
to be
the chief advocate

00:43.734 --> 00:45.234
of mule power...

00:45.334 --> 00:46.967
and an amazing
museum

00:47.067 --> 00:48.534
devoted
to preserving

00:48.634 --> 00:50.800
the early days
of radio.

00:50.900 --> 00:54.633
♪

00:55.900 --> 00:57.468
[gentle piano melody]

00:57.568 --> 00:59.501
(male announcer)
From Manteo to Murphy

00:59.601 --> 01:02.668
and all the small towns
and big cities in-between,

01:02.768 --> 01:08.234
BB&T believes opportunity lives
everywhere in North Carolina.

01:08.334 --> 01:11.835
It's a belief we've held
for more than 130 years

01:11.935 --> 01:14.434
and guides us
as we support our communities

01:14.534 --> 01:18.301
from the mountains
to the coast.

01:18.401 --> 01:20.168
We love calling
North Carolina home,

01:20.268 --> 01:24.133
and we're proud to provide
major funding for "Our State."

01:25.568 --> 01:27.468
Quality public television
is made possible

01:27.568 --> 01:28.967
through the financial
contributions

01:29.067 --> 01:30.601
of viewers like you,

01:30.701 --> 01:34.001
who invite you to join them
in supporting UNC-TV.

01:34.101 --> 01:36.100
♪

01:38.533 --> 01:40.434
[steam hissing]

01:40.534 --> 01:43.633
[train horn blowing]

01:47.101 --> 01:49.468
[engine chugging slowly]

01:49.568 --> 01:51.934
[harmonica leads as percussion
imitates train engine]

01:52.034 --> 01:54.468
♪

01:54.568 --> 01:57.801
(male narrator)
In the memories of adults
of a certain age

01:57.901 --> 02:00.701
and plenty of today's
children, for that matter,

02:00.801 --> 02:03.867
there is the image
of a steam train...

02:03.967 --> 02:06.201
with all of its noise
and wonder,

02:06.301 --> 02:09.134
huffing and puffing
across the landscape.

02:09.234 --> 02:10.401
[horn sounding]

02:10.501 --> 02:14.301
Steam trains are part of
America's collective memory.

02:14.401 --> 02:18.334
They are powerful symbols
of our country's history...

02:18.434 --> 02:21.166
of our progress,
past and present...

02:21.266 --> 02:23.534
♪

02:23.634 --> 02:27.101
because their diesel offspring
remain hard at work today,

02:27.201 --> 02:29.767
pulling trains throughout
North Carolina's

02:29.867 --> 02:32.167
intricate web of rails.

02:32.267 --> 02:34.501
[train tracks clacking softly]

02:34.601 --> 02:36.534
Even now,
when we see an engine

02:36.634 --> 02:38.368
laboring up a steep grade,

02:38.468 --> 02:41.834
our response to trains
remains a bit mysterious,

02:41.934 --> 02:43.701
cloaked in reminiscence,

02:43.801 --> 02:45.868
perhaps connecting us
for just an instant

02:45.968 --> 02:48.501
to what we perceive
as a more easygoing,

02:48.601 --> 02:50.968
more comprehensible time--

02:51.068 --> 02:53.667
although it wasn't
necessarily an easier time

02:53.767 --> 02:55.368
because whole towns

02:55.468 --> 02:57.934
in the 19th
and early 20th centuries

02:58.034 --> 03:00.234
either thrived or did not,

03:00.334 --> 03:04.033
depending on where the tracks
were or were not laid.

03:05.668 --> 03:07.901
The actual towns like
Lexington and Thomasville,

03:08.002 --> 03:10.867
all of 'em that are dotted
along the railroad out here,

03:10.967 --> 03:13.468
were actually called
"tank towns."

03:13.568 --> 03:15.967
If you look on the map,
they're spaced

03:16.067 --> 03:18.267
about 20, 25 miles apart,

03:18.368 --> 03:20.134
and they would
just simply supply

03:20.234 --> 03:22.468
coal and water
for steam engines.

03:22.568 --> 03:24.300
[gentle guitar theme]

03:24.400 --> 03:26.234
♪

03:26.334 --> 03:28.568
(narrator)
Today, we count
ourselves fortunate

03:28.668 --> 03:32.735
to even be around trains
and railroad memorabilia,

03:32.835 --> 03:35.301
like during the Rail Days
event each June

03:35.401 --> 03:38.201
at Spencer Shops
near Salisbury.

03:38.301 --> 03:39.934
[harmonica joins]

03:41.201 --> 03:43.200
[machinery whirring]

03:44.468 --> 03:46.033
[bell clanging]

03:47.301 --> 03:48.668
(narrator)
It's early morning

03:48.768 --> 03:51.601
at the North Carolina
Transportation Museum,

03:51.701 --> 03:54.067
located on what was once
the Southern Railway's

03:54.167 --> 03:57.102
largest steam locomotive
repair facility,

03:57.202 --> 04:00.401
now operated by the Department
of Cultural Resources.

04:00.501 --> 04:04.368
Today, diesel engine
No. 6133 emerges

04:04.468 --> 04:06.900
from Spencer Shops'
huge roundhouse.

04:07.001 --> 04:09.101
♪

04:09.201 --> 04:12.433
First stop is the yard's
trusty old turntable.

04:12.533 --> 04:27.901
♪

04:28.002 --> 04:30.967
The aged engine is lined up
to the correct track

04:31.067 --> 04:33.634
and sent off
on another day's work,

04:33.735 --> 04:35.501
pulling its relatively
light load

04:35.601 --> 04:37.533
of vintage passenger cars.

