JOHN FERRELL | Longmont, CO

First introduced to the FRIENDS of the C&TSRR in 2009 while wandering the Chama railyard, John has been a lifelong train enthusiast. He’s been interested in the C&TSRR and its history since he was a small child and found the FRIENDS a natural continuation of this passion, participating in work sessions every year since 2009. He has greatly enjoyed learning the ins and outs of swapping out trucks under rolling stock, checking journal boxes, restoring boxcar roofs, stripping and painting #483, tending to the masonry of the Lava pump house and all manner of MOW signage. These tasks of historical restoration and interpretation for the education of the public were instrumental in his decision to pursue the field of public history. In 2011, he received his B.A. in History from McMurry University. In 2014, while enrolled in Texas State University for his masters, he was taken on as the first intern of the FRIENDS. At the FRIENDS headquarters in Albuquerque, he engaged in management of the archives, creating exhibits and interpretive displays, refining the Richard L. Dorman photograph collection database and taking on the task of creating a book to be published by the FRIENDS. His internship also took him to the C&TSRR, where he served as a docent and created text for display signage at Osier and Cumbres. After obtaining his M.A. in Public History in 2015, he moved to Vermont, where he became involved with Vermont Department of Historic Preservation the following year by serving as a docent at the Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site in Plymouth Notch. He was taken on by the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation, which promotes the legacy of the thirtieth president, as office administrator. Due to his education and experience in public history, his duties were rapidly expanded to encompass the maintenance and interpretation of the Coolidge Foundation’s historical archives and collection. He has also taken on the role of Educational Director. In November 2018, after four years of work, he completed the Friends of the C&TSRR book Rails Across the San Juan, his first published work. John continues to reside in Vermont and work for the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation.