Sources have reported that South Shore combine 102, pictured above back in 2008, has been cut up at the Boone & Scenic Valley. The car had been derelict for years, and looks like it had been a source of spare parts. It was part of the line's first order for combines, from Pullman in 1926, and had been at Boone since retirement in 1984. Boone's PNAERC roster now stands at 20 cars.
South Shore combines have fared pretty poorly in preservation. All were lengthened and air-conditioned, but if anything the A/C has made them a greater challenge for museums to put - or keep - in service. Car 102 is the fifth to be scrapped in the preservation era, leaving only four - two of them "tunneled" hulks in Chesterton, Indiana - still around. Of the remaining two, car 106 is also at Boone and is the only South Shore combine currently in operational condition. Car 107 is at East Troy, which is unusual in that they have two South Shore cars fitted with A/C (albeit coaches, not combines) in regular use as a heavily rebuilt "dinner train."
I remember CSS&SB combine 111 when it was at Fox River. This car was always damp inside, so I figured indoor storage (not available then) or a new roof would be needed to save the car. Even at that, the bulges in this side along the floorline said that a lot of steel failure was in process. The eventual outcome of that car is not surprising, but its too bad actions could not have been taken to save it. Golly, I hope one of the few combines makes it out alive! O. Anderson
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