04:37.633 --> 04:41.134
♪

04:41.234 --> 04:43.768
Southern Railway No. 6133,

04:43.868 --> 04:46.900
all 16 cylinders
and 1500 horsepower,

04:47.001 --> 04:49.001
was born in 1950.

04:49.101 --> 04:50.501
At mid-century,

04:50.601 --> 04:52.768
the American outlook
was strong.

04:52.868 --> 04:55.167
By then, the efficiency
and speed of diesel

04:55.267 --> 04:58.334
had almost completely
eclipsed steam.

04:58.434 --> 05:00.468
And compared to the ancient
pufferbellies...

05:00.568 --> 05:03.034
(boy)
I already know
to get on the train!

05:03.134 --> 05:04.767
(narrator)
...diesel engines seemed,

05:04.867 --> 05:07.334
well, sleek and modern.

05:07.434 --> 05:10.234
(man over radio)
OK, 6133, turn north.

05:10.334 --> 05:12.368
[horn blowing]

05:12.468 --> 05:13.967
[steam hissing]

05:14.067 --> 05:16.568
(boy)
We're moving! We're moving!

05:16.668 --> 05:18.901
(narrator)
After three decades
of hard work,

05:19.002 --> 05:21.800
most of it on small
North Carolina branch lines,

05:21.900 --> 05:24.534
6133 had earned her rest

05:24.634 --> 05:27.534
and was donated
to the museum in 1980.

05:27.634 --> 05:29.134
[locomotive couplings clanking]

05:29.234 --> 05:31.368
♪

05:31.468 --> 05:33.367
[horn sounding]

05:33.467 --> 05:35.601
♪

05:35.701 --> 05:37.601
(narrator)
The old engine
has been restored

05:37.701 --> 05:40.701
a couple of times
and continues to pull trains

05:40.801 --> 05:44.633
of appreciative guests
through the museum's 57 acres.

05:44.734 --> 05:47.967
♪

05:48.067 --> 05:49.634
There are other opportunities

05:49.735 --> 05:52.834
to ride the rails
in North Carolina...

05:52.934 --> 05:54.701
[train roaring]

05:54.801 --> 05:58.133
thanks to Amtrak's
regular passenger service.

05:59.401 --> 06:00.835
(Mann)
Amtrak has, uh,

06:00.935 --> 06:02.633
both long-distance
and corridor service

06:02.734 --> 06:04.134
in North Carolina.

06:04.234 --> 06:06.668
Our long-distance trains
are the "Silver Star,"

06:06.768 --> 06:10.001
which operates between New York
and Tampa and Miami,

06:10.101 --> 06:13.534
making stops
in North Carolina along the way.

06:13.634 --> 06:15.800
Of course, we have
the two corridor trains.

06:15.900 --> 06:17.867
The "Piedmont"
operates locally

06:17.967 --> 06:19.935
between Charlotte
and Raleigh.

06:20.035 --> 06:23.134
The "Carolinian" is Charlotte
and New York via Raleigh.

06:23.234 --> 06:25.601
(narrator)
Some cities, like Greensboro,

06:25.701 --> 06:29.167
still enjoy
daily passenger service.

06:29.267 --> 06:31.267
The city has retained
and restored

06:31.368 --> 06:33.735
the architectural appeal
of its station--

06:33.835 --> 06:36.034
a style that has
all but disappeared

06:36.134 --> 06:37.800
from the landscape.

06:37.900 --> 06:39.434
All aboard!

06:39.534 --> 06:42.534
[upbeat snare paces
flowing orchestral strings]

06:42.634 --> 06:45.668
(conductor over loudspeaker)
Our next station
is High Point.

06:45.768 --> 06:47.301
(narrator)
Nearby High Point, too,

06:47.401 --> 06:50.467
has made a similar push
to restoration.

06:50.567 --> 06:52.568
♪

06:52.668 --> 06:54.002
(woman)
Thank you, sir.

06:54.102 --> 06:56.667
(narrator)
And other cities
are inspired to do the same,

06:56.767 --> 06:58.401
with an eye toward the day

06:58.501 --> 07:01.301
when passengers once again
crisscross our state.

07:01.401 --> 07:03.634
(Mann)
I think corridor trains
are very important,

07:03.735 --> 07:06.334
and that's where we're
seeing our biggest growth.

07:06.434 --> 07:08.301
As gas prices get higher,

07:08.401 --> 07:09.900
and congestion
clogs the highways,

07:10.001 --> 07:11.501
and--and flying in those

07:11.601 --> 07:13.634
three-to five-hundred-miles
corridors becomes

07:13.735 --> 07:15.868
less and less convenient,
more and more folks

07:15.968 --> 07:17.934
are looking at rail
as a viable alternative.

07:18.034 --> 07:19.201
[bell dinging]

07:19.301 --> 07:21.234
Watch your step
down, sir.

07:21.334 --> 07:23.300
[distant train horn
wailing]

07:26.901 --> 07:28.768
(narrator)
Of course,
North Carolina tracks

07:28.868 --> 07:30.734
carry rail freight
into every corner

07:30.834 --> 07:32.401
of the Tar Heel state,

07:32.501 --> 07:33.835
thanks to private carriers

07:33.935 --> 07:37.500
that traverse its more than
3,600 miles of track.

07:39.867 --> 07:42.067
And business is booming.

07:42.167 --> 07:45.034
(man on radio)
Y'all have a safe trip.

07:45.134 --> 07:48.167
Pull on ahead,
please sir; over.

