Hello All,
Some of the members on this website involved with traction preservation may be aware of the "American Chicken Coop Project," a list of surviving electric carbodies, converted to chicken coops, diners, houses, etc. scattered across The United States, compiled by Ben Minnich. This list can still be found online. However, it has not been updated since summer of 2000, and can be considered a "dead project."
Recently, I became aware of this list, and took it upon myself to create an updated version of this list. Over the last week or so, I have been able to track down about 50 carbodies scattered across the U.S. and Canada (with much assistance from Frank Hicks, the webmaster of the PNAERC Database.)
Here is the link to the list I have created thus far: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... sp=sharing
I am trying to gather information on as many carbodies as I can. So does anyone here have knowledge about carbodies that I have missed? I would think that there are plenty I am not aware of. I am trying to make this list as reliable as possible, so all I ask is that the car in question has been confirmed to exist within the past 10 years. Simply put, the only criteria for inclusion on my list is "any car that is not preserved as an electric car, and has been confirmed to exist within the past 10 years."
Right now, it is a Google Sheets document, but I would hope to make it into a website once the list becomes sizable. Most of the cars on the list ultimately stand a poor chance at preservation. However, my hope is that this list will be able to spread knowledge about these cars so that some may eventually be preserved.
If you have any potential additions to the list, please respond to this thread or pm me. If anyone has any questions, suggestions, or constructive cristicism about my project, I would be happy to answer.
It's been a fun project so far, and I would be glad to find out about more additions!
Thanks,
Lucas McKay

Hi,

There are two Oklahoma Railway cars near Elk City Oklahoma. One is an old Rockford and Interurban car 301 The Kishwaukee that I am very much interested in.

http://ok.railfan.net/pages/okpte.html

https://www.google.com/maps/@35.4117118 ... 312!8i6656

Charles

And what do you think of this?

I found in in far western New Jersey within a mile of the Delaware River. Looks like a trolley car to me.

And to answer my own question, I found interior pictures of it. It has been HEAVILY modified into a luxury home. https://www.realtor.com/realestateandho ... 22#photo24

The Lake Shore Electric group knows of several Car bodies that have been turned into barns and houses. I'll look up the addresses tomorrow.

I don't see a carbody in that New Jersey home.

That's just a large bay on the end of the room. And too wide for a car body. Though it does kinda look like one at a quick glance.

If you look closely you'll see a long narrow building with a wider building next to it. Focus on the thiner long section of the house. The picture I posted shows the long narrow end that faces the road. This long narrow room can be seen in pictures of the kitchen in 9 & 10, the hot tub room in 16. It's almost as if they build a house that was a trolley with a station can be seen in picture 25.

https://www.realtor.com/realestateandho ... 22#photo24

It might not be, but the house is cobbled together with multiple additions. And that base appears to be a narrow long body that is the height and width of a trolley. Base on the rest of the photos, the recognizable trolley is gone.

I can add one to the list, Reading Transit #182 which was a 1916 Brill. It was converted into a cabin and is located on Cottage Lane, along the Maiden Creek. She is heavily modified.

You are also missing Reading Transit #511, used as a diner called the "Trolley Stop" in Skippack, and then made part of Hotel Fiesole, 4046 W Skippack Pike, Collegeville, PA.

The Lake Shore Electric site has a couple of pictures of preserved LSE carbides as barns and houses.

Apparently, these two survive in the Sandusky area in a barn.

http://www.lakeshorerailmaps.com/lse/ea ... 201994.jpg

And there is a car-body in Huron Ohio that is turned into a house. "I found that in Christiansen’s “New Northern Ohio Interurbans”, on page 975, he lists B&S #23 at 318 Deerwood"

https://www.google.com/maps/place/318+D ... 82.5842761

The North Shore hulk at Grass Lake Michigan still existed in mid-2017, at a preserved mansion on the south side of Michigan Avenue. The description is accurate; there wasn't much left of it but the carbody framing, and it may have been scrapped by now. A local historical society has a Chicago Surface Lines (I think) carbody sitting on ex-caboose, ex-freight-car trucks in a sumptuous exhibit hall. There is room for a second car which I'm told is in a shed on an adjacent property, but I don't know what kind of car it is.

I can't find on Google maps the Lansing or Flint (?) steel carbody that used to be a house in southwest Owosso, Michigan, so I presume it is demolished.

Aarne Frobom

Does this one count?

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=35107

Aarne - Check the "Free newly discovered trolley in Wisconsin" thread which mentions the Lost Railway Museum in Grass Lake, Michigan. Chicago streetcar 1137 ended up in their museum painted up as Michigan car # 47 sitting on the freight car trucks you mentioned. The other carbody is Michigan Railways interurban # 29. It's my understanding that they purchased the old North Shore car that was at ITM in Noblesville, with the idea of using that cars trucks for the 29. I think the museum is a project of the Grass Lake Historical Society. Been meaning to stop there on one of my trips to Ann Arbor, but haven't done it yet.

Les

Just ran into a new article about this:
https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2017/10/08/michigan-railway-museum-railcar/106451518/
The 29's carbody doesn't look too bad. This is a sister to the 28, under restoration at IRM. As I recall, the 28 will ride on trucks from a scrapped North Shore Merchandise Dispatch car.