The Galesburg Zephyr

Dear passengers, supporters and friends -

Our operations have experienced a tremendous amount of success throughout the years, but ticket sales for the GALESBURG ZEPHYR have been less than satisfactory. While interest in these trips has been meaningful, we’ve made the difficult decision to cancel our excursions on June 25th and 26th.

Starting immediately and continuing throughout the next few days, we’ll be refunding ticket purchases as per our refund policy and offering all customers a 10% discount on an equivalent ticket for any future excursion sponsored by our organization. Customers will be able to use their unique order number to redeem this discount. Customers should start to see the refunds reflected in their account by Wednesday of next week.

We have enjoyed over 44 years of success because we have committed ourselves to providing outstanding experiences for the general public and by treating the operation of the steam locomotive no. 765 like the business that it is.

Operations like these take months - if not years - of planning and logistical work.  The cost of providing these excursions is significant.

We announced these operations within 30 days of their planned execution, which is very unusual for us. Eager to take advantage of new opportunities for the 765 once the commitments from our partners were secured, we proceeded, knowing that time was short but excited to offer this unique experience to our fans in addition to our other recent operations in Chicago.

The decision to cancel these trips in no way reflects the cooperation, interest or willingness of our various partners, who we look forward to working with again. It reflects wholly our desire to protect the financial future of our organization and the longevity of steam locomotive no. 765.

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience that this may cause for our passengers and supporters.

We are confident that with additional lead time and unique promotional opportunities that future planning can afford us, we will return to the Chicagoland area and thrill thousands more with the sights and sounds of the 765 and our historic train.

We thank you for your patience, understanding and continued support.

Sincerely,

W. Otter
President
Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society
*Full Press Release can be seen here