07:48.267 --> 07:50.201
(narrator)
On a foggy spring morning,

07:50.301 --> 07:53.967
a 100-car coal train
pulls out of Asheville.

07:54.067 --> 07:56.034
♪

07:56.134 --> 07:57.734
(engineer)
Each car holds about

07:57.834 --> 08:00.534
three tractor-trailer
loads of coal.

08:00.634 --> 08:02.967
It means we're--
we're heavy;

08:03.067 --> 08:05.034
we been loadin'
all we can load.

08:05.134 --> 08:07.002
♪

08:07.102 --> 08:10.067
(narrator)
Two sets of engines
are required to pull

08:10.167 --> 08:11.468
and sometimes push

08:11.568 --> 08:13.867
the long train
up to Ridgecrest.

08:13.967 --> 08:16.533
[cars clanking]

08:16.633 --> 08:19.401
♪

08:19.501 --> 08:21.568
There, the engineer
stops the train

08:21.668 --> 08:23.334
and balances his heavy load

08:23.434 --> 08:25.334
across the crest
of the mountain,

08:25.434 --> 08:27.701
while the brakes
are checked and adjusted

08:27.801 --> 08:29.734
for the long,
slow descent.

08:29.834 --> 08:34.067
♪

08:34.167 --> 08:36.500
It's only three miles
to Old Fort,

08:36.600 --> 08:38.134
as the crow flies,

08:38.234 --> 08:40.567
but the oh-so-cautious
journey down the mountain

08:40.667 --> 08:43.367
covers 13 miles...

08:43.467 --> 08:44.634
[horn blaring]

08:44.735 --> 08:47.300
goes through
7 tunnels...

08:47.400 --> 08:52.301
♪

08:52.401 --> 08:55.400
and takes more
than 45 minutes.

08:55.500 --> 08:58.034
♪

08:58.134 --> 09:00.901
In places, the train
doubles back on itself,

09:01.002 --> 09:03.867
so you can not only see
where you're going,

09:03.967 --> 09:05.900
but where you've been.

09:06.001 --> 09:07.533
[brakes screeching]

09:08.835 --> 09:12.001
When the train finally reaches
relatively flat land,

09:12.101 --> 09:14.735
you can almost hear it
sigh with relief

09:14.835 --> 09:18.267
as a generous volume
of smoke pours from the brakes.

09:18.368 --> 09:20.367
[brakes screeching]

09:20.467 --> 09:23.801
♪

09:23.901 --> 09:27.301
On the way down, a
jubilant geyser off to the left

09:27.401 --> 09:29.767
vaults itself
into the fresh mountain air

09:29.867 --> 09:31.267
as if to celebrate

09:31.368 --> 09:33.234
the train's
successful descent,

09:33.334 --> 09:36.234
flowing, as it used to
in the late 19th century,

09:36.334 --> 09:38.835
when there was a grand hotel
at that spot

09:38.935 --> 09:42.135
for the enjoyment
of train passengers--

09:42.235 --> 09:45.735
built, unfortunately, a little
too close to the tracks,

09:45.835 --> 09:47.501
where cinders
from a steam engine

09:47.601 --> 09:52.234
set it on fire and burned it
to the ground in 1903.

09:52.334 --> 09:54.601
[19th-century piano tune]

09:54.701 --> 09:57.668
What is known today
as "Andrews Geyser" remains,

09:57.768 --> 10:00.201
and is as much a part
of Old Fort

10:00.301 --> 10:02.701
as their old depot.

10:02.801 --> 10:05.467
[train horn blows
as bell rings]

10:13.935 --> 10:16.767
(narrator)
Nowadays, even electronics
gets into railroading...

10:16.867 --> 10:18.300
[beeping]

10:18.400 --> 10:19.601
[clanking]

10:19.701 --> 10:21.334
especially
at Norfolk Southern's

10:21.434 --> 10:23.401
Spencer classification yard,

10:23.501 --> 10:25.533
or "hump yard,"
as it's known,

10:25.633 --> 10:27.033
in Linwood.

10:28.935 --> 10:31.401
It's called a "hump
yard" because of the large hill

10:31.501 --> 10:32.835
built in the center,

10:32.935 --> 10:35.334
with tracks sloping
in every direction.

10:35.434 --> 10:37.100
[rail cars squealing]

10:39.334 --> 10:42.600
Cars from arriving trains
are pushed up the hump,

10:42.700 --> 10:44.001
then decoupled,

10:44.101 --> 10:47.034
rolled down the incline
at 2 miles an hour,

10:47.134 --> 10:49.601
sorted by content
and destination,

10:49.701 --> 10:52.568
and computer-switched
on to any one of 40 tracks

10:52.668 --> 10:55.467
where new trains
are being assembled.

10:56.801 --> 10:58.700
As they go,
the cars are weighed

10:58.800 --> 11:00.434
and radar-scanned,

11:00.534 --> 11:02.934
their speed adjusted
by hydraulic brakes

11:03.034 --> 11:05.834
built into the tracks.

11:05.934 --> 11:08.267
Each one,
or two of them together,

11:08.368 --> 11:11.100
glides slowly toward
a new destination.

11:14.034 --> 11:16.633
[train engine
hisses and chugs]

11:16.734 --> 11:18.167
It's easy to imagine

11:18.267 --> 11:21.334
your train being pulled
by a steam engine.

11:21.434 --> 11:23.735
Some of the scenery
is the same.

11:23.835 --> 11:26.634
There is the rhythmic
clickety-clack from the tracks

11:26.735 --> 11:29.167
and the distant sound
of a steam whistle,

11:29.267 --> 11:31.101
at least in your mind.

