Cars in Limbo

The PNAERC roster uses an assortment of criteria for judging whether to include a car. An attempt to explain all these criteria can be found here, linked from the landing page for the list. The first question I ask is whether it's an electric car, which is usually - though not always - obvious. The second question, which can be thornier, is whether the car is "preserved." If the answer is yes (and the car meets the other PNAERC criteria), then it goes onto the list. But if it isn't really "preserved" as such - if it still exists but is in more of a state of limbo or is more of a utility, e.g. it's part of a structure - then it's excluded.

However, a few years ago a fellow IRM volunteer named Lucas McKay started tracking these "not-quite-preserved" cars in a Google spreadsheet. After a while, I took over maintenance of this list. While this list is linked from the Preserved Traction Blog site, it's hidden down at the bottom of the righthand column and is totally invisible if you're reading on mobile. Marc Glucksman recommended highlighting its existence, which I think was an excellent suggestion. So click here to view the "non-preserved" list.

This list is a lot less complete than the PNAERC roster proper. There's almost no mechanical information, in part because almost nothing on the list still has any of its mechanical components. It's far less complete, not only because I've only been maintaining it for a few years but because almost all the entries are in private ownership and are a lot harder to track down. There are some well-known cars like the PE car used as the Formosa Cafe and a smattering of bodies still at Lake Lamoka, New York (including the ex-Corning & Painted Post carcass shown above). There are also quite a few little-known entries. And I'm always looking for more to add, so let me know if you come across anything that isn't on the list.

Enjoy!

NTT Box Motor Update

I have updated the ownership of Northern Texas Traction 332, a heavily modified box motor originally built in the NTT shops in 1912, to reflect that it is now in private hands and (evidently) on display in Denton. This car was found as a body in the mid-1980s and moved to McKinney Avenue Transit Authority in the early 1990s, where MATA started working to convert it into a parlor and dining car. But work stalled out at some point, and by 2014 the car was evicted from the tight quarters at the MATA barn and moved to the Museum of the American Railroad site in Frisco. There it sat on display for a number of years (the photo above was taken in 2015) but I realized at some point that it had disappeared, so I'd changed it's status to "unknown." I just learned that it's back in the hands of the man who originally found it back in the 1980s (I'll confess that I'm not sure whether he's retained ownership this whole time) and is supposedly on display next to a restaurant in Denton. Anyone have any photos, or even details on where in Denton it is?

Anyway, the MARR collection is now down to 11 pieces, all mainline railroad equipment: 10 ex-Illinois Central "Highliners" and a PRR GG-1.

New England News

A couple of pieces of interesting pieces of information have surfaced from New England. First, it seems SEPTA 618 is on its way to its new home at the Trolley Museum of New York. I've updated its ownership in the PNAERC roster because it's left Seashore, though it hasn't yet arrived in Kingston. The car should be a good match with TMNY, given that it comes with standard-gauge trucks originally off a PATH K-car, so it can be towed in operation at its new home.

And thanks go to Matthew Juergens from the Connecticut Trolley Museum, who passes along information about recent happenings there. The museum is currently in the process of repainting their two-axle Corbin steeplecab, E2. A photo of the recent progress is below, and I have updated the locomotive's status to "undergoing restoration." Thanks, Matthew!