Mr. David R. Miner was president and founder of Miner Manufacturing at 2208 220th Street in Donnellson, Iowa, with 24 years of service. Among his many works was the restoration of five historic PCC streetcars for the City of Kenosha, Wisconsin in 2000. He also manufactured Tangley Calliaphone calliopes used on carousels and riverboats, plus self-playing accordions and other vintage musical instruments, vintage railcars, popcorn wagons and trucks and band organs at his facility.
Dave Miner built two special air calliopes for the road show of "Showboat" which were quiet enough to mimic the sound of a steam calliope inside the confines of a theatre. They operated on 1/4 pound of air supplied by a tiny blower while emitting prop "steam", which was powder admitted into the blower unit for the calliope. These instruments simulated a larger calliope in that the whistles were mounted on a small air chamber painted black and rounded on the sides to resemble an actual steel-pipe manifold used by traditional steam calliopes.
David Ray Miner was the son of Raymond H. and Mary Lou Kiener Miner. On Aug. 27, 1988, he married Carol Ann Richers in Fort Madison. He was a member of the First Christian Church in Keokuk, where he was a youth group leader. In 1989 he founded and began building the replica 1930s village of Minerville and the adjoining Fort Madison, Farmington and Western Railroad country branch-line used for excursions and laid on an abandoned right-of-way of the Chicago Burlington & Quincy Railroad. It all opened in 1994 and at their height they attracted 7,000 visitors a year to a remote rural road east of Donnellson. The complex was mostly dismantled and sold at auction on June 16th and 17th, 2008 as his illness worsened, but the Minerville Depot and the one-room schoolhouse, print shop and general store were donated to the Lee County Fairgrounds.
Dave was also a member of the Southeast Iowa Antique Car Club, where he served a term as vice president, and he enjoyed playing in the city band.
Survivors include his wife; two daughters, Emily and Sara Miner, both of Donnellson; one son, Nathan Miner of Donnellson; and one sister, Deb Miner of Minneapolis, Minn. He was preceded in death by his parents.
A memorial was established at the First Christian Church in Keokuk, Iowa.
The King-Lynk Funeral Home & Crematory in Fort Madison was in charge of arrangements.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Highball Dave Miner, R.I.P.
Dave Miner, president of the Miner Manufacturing Company near Donnelson Iowa and president / founder of the Fort Madison, Farmington & Western tourist line passed away this past Saturday at his home near Donnelson after a yearlong battle with cancer. He leaves behind his loving wife Carol, three children and a legion of friends.
It will be noted that Dave's inspiration was the driving force behind the creation of the "Minerville Country Village" as well as being the manufacturer of calliopes, Model T popcorn trucks and the restoration of vintage rail equipment, including several CB&Q pieces. The FMF&W was laid on the abandoned right of way of a former Q branch.
I was privileged, no, honored to be a part of the FMF&W team through my good friend, the late Wayne Beever (retired CB&Q agent). When I first ‘marked up' on the FMF&W in 2003, I was able to serve as a brakeman and later conductor on the train that featured an authentic wooden Q waycar. For this Q fan, it just didn't get much better.
Given Dave's illness, the FMF&W didn't operate as usual last fall. A ‘last run' was held this spring before the auction that saw the dispersal of the FMF&W collection, as well as items from Miner Manufacturing. At the time, I commented to Doug Beckman, FMF&W ‘general manager' that we shouldn't ‘cry because it is over, but rejoice because it happened.' As general manager, Doug did such a good job of coordinating our merry band of volunteers that Dave often said that he was going to double our salary of nothing! Many of you midwestern railfans may remember visiting Minerville, riding the waycar and restored Q doodlebug 507.
Memorial services for Dave were held today in Keokuk, Iowa. At the age of 47, Dave was taken from us far too early.
I know that Dave has marked up on the celestial Zephyr extra board; he will be deeply missed by those of us who were fortunate to spend a little time with him in this life.
Respectfully,
Burlington John
Volunteer Conductor
Fort Madison, Farmington & Western Railroad
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At birth, we boarded the streetcar and met our parents, and we believed they will always travel by our side. However, at some stop, our parents will step off the car and leave us on this journey alone.
As time goes by, others will board the car ... siblings, friends, children, and even the love of our life. Some will step down and leave a permanent vacuum. Others will offer joy, or sorrow, or fantasy and expectations, with hellos, goodbyes, and farewells.
A pleasant journey consists of having a good relationship with the other passengers as the car rolls along, and giving our best. We cannot know at which stop we ourselves will step down. So we must live in the best way possible, and love and forgive, and offer the best of who we are. It is important to do this because when the time comes for us to step down and leave our seat empty, we should leave behind beautiful memories for those who will continue to travel on the rails of life.