11:31.201 --> 11:32.534
Meantime, however,

11:32.634 --> 11:34.634
it's good to know
that riding the rails

11:34.735 --> 11:37.868
is something you can still do
in North Carolina,

11:37.968 --> 11:40.734
that trains, and the engines
that pull them,

11:40.834 --> 11:43.534
are not a dying breed,

11:43.634 --> 11:45.401
even if they
don't look exactly

11:45.501 --> 11:47.900
like we might want
to remember them.

11:48.001 --> 11:49.967
[train engine
hisses and chugs]

11:56.867 --> 11:58.834
[silence]

12:04.234 --> 12:07.568
[banjo lazily playing
"Swinging on a Star"]

12:07.668 --> 12:09.201
( Billy Barnes )
In the 1940s,

12:09.301 --> 12:12.768
a crooner named Bing Crosby
recorded a song that said,

12:12.868 --> 12:15.568
"A mule is an animal
with long, funny ears

12:15.668 --> 12:17.868
"Kicks up
at anything he hears

12:17.968 --> 12:21.067
"His back is brawny,
but his brain is weak

12:21.167 --> 12:24.034
He's just plain stupid
with a stubborn streak"

12:24.134 --> 12:26.034
♪

12:26.134 --> 12:28.768
If you're ever in
the Yadkin Valley community,

12:28.868 --> 12:31.601
a few miles north
of Lenoir, North Carolina,

12:31.701 --> 12:35.434
it would be best
if you didn't sing that song.

12:35.534 --> 12:37.400
Now what are these
mules' names, Tom?

12:37.500 --> 12:38.767
This is Kate,

12:38.867 --> 12:40.468
and that's Mandy
over yonder.

12:40.568 --> 12:42.967
(Barnes)
Farmers up here
love their mules.

12:43.067 --> 12:44.768
They may own
big, brawny tractors,

12:44.868 --> 12:47.201
but they also like
to spend a morning

12:47.301 --> 12:50.634
working their mules,
just like grandpa did.

12:50.735 --> 12:52.501
(Tom)
A lot of people's got 'em,

12:52.601 --> 12:54.835
but most people's
got 'em to play with.

12:54.935 --> 12:58.101
You could probably
buy a tractor for less money.

12:58.201 --> 13:01.134
You'd have to pay for a pair
of mules like these--

13:01.234 --> 13:04.434
for the two, you'd have to pay
$5,000 or $6,000 for.

13:04.534 --> 13:07.768
You're not saving no money
fooling with one.

13:07.868 --> 13:11.001
Now we call the male mule
a "horse mule."

13:11.101 --> 13:12.368
(Barnes)
Ah, OK.

13:12.468 --> 13:15.233
And a mare--a mare mule,
we call her a--

13:16.500 --> 13:18.433
a mare mule.

13:18.533 --> 13:19.735
(Barnes)
Yeah.

13:19.835 --> 13:21.735
(Barnes, voiceover)
Tom Winkler has lived

13:21.835 --> 13:24.001
in the valley
for seven decades.

13:24.101 --> 13:26.967
His mules
don't just pull plows.

13:27.067 --> 13:30.634
They're also pollution-free
power sources

13:30.735 --> 13:34.134
for Tom's
shiny stagecoaches.

13:34.234 --> 13:35.967
We'll get back
to the stagecoaches

13:36.067 --> 13:37.534
in a little while.

13:37.634 --> 13:39.134
[fiddle leads
bluegrass tune]

13:39.234 --> 13:42.501
Every year in mid-April,
folks gather in a corner

13:42.601 --> 13:45.368
of a 100-acre meadow
in Caldwell County,

13:45.468 --> 13:48.868
beside the narrow headwaters
of the great Yadkin River.

13:48.968 --> 13:53.067
They eat, chat, and tap
their feet to the music,

13:53.167 --> 13:56.201
but the main event is mules.

13:56.301 --> 13:58.601
[chains clanking]

13:58.701 --> 14:02.334
Mules pulling old-timey,
double-handled plows.

14:02.434 --> 14:06.468
Mules dragging 50-year-old,
two-wheeled cultivators,

14:06.568 --> 14:08.967
repainted
and oiled up especially

14:09.067 --> 14:12.735
for what the valley folks
call "Plow Day."

14:12.835 --> 14:15.534
(Winkler)
We started with
three or four teams, you know,

14:15.634 --> 14:18.634
and it's just got bigger
and bigger over the years.

14:18.735 --> 14:21.001
And we don't want
no competition;

14:21.101 --> 14:23.301
we don't want
no prizes.

14:23.401 --> 14:25.934
We just wanna
have fun.

14:26.034 --> 14:27.701
OK, woah! Woah!

14:27.801 --> 14:34.167
This is a 210 John Deere plow
with a Syracuse bottom.

14:34.267 --> 14:36.734
It's older than I am.

14:36.834 --> 14:39.401
Come up!

14:39.501 --> 14:41.534
[voiceover]
They're all turning plows.

14:41.634 --> 14:43.934
[mellow guitar and bass
playing bouncy tune]

14:44.034 --> 14:46.501
♪

14:46.601 --> 14:50.800
There's a few
walk-behinds.

14:50.900 --> 14:52.700
We call all the plows

14:52.800 --> 14:55.600
that you ride on
"sulky plows."

14:55.700 --> 14:57.533
Come up, baby.

14:57.633 --> 14:58.967
Come up.

