Nostalgia & History > The Garratt Ranch

A retired Cotton Belt freight agent asembled quite an interesting collection on some land just outside of Bullard Texas. I reckon that his name was Garratt because this was known as "The Garratt Ranch". Instead of longhorn or hereford cattle he raised rail cars. When he started his collection, the Cotton Belt still ran southwards through Bullard, and I understand that it was relatively simple to lay "panel tracks" to move the rolling stock from the railroad to his property. Nowadays the Cotton Belt line that ran through Bullard has been abandoned and the track taken up. I understand that it'd be so difficult and expensive to truck any of that rolling stock from the Garratt ranch, that it'll likely stay where it is until it either rusts away into oblivion, or is scrapped onsite at the ranch. Bullard is about 10 miles due south of Tyler. Note that part of these passenger cars is an articulated diner.

This might have made a "good" where is it", huh? "Where is its" are starting to wear thin with me though, since very few people if anybody is likely to be able to identify anything about the picture, and a good percentage of the pictures that are used for a "where is it" are usually just low resolution, underexposed pictures that don't have much of anything attractive or interesting about them. This is just my opinion, and yeah, I know what's been said about opinions.


Con

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My sis-in-law used to go to parties out there - I think
the cars were leased for party purposes. Bullard and Flint
and J'ville used to be tomato country - the Cotten Belt would
run tomoto trains out there during harvest season.

ArgyleEagle Wrote:
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> Bullard and Flint
> and J'ville used to be tomato country - the Cotton
> Belt would
> run tomoto trains out there during harvest season.


Useful info, Thanks.


TCS - billion dollar mile

Believe this is the SP10277-10278-10279, but I'd have to ask our resident passenger car expert.

Is this the same place as the Whistle Stop Ranch in Flint, Texas? Flint and Bullard are just down the road from each other. If so, there used to be a second Triple Unit there. Both had been part of Judge Hofheinz' "collection" in Houston.

Didn't think any of the triple diners were left...kewl

It look to be the Lark Club as shown in a picture from Southern Pacific Passenger Trains Volume 1 Page 82

Amtkrd4man Wrote:
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> Didn't think any of the triple diners were
> left...kewl

The "Cascade Club" (10280-10282) belongs to the PLA and is in Niles Canyon.

Howard

sp5472 Wrote:
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> The "Cascade Club" (10280-10282) belongs to the
> PLA and is in Niles Canyon.

Yikes!

I hope you'll be able to pull it out!

Yes, these are some of the "Whistle Stop Ranch" cars. Garret also had an ex-SP "Shasta Daylight" triple unit diner set that was part of the Holfienz collection, but it never made it to the ranch property and was eventually scrapped. The "Lark Club" here in Flint/Bullard and the "Cascade Club" at Niles Canyon are the only 2 known triple unit diners left.

Topfuel Wrote:
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> Yes, these are some of the "Whistle Stop Ranch"
> cars. Garret also had an ex-SP "Shasta Daylight"
> triple unit diner set that was part of the
> Holfienz collection, but it never made it to the
> ranch property and was eventually scrapped.

Interesting.

He's listed in the 1980 Private Passenger Car Annual as getting four other ex-SP cars. Did any of those make it there?

> He's listed in the 1980 Private Passenger Car
> Annual as getting four other ex-SP cars. Did any
> of those make it there?

Yes, there are 4 other ex-SP cars there, but all of them are wreck damaged and are on blocks (no trucks and minimal underbody equipment). It is my understanding that those 4 cars came from a wreck of the Amtrak Inter-American somewhere in Texas in the late '70's. The wreck damage on each car is on one side only, so the cars are positioned with their "good side" to the west, where the wreck damage is not visible unless you walk around to the east side. Cars are 3 Budd Sunset Limited cars - coach, Pride of Texas coffee shop, and 10-6, and a 1954 Shasta Daylight coach.

Topfuel Wrote:
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> > He's listed in the 1980 Private Passenger Car
> > Annual as getting four other ex-SP cars. Did
> any
> > of those make it there?
>
> Yes, there are 4 other ex-SP cars there, but all
> of them are wreck damaged and are on blocks (no
> trucks and minimal underbody equipment). It is my
> understanding that those 4 cars came from a wreck
> of the Amtrak Inter-American somewhere in Texas in
> the late '70's. The wreck damage on each car is
> on one side only, so the cars are positioned with
> their "good side" to the west, where the wreck
> damage is not visible unless you walk around to
> the east side. Cars are 3 Budd Sunset Limited
> cars - coach, Pride of Texas coffee shop, and
> 10-6, and a 1954 Shasta Daylight coach.

Thanks for the info.

And they're located here:

N 32.18431 W 95.33058

RailNet802, out

I believe there was a set on the Traverse City (MI) dinner train, that ran about 10 years ago.
It was a 5 car train with an F unit on each end...don;t know who bought it, or where it went...