It was a random afternoon and I had received a call from a friend that his neighbor was having an estate sale. When I arrived, I met Tracy, daughter of Betty Smith, who had purchased N-C-O boxcar No. 518 a long time ago to use as a storage shed. Betty has since gotten up there in years, and her daughter had moved her to a care facility to have extra eyes on her and make sure she is well cared for.
While talking with Tracy about the boxcar, she mentioned she was selling the house and if we wanted it, we had to move it in two week before the house went on the market. Well, that was a quick turn around for some guys who hadn’t moved a boxcar by themselves before. I called up member Sam McGrath, and we got to work finding blocks for cribbing and some steel I-beams to support the body. Finding everything we needed to complete the move took more time than prepping and moving the car did. But in the end, it was a great success moving our first piece of rolling stock. I especially want to thank Fernand Larranaga, neighbor and owner of Larranaga Construction, who used his truck and trailer to transport the boxcar over to our storage area in town. It’s becoming a theme in the work we do to save these cars, but truly are fortunate for the kind efforts of those who help us.
