Born in a boxcar

Now, that is a story worth telling! THANK YOU for sharing!

Awesome story.  

With no internet, cell phone, or government agency they made do, persevered and were successful. 

I doubt we could endure a fraction of the conditions that those in the revolutionary period, frontier period and even WW2 period had to live with and go through.   Like our veterans, these were all true heroes in my book. 

An amazing story, that's for certain. I have never heard anything like it. And if one looks closely at each of the faces in the photos, dignity and strength-of-spirit are evident throughout.

You are a generous man to share that personal story with us here on OGR. I tip-my-hat to you, sir, and applaud your wonderful personal history.

With great respect,

FrankM

Such interesting photographs!  Thank you for posting them.

My wife's father was born in an outfit car, at Sais, NM, in 1924.  Her grandfather was a B&B Carpenter on a Santa Fe bridge gang.  When the outfit moved east to Vaughn, they took her father to be baptized, but the priest had taken ill and was in a hospital in Clovis, so they caught the Southern Pacific up to Santa Rosa (on a pass, of course), where he was baptized, and then they returned to Vaughn.  The Southern Pacific Golden State Route hits the west side of the town of Vaughn, and the Santa Fe Belen Cutoff passes through the town.  Espee runs underneath Santa Fe at the crossing, and had its station there.

Her grandfather later transferred to the Water Service Department, and was the last pumper at Corona, California, when they shut down the steam engine water facility, in the 1950's.

Rich,

Thank you for the touch ups.  I'm still hunting the steam shovel picture.  I loved listening to my great grandmother tell about the fist time she saw an airplane, drove a car, a Maxwell (she wrecked it and never drove a car again), when her house got running water, electricity, and a phone.  After they relocated to Decker, Indiana, great grandmother ran a boarding house containing the local telephone exchange.  She was the operator too.  All by the age of 20.

Sorry about the interlude.  It looks like the boxcar door was removed and a conventional door framed in the opening.  Opinions?

Thanks for sharing, Bill. It is wonderful looking at old photos and knowing the story behind them, knowing something about those people looking out of the pictures at us.

Lew

Probably the most interesting post I have ever seen in my 18 years on this forum. The resourcefulness and resolve of your family members is more than admirable, sir!

TINPLATE ART,

You should hear what they all did during WWII.  The greatest American generation. 

I found the original print.  My great grandfather is the one in the engineers hat (and written on).  Any idea what logo the door is covering?  Any idea on the shovel manufacturer?

Thanks guys

"No More Trains to Ride"

Merle Haggard

[Verse 1]
I was raised in Santa Fe reefer in little California town
Three doors down from the railroad track where they set the old boxcar down.
Born the son of a railroad man Who rode 'em till he died.
I'd like to live like my daddy did,
But there's no more trains to ride

[Chorus]
No, no more trains to ride,
No more trains to ride:
I'd like to live like my daddy did,
But there's no more trains to ride

[Verse 2]
I learned to be a guitar picker singing and strumming long.
Songs like Hobo Bill's Last Ride; I love the good rambling song.
Bill was the son of a rambling man Who rambled until he died.
I'd like to live like Billy did,
But there's no more trains to ride

[Chorus] x2

Wow, what a cool post and fascinating family history! To echo what others said, I've never seen or heard anything quite like it. Do you know who the woman in the Chinese dress is standing next to the bassinet? More, please!  

Bill, That is an excellent story about your family!  Thank you for sharing it and the photographs with us!  Your great-grandmother sounds like my maternal grandmother, born in Coal Hollow, Pennsylvania in 1890.  All the stories.  She also was very industrious.  I have a photograph of her standing by the front window of her hat shop in Freeport, Pennsylvania (a Pennsylvania RR town) in 1911.  She made the ladies hats and sold them in her own store.  Age 21.

Mark, I remember Freeport as the interchange between the Pennsy and the Shawmut....well, I also remember going across the old bridge.....and the "new" bridge (now old, I suppose). Our 1953 Jeep CJ3A struggled a bit getting up the hill towards Worthington....

Lew

Lew, You have the right place!  Well the “new bridge” has been rebuilt.  The ramps at the Freeport end were a mess.  

Mark, Dad took this pic (c.1954 from my size) at a wreck site about a mile from Kisky Junction:

Lew

Lew, Wow, Great photograph!  What a mess!

Bill, sorry Lew and I got carried away on your topic!

Jim,

That is my great grandmother, Arilla Edwards.  The baby in the bassinet is her first born child, my grandmother Sarah.  No one ever knew when great grandma was born for sure.  Sometimes she claimed 1899, others 1900.  She married William Vetra, a widower, when she was 15 or 16.  He had three children by his first wife.  I never asked about the dress.   During WWII great grandmother Arilla and her youngest daughter Kate worked in the Republic Aviation plant building the P-47 Thunderbolts.

Lew, Is that a staple end truck you are standing on?

Bill, likewise I apologize. I did not mean to steer the topic. Just reminiscing.

Lew

Bill and Rich, thank you! 

The last of the opening photos seems to show a insert filler wall panel fabricated in the boxcar door's opening with a screen door in place.

Lew, Mark,

No offence taken here.  All is good on the mountain.