14:59.067 --> 15:02.368
♪

15:02.468 --> 15:03.734
See, you call--

15:03.834 --> 15:05.468
you call that
your leading mule.

15:05.568 --> 15:07.434
That's your
"off mule."

15:07.534 --> 15:10.034
(Barnes)
What is it that makes
one a lead mule

15:10.134 --> 15:11.601
and one a follower?

15:11.701 --> 15:13.501
(Winkler)
I've heard people
talking 'bout,

15:13.601 --> 15:16.401
they work the smartest mule
in the lead.

15:16.501 --> 15:19.267
Some people got a mule
that's a little taller,

15:19.368 --> 15:21.801
they like to have her
in the lead.

15:21.901 --> 15:24.368
(Barnes)
Does a lead mule
earn more oats?

15:24.468 --> 15:26.734
(Winkler)
He ought to,
oughtn't he?

15:28.468 --> 15:30.301
(Barnes)
After Plow Day is over,

15:30.401 --> 15:32.800
big tractors work
the land a bit more,

15:32.900 --> 15:35.034
then plant
a crop of hay.

15:35.134 --> 15:36.601
Eight weeks later,

15:36.701 --> 15:39.468
the farmers and mules
and old machines return

15:39.568 --> 15:42.001
for what they call
"Hay Day."

15:42.101 --> 15:43.534
[metal clanking]

15:43.634 --> 15:46.601
The valley folks
say this field full of mules

15:46.701 --> 15:49.700
and old machines
remind them of bygone days,

15:49.800 --> 15:51.735
when farmers
always pitched in

15:51.835 --> 15:56.534
to help each other
rake hay and harvest corn.

15:56.634 --> 15:59.301
[flute leads droning,
rhythmic chords]

15:59.401 --> 16:01.701
Hay Day also is a time

16:01.801 --> 16:05.201
when younger mules
get some on-the-job training

16:05.301 --> 16:08.201
as they trot
alongside their elders.

16:08.301 --> 16:10.167
(Winkler)
I've always loved

16:10.267 --> 16:13.034
to see the mules
improve by day,

16:13.134 --> 16:17.601
you know, and learn to do
what they're s'posed to.

16:17.701 --> 16:19.135
(Barnes)
They enjoy working.

16:19.235 --> 16:22.534
(Winkler)
They like to work
if you don't mistreat 'em.

16:22.634 --> 16:25.935
The--the biggest thing
that bothers the mules

16:26.035 --> 16:28.501
that you've got
to watch for is a bees' nest.

16:28.601 --> 16:30.134
He's 'fraider
of a hornet

16:30.234 --> 16:32.533
or a yellow jacket
than he is a bear.

16:32.633 --> 16:34.367
[clattering]

16:37.501 --> 16:39.434
(Barnes)
Especially for Hay Day,

16:39.534 --> 16:42.634
Tom, Greg, and their friend
Stanley Marley

16:42.735 --> 16:46.868
repaired an old hay loader
that grabs fresh-cut hay,

16:46.968 --> 16:51.201
rakes it up an incline,
and dumps it onto a wagon bed.

16:51.301 --> 16:53.267
[clattering]

16:53.368 --> 16:57.167
This strange-looking rig
was the envy of many a farmer

16:57.267 --> 16:59.001
in the 1930s.

17:00.267 --> 17:03.301
Tom loves to bring rusty,
old farm machines

17:03.401 --> 17:04.900
back to life.

17:05.001 --> 17:07.668
This is
the way mine'll
look on the back.

17:07.768 --> 17:09.568
(Barnes)
But his real passion

17:09.668 --> 17:12.434
is building
brand-new stagecoaches.

17:12.534 --> 17:16.301
These scenic views
were pretty standard on--

17:16.401 --> 17:17.667
on the stagecoaches?

17:17.767 --> 17:19.101
Yeah, you put--

17:19.201 --> 17:21.167
you put a landscape
on one side

17:21.267 --> 17:23.266
and an animal
on the other side.

17:24.534 --> 17:27.868
(Barnes)
Tom is a stickler
for authenticity.

17:27.968 --> 17:29.767
Nineteenth-century
stagecoaches rested

17:29.867 --> 17:32.167
on a loop
of leather straps

17:32.267 --> 17:34.901
to make the ride
less jolting.

17:35.002 --> 17:38.234
Tom bought seven cowhides
to make shock absorbers

17:38.334 --> 17:40.201
for his fifth stagecoach.

17:40.301 --> 17:42.634
They call them
"through-braces."

17:42.735 --> 17:45.267
You got
14 layers here,

17:45.368 --> 17:49.067
which is
120 feet long.

17:49.167 --> 17:51.134
And we just
took a chalk line

17:51.234 --> 17:52.934
and cut
the rest of it

17:53.034 --> 17:54.934
with a drawknife
like that...

17:55.034 --> 17:57.434
(Barnes)
Hmm.

17:57.534 --> 18:01.233
(Winkler)
...and then just rowed it
and sewed it together.

18:01.333 --> 18:03.401
♪

18:03.501 --> 18:05.568
Can you raise it?

18:05.668 --> 18:07.633
You're gonna be able
to hook it, Bernie?

18:07.734 --> 18:09.067
(male voice)
All right.

18:09.167 --> 18:10.668
(Barnes)
It's a great day

18:10.768 --> 18:13.101
when the shiny coach
first is lowered

18:13.201 --> 18:15.166
onto its chassis.

18:16.533 --> 18:18.700
[clunking]

18:18.800 --> 18:20.301
(Winkler)
OK, let's see.

18:20.401 --> 18:21.801
That might work.

