In Loving Memory...

John Goodin, pictured at left, youngest son of T. E. Goodin, grew up with the railroad as an integral part of his life. He took many trips on the train with his father, from the time he was a young boy, until the day T. E. was forced to retire. When his father passed away, John was determined to keep his memory alive and preserve railroad history.  He spent countless hours volunteering as a conductor on excursion trains, and at educational events as a railroad historian at the Reece Museum, sharing stories with school children and others about life on the railroad.  Wearing his dad's uniform, John took great pride in showing how to use a switch key lock, and how to distribute train tickets using an original booklet with authentic tickets.  He expounded on the numerous duties of a conductor.  In John's words he says, "It's just a romance that's gone.  Seeing kids smile, and I'm talking about kids from 4 years old to 90 years old, because there are people on there that just love to get back on a train and listen to the whistle and the clickety-clack as we go along."

The John Goodin Papers contain hundreds of railroad artifacts, including the fifty-page presentation John prepared in 1996 for the nomination of his father to the Clinchfield Railroad Hall of Fame.  This document was invaluable in the preparation of this exhibit.

Our Mountain Railway, a Project Family Special Presentation, from the Goodin Collection, housed in the Archives of Appalachia, is a documentary about the railroad, with rare footage of early trains, provided by the V&R Productions and ET&WNC Railroad.  The documentary features Johnny Graybeal, author, and ET&WNC Historian, Jim Flicks, Model Train Engineer, James A. Goforth, author and Clinchfield Historian, and Kenneth Fannon, Railroad Memorabilia Collector.  Also featured is John Goodin talking about his father, T. E., and his duties as conductor on the railroad. 

James A. Goforth sums up the dedication, loyalty and love of the railroad from T. E. Goodin's day in this statement: The Clinchfield was more than just a place of employment or railroad.  It was a family.  It was a community.  It was an institution. At one time the railroad was Erwin, and Erwin was the railroad.  It was a family tradition to work for the railroad with many generations working the railroad at one time.