Keith Taylor

Letter to Ken Shattock
Sent: Saturday, February 02, 2013 7:19 AM

Subject: IBLS Secretaries

Hi Ken

I took over from Bob Hornsby and during the time that I was East Coast Secretary Ken Rodig was the Mid-West Secretary and Paul Winslow from Winnipeg was the Canadian Secretary. Dick Thomas was the West Coast secretary during that time.

I got one of the first copies of the Charlie Purinton book and it is a treasure trove of live steam history.

It is especially meaningful for me as I knew several of the men in the book. In the book you will see several pictures of Herb and Joe Hild and their ¾" scale Coventry B&O President's Class Pacific. These men were mentors to me when I was just a kid with a love of live steam locomotives. They never cared that I was just a kid; they could tell that I had a real and genuine interest in live steam and machining. They took the time to teach me how to run a lathe and the safe operation of steam boilers. I have a photo that shows me running their engine at the Pioneer Valley Live Steamers 60th meet this past August. Their engine was begun in the late 1920's and finished in the 1930's. It is now owned by Robin G. of the PVLS. And it still is a top performer.

Keith