Cranberry country. A late afternoon excursion at the Edaville Family Theme Park's annual Christmas Festival of Lights circles the Turtle Creek Reservoir on the west side of the park, with a load of park patrons. On the last day of the 2023 Christmas Festival of Lights, the park ran double-headed until early evening, with Monson Railroad #3 leading and Edaville's own Locomotive #11 acting as the road engine. With relatively moderate temperatures in the upper 30s this day, a fair number of hardy New Englanders chose the open excursion car over the enclosed coaches so they could take in the sights and sounds of Massachusetts' only steam train.
This aerial view provides a not-often-seen view of the park and it's long-standing connection with the cranberry industry. The Edaville Railroad was constructed in the late 1940s by cranberry farmer Ellis D. Atwood, whose initials gave the place its name. Although he originally intended his railroad simply to serve his cranberry harvesting operation, the public fell in love with his "little trains" and the place has been a tourist attraction ever since. Although the trains are no longer a part of the cranberry farming operations, the bogs seen here are still very much active and the berries produced here still grace the dinner tables of many Americans, especially during the holiday season.
