Robert Bowers

[NW Mailing List]

Is this the Robert Bowers who coauthored the N&W diesel books with Paul Withers?  I found those books very useful in my modeling of far southwestern Virginia. 

Bob Bayles
Sent from my iPhone

> On Apr 8, 2024, at 22:05, NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> wrote:
> 
> It is with great sadness that I learned of Bob Bowers passing.
> 
> Bob was born in Westminster, Maryland. Bob served with the Navy in Vietnam transporting infantry up and down the delta rivers. He followed that working for the CIA installing diesel generators at embassies around the world.
> 
> His interest in the N&W grew in the 70's when he lived in Portsmouth. Virginia watching the diesels push coal through the loaders at Lamberts Point. Bob began recording the numbers of every N&W diesel locomotive he would see. He soon had a contingent of other railfans sending him sightings of N&W diesel locomotives elsewhere on the system.
> 
> When personal computers arrived he had a coworker write a program for him to catalog all his sightings. Bob then went on to tracking cabooses and maintenance of way equipment. Bob's catalogs containing over 400,000 records are now on the NWHS web site at https://www.nwhs.org/data/
> 
> With Jim Brewer, Bob coauthored the first N&WHS publication "Cabooses of the Norfolk & Western" in 1994. Bob also co-authored a number of books on N&W Diesels.
> 
> Bob owned Ken's Trains, a hobby shop on Orange Avenue in east Roanoke. Bob operated the society sales program for over 20 years and maintained the society's financial records. He was a board member from the 90's into 2015. He held every position in the society, including a one-day stint as president during one turbulent directors meeting.
> 
> Bob had an extensive slide collection which he donated to the Archives. His donation contained over 38,000 slides which can be seen at https://www.nwhs.org/archivesdb/listdocs/select.php?AccessionNum=2014.015
> 
> Few people dedicated as much of their time or their wealth to the NWHS as Bob Bowers.
> 
> I will miss him.
> 
> Ron Davis
> 
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