It is currently Mon Mar 18, 2024 11:00 pm

All times are UTC - 5 hours [ DST ]




Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 28 posts ]  Go to page 1, 2  Next
Author Message
 Post subject: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Thu Oct 19, 2006 8:11 pm 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 9:35 am
Posts: 8139
Location: Wilton, NY
Fall River, Massachusetts:

http://photos.nerail.org/showpic/?photo ... bydate%3A4


Offline
 Profile  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Thu Oct 19, 2006 8:52 pm 

Joined: Mon Jan 17, 2005 9:06 pm
Posts: 2526
Location: Thomaston & White Plains
Despite the caption, it's not a New Haven car.

_________________
"I'm a railroad man, not a prophet."


Offline
 Profile  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Thu Oct 19, 2006 9:53 pm 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 1:59 pm
Posts: 308
I wonder how many McDonald's or similar "name" chains might have railroad equipment as part of the "ambience".

In the NW Chicago suburb of Crystal Lake, IL is a McDonald's which has used an ex-Chicago Rapid Transit (CTA) 4000 series elevated car as a dining addition to the main building. This car has been in place for probably at least 20-25 years. It is on a piece of panel track.

The car interior was gutted and standard MickeyD seating/tables are installed. From the outside at first glance (other than a series of god-awful paint schemes) the car appears to be otherwise relatively intact. I suppose common sense would have dictated the removal of semi-dangerous things like batteries, and perhaps the good folks down the road at IRM may have gotten the odd piece of needed equipment.

It's an interesting addition to the otherwise "stock" McDonald's,, what is most interesting to me is that there is no obvious discernable reason for it being there. My assumption is that the franchise owner is a railfan.

_________________
J. Cloos/NW Chicago Suburban Area


Offline
 Profile  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Thu Oct 19, 2006 10:41 pm 

I suspect that this is a former AT&SF coach. However, the Rock Island did have very similar cars which ended up with the CNJ for their commuter service, and are reported to have been scrapped entirely by Naporano. I wonder if this car is a survivor from that group? Does anybody here have firm information about the heritage of this car, or information about its current structural condition or interior configuration?

Tom Cornillie


  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Thu Oct 19, 2006 11:27 pm 
User avatar

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 1:45 am
Posts: 1138
Location: Beaumont, Texas
FoxValley wrote:
I wonder how many McDonald's or similar "name" chains might have railroad equipment as part of the "ambience".


There is a McDonald's on the north side of Houston, TX that has a Caboose for a party room; there is also one in Colorado (will have to ask my wife exactly where) that also has a caboose for a party room. Roger Kirkpatrick may be familiar with these and others.

-James Hefner
Hebrews 10:20a

Surviving World Steam Project


Offline
 Profile  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Fri Oct 20, 2006 1:46 am 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 1:40 am
Posts: 325
Location: UT
FoxValley wrote:
I wonder how many McDonald's or similar "name" chains might have railroad equipment as part of the "ambience".


There is the "Barstow Station" in Barstow, CA with numerous pieces of rolling stock that make up the MickeyDs and associated shops.

sc 'doc' lewis


Offline
 Profile  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Fri Oct 20, 2006 8:46 am 

Joined: Sun Aug 29, 2004 4:49 pm
Posts: 519
This car does appear to be an ex-ATSF PS 1947 or 1950 44 seat coach. Most of the PS built CRI&P cars from that era were rebuilt with flat stainless steel above and below the windows, or just below the windows.

No doubt, as per the "National Restaurant Owner's Guide to Adaptive Re-Use of Railroad Equipment" manual, this car has been completely gutted, and a gaping hole has been cut somewhere into the superstructure.


Offline
 Profile  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Fri Oct 20, 2006 9:43 pm 

Joined: Sun Dec 26, 2004 10:13 pm
Posts: 356
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Not sure if it's still there but a Mickey D's in Sunnyvale, CA, had a caboose of unknown origin...


