Old switch

If the switch raises the center 5th rails up and down, it is probably to on/off the function of the operating brakeman car.  The one that ducks up and down.   Could you post a picture of the underside?

@finbar posted:

Can anyone out there tell me what this is and who made it. Got it at a garage sale last week but can’t find any info about it

Not absolutely sure, but it sure looks like a Marx manually controlled decoupler. The off-track lever controls whether the rails between the center and outer rails are lowered or raised, and when raised, any car with Marx fork-style couplers will be decoupled when it rolls over (there's a plastic extension on the coupler below the fork that will hit the rail when raised, thus rotating, opening and decoupling the connection to the next car. There's also a remotely controlled version, as illustrated here.

Steve's correct, an uncoupler.   I found listings for American Flyer Pre-war O gauge uncoupler on a popular auction site that match.    It does give me an Idea for the Walking Brakeman car.

We all love a good mystery.

If I remember correctly, the Marx cars are uncoupled if one backs the train up over that uncoupler and stops the train, uncoupling two cars.  The one I had was only a single blade and only worked in one direction and it had a smaller Bakelite base that was moveable to the track section desired.

Charlie

Guys, it's prewar American Flyer that someone has modified by removing the solenoid and the yellow "butter dish" cover and adding a manual lever.

It is not Marx and it is not Lionel or anything postwar.

Glad you had the info, Roy, but I don't think any responders were trying to "change" anything, and if offering our best guesses (clearly labeled as such) offends you, I suggest you speak up sooner in the future.