Save LV 95100! (Cabooses of Manchester)

[scottychaos]

I thought this deserved its own thread!
interesting, (and so far unexplained and somewhat mysterious), recent happenings in Manchester, NY, involving three cabooses.

First, two cabooses arrived in Manchester 5 or 6 years ago, one ex-LV and one ex-PRR..both ex Conrail.
they have been stored behind an old school in Manchester.
The two cabooses are:
LV 95100 - CR 18632
PRR 477203 - PC 19109 - CR 46142
Initial rumors back then were that they were intended for some kind of "mall" or shopping plaza in the area, perhaps to be built right at the corner of routes 96 and 21 in Manchester...another story said that perhaps one of them (presumably the LV caboose) might be intended for a "linear park" being built in nearby Mendon, along the ROW of the LV mainline.

years went by, the cabooses sat there..this past spring both were hauled out into the open field behind the school, for reasons unknown..
recently a post was made:
http://forums.railfan.net/forums.cgi?bo ... 1313360383
stating that the two cabooses are for sale, and might be scrapped.
(photos of the two cabooses in question can also be found in that link)
Then, both cabooses were loaded up and trucked out yesterday and today..destination unknown, new owner/s unknown.

Also recently, within the last week or two, a third caboose comes on the scene!
This caboose is ex-Conrail, (a member of the only class of cabooses bought new by Conrail, N21 Class, built in 1977)
CR 21208 - CSX 21208.
was initially assumed to be a new caboose bought by the Finger Lakes Railway, and probably an ex-Conrail/CSX caboose recently used/stored in Rochester.
thread about this caboose:
http://www.railroad.net/forums/viewtopi ... 28&t=85956
its not surprising that FGLK would get a new caboose, they already have three (this would be the fourth) and they use them as shoving platforms.
So nothing unusual about this caboose so far..until today, when a photo appears (in the thread above) of this caboose on what appears to be a "display track" in Mendon!

perhaps its just a coincidence that this caboose was put on a display track at the exact same time as the other two cabooses were trucked out, but it also seems likely that the fates of all three cabooses are somehow intertwined.
anyone know what is going on over there? with any of these cabs?

(also, be on the lookout for two cabooses out on the road, traveling by flatbed truck!)

thanks,
Scot

[boblenon]

Hmm... lets see the boards on the caboose say "Property of Village of Manchester" followed by "CSX, Rochester, Syracuse Finger Lakes"

Or at least something to that effect.

I love the panel; pristine 115lbs + rail; with plates, new spikes and anchors ... and brand new 7x9 ties!

But, the caboose has only been dragged onto the ground and is sitting next to the panel.

Someone someplace certainly greased a few wheels at CSX.

[Otto Vondrak]

Greased wheels indeed It appears different institutions get different answers depending on who is asking and who is listening. Man, it's like cabooses are just going anywhere for the asking!

[scottychaos]

The photo of the new caboose in Manchester:

Interesting that this caboose is now sitting on a small section of track to the south of the FGLK main in Manchester.
Check it out:

Maybe placed there because there's a sandblasting company across the track? I'm stumped.

It must have been lifted off the active track, and placed on the ground next to the "display track"..
while it was floating in the air, why couldnt it have simply been placed on the display track?

or could it have been dragged across the ground and not lifted with a crane?
that could explain why it isnt on the display track yet..
not sure how they would get it off the main track in that case though..or "steer" it..hmmm..
and the ground doesn't look disturbed at all..
again, very odd..

Scot

[boblenon]

The lifting was only so-so; probably enough to get it off the tracks ... there are clear ruts in the ground where the caboose was dragged; err rolled? Unfortunately, to the chagrin of many an uninformed human, the "steering wheel" wasn't steering.

Maybe the panel wasn't there, or the crane wasn't big enough to do the job.

[scharnhorst]

could it be possible that a large tow truck used to move semi trucks or a front end loader was used to move the cab one end at a time?