18:21.901 --> 18:23.668
Now, I'm sure
everybody
wants to know

18:23.768 --> 18:26.068
where'd you get
the name for
your stage line.

18:26.168 --> 18:29.734
(Winkler)
I visited the stage line
in Deadwood, South Dakota,

18:29.834 --> 18:31.167
and I just says,

18:31.267 --> 18:33.034
"the next coach
I'm gon' put--

18:33.134 --> 18:35.201
I'm gon' put 'Deadwood,
South Dakota' on it."

18:35.301 --> 18:36.633
Think I'll
get sued?

18:36.734 --> 18:39.134
Nah, not
a chance.

18:39.234 --> 18:41.467
Back up, Kate;
back up, Kate!

18:41.567 --> 18:42.900
Woo! Woo!
Woo! Woo!

18:43.001 --> 18:46.900
Always hook
your front end first.

18:47.001 --> 18:48.167
OK, guys.

18:48.267 --> 18:50.734
(Barnes)
You mind if I
take a ride with you?

18:50.834 --> 18:52.002
No, sir!

18:52.102 --> 18:53.868
(Barnes)
Feeling like
the King of England,

18:53.968 --> 18:57.734
a passenger takes
a seat in the coach.

18:57.834 --> 18:59.734
(Winkler)
Is Billy Boy in?

18:59.834 --> 19:01.633
OK, babies!

19:01.734 --> 19:03.067
Come up,
Kate, Mandy!

19:03.167 --> 19:05.067
(Barnes)
And away we go,

19:05.167 --> 19:07.734
clip-clopping
into yesteryear.

19:07.834 --> 19:09.300
[clattering]

19:09.400 --> 19:15.035
♪

19:15.135 --> 19:19.301
Tom's wife, Marilyn,
designed the interior decor,

19:19.401 --> 19:22.601
including Old West
upholstery, wall covering,

19:22.701 --> 19:25.667
and fancy window fringe
and drapes.

19:25.767 --> 19:29.667
♪

19:29.767 --> 19:31.601
A couple
of centuries ago,

19:31.701 --> 19:33.533
George Washington
rode a coach

19:33.633 --> 19:34.900
through
North Carolina.

19:35.001 --> 19:36.768
I reckon
if it was good enough

19:36.868 --> 19:38.501
for John Wayne
and George Washington,

19:38.601 --> 19:40.434
it's a good-enough
ride for me!

19:40.534 --> 19:42.166
(Winkler)
Giddyup, hear?!

19:42.266 --> 19:48.266
♪

19:52.768 --> 19:55.167
[ominous horns
introduce "Dragnet" theme]

19:55.267 --> 19:57.134
(radio announcer #1)
Ladies and gentlemen,

19:57.234 --> 20:01.468
the story you are
about to hear is true.

20:01.568 --> 20:03.533
(announcer #2)
"The New Adventures
of Sherlock Holmes!"

20:03.633 --> 20:04.967
[dramatic theater organ]

20:05.067 --> 20:06.900
(male narrator)
Ah, the good old days...

20:07.001 --> 20:08.267
(Costello)
Hey Abbott!

20:08.368 --> 20:10.601
(Abbott)
All right,
what's all the excitement?

20:10.701 --> 20:12.201
(narrator)
...when radio was king.

20:12.301 --> 20:14.901
(Costello)
Oh, Abbot, the big circus
just came to town!

20:15.002 --> 20:17.534
(narrator)
By the time programs
such as this arrived,

20:17.634 --> 20:20.167
radio itself was
well along in its history.

20:20.267 --> 20:22.034
[Morse code beeping]

20:22.134 --> 20:24.401
And one place
you can still see evidence

20:24.501 --> 20:27.067
of this rich history is
the Appalachian Radio Museum

20:27.167 --> 20:30.234
at Asheville-Buncombe
Community College.

20:30.334 --> 20:32.333
[Morse code beeping]

20:33.801 --> 20:36.034
In a small room
crammed to overflowing

20:36.134 --> 20:38.034
with early
radio paraphernalia,

20:38.134 --> 20:40.735
visitors can see,
touch, and listen

20:40.835 --> 20:43.468
to the instruments
of history,

20:43.568 --> 20:45.501
whose warm dials
look a lot

20:45.601 --> 20:47.534
like smiling faces
from the past.

20:47.634 --> 20:49.867
(George Burns)
Gracie, ya don't
stand a chance.

20:49.967 --> 20:51.235
Presidents are born!

20:51.335 --> 20:53.834
(Gracie Allen)
Well, what do you think
I was, hatched?

20:53.934 --> 20:55.700
[laughter and applause]

20:55.800 --> 20:57.568
[buzzing]

20:57.668 --> 20:59.867
(man)
This is a 1936 Zenith here.

20:59.967 --> 21:01.967
Here's one down here
that's, uh,

21:02.067 --> 21:03.634
oh, about 1950.

21:03.735 --> 21:06.534
It is a Zenith and
does a very, very good job.

21:06.634 --> 21:08.634
(modern radio announcer)
Over the immigration plan--

21:08.735 --> 21:11.134
Here's very early
radios here.

21:11.234 --> 21:13.234
They go back
to the early 1920s.

21:13.334 --> 21:16.168
Tubes are stickin' out
of the top, as you can see.

21:16.268 --> 21:19.734
(narrator)
They're stacked cheek by jowl
on the museum shelves--

21:19.834 --> 21:22.867
AM sets mixed with shortwave,

21:22.967 --> 21:25.234
radios from different eras,

21:25.334 --> 21:27.901
crystal sets from the teens,

21:28.002 --> 21:32.468
and radios with brand names
that are yet familiar...

