Nostalgia & History > Mystery Passenger Cars In Walla Walla, WA

I was doing some GOOGLE aerial photo touring recently and stumbled across five passenger cars that appear to be laying on their sides on the outside of a curved industrial track in Walla Walla.  One of them appears to be a baggage car.  They are only seen in the satellite photos looking straight down.  GOOGLE streetview does not show them.  

To track down what I'm referring to, they are / were near the intersection of N. 12th Ave. and Paine St. and a little south of a business with this street address: 1104 N 12th Ave, Walla Walla, WA 99362 

Anyone have any further information on these cars?  



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/25/16 14:58 by CA_Sou_MA_Agent.

CB&Q baggage-messenger #1007 (CB&Q, 1953) to BN to MofW 

GN 21 seat lunch counter diner-18 bunk dormitory #1144 Red Eagle Lake (P-S, Lot #6718, Plan #7498, 1947 Empire Builder/1951 Western Star) built as 20 seat lunch counter lounge-18 bunk dormitory CB&Q #1144, reconfigured in 1951, transferred from CB&Q to GN in 1955 to BN to MofW #968123


GN 60 seat short distance coach #1111 (P-S, Lot #6718, Plan #7495, 1947 Empire Builder/1951 Western Star) to BN #6001 (not applied) to MofW #968030


GN 68 seat coach #1301 (P-S, Lot #6751, 1947 Empire Builder/1951 Western Star/1955 Empire Builder) built as 2DB-1DR sleeper-29 seat buffet lounge observation #1191 Missouri River (Plan #4109) for 1947 Builder, transferred in 1951 to Western Star, reconfigured to 6RM-4DB sleeper 9 seat lounge observation #1191 Twelve Mile Coulee (Plan #4109K) when reassigned back to 1955 Builder, reconfigured in 1967 to 68 seat coach #1301 to BN #6802 (not applied) to Amtrak #6802 retired and sold in 1977 to Union Center Venture-St. Louis Union Station sold (when??) to NRE #1191Missouri River. Still in Amtrak Phase I. March 2009


GN 48 seat long distance chair #1225 (P-S, Lot #6886, Plan #7629V, Mid-Century Empire Builder) to BN #4826 (applied) sold in 1973 to NJDOT #107, later NJT #5314 sold (when??) to NRE #1225. Was this car sold to URHS in 1987, and resold in approximately 1991?? 

 

Wow!  I'm impressed!  You must have some "inside knowledge" of this.  

Was this considered for a tourist train or something that didn't get off the ground?  
 

Found the information on Railway Preservation News from a member of the GNRHS. Saw photos of the cars and they were an absolute mess. Its a shame to see what was a former Coulee series boattail observation cut up, but it and the former MOW cars were a rusted tattered pile of rolling scrap. Nobody knows the ownership of the cars but they were stored somewhere else and were told to move and they ended up in Walla Walla. Like too many privately owned passenger cars, the amount of money to actually save and restore, not even to Amtrak operating standards is beyond the bugets of most people. 

I was a long time volunteer at the Illinois Railway Museum and saw my museum "save" some cars which were beyond saving. In the end, even the museum has had to cut bait and send in the guys with the gas axe to free up track space for something that is or is mostly complete and not ready to fall apart in a rain shower.

Jim

CA_Sou_MA_Agent Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Wow!  I'm impressed!  You must have some "inside
> knowledge" of this.  
I know!  I thoght it was RanierRails at first!
Excellent documentation!


> Was this considered for a tourist train or
> something that didn't get off the ground?  
>  

australianterrier Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Found the information on Railway Preservation News
> from a member of the GNRHS. Saw photos of the cars
> and they were an absolute mess. Its a shame to see
> what was a former Coulee series boattail
> observation cut up, but it and the former MOW cars
> were a rusted tattered pile of rolling scrap.
> Nobody knows the ownership of the cars but they
> were stored somewhere else and were told to move
> and they ended up in Walla Walla. Like too many
> privately owned passenger cars, the amount of
> money to actually save and restore, not even to
> Amtrak operating standards is beyond the bugets of
> most people. 
>
> I was a long time volunteer at the Illinois
> Railway Museum and saw my museum "save" some cars
> which were beyond saving. In the end, even the
> museum has had to cut bait and send in the guys
> with the gas axe to free up track space for
> something that is or is mostly complete and not
> ready to fall apart in a rain shower.
>
> Jim
​And then there is the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore, Maryland where they were given passenger cars in operating condition only for the museum to put them out in the front yard, not use them, not paint them, not allow anyone to work on them or to work to raise money for them, and now these one-of-a-kind passenger cars of the B&O are left to rot and rust away.  A major sin and the management at this museum done NOT care one bit and they absolutely do not know or appreciate this part of the B&O history.
John

Wow - that's quite a find! Still some useable parts there.