Offline
 Profile  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Sat Oct 21, 2006 12:14 pm 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 11:26 am
Posts: 4642
Location: Maine
Been there - done that. "Captain Nick's" in Bangor, Maine, is partly comprised of an old ex-Canadian Pacific heavyweight with the standard gaping hole cut through it. For years it stood in the classic CPR "red wine" paint with gold lettering, then somebody thought flat pale blue with a white stripe was better. All in all, I have to say it doesn't look bad from the exterior.
But consider this; If we started a thread with pictures of every novelty restaurant using railroad equipment as an attraction, the list would probably extend for thousands upon thousands of posts. And considering what happens to so much of the stuff as restaurants come and go, would you care to call it "preservation"?

_________________
"It's only impossible until it's done." -Nelson Mandela


Offline
 Profile  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Sat Oct 21, 2006 12:34 pm 

Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2005 9:34 pm
Posts: 2752
Location: Copenhagen, Denmark
There are a few smart places where the coach/diner is connected to the main building at the vestibule end, avoiding the body destruction. This provides a customer entrance and an emergency fire exit at the other end without changine the car structure. We ate at such a restaurant in New Jersey, I think it is on an exit of I-78 and visible from the highway (that is how we found it). This one appeared to be a heavyweight coach or parlor. It still had some interior fittings and wood inlay paneling.

_________________
Steven Harrod
Lektor
Danmarks Tekniske Universitet


Offline
 Profile  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Sat Oct 21, 2006 12:58 pm 

Joined: Mon Aug 23, 2004 7:26 pm
Posts: 332
Location: Hammond, WI
Sometimes some of the original features are retained, and the owners understand the importance of preserving it, so at least part of the car's interior is preserved. A couple good examples are the Silver Coach:
http://www.rypn.org/boyd/Silver%20Coach/Silver%20Coach.html
and the Zephyr Diner:
http://www.rypn.org/boyd/Zephyr%20Diner/Zephyr%20Diner.html

_________________
Boyd


Offline
 Profile  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Sun Oct 22, 2006 12:28 am 

Joined: Mon Aug 23, 2004 11:35 pm
Posts: 67
Location: Kansas
I seem to recall that the McDonalds in Alamogordo NM also includes a caboose.
Dan


Offline
 Profile  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Sun Oct 22, 2006 1:26 am 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 9:54 am
Posts: 1016
Location: NJ
The I-78 car is one of the CNJ Blue Comet obs cars, just west of Clinton. There are/were a pair of Stillwells near Whitehouse Station on Rt. 22, and I've eaten in an FEC(?) car at Rod's in Convent Station. There is also a bay window caboose at McDonalds on Rt. 38 in Mt. Holly.

I agree, a list of rail equipment at eating establishments would be a long one.


Offline
 Profile  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach - List of Equipment
PostPosted: Sun Oct 22, 2006 10:36 am 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 1:59 pm
Posts: 308
Agreed, a list of all existing railcar uses would be long and likely of little value. Let's change it up a bit,, are there any "treasures" out there that have real preservation value ? Something added as a building add-on that over time has truly become of historic value ?

This idea is something akin to the unknown hundreds (?) of streetcar
and trolley bodies built into roadside diners. A car of little value once the line folds up becomes a rare treasure after 50-60+ years as a restaurant.

Examples ?

_________________
J. Cloos/NW Chicago Suburban Area


Offline
 Profile  
 
 Post subject: Re: Fall River McDonalds coach
PostPosted: Sun Oct 22, 2006 11:32 am 

Joined: Thu Nov 25, 2004 11:35 am
Posts: 332
Location: Cortez, CO 81321
survivingworldsteam wrote, "There's a McDonald's in Colorado that has a caboose for a party room."


Boulder - RI 17787;

La Junta - ATSF 999645; &

Longmont - replica built from RG 3854 boxcar.

_________________
S. Roger Kirkpatrick, Cortez, CO - Gateway to Mesa Verde National Park


Offline
 Profile  
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 28 posts ]  Go to page 1, 2  Next

All times are UTC - 5 hours [ DST ]


 Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Google [Bot], Majestic-12 [Bot] and 46 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Search for:
Jump to: