After carefully orchestrated move, caboose is lifted into new home near T&OC Depot

Why did the Norfolk and Western caboose cross the road? To get to the other siding!

On Wednesday morning, the Bucyrus Preservation Society's caboose was moved across East Rensselaer Street to its new home outside the Toledo and Ohio Central Depot.

"Everything associated with this project cost more and takes more time than we ever imagined, but that's how things get done," said Tom Holtshouse, a society member who has served as "the money guy" for the project, which cost an estimated $16,297. "I've been begging for money from people to make this possible," he explained.

The move took roughly two hours. Getting ready took 16 years, almost to the day: On Sept. 27, 2006, 25 people contributed $100 each to purchase the 1969 caboose from the Norfolk-Southern Railway for $2,500, Holthouse said.

The caboose was manufactured for the N&W Railroad by the International Car Co. in Kenton and weighed in at 50,500 pounds, Holtshouse said. It was operated primarily in N&W's Scioto Division, running between Portsmouth and Williamson, West Virginia.

After the purchase, the caboose was moved to Bucyrus, where exterior restoration work was done "at a very benevolent rate," by Bucyrus Railcar Repair, now known as Cathcart Rail, Holtshouse said. That stage was completed in 2021.

Entire move was carefully planned

The entire process was orchestrated by Ken Mead, who owns the Crawford County & Bucyrus Western Railroad and Museum, 925 W. Mansfield St.

"It went just like I planned it," Mead said, smiling, after the caboose was safely in place next to the museum's replica loading platform.

Crews from Capital City Bay Crane Company of Columbus, local contractor Quinn's of Bucyrus, Cathcart Rail and Norfolk-Southern were joined by local volunteers, preservation society members and spectators at the move site. A huge crane lifted the caboose from where it had been positioned by Cathcart Rail on a rail siding and onto a waiting semi truck.

Holtshouse said one of the things he learned in the process of preparing for the move is the body of a train car normally isn't attached to its frame − the part with the wheels.

"They're being held to that car only by gravity. And it you picked up the car, the wheels would fall off," he said. "So one of the things that has to happen is the wheels have to somehow be secured to the rest of the car."

Using a short gravel drive built explicitly for this purpose, the truck hauled the caboose from that point to Rensselaer Street, where it crossed an active Norfolk-Southern track, and then onto the depot grounds, where a new siding − or section of track − had been constructed to hold it.

Just building the 20-foot wide and 100-foot long drive cost roughly $7,000 to $8,000, Holtshouse said. Workers had to cut in, grade and compact the stone base so it would be able to support a 110-ton hydraulic truck crane.

Mead and a student helper, Owen Sullivan, did all the work on the 40-foot track panel at the museum site.

Workers had 55-minute window to get caboose across tracks

Getting the caboose across the active rail crossing promptly Wednesday was a big deal, Mead explained. He arranged with Norfolk-Southern to have a flagger on site during the process. The railroad gave the team a 55-minute window to get the job done.

"The reason for the flagger is we're on a very fast-moving, 25 mph curve coming around there; that's a blind curve. You don't want to pull a 100-foot truck with a 50-ton load on it across the railroad tracks and have a 25 mph train come around the curve," Mead said. "It wouldn't look pretty."

Mead planned the entire move carefully. He coordinated with the city to close the road for the day and have detour signs in place. There was a backhoe available to move gravel if the trailer carrying the caboose became stuck. The Cathcart workers who did the restoration work were on hand, and an additional crane was available as a backup, he said.

"There's a lot of stuff people don't know about that you have to go through," he said.

There was potential for damage to street signs, wires, poles and curbs — not to mention the caboose, crane and crews. But to spectators, it looked as though every move had been rehearsed as the truck carrying the caboose backed across Rensselaer and the rail line.

Once the caboose was in position near its new home, the crane hoisted it again, swinging it around to its new siding. It was carefully lowered into position, guided by workers on the ground.

"It really is kind of a neat thing; you don't see this kind of stuff happening every day," Holtshouse said. "It's been a longtime project in the making."

Preservation society acquired depot in 1999

The T&OC Station at 700 E. Rensselaer St., built in 1892, has been painstakingly restored and renovated since the preservation society acquired it in 1999, Holtshouse said. In 2002, a former T&OC "freight drop" building that had stood at the T&OC crossing at Plymouth and Lane streets was moved to the site, and the Preservation Society built the replica loading platform, with the intention of eventually adding a railcar of some kind.

Then the caboose was purchased in 2006.

Cabooses were where the train's crew lived, Mead explained, and people enjoy seeing the seats, cooking area, small bathroom and other features.

"Most people have never seen them," Mead said. "They watch movies on television and clear back to the cowboy days, there was always a caboose on the back of the train; a lot of times, it was a red caboose. And the kids and everybody's always just fascinated by that. Kind of like the steam engine at the front, with all of the moving gears and wheels. Kids just love watching trains."

The caboose will become part of the station's permanent display as soon as interior renovation work is done. Mostly, that will mean a little painting and a good cleaning, Mead said, plus new safety lettering, seat and floor repairs and replacement of some broken windows. After that, it should be ready for tours.

The Bucyrus Preservation Society, a 501(C)3 nonprofit, is still raising money for the interior renovations, Holtshouse said. Contributions can be mailed to P.O. Box 144, Bucyrus 44820.

"It wouldn't have happened without Ken," Holthouse said of Wednesday's move. "I thought they did a super job."

ggoble@gannett.com

419-559-7263

This article originally appeared on Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum: Bucyrus Preservation caboose lifted into new home outside depot