The Nantucket Railroad

This mini-documentary about the Nantucket Railroad was produced for the 2008 exhibition ’Sconset 02564 at the Nantucket Whaling Museum. It includes excerpts from a series of oral histories of ’Sconset residents conducted in 1976 along with archival video and photos on the topic.

In this video, Marion Coffin Folger (1892–1980) shares her memory of working at the railroad station, the train ride, and the different views along the way. Elizabeth Gibbs (1896–1996), remembers riding the train and how the engineer would stop to allow passengers to pick blueberries in season. Margaret Fawcett Barnes (1896–1980) talks about the arrival of the train in ’Sconset and the man who would play the coronet to greet the passengers. And Gibbs Penrose (1908–76) performs his rendition of the song, “Buy a Ticket to ’Sconset.”