[jnugent56]

For those who are interested, I took a bunch of photos of the LV caboose inside and out. The photos were taken about three days before the caboose was trucked off the property. (Photos taken with Marty's permission, of course.) They can be found here:

https://picasaweb.google.com/joe.r.nuge ... directlink

It's an excellent restoration candidate. Good trucks and wheels, good couplers, good frame. Everything appeared to be intact, with the exception of steps and end doors. The interior was surprisingly original. Let's hope it went to a good home.

Joe

[lvrr325]

could it be possible that a large tow truck used to move semi trucks or a front end loader was used to move the cab one end at a time?

Unlike your HO models, when you pick up a real railroad car, the trucks are not attached, they just sit under it on pins. Lift the wrong way, off they come.

[scharnhorst]

could it be possible that a large tow truck used to move semi trucks or a front end loader was used to move the cab one end at a time?

Unlike your HO models, when you pick up a real railroad car, the trucks are not attached, they just sit under it on pins. Lift the wrong way, off they come.

I know that there free floating with a pin holding them in place. They could have used a large machine to pick up one end of the cab set it on blocks then lift the other end and set that on blocks then move the trucks to where they wanted them then set the cab back down on the trucks.

[Lehighton_Man]

Alright, I'll shed some light on this story too.
I worked for Marty at the Old School. The building was to become an Antiques/Consignment "mall" with artisans and a whole bunch of other business ventures inside. Ambitions ran high, but money ran short. Sadly, the Cabooses were some of the first things to get the Axe. I learned from an inside contact that they were taken away for scrap, where, I was not told. It seems that they may have a very bleak future. I always wanted to start work on those too... Every day I went into work I would hope that that would be the day that I could start with their preservation.

[lvrr325]

Nice of them to ask if anyone wanted to pony up, given the R&GV folks have wanted a real LV caboose for a long time, and I'm sure the LV historical folks might be interested too.

[scharnhorst]

Alright, I'll shed some light on this story too.
I worked for Marty at the Old School. The building was to become an Antiques/Consignment "mall" with artisans and a whole bunch of other business ventures inside. Ambitions ran high, but money ran short. Sadly, the Cabooses were some of the first things to get the Axe. I learned from an inside contact that they were taken away for scrap, where, I was not told. It seems that they may have a very bleak future. I always wanted to start work on those too... Every day I went into work I would hope that that would be the day that I could start with their preservation.

so are you saying that the Conrail cab above in the photo got hauled all the way to Solvay and back tracked to Manchester only to get scraped?

[jnugent56]

so are you saying that the Conrail cab above in the photo got hauled all the way to Solvay and back tracked to Manchester only to get scraped?

No, he's talking about the two cabooses that were at the old school in Manchester. The caboose in the above photo is safe.

[Otto Vondrak]

Hello Folks-

Time is of the essence! The Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad Museum is indeed actively pursuing the preservation of this LV caboose! The time for debates are over, here's the straight skinny.

- We tried to purchase this caboose a few weeks ago, but the deal fell through. Due to circumstances beyond our control, the purchase price has doubled.

- We need to raise a total of $10,000 to purchase and move the car to safe haven. The new owner is willing to work with us to make this happen, but we don't have a lot of time.

- We have about half of the money raised right now. We need to make up the remainder this weekend. Here's your chance to help!

Any amount of donation will help. Donations are tax deductible. You can donate via PayPal on our web site (put "LV CABOOSE" in the comments area when you send your donation), or you can mail your check to: P.O. Box 23326, Rochester, NY 14692-3326.

We are very excited about this project, it has a lot of momentum and support, and more importantly, a realistic plan for restoration and operation. A few weeks ago, we had no idea this opportunity even existed, and now we have a chance to make it a reality. Can you please help us? We can do this.

http://rgvrrm.blogspot.com/2011/09/help ... alley.html

Please get in touch with me if you have any questions.

-otto-

[Otto Vondrak]

Please donate!

https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?c ... GXWPKJAW7S

-otto-