The first picture shows the end of a passenger car.  Great grandmother never mentioned it or it's use.  Dining car maybe?   The Western Maryland boxcar would not have been new rolling stock.  Was it probably 40 feet long?  I must create a similar scene on my layout.  Does anyone make a nice, scale steam shovel?

aussteve posted:

I doubt we could endure a fraction of the conditions that those in the revolutionary period, frontier period and even WW2 period had to live with and go through.   Like our veterans, these were all true heroes in my book. 

Don't underestimate the human spirit. To take nothing away from Odenville Bill's personal history, there are millions and millions of people around the world who endure such conditions and worse, yet find a way to survive.

Bill 

Thanks for sharing. You are fortunate that you have pictures to share. I have a friend who was at least born in town, but lived in a UP box car for 8 years. Her father was a station agent? for UP and they did the same providing them there own private company boxcar also. The bathtub was a large pan that they all had to share. Her and her brother at least have one very positive thing to mention, they always had a front row seat for the Big Boy coming through. No TV or any other amenities. it was pretty rough time. The town had a population of 12.  

Tom Tee, I like your slogan.

Wow, amazing photos Bill!

Odenville Bill posted:

Lew, Mark,

No offence taken here.  All is good on the mountain.

The first picture shows the end of a passenger car.  Great grandmother never mentioned it or it's use.  Dining car maybe?   The Western Maryland boxcar would not have been new rolling stock.  Was it probably 40 feet long?  I must create a similar scene on my layout.  Does anyone make a nice, scale steam shovel?

Bill - wonderful photos!  Great that you have treasures like this and thanks for sharing with us here on the OGR Forum.  

 In regard to a steam shovel, I have seen them on E bay from time to time.  You might also check Diecast Direct website.  If they don't have one, they may be able to steer you on a path toward locating one. 

Also - where on the Western Maryland were these photos taken? 

The photos were taken "near Virginia Beach, VA" is what I was told.  That looks like a large scale construction project.  I was never told what it was.  I have two more photos from that series, taken on a beach.  One is my great grandmother with a large wooden sailing ship grounded behind her. 

Thank you all for the kind words.

Time to shop for a wood boxcar and a steam shovel.

Bill, for some reason the only pics posted by you that I see are the first ones. Your other replies the pics are just a question mark. I wonder what is up with that?

Lew

Great post!!  Thanks for sharing. 

Interesting story thanks for sharing your family history.

Thank you for sharing a fascinating family history.  As someone else mentioned this is about the most interesting post I have ever seen on this forum.

great story Bill, thanks for sharing

Great pics!

I'll bet the shovel is a Bucyrus Erie.

Bill...  Thanks for the photos and interesting family history.  I have a lot of old photos of both sides of my father/mother's family.  One is of my grandfather (mother's side) in front of his one room school house... standing beside his Harley Davidson in 1920.  During WWII he worked for Boeing on the B29 in Wichita and Pratt, Kansas plants.  Also worked at Tinker AFB just after it was built outside OKC on B29 bombers.  I have a book on the Norden bomb sight signed out to him, stamped "confidential" information.  I remember, in the 60s, the UP tracks running a couple miles South of the farm and watching long freights as we worked his fields during my summers spent there.

On the steam shovel, yes, it is a Bucyrus manufactured in Milwaukee.  Find attached a pic of a 1:48 scale model and info of the one I have.  Hope you can locate one.  They were the primary shovel in use digging the Panama Canal, many were used by American Railroads after being shipped back to the states, along with those selected by railroads due to proven performance.  The model is O Gauge and even comes with a Lionel compatible coupler for attaching on the aft for those wishing to use on the layout.

Jesse  TCA  12-68275

Odenville Bill posted:

Jim,

That is my great grandmother, Arilla Edwards.  The baby in the bassinet is her first born child, my grandmother Sarah.  No one ever knew when great grandma was born for sure.  Sometimes she claimed 1899, others 1900.  She married William Vetra, a widower, when she was 15 or 16.  He had three children by his first wife.  I never asked about the dress.   During WWII great grandmother Arilla and her youngest daughter Kate worked in the Republic Aviation plant building the P-47 Thunderbolts.

More Great history, thanks! Love the P-47s. The dress just struck me as quite a curiosity piece and I was just wondering if you knew the backstory.

Beautiful shovel Jesse,

It looks ready for a crew.  I will look for one.  I will look for an appropriate boxcar too.

Those look like repurposed work train bunk cars, and in that era, would guess they are 36' cars.  May have already been rebuilt into worktrain service when this opportunity arose. Very interesting history.  Similar living as on logging roads, but theirs are usually dropped on ground.  Not sure about accompanying family housing in logging.

Tremendous family history & photos. I love looking back & seeing how folks lived. Thank you.

Bill,  in comparison with your photo on details, there is no doubt they are the same make of equipment.  The personnel platform in the photo has a fabricated cover over it, on side of boom, but other details match up.   With your cursor over the pics I posted, you can see it is from TWH Collectibles, is a Bucyrus 95 ton cap. steam shovel.   I have seen them while doing search for scale detailed collectible quality models.  I acquired mine in 2008, but have seen them available as recent as last year.  Hope you can locate one to acquire, yourself.

Thank you, sir, for the share of such timeless photos of a period in American history too many know not of, or choose to ignore and create anew in contemporary point-of-view.

Jesse