About

Who we are and what we're building.

Why I'm building this

I love trains. I didn't grow up riding them, but somehow they’re nostalgic to me. There's so much history in these rails, and so many stories. I get a rush from the thump-thump underneath me, like a roller coaster, but more peaceful. Steam locomotives are my favorites. The white puffs in the air, the whistles, the conductors, give me the same feeling in the pit of my stomach as when I was a child being tucked in on Christmas Eve, the first time I saw snow, and the first time I set my eyes on a cityscape. Magical. Motivating.

Riding behind a steam locomotive is a special experience, and I want kids and adults to keep having it for generations. To ensure that, we need individuals, companies, and nonprofits to keep restoring these engines, government and private owners to maintain rails, and, most importantly, we must keep riding them!

There are still a few thousand steam locomotives in the United States. Some pull trains regularly, some once or twice a year, and some are on display and likely won’t run again. Two Whistles aims to make it easy to find these trains, see them, and ride them! Each engine gets its own page showing where it is, whether it’s running, and when it's next scheduled, and you'll be able to keep track of your rides, your stories, and your memories.

Our goal for Two Whistles is to inspire train lovers to ride more often, share their stories, and play an active part in preserving steam locomotives and railways for generations to come.

Think of Two Whistles as a social network for trains. The trains and the railroads are at the center, and the riders, conductors, railroad workers, hobbyists, and philanthropic organizations surround them with their stories and their love.

For riders

If you’re taking a vacation, why not couple it with a train ride? If you need a day trip, why not pop over to your closest railroad and take a ride? If you’re waiting for a special locomotive to come online, stay up to date: get an alert, and get a stamp in your passport book!

For railroads and clubs

I want to make it easy for railroads to reach their riders. When a locomotive is coming online, going offline, or making a special run, let’s get word out to the riders and fans! When a railroad or organization is raising money to restore an engine, let’s let potential donors know!

For the engines

I want every engine to feel loved. If we share our rides, our stories, our donations, and our time with these engines, we’ll be able to preserve them for generations to come.

Where our information comes from

Train times and special events come from the railroads' own websites, and railroads will also be able to update their pages with us directly. Details about the engines themselves, like when they were built, who owns them and where they've been, come from published rosters and references such as Wikipedia, Wikidata and SteamLocomotive.info, along with the museums and clubs that look after them. Photos come from photographers and archives, including the Library of Congress and Wikimedia Commons, and only where the license allows us to use them.

When a train time comes from a railroad's website, we show you the sentence we got it from and send you to the railroad for tickets. We don't speak for any railroad.

How we keep it accurate

Every fact shows where it came from and the date we checked it. If two sources don't agree, we show both rather than picking one. If someone sends us a correction, we keep a note of what it said before, so you can see what changed.

When the site opens

Members will be able to get updates about the engines they follow, on the site, by email, or by text message. Emails and texts only go out if you ask for them, and you can turn them off whenever you like.

Who we are

Two Whistles LLC is a small, independent company in the United States. We aren't connected to any railroad, museum or locomotive owner. You can reach us at conductor@twowhistles.com.