I wish you a joyful journey. Reap success, and give lots of love. More importantly, thank God for the journey. Lastly, I thank you for being one of the passengers on my car.
Dave Miner built two special air calliopes for the road show of "Showboat" which were quiet enough to mimic the sound of a steam calliope inside the confines of a theatre. They operated on 1/4 pound of air supplied by a tiny blower while emitting prop "steam", which was powder admitted into the blower unit for the calliope. These instruments simulated a larger calliope in that the whistles were mounted on a small air chamber painted black and rounded on the sides to resemble an actual steel-pipe manifold used by traditional steam calliopes.
David Ray Miner was the son of Raymond H. and Mary Lou Kiener Miner. On Aug. 27, 1988, he married Carol Ann Richers in Fort Madison. He was a member of the First Christian Church in Keokuk, where he was a youth group leader. In 1989 he founded and began building the replica 1930s village of Minerville and the adjoining Fort Madison, Farmington and Western Railroad country branch-line used for excursions and laid on an abandoned right-of-way of the Chicago Burlington & Quincy Railroad. It all opened in 1994 and at their height they attracted 7,000 visitors a year to a remote rural road east of Donnellson. The complex was mostly dismantled and sold at auction on June 16th and 17th, 2008 as his illness worsened, but the Minerville Depot and the one-room schoolhouse, print shop and general store were donated to the Lee County Fairgrounds.
Dave was also a member of the Southeast Iowa Antique Car Club, where he served a term as vice president, and he enjoyed playing in the city band.
Survivors include his wife; two daughters, Emily and Sara Miner, both of Donnellson; one son, Nathan Miner of Donnellson; and one sister, Deb Miner of Minneapolis, Minn. He was preceded in death by his parents.
A memorial was established at the First Christian Church in Keokuk, Iowa.
The King-Lynk Funeral Home & Crematory in Fort Madison was in charge of arrangements.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Highball Dave Miner, R.I.P.
Dave Miner, president of the Miner Manufacturing Company near Donnelson Iowa and president / founder of the Fort Madison, Farmington & Western tourist line passed away this past Saturday at his home near Donnelson after a yearlong battle with cancer. He leaves behind his loving wife Carol, three children and a legion of friends.
It will be noted that Dave's inspiration was the driving force behind the creation of the "Minerville Country Village" as well as being the manufacturer of calliopes, Model T popcorn trucks and the restoration of vintage rail equipment, including several CB&Q pieces. The FMF&W was laid on the abandoned right of way of a former Q branch.
I was privileged, no, honored to be a part of the FMF&W team through my good friend, the late Wayne Beever (retired CB&Q agent). When I first ‘marked up' on the FMF&W in 2003, I was able to serve as a brakeman and later conductor on the train that featured an authentic wooden Q waycar. For this Q fan, it just didn't get much better.
Given Dave's illness, the FMF&W didn't operate as usual last fall. A ‘last run' was held this spring before the auction that saw the dispersal of the FMF&W collection, as well as items from Miner Manufacturing. At the time, I commented to Doug Beckman, FMF&W ‘general manager' that we shouldn't ‘cry because it is over, but rejoice because it happened.' As general manager, Doug did such a good job of coordinating our merry band of volunteers that Dave often said that he was going to double our salary of nothing! Many of you midwestern railfans may remember visiting Minerville, riding the waycar and restored Q doodlebug 507.
Memorial services for Dave were held today in Keokuk, Iowa. At the age of 47, Dave was taken from us far too early.
I know that Dave has marked up on the celestial Zephyr extra board; he will be deeply missed by those of us who were fortunate to spend a little time with him in this life.
Respectfully,
Burlington John
Volunteer Conductor
Fort Madison, Farmington & Western Railroad
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At birth, we boarded the streetcar and met our parents, and we believed they will always travel by our side. However, at some stop, our parents will step off the car and leave us on this journey alone.
As time goes by, others will board the car ... siblings, friends, children, and even the love of our life. Some will step down and leave a permanent vacuum. Others will offer joy, or sorrow, or fantasy and expectations, with hellos, goodbyes, and farewells.
A pleasant journey consists of having a good relationship with the other passengers as the car rolls along, and giving our best. We cannot know at which stop we ourselves will step down. So we must live in the best way possible, and love and forgive, and offer the best of who we are. It is important to do this because when the time comes for us to step down and leave our seat empty, we should leave behind beautiful memories for those who will continue to travel on the rails of life.
I wish you a joyful journey. Reap success, and give lots of love. More importantly, thank God for the journey. Lastly, I thank you for being one of the passengers on my car.
Mr. David R. Miner was president and founder of Miner Manufacturing at 2208 220th Street in Donnellson, Iowa, with 24 years of service. Among his many works was the restoration of five historic PCC streetcars for the City of Kenosha, Wisconsin in 2000. He also manufactured Tangley Calliaphone calliopes used on carousels and riverboats, plus self-playing accordions and other vintage musical instruments, vintage railcars, popcorn wagons and trucks and band organs at his facility.
Dave Miner built two special air calliopes for the road show of "Showboat" which were quiet enough to mimic the sound of a steam calliope inside the confines of a theatre. They operated on 1/4 pound of air supplied by a tiny blower while emitting prop "steam", which was powder admitted into the blower unit for the calliope. These instruments simulated a larger calliope in that the whistles were mounted on a small air chamber painted black and rounded on the sides to resemble an actual steel-pipe manifold used by traditional steam calliopes.
David Ray Miner was the son of Raymond H. and Mary Lou Kiener Miner. On Aug. 27, 1988, he married Carol Ann Richers in Fort Madison. He was a member of the First Christian Church in Keokuk, where he was a youth group leader. In 1989 he founded and began building the replica 1930s village of Minerville and the adjoining Fort Madison, Farmington and Western Railroad country branch-line used for excursions and laid on an abandoned right-of-way of the Chicago Burlington & Quincy Railroad. It all opened in 1994 and at their height they attracted 7,000 visitors a year to a remote rural road east of Donnellson. The complex was mostly dismantled and sold at auction on June 16th and 17th, 2008 as his illness worsened, but the Minerville Depot and the one-room schoolhouse, print shop and general store were donated to the Lee County Fairgrounds.
Dave was also a member of the Southeast Iowa Antique Car Club, where he served a term as vice president, and he enjoyed playing in the city band.
Survivors include his wife; two daughters, Emily and Sara Miner, both of Donnellson; one son, Nathan Miner of Donnellson; and one sister, Deb Miner of Minneapolis, Minn. He was preceded in death by his parents.
A memorial was established at the First Christian Church in Keokuk, Iowa.
The King-Lynk Funeral Home & Crematory in Fort Madison was in charge of arrangements.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Highball Dave Miner, R.I.P.
Dave Miner, president of the Miner Manufacturing Company near Donnelson Iowa and president / founder of the Fort Madison, Farmington & Western tourist line passed away this past Saturday at his home near Donnelson after a yearlong battle with cancer. He leaves behind his loving wife Carol, three children and a legion of friends.
It will be noted that Dave's inspiration was the driving force behind the creation of the "Minerville Country Village" as well as being the manufacturer of calliopes, Model T popcorn trucks and the restoration of vintage rail equipment, including several CB&Q pieces. The FMF&W was laid on the abandoned right of way of a former Q branch.
I was privileged, no, honored to be a part of the FMF&W team through my good friend, the late Wayne Beever (retired CB&Q agent). When I first ‘marked up' on the FMF&W in 2003, I was able to serve as a brakeman and later conductor on the train that featured an authentic wooden Q waycar. For this Q fan, it just didn't get much better.
Given Dave's illness, the FMF&W didn't operate as usual last fall. A ‘last run' was held this spring before the auction that saw the dispersal of the FMF&W collection, as well as items from Miner Manufacturing. At the time, I commented to Doug Beckman, FMF&W ‘general manager' that we shouldn't ‘cry because it is over, but rejoice because it happened.' As general manager, Doug did such a good job of coordinating our merry band of volunteers that Dave often said that he was going to double our salary of nothing! Many of you midwestern railfans may remember visiting Minerville, riding the waycar and restored Q doodlebug 507.
Memorial services for Dave were held today in Keokuk, Iowa. At the age of 47, Dave was taken from us far too early.
I know that Dave has marked up on the celestial Zephyr extra board; he will be deeply missed by those of us who were fortunate to spend a little time with him in this life.
Respectfully,
Burlington John
Volunteer Conductor
Fort Madison, Farmington & Western Railroad
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At birth, we boarded the streetcar and met our parents, and we believed they will always travel by our side. However, at some stop, our parents will step off the car and leave us on this journey alone.
As time goes by, others will board the car ... siblings, friends, children, and even the love of our life. Some will step down and leave a permanent vacuum. Others will offer joy, or sorrow, or fantasy and expectations, with hellos, goodbyes, and farewells.
A pleasant journey consists of having a good relationship with the other passengers as the car rolls along, and giving our best. We cannot know at which stop we ourselves will step down. So we must live in the best way possible, and love and forgive, and offer the best of who we are. It is important to do this because when the time comes for us to step down and leave our seat empty, we should leave behind beautiful memories for those who will continue to travel on the rails of life.
I wish you a joyful journey. Reap success, and give lots of love. More importantly, thank God for the journey. Lastly, I thank you for being one of the passengers on my car.
Dave Miner built two special air calliopes for the road show of "Showboat" which were quiet enough to mimic the sound of a steam calliope inside the confines of a theatre. They operated on 1/4 pound of air supplied by a tiny blower while emitting prop "steam", which was powder admitted into the blower unit for the calliope. These instruments simulated a larger calliope in that the whistles were mounted on a small air chamber painted black and rounded on the sides to resemble an actual steel-pipe manifold used by traditional steam calliopes.
David Ray Miner was the son of Raymond H. and Mary Lou Kiener Miner. On Aug. 27, 1988, he married Carol Ann Richers in Fort Madison. He was a member of the First Christian Church in Keokuk, where he was a youth group leader. In 1989 he founded and began building the replica 1930s village of Minerville and the adjoining Fort Madison, Farmington and Western Railroad country branch-line used for excursions and laid on an abandoned right-of-way of the Chicago Burlington & Quincy Railroad. It all opened in 1994 and at their height they attracted 7,000 visitors a year to a remote rural road east of Donnellson. The complex was mostly dismantled and sold at auction on June 16th and 17th, 2008 as his illness worsened, but the Minerville Depot and the one-room schoolhouse, print shop and general store were donated to the Lee County Fairgrounds.
Dave was also a member of the Southeast Iowa Antique Car Club, where he served a term as vice president, and he enjoyed playing in the city band.
Survivors include his wife; two daughters, Emily and Sara Miner, both of Donnellson; one son, Nathan Miner of Donnellson; and one sister, Deb Miner of Minneapolis, Minn. He was preceded in death by his parents.
A memorial was established at the First Christian Church in Keokuk, Iowa.
The King-Lynk Funeral Home & Crematory in Fort Madison was in charge of arrangements.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Highball Dave Miner, R.I.P.
Dave Miner, president of the Miner Manufacturing Company near Donnelson Iowa and president / founder of the Fort Madison, Farmington & Western tourist line passed away this past Saturday at his home near Donnelson after a yearlong battle with cancer. He leaves behind his loving wife Carol, three children and a legion of friends.
It will be noted that Dave's inspiration was the driving force behind the creation of the "Minerville Country Village" as well as being the manufacturer of calliopes, Model T popcorn trucks and the restoration of vintage rail equipment, including several CB&Q pieces. The FMF&W was laid on the abandoned right of way of a former Q branch.
I was privileged, no, honored to be a part of the FMF&W team through my good friend, the late Wayne Beever (retired CB&Q agent). When I first ‘marked up' on the FMF&W in 2003, I was able to serve as a brakeman and later conductor on the train that featured an authentic wooden Q waycar. For this Q fan, it just didn't get much better.
Given Dave's illness, the FMF&W didn't operate as usual last fall. A ‘last run' was held this spring before the auction that saw the dispersal of the FMF&W collection, as well as items from Miner Manufacturing. At the time, I commented to Doug Beckman, FMF&W ‘general manager' that we shouldn't ‘cry because it is over, but rejoice because it happened.' As general manager, Doug did such a good job of coordinating our merry band of volunteers that Dave often said that he was going to double our salary of nothing! Many of you midwestern railfans may remember visiting Minerville, riding the waycar and restored Q doodlebug 507.
Memorial services for Dave were held today in Keokuk, Iowa. At the age of 47, Dave was taken from us far too early.
I know that Dave has marked up on the celestial Zephyr extra board; he will be deeply missed by those of us who were fortunate to spend a little time with him in this life.
Respectfully,
Burlington John
Volunteer Conductor
Fort Madison, Farmington & Western Railroad
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At birth, we boarded the streetcar and met our parents, and we believed they will always travel by our side. However, at some stop, our parents will step off the car and leave us on this journey alone.
As time goes by, others will board the car ... siblings, friends, children, and even the love of our life. Some will step down and leave a permanent vacuum. Others will offer joy, or sorrow, or fantasy and expectations, with hellos, goodbyes, and farewells.
A pleasant journey consists of having a good relationship with the other passengers as the car rolls along, and giving our best. We cannot know at which stop we ourselves will step down. So we must live in the best way possible, and love and forgive, and offer the best of who we are. It is important to do this because when the time comes for us to step down and leave our seat empty, we should leave behind beautiful memories for those who will continue to travel on the rails of life.
I wish you a joyful journey. Reap success, and give lots of love. More importantly, thank God for the journey. Lastly, I thank you for being one of the passengers on my car.
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