21:32.568 --> 21:36.134
and other names lost
to all but the longest memory.

21:36.234 --> 21:38.468
(Jack Benny)
If you wanna be
a comedian, Allen,

21:38.568 --> 21:39.900
you better watch it.

21:40.001 --> 21:42.301
You see, you let
that one get past you.

21:42.401 --> 21:44.701
(Fred Allen)
It didn't
get past me, Mr. Benny.

21:44.801 --> 21:48.101
I've been around mules
so long, I didn't notice it.

21:48.201 --> 21:49.601
[laughter]

21:49.701 --> 21:52.368
(man)
I'd like to show you
a really interesting set

21:52.468 --> 21:54.334
from the mid-1920s--

21:54.434 --> 21:56.067
AC operated!

21:56.167 --> 21:58.768
And uh, that
makes it pretty early.

21:58.868 --> 22:01.434
These tubes
that you see lit up

22:01.534 --> 22:03.434
are voltage-dropping tubes,

22:03.534 --> 22:05.301
and they will drop
the voltage

22:05.401 --> 22:08.301
down to a level that
the transformer can work with.

22:08.401 --> 22:09.568
[muffled voices]

22:09.668 --> 22:11.167
Of this type of receiver--

22:11.267 --> 22:14.134
it's a tune-radio
frequency type.

22:14.234 --> 22:16.701
And you would
turn the knobs

22:16.801 --> 22:20.301
until you bring
both of them in resonance.

22:20.401 --> 22:22.368
There are people
who are coming in

22:22.468 --> 22:24.201
who are ham radio
operators.

22:24.301 --> 22:26.401
There are collectors
who come in,

22:26.501 --> 22:28.568
and there are--there are
grandmas and grandpas

22:28.668 --> 22:30.601
that want to show
the kids what--

22:30.701 --> 22:32.767
what grandpa had--
what they listened to

22:32.867 --> 22:34.667
back in the
'30s and '40s.

22:34.767 --> 22:36.633
(announcer #1)
Dragnet!

22:36.734 --> 22:39.068
[horns play "Dragnet" theme]

22:39.168 --> 22:41.434
(narrator)
Yes, the memories
just keep on comin'

22:41.534 --> 22:43.301
here at the radio museum.

22:43.401 --> 22:46.634
All across our state,
through good times and bad,

22:46.735 --> 22:48.501
radio kept us
up on the news...

22:48.601 --> 22:51.601
(male voice)
It is a felony
to hit a police dog.

22:51.701 --> 22:53.134
(narrator)
...and entertained us.

22:53.234 --> 22:55.267
("The Shadow" announcer)
Who knows what evil

22:55.368 --> 22:57.601
lurks in the hearts
of men?

22:57.701 --> 22:59.368
[villainously]
Heh, heh...heh!

22:59.468 --> 23:01.134
(narrator)
Heh!--you can look

23:01.234 --> 23:03.267
at an old radio
here in the museum

23:03.368 --> 23:06.633
and practically hear
those whispers from the past.

23:06.734 --> 23:08.534
[big band jazz playing]

23:08.634 --> 23:11.301
(Travis)
You're hearing me
on a 1940s microphone,

23:11.401 --> 23:12.735
but she still works,

23:12.835 --> 23:15.334
and we're all very pleased
to have something like this

23:15.434 --> 23:16.935
in the museum.

23:17.035 --> 23:19.800
(narrator)
And pleased as well to go back
even further than radio...

23:19.900 --> 23:21.067
[clicking]

23:21.167 --> 23:23.001
into the age of telegraph,

23:23.101 --> 23:25.701
when Samuel F. B. Morse's
new invention

23:25.801 --> 23:28.868
made it possible
to organize things better.

23:28.968 --> 23:31.734
(man)
Samuel F. B. Morse,
in what--about 1820?

23:31.834 --> 23:33.500
You were there,
John, what--

23:33.600 --> 23:34.868
[both laughing]

23:34.968 --> 23:37.301
(narrator)
A time when bored
summer boys hung around

23:37.401 --> 23:40.901
the train depot listening
for the dots and dashes

23:41.002 --> 23:44.202
from down the track
and around the state.

23:44.302 --> 23:47.634
(man)
Well, I'll tell you
a little story about that.

23:47.735 --> 23:51.034
A friend of mine and I
decided we would learn that.

23:51.134 --> 23:53.067
[clicking]

23:53.167 --> 23:56.134
He lived on one end of town;
I lived on the other.

23:56.234 --> 23:58.534
And he could lean out
his upstairs window--

23:58.634 --> 24:01.568
and two little alligator clips
like this and a wire--

24:01.668 --> 24:04.967
hook it onto
a phone line--two wires.

24:05.067 --> 24:07.835
I would trace
those two wires to my house,

24:07.935 --> 24:11.433
hook on the same phone line,
and start practicing.

24:11.533 --> 24:12.935
[clicking]

24:13.035 --> 24:15.700
Every time the telephone
truck we'd see coming by--

24:15.800 --> 24:17.434
we'd have to jerk it down

24:17.534 --> 24:19.967
because we were interfering
telephone somewhere.

24:20.067 --> 24:21.568
(narrator)
And it wasn't long

24:21.668 --> 24:24.334
before he was hammering out
code for a living.

24:24.434 --> 24:27.034
Good enough that
he became one of a group

24:27.134 --> 24:29.701
of telegraph operators
working for the railroad

24:29.801 --> 24:32.567
in the days
after World War II.

