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Discussion relating to the B&O up to it's 1972 merger into Chessie System. Visit the B&O Railroad Historical Society for more information. Also discussion of the C&O up to 1972. Visit the C&O Historical Society for more information. Also includes the WM up to 1972. Visit the WM Historical Society for more information.
 #1315033  by BerwickRailFan
 
Hello,

I am looking for info on a wooden caboose. It was C&O A549. This caboose was on display at the Carroll Park and Western Railroad in Bloomsburg, PA during the 1960s. Can anyone provide any info as to when it was retired, where the CP&W might of gotten it from, didthis caboose come from the pere marquette railroad originally? etc...

I'm looking for info on this Caboose to include in a book I am writing about the Carroll Park and Western Railroad.

Thanks,
Andrew
Attachments:
CPW-C&OnoA549-LCGECorpHopper(1968).jpg
CPW-C&OnoA549-LCGECorpHopper(1968).jpg (322.82 KiB) Viewed 6918 times
 #1317705  by BR&P
 
Andrew, I believe you are correct, that was a former PM caboose. I have no idea when it was retired, but I took a photo almost identical to the one you posted - I'd guess yours was taken about 1970.

What became of that caboose - does it still exist? Didn't they have an ex-PRR 4-wheeler also?
 #1317877  by BerwickRailFan
 
As far as I know that C&O caboose was scrapped in 1973 when the CP&W was sold after the passing of Carroll. The photo I posted was taken in 1968. Do you know when it came to the C&O from the PM? There were also two old C&O camp cars. A kitchen car (X-34 & X-972). Both were also scarpped in 1973. I'm also looking for info on their history.

The 4 wheel PRR caboose is now at the Red Caboose Motel, It's painted yellow with a Southern Pacific Lines herald on it. Any chance you know the PRR number for the 4 wheel caboose?
 #1317942  by BR&P
 
Without looking it up, I think it was 1949 when C&O acquired the PM. Once they were merged the equipment was likely sent where needed. Too bad it got scrapped. I know the 608 used to be displayed in Sarnia Ontario, maybe still is. I don't know what's with the "A" prefix. In the 1970's the LV used an A to designate cabooses which were pooled and run through across the system but I doubt that's the case here.

The 4-wheeler was lettered "Carbon & Schuylkill", numbered 172, and may have been converted to 3-foot gauge. but I'm not positive, it was a long time ago. Unless they just dropped the first 3 digits of the PRR number, I don't know what it used to be. I was only down there one time, my ex grew up not too far away and we came across the collection one day.

Guess all this does not tell you anything you didn't already know. Does anybody have pics of when the attraction first opened? Descendants of the family? How about pics in the local paper? Presumably they looked for publicity when it started up. Maybe somewhere there are pics of the equipment before they repainted it from PRR.
 #1318053  by BerwickRailFan
 
Yeah it is a shame the caboose was scrapped. So was all the other railroad equipment that was used for display, all around the same time but the new owners. I've been doing a lot of research on the history of the different pieces of equipment that was there for the section in the book about the equipment but haven't been able to find much on the C&O caboose other than it was originally a PM caboose then went to C&O when the merged. I haven't been able to find when it was retired from service, where and when the Carroll Park and Western acquired it and what year it was built by the PM. Anyone have any clues, please let me know.

On the 4 wheel caboose here's a little history. It came to the CP&W sometime prior to 1960-61. It was originally restored and given the number 200 with an orange Carroll Park and Western herald and large white PENNSYLVANIA letters above the windows. The "Carbon & Schuylkill" lettering and number 172 was applied in 1968 for the filming of the Molly Maguire’s Movie and it remained in that scheme until it was sold to the Red Caboose Motel in 1979. The caboose was converted from it's standard gauge to the 4 foot gauge the CP&W operated on. Carroll started working on the CP&W around 1955 when he bought one of his first pieces of railroad equipment, a small 4 foot gauge mining Lokie. I haven't been able to pin down when and where he acquired the caboose from though. The earliest photo I have of it so far is from 1961 and it was already redone by then. (you can see a photo of the caboose here: http://www.railroad.net/forums/viewtopi ... 6&t=158641" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;)
 #1318833  by BR&P
 
The sad thing is that it was probably a fairly big deal to the owner and others involved when equipment arrived. Even though cameras were not as common as they are today, you would think somebody aimed a Brownie Kodak at the new arrival and took a B&W shot or two. Unfortunately prints and negs get tossed out, or at best get squirreled away in an attic and are found decades later by folks who don't care.

I'm a fan of the former Buffalo Rochester & Pittsburgh. The NRHS operated several fan trips in the 1950's, and a few pics survive. They show hundreds of riders, a great many with cameras. Yet the number of pics still around is quite small. :(

As for A549, my speculation is that it was bought from the C&O and came directly to the CP&W. But I have no firm evidence to back that up.

Did CP&W have a spur where standard-gauge equipment could be brought in, or did it have to be trucked from Bloomsburg or someplace nearby?
 #1318837  by BerwickRailFan
 
There was a siding off the DL&W Bloomsburg Branch just east of the CP&W that they would park equipment when it arrived. From there it was moved to the CP&W property. There was also a section of standard gauge track that came from the DL&W Line into the CP&W but I haven't been able to find any evidence that it was actually connected to the DL&W line or just a section of stand alone track to move the cars. Something I'm still researching. I have a few old photos that show the track heading from the CP&W towards the DL&W but none of them actuall show it connecting to the DL&W.
 #1334934  by BerwickRailFan
 
BR&P wrote:The sad thing is that it was probably a fairly big deal to the owner and others involved when equipment arrived. Even though cameras were not as common as they are today, you would think somebody aimed a Brownie Kodak at the new arrival and took a B&W shot or two. Unfortunately prints and negs get tossed out, or at best get squirreled away in an attic and are found decades later by folks who don't care.

I'm a fan of the former Buffalo Rochester & Pittsburgh. The NRHS operated several fan trips in the 1950's, and a few pics survive. They show hundreds of riders, a great many with cameras. Yet the number of pics still around is quite small. :(

As for A549, my speculation is that it was bought from the C&O and came directly to the CP&W. But I have no firm evidence to back that up.

Did CP&W have a spur where standard-gauge equipment could be brought in, or did it have to be trucked from Bloomsburg or someplace nearby?
Hey BR&P,
Do you still have any photos you took at the Carroll Park and Western Railroad? If so I'd like to talk more to you abuot them.
 #1337534  by BR&P
 
I think the only 2 shots I took were the one of the A549 from the same spot as the one posted above, and a shot of the 4-wheeler lettered C&S. I was interested in the cabooses but back then every shot cost money for processing so I didn't shoot anything of the yard or facilities.