The First Annual Soirée on the Railway
“The ole high rolling days of steam have faded and a little of the old rich glamour has worn off now, but some of us still wake up and find ourselves listening for that long lonesome whistle in the night.” — Johnny Cash
It’s been more than sixty years since the last regularly scheduled train took passengers over the Ulster and Delaware railroad. For half a century, the train carried eager New Yorkers to the Catskills by the thousands and helped mobilize an era, one that put the region on the map as a tourist destination and introduced millions of city dwellers to its fresh mountain air and a type of leisure previously unknown. By the 1950s, half a million people were flocking to the Catskills every summer to stay in the bungalows, resorts, and summer camps that came to define the area.
Today, the glamorous train travel of the early and mid-twentieth century is, for most of us, relocated to memory or imagination. The Ulster and Delaware line discontinued passenger service in the mid 1950s amidst an increase in automobile ownership and interstate development and by the late 1970s, freight operations ceased as well. Since 1983, the Catskills Revitalization Corporation has operated the 45-mile-line, now called the Delaware & Ulster, as a tourist railroad that offers public excursions to a new generation of visitors.
On August 5th, 2017, a collection of the region’s natives, transplants, makers, and supporters, donned their most elegant travel attire to gather on the heritage tracks for the Soirée on the Railway, an evening dedicated to honoring the Catskills’ past, showcasing its present, and building its future. Hosted by And North and Brushland Eating House, the Soirée on the Railway invited guests to toast a bygone era as they sipped champagne and feasted on a grandiose Catskills-inspired menu of prime rib, foie gras, borscht, and more. Restored 1940’s train cars dressed with goods from modern Catskills makers like Boxwood Linen, Greentree Home Candle, Upstate Rug Supply, and Hops Petunia, carried us in and out of the Catskill Mountains toward sunset, cocktails in hand. As evening fell, live music from jazz band The Bee’s Knees drew us to the dance floor, while open-air cars and a warm summer breeze provided a dream-like setting to watch the night sky swallow the passing terrain.
The event benefitted the Catskill Center, an organization whose mission is to protect and foster the environmental, cultural, and economic well-being of the Catskills. The Center’s programs focus on preserving the region while looking toward the future, a sentiment echoed prominently throughout the evening. “When the resorts closed in the late sixties, many people thought this area would never again be a sought out destination for urbanites,” says And North’s founder and creative director, Emma Tuccillo, “which from working on And North, we know is not the case. Our team loved planning this event because it honored the history of this region while celebrating its present and future. The nostalgia and romance of the past combined with the modern day makers and artisans from the area made it a true celebration of the Catskills then and now.”
Photos by Christian Harder, Words by Hannah Leighton
Video directed and edited by Dylan Tuccillo, filmed by Dylan Tuccillo and Thomas Peisel, with help from Taylor Antisdel.