What would you do with a former railroad caboose? Appearing to have been parked (sided?) for years or maybe decades, we don’t know too much about the history of this 1956 Milwaukee Road Caboose. It can be found listed here on Facebook Marketplace in Ellsworth, Wisconsin, and the seller is asking $27,500. Here is the original listing. I couldn’t pass this up when I saw it, being a huge fan of everything railroad-related. Let’s check out this nice caboose! (awkward)
I know I yammer about poor photo quality too much, but this is yet another example of a seller taking vertical (not bitter) photos of a vehicle, this time, a 34-foot railroad caboose. Vertical photos. Let that sink in for a second. This is not a vertical vehicle. If there was ever a horizontal thing to take horizontal photos of, this is it. So, I apologize in advance for the poor quality photos of what could have been a very, very cool ride through history here. Also, there are hardly any photos at all, really only three, plus an interior photo. Two interior photos, if you count the replacement stove, which burns wood in this case, as opposed to the original fuel oil furnace. I’m bummed to not see the iconic Milwaukee Road logo on the bumpouts, below the windows on each side. Maybe they’re just faded; it’s hard to tell because the seller took the photos from so far away.
This is the other side of this former Milwaukee Road caboose, and some close-up photos would have been wonderful. We can’t see any numbers to identify this car, and the signs on the side don’t do that. But, they appear to show a manufacture date of 11-56, and a last-inspected date of 12-74. The caboose is said to have made its appearance on railroad tracks way back in 1837, and this car has been off the rails for five+ decades, about as long as I have been. This caboose was considered modern in 1956 when the Milwaukee Road ordered 100 of these cars, likely from Thrall Car Manufacturing Company out of Chicago Heights, IL. This one may be relegated to three scenarios: 1) Staying right where it is, as $27,500 isn’t exactly inexpensive. 2) Becoming someone’s unique hunting shack or even a VRBO or other rental. 3) Sadly, being scrapped. I hope #3 doesn’t win out.
The seller shows this photo of it being moved (after the trucks/wheels were removed underneath), and I’m assuming this was before it made it to its current location on the side of a gravel country road. Older caboose designs often included a cupola on top so the crew could watch out for trouble when they weren’t playing cards. Just kidding, I’m sure they worked hard while on duty. They’d need to be able to see ahead to watch for smoke from a sticking brake or worn wheel bearing, which would cause a fire. Newer cabooses had bump-out or bay windows as seen here, as their overall height had been creeping up over the decades, and adding a usable cupola to the top would have put it over height limits. This one is all steel construction; this isn’t a wood-sided caboose as would have been seen a decade or two prior to 1956, such as this early one shown here on Barn Finds back in 2017.
The interior looks surprisingly nice, although this is really the only interior photo for some reason. I mean, you’re selling a caboose for $27k, so load up the maximum number of photos allowable. I must be the weird one, as the vast majority of sellers don’t seem to even consider that showing more photos makes for a better and easier sale, and more interested parties. Old cabooses were commonly known as a “crummy,” as in a crackerbox on wheels with no amenities. Pages 12 and 13 of this 1956 Milwaukee Road Magazine go into a bit more detail about the 100 new cabooses the company ordered.
This one is definitely not a cigar box or a crummy. It should have a small bathroom (a photo would have been nice), a two-way radio for communicating with the engine, a small area for cooking, electric lights, and a bed or bunk beds. It appears to have an old refrigerator as well, a common feature. The interior is said to be 8 feet by 30 feet. I could easily live in there and still have room for a few motorcycles.
This isn’t the engine, despite it being the last place on a Scotty G article. This is what’s said to be a replacement stove that took over for the original stove, powered by fuel oil. They give some specs in their listing: this caboose is 34.5 feet long, but the couplings on each end add just over five feet to the length. It’s also just over 10 feet wide, including the 12″ wide bay windows on each side, and is 12 feet high, plus 16″ for the roof handrail. It also weighs an incredible 52,000 pounds, and it has to be moved by the buyer. Would any of you have a creative use for this nice-looking caboose?
Very interesting write-up SG. I enjoy seeing the occasional non-automotive transportation conveyance. I went back and read the write-up from 2017; I guess I should not be surprised that there is a hobby built around buying/selling/restoring rail cars. I like the VRBO or hunting shack idea; maybe combine the two?
Don’t see the price but admit to being a railroad freak, the real thing or toy trains. Wife and her family were all railroaders and I started out at 6 with electric trains. We even took a major detour going cross country to see the “Big Boy” engine in Wyoming. Any way you look at it I am still fascinated with trains.
Oh, I’d love to see that. Apparently, it is making a cross country trek from WY. to CAL. for the 250th anniversary, but not in Colorado. I too am fascinated with steam rail, and took out every book our library had on them.
Don’t get out to Colorado much? This kind of stuff is all over, in fact, this could be the Ritz-Carlton for someone. Imagination runs wild here, and I could easily see someone turning this into a home. In an odd coincidence, our little town had a caboose from the Rio Grande, on display, but fell into disrepair. It cost the city a whopping $175,000 bucks to have it restored. There’s money in Colorado, except me and that’s okay.
A caboose served a vital function, where brakemen would spend days on the rail. There was no electronic communication, and the brakeman had a huge responsibility. It was his job to view the train from those side windows, to look for derail or brake fires. They had lanterns or flags to signal the engineer. Modern electronics eliminated the caboose in the 80s, now just a red light on the back. I hope this generates Milwaukee Road stories. Don’t actually remember ever riding on a train, but the Milwaukee Road was HUGE, and had a magnificent train station in downtown Milwaukee lakefront,,, fell to the wrecking ball.
Now, bear with me, rail story. Every year, I would go to FL. in Feb. and met some great people. One elderly couple was Ed and Doris LaRue. They were from NJ. and a wonderful couple. Get this, Ed, was a paratrooper over Japan, did 5 drops, which is incredible enough, when he got back from the war, he got a job at Penn Central,,,and for the next 45 years, he was the guy that uncoupled the hitches and brake hose. He said, he would ride in the caboose for a full day and night, turn around and come back. He was a great guy.
So no free shipping on this?
This is great!! I also looked at the caboose from 2017, my heart sank seeing that. I’m really hoping that this gets a new life as a rental or what-have-you. To have this caboose parked in your back yard you’d sure be the talk of the town. The old Railroad Crossing sign is perfect for this too. Thanks Scotty for doing the research and posting that old magazine article as well. It reminded me of my Grandfathers Step Dad. I only saw him a few timesas a luttle kid, he worked on the Erie railroad, the Newburgh NY branch. Unfortunately, thats all I know. This is great Scotty. Thank you…
( wait, no convertible version Scotty???)