Gentlemen,

On another list I've seen an enquiry from someone who is looking for donations to "restore" (I hope he means conserve) the Soo Line 2-8-0 in Harvey, ND. I am definately sending this person the link to Dave Lathrop's article on his work on GM 209, and would also like to direct this group to J. David Conrad's classic work on preserving park locomotives, but I can't seem to find it on the web. Does anyone have a link?

Any other suggestions as to references these folks should look at would also be welcome.

Here you go:

http://members.aol.com/belpaire/steamcm.htm

Are these subjective terms or are there accepted definitions promulgated by professional organizations and employed in actual practice?


My personal guesses:

Restore- to make necessary repairs, including applying new or refurbished parts or appliances necessary to make the item functional.

Preserve- to make necessary repairs in order to stop or reverse degradative processes and make condition such that the item is returned to an APPEARANCE of being functional. (flash frozen after stopping rust, etc)

Conserve- store and hold in such a manner as to stop degradative proceseses and MAINTAIN the appearance and condition as it is when care is applied- (flash frozen warts and all)

Superheater,

As a museum curator most of us would use restore to mean the process of returning an artifact to a specific time in its life by the replacement of missing parts and the removal of later additions.

It may or may not have the artifact locomotive ship, car etc being operational.

Documentation with plans, historic photos, catalogues etc is the key to doing this right.

Ted Miles

Hi Supe--I don't think ARM has ever defined these terms specifically for railroad preservation. There are definitions in the Secretary of the Internior's Standards for Historic Properties and for Historic Boats that are broadly accepted and generally analogous to our situation.

See the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties


http://www.cr.nps.gov/hps/tps/standguide/overview/choose_treat.htm


And see also the The Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Historic Vessel Preservation Projects (key extract follows):

Definitions for Treatments of Historic Vessels

The following definitions are provided for treatments that are appropriate in historic vessel preservation projects:

Acquisition: the act or process of acquiring ownership of, or responsibility for, a vessel.

Protection: the act or process of applying measures designed to affect the physical condition of a vessel by defending or guarding it from deterioration, loss, or attack, or to cover or shield the vessel from danger or injury. Such treatment is generally of a temporary nature and anticipates further historic preservation treatment.

Stabilization: the act or process of applying measures designed to arrest, retard, or prevent deterioration of a vessel, and to assure its structural integrity. This may include rendering the vessel weather resistant and watertight. The essential form of the vessel shall be maintained during this process.

Preservation: the act or process of applying measures to sustain the existing form, integrity, and material of a vessel. It may include initial stabilization work, where necessary, as well as ongoing maintenance.
Rehabilitation: the act or process of returning a vessel to a state of utility through repair or alterations that make possible an efficient contemporary use while preserving those features of the vessel that are significant to its historical, naval architectural, technological, and cultural values.

Restoration: the act or process of accurately recovering the form and details of a vessel as it appeared at a particular time by removal of later work, or by replacement of missing or substantially deteriorated earlier work.

Other Key Definitions

Conversion: (1) the act or process of altering or rebuilding an existing vessel to effect a representation of or a resemblance to another vessel or type or class of vessel; (2) a vessel that is the product of such a process.
Historic Fabric: material remains of a historic vessel or object, whether original materials or materials incorporated in a subsequent historically significant period.

Integrity: the authenticity of a vessel's historic identity, as evidenced by the survival of characteristics such as plan, hull form, rigging, use of materials and/or craftsmanship, which existed during the vessel's historic period.

Reconstruction: (1) the act or process of creating by new construction the accurate form and detail of a particular vessel as it appeared at a specific period of time; (2) a vessel, or part thereof, that is the product of such a process.

Reproduction: (1) the construction or fabrication of an approximate copy of an object; (2) an object that is the result of such a process.
[When applied to a vessel, the term, "reproduction" or "replica," denotes: (1) the act or process of recreating by new construction the general form and appearance of a particular vessel or type of vessel; or (2) a vessel that is the product of such a process.]

The Association of Railway Museums reprinted Conrad's work once -- it was originailly published by Illinois