Paradise Center gets grant for mini roundhouse

The roundhouse at the Paradise Railroad Station has been gone for more than 80 years. In the near future there's going to be a brand new roundhouse in town, but it won't be at the railroad station and it won't be for fixing trains.

The Paradise Center received a grant of just over $31,000 from the Montana Office of Tourism earlier this month, which will go toward the center's newest addition, a mini-roundhouse. "Most, if not all, of the needed lumber may be donated by a Plains resident and so is not included in that overall construction cost," said Karen Thorson, the Paradise Center's secretary and author of the grant.

Thorson said they were thrilled to get the grant money, but the center will have to come up with an additional $19,000 in matching funds to build the mini-roundhouse, which will be located outside along the Paradise Center Walking Trail. The structure will be shaped in an arc at about 114 feet across at the widest point. It will be pie-shaped with five bays inside. Each bay will measure 13 feet wide in the front, 27 feet in length, and 22 feet wide at the back. 

"It won't be a replica; it'll be more like an example of a roundhouse architecture from the 1880s," said Thorson, who is also helping in the construction of the model railroad display inside Paradise Center. Thorson said the mini roundhouse will be a good addition to the center. "The current exhibits on the railroad are very informative, but the mini-roundhouse will contain artifacts that are too large for indoor display. These artifacts will provide visitors with a realistic, up-close experience," said Thorson, who added that they plan to build a setting or display in each bay that complements the theme and gives the artifacts relevant surroundings. "When you add artifacts inside, the history of the railroad will come to life," she said.

"The mini-roundhouse will have an educational value on its own and will provide protection for many artifacts that may otherwise be lost to future generations," stated Thorson. Paradise Railroad Station had a real 20-bay roundhouse from about 1907 to 1937, when it was torn down, according to Benita Jo Hanson, who wrote the book "Milepost Zero," a history of the railroad in Paradise. Hanson, a historian who is also assisting with the indoor railroad display, said the old real roundhouse was used to work on engines and train cars, but it was discontinued when a larger one was built in Missoula. The Paradise roundhouse was located about a mile west of town, but Hanson said remnants of the structure can still be seen, especially from higher elevations. She is currently working on a second edition of her book. 

Hanson believes the mini-roundhouse will be a nice attraction at the center. "People are going to be able to see some of the bigger equipment that was used at the depot and that'll be nice," said Hanson, whose father, Jess "Butch" McNeeley, worked for the railroad for 20 years. Each of the bays in the mini-roundhouse will show a different part of the railroad's history. One of the largest items is a velocipede, also called a "push cart," donated by Charles "Ole" Oelschlager of Plains. The velocipede is a three-wheel machine that ran on a narrow track and was used by the night watchman at the tie plant, which burned down in 1982.

Plans are for the mini-roundhouse to show different facets of the railroad in Paradise. "One bay will focus on the railroad and mail, another on the railroad and passengers, another on the railroad and freight, and a final one on the tie-treatment plant," said Thorson. The center bay will be open on one or both ends with one or more picnic tables for public use.

The mini-roundhouse is one of 10 major projects at the center since taking over the old schoolhouse property in 2016 after Paradise Elementary School closed. Thorson is looking into two other grants at $5,000 apiece to help raise the remaining funds for the mini roundhouse, but the center also welcomes any contributions from local residents and businesses. People can send donations to the Paradise Center, Box 162, Paradise, MT 59856.

The mini-roundhouse structure will take several months to build, but they can't begin breaking ground until they raise the additional funds.