Large Scale Central

What RR Artifacts have you acquired?

Track and Trestles
#1

A take off from Steves thread, so as not to hijack it. I think that we all have a few pieces of RR artifacts that we have collected along the way. I find that others collections are fascinating, and the stories behind them of what they are, and how’ed the get them as a interesting tale to listen to. I’d love to here about others pieces and their tails to go along with them. I’ll start with a couple pieces of my own. I am in the process of walking and photographing all of the right of way along the Farmington narrow gage branch of the D&RG. This is a 6" bolt and washer I found lodged down in a piling support on a short pilling between Aztec and Farmington,

The Farmington Branch was pulled in the 60’s. This bolt may have seen every train, Pipe Gon, and All the K’s in the world go over it.I know that it’s just a bolt. This may be the only piece like it left in the world.

This is an actual piece of the strapping used to hold the pipes from the pipe gondolas running into Farmington on the D&RG. I verified its authenticity with an old “Oil field Guy” that worked for El Paso Gas that it matched what they used on the pipe cars. It was also verified by the Head of the survey team that surveyed the right of way for the abandonment of the line, as the " stuff was just thrown down along the tracks where they cut loose the pipe, and there were piles of it entangled along the right of way". I have seen the pipe Gons modeled with chains tieing down the loads, but strapping was used, as chains were expensive, and would never make it back to Alamosa where the pipe was trans loaded. Those rough necks were known to steal anything. So…Whats your treasures?

#2

I dont have pictures on me. But I have a couple railroad ties, with the outside spikes still in them from the Black Hills and Ft Pierre railroad. It seems when they scrapped the line they pulled the insode spikes out and then the rail, but left the outside spikes. It is an interesting find.

#3

Dave,

This a great topic. I have a few items around…my wife says why are you keeping all this “junk”? I have a cast iron keystone shaped sign from the Pennsylvania RR with a white “W”, stands about 16 inches tall and about a foot wide. About a three or 3.5 inch diameter pocket cast into the sign for a post to be attached.

Also have a 16 inch diameter brake wheel with D&RGW cast into the rim. It’s the fancy one with the curved ribs from the center out to the rim. Heavy sucker! Have a Adlake switchstand lantern with 10 inch discs on all four lights.

When I was Publicity chairman for Los Angeles Live Steamers, I was given a commemorative gift from the club president, as a thank you. It is a wooden handle used by switchmen to jam into the brake wheels for extra leverage in turning the wheel.

Lastly, I have a section of rail from the old Mt. Lowe railroad from the very early 1900’s. You So. Cal folks will know about this railroad…I’m sure Vic Smith knows of it. They were little trolley cars that would wind thier way up the side of the mountains above Pasadena to the summit of Mt. Lowe (near Mt. Wilson).

#4

(http://i.imgur.com/XtKJZ.jpg)

It’s not big or impressive, but its VERY special to me. It’s from the Zealand Valley Railroad, one of the many logging railroads that snaked their way in the White Mountains of NH. I’ve spent hundreds of, if not close to a thousand days, backpacking through these mountains, on a lot of the old ROW of many of the railroads. We found this spike about 5 years ago, just sitting on the trail surface in the early spring; the winter must have brought it to the surface. It was about two miles in from the trailhead, about at the location of the camp just past “Hoxie Brook” on this map.

(http://whitemountainhistory.org/uploads/zealand_valley_rr_1920.jpg)

Considering the line was pulled up over a hundred years ago, its a very cool find.

#5

Is that Zeeland falls area Bob?

#6
larry mosher said:
Is that Zeeland falls area Bob?
Yep. Zealand Falls 'falls' into Zealand Pond, on the northern end of the notch.
#7

My grandfather worked for the C S P M & O Railroad in about the 1920s. They lived in Northern Wisconsin and since they lived by the tracks the train crew would drop him off at home when he got off work. I have his lantern.

(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/doug_arnold/_forumfiles/Lantern1.JPG)

#8

I have a few items… A 4-light road/railroad crossing signal, A high switch stand, a few real railroad signs…
Also, Have a friend who worked for UP, and I got a few tie plates… I turn them up-side down, and use them as step plates on the rock walkways…
Have numerous rail spikes, from various areas… Along with a couple of Railroad hats… one winter, and one summer… the summer hat has a mess top, keeps the brain from overhating when out in the summwer in the sun… :slight_smile:

#9

This is my collection I’ve accumulated over the past 2 years. The narrow gauge rail is my latest addition. These were found in the woods, with permission of course :wink: The large brass gear is still a mystery to me, my railroad friend gave it to me while he was cleaning out parts and junk from an engine shed. I think he said something about it being the throttle gear to a GE 70-ton.

(http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8489/8230650976_b2141380e7_c.jpg)

#10

Caleb, That really long spike on the right? Whats the story behind that? Is it a track spike or a framing spike for bridge work?

#11
Dave Taylor said:
Caleb, That really long spike on the right? Whats the story behind that? Is it a track spike or a framing spike for bridge work?
Framing spike, it was found where the tracks crossed a small river.
#12

Hi all, I have quite a few artifacts around here, at least I call them artifacts the wife calls it all junk. Sometimes I think she is more right than I am. Anyway I don’t have pictures of most of it but could probably take some if the weather clears up a bit. Here are three spikes I have on a book case. For size reference the one on the left is 6 inches. On the left is a spike collected in 1998 from the abandoned grade of the Anderson and Bella Vista Railroad, a common carrier that spent its life trundling lumber and copper ore down it’s 15 mile route. Spiked down in 1891 it ran it’s entire life with one engine and a few borrowed cars until the line was torn up in 1937. Strange situation as official permission to abandon the route was not forthcoming from the ICC until 1946. The center spike was found in the Dunsmuire, CA yards of the now Union Pacific and the then yards of the Southern Pacific railroad. I have no idea of the date of this spike or how it came to be in the ballast of the Dunsmuire yards but these yards date to the 1870’s. Note the reversed point on this spike. The spike on the right was found on the right of way of the M. A. Burns 3’ narrow gauge logging railroad. in 2002. Burns was a major player in the timber industry of Shasta County California in the years 1912-1919. He was very successful until taken to court by Southern Pacific Land Company and forced out of business for cutting round 40’s.

(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/rick_marty/_forumfiles/miscpicts/spikes.jpg)

I love this local history stuff. Rick

#13

One of the artifavts I have my wife almost threw away last week. It is a brake shoe I found in Cajon Pass.

I also have a few ties I collected in Cajon Pass when they were replacing ties. Those edge the front flower beds and have been there nearly 30 years. At least one is hardwood!

#14

Doug, Let’s see a pic of the brake shoe. Any Guess the vintage?

#15

I would guess it’s newer. I’ll get a picture today.

#16

My brake shoe is not quite as romantic - found it along the Metro North tracks (NYC commuter rail) :frowning:

#17

Here’s a picture of the brake shoe from Cajon Pass. My question is, if Jon and I have brake shoes, what’s stopping the trains? Behind the shoe is a steamer decoration and the shoe is sitting on a couple of ties I got from Cajon Pass.

(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/doug_arnold/_forumfiles/Brake.JPG)

#18

That’s one worn out brake shoe. Looks like it was replaced with a new pad on the car it came from. Something to find like that on a mainline verses a yard is a rare thing. Finding it on Cajon pass makes me suspect that the car or train was stopped for some reason to inspect the brakes, and required carman to come out and look.
Heck the yards I worked in all the time had brake shoes thrown all over as the carman just dumped them on the ballast when they were replacing them. Had I known they were an ‘artifacts’ I would have gathered buckets full… :wink:

Craig

#19

OK my ignorance, If this is a “Late model” Pad, from 19?? till now. Is this a standard design and style?, and when did it come into wide spread usage?

#20

They have had several runaways on Cajon Pass so they are pretty careful about brakes.