Steam Gauge Museum

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Then I found the perfect caboose for the job. When I saw her laying there at an Ogden, Utah, railcar repair yard, she wasn't much to look at. At only 37 years old, she was originally numbered CB&Q13648 (Chicago, Burlington and Quincy). After a merger and rebuild in 1991 she was renumbered BN12595 (Burlington Northern). The windows had been welded over with steel plates when the Federal Railroad Administration required “laminated safety-type glass” installed on or before June 1, 1975, and her roof walks removed. The paint was extremely oxidized after enduring a few long hot summers languishing in the Utah sun. In addition, workers had cannibalized her for parts. After all that, vagrants had started a wood fire in her kerosene stove causing severe damage to the paneling around the stove and heat/smoke damage to the rest of the caboose. It would be a job, but something that was doable, rather than the complete rebuild I could expect with the local wood cabooses.

I'd heard horror stories about moving a caboose. An extended cupola caboose sticks up pretty high. After consulting with a local heavy haul and rigging company, I learned that if we could keep it under 17 feet 6 inches, we could avoid the police escort that would double the move charge for the meager 55 miles of travel. I saw a picture on the Internet where they had cut the cupola off a Burlington Northern caboose but I wanted no part of that. The movers were finally able to locate an extremely low low-boy trailer that they were able to lower to just a few inches above the road and get it under the high load limit. That solved, it was now time to locate a crane capable of lifting/maneuvering 45,000 pounds, but actually two would be needed, one on each end of the move. And then there were the building codes in our community. Fortunately, we live in a small farming community where the standard building lots of 1-1/4 acres often accommodate several out buildings and in this case, a railroad caboose.

Location and placement decisions were also looming on the horizon. I wanted my railroad caboose to be as authentic as possible and yet maintain its principle purpose as a steam gauge museum. The current trucks (wheel sets) weren't original, but rather box car trucks. Additionally, the wheels and rails would lift the step entrance almost 2 feet higher. I needed to maintain easy access for visitors so I opted for the “unthinkable” and placed the bolsters, where the trucks used to sit, directly on concrete footings. This allowed the steps to rest at ground level.

The 3-foot deep concrete footings were poured. I embedded loops of 1-inch rebar into the concrete to attach to the steel beams under the caboose. A gravel parking area was built and prepared for the crane to sit on. The purchase price was paid and the day of the move came. For once, I was happy that Utah was in a drought. I had nightmares about the trailer or crane sinking to its axles in mud. I was pleasantly shocked that the stabilizers of the crane sank only an inch or two.

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