24:32.667 --> 24:33.834
Marion...

24:33.934 --> 24:35.101
[clicking]

24:35.201 --> 24:36.633
Morganton...

24:36.734 --> 24:38.234
Operating a railroad,

24:38.334 --> 24:42.166
you had to keep track of
all the trains in Asheville.

24:43.468 --> 24:46.234
I didn't...admit I made
a mistake, but I did.

24:46.334 --> 24:48.001
a time or two!

24:48.101 --> 24:49.368
[beeping punctuates static]

24:49.468 --> 24:51.368
(narrator)
Some ham radio operators

24:51.468 --> 24:53.534
still use code today.

24:53.634 --> 24:54.967
(man)
On 20 meters--

24:55.067 --> 24:56.468
[rapid beeping continues]

24:56.568 --> 24:59.001
He's in
northern Virginia.

25:00.301 --> 25:02.501
(man)
Propagation allows me
to talk, uh,

25:02.601 --> 25:04.800
from here to many places
over the globe

25:04.900 --> 25:07.101
with just a few
watts of power.

25:07.201 --> 25:08.801
K Four Sugar Victor

25:08.901 --> 25:12.334
calling CQ 20 meters
and listening for a call.

25:12.434 --> 25:14.567
Some people call it "skip."

25:15.901 --> 25:18.534
Typically on a normal day
here on the East coast,

25:18.634 --> 25:20.668
we can easily
talk to Europe,

25:20.768 --> 25:22.900
in--in very much
the same fashion--

25:23.001 --> 25:25.700
just by calling CQ,
with a 100-watt radio

25:25.800 --> 25:27.735
and a very simple antenna.

25:27.835 --> 25:30.001
(narrator)
"CQ" is the ham shorthand

25:30.101 --> 25:33.234
for "I'm here
and ready to talk."

25:33.334 --> 25:35.301
CQ, calling CQ 20--

25:35.401 --> 25:37.934
(narrator)
And it looks like
Dave has made a contact.

25:38.034 --> 25:39.668
(male voice)
Kilo Four Sierra Victor,

25:39.768 --> 25:42.568
this is
Kilo Five X-ray Sierra; over.

25:42.668 --> 25:43.935
(Anderson)
Good afternoon.

25:44.035 --> 25:47.468
My name is Dave:
delta, alpha, victor, echo.

25:47.568 --> 25:49.234
(male voice)
My name is Bernie--

25:49.334 --> 25:50.734
B-e-r-n-i-e, Bernie--

25:50.834 --> 25:52.134
and we're located

25:52.234 --> 25:54.701
in the northwest corner
of Arkansas; over.

25:54.801 --> 25:58.101
(narrator)
The signals from ham sets
and all other transmitters

25:58.201 --> 26:03.068
theoretically go on and on
into space, into time.

26:03.168 --> 26:05.834
So way out there somewhere
whoever may be listening

26:05.934 --> 26:07.568
could well be
tapping their toes

26:07.668 --> 26:09.434
to a tune
some of us remember

26:09.534 --> 26:12.835
from way back
in radio's golden days.

26:12.935 --> 26:14.901
(announcer #3)
Now for those two
friendly hands,

26:15.002 --> 26:17.001
George Burns,
and Hines Honey, Gracie Allen!

26:17.101 --> 26:18.267
[applause]

26:18.368 --> 26:20.001
(narrator)
Heh--and as for us

26:20.101 --> 26:22.501
here in the present,
we've got the memories

26:22.601 --> 26:25.768
all packed up and ready
to enjoy in one place--

26:25.868 --> 26:29.400
our state's own
Appalachian Radio Museum.

26:29.500 --> 26:34.433
♪

26:36.468 --> 26:38.834
[echoing flute leads
gentle guitar and piano]

26:38.934 --> 26:48.567
♪

26:48.667 --> 26:58.734
♪

26:58.834 --> 27:00.800
[harmonica joins]

27:00.900 --> 27:12.134
♪

27:12.234 --> 27:14.533
[upbeat snare paces
flowing orchestral strings]

27:14.633 --> 27:20.834
♪

27:20.934 --> 27:22.834
[tinkling piano joins]

27:22.934 --> 27:25.135
♪

27:25.235 --> 27:27.534
Captioning Editors
Lauren Gardner, Will Halman,
and Norah Andrews

27:27.634 --> 27:30.700
Caption
Perfect, Inc. CaptionPerfect.com

27:37.368 --> 27:40.001
(announcer)
To subscribe
to "Our State" magazine,

27:40.101 --> 27:43.500
visit the Web
site www.ourstate.com or call...

27:48.900 --> 27:51.668
[gentle piano melody]

27:51.768 --> 27:54.267
From small towns
to bustling cities,

27:54.368 --> 27:57.267
from the Outer Banks
to the Blue Ridge Mountains

27:57.368 --> 27:59.434
and all the places in-between,

27:59.534 --> 28:04.267
BB&T believes opportunity lives
everywhere in North Carolina.

28:04.368 --> 28:06.701
And for more than 130 years,

28:06.801 --> 28:09.901
we've helped people
discover it.

28:10.002 --> 28:12.201
We're proud
of our North Carolina roots,

28:12.301 --> 28:15.600
and we're proud to provide
major funding for "Our State."

28:15.700 --> 28:17.700
♪

28:18.968 --> 28:20.934
Quality public television
is made possible

28:21.034 --> 28:22.667
through the financial
contributions

28:22.767 --> 28:24.434
of viewers like you,

28:24.534 --> 28:28.534
who invite you to join them
in supporting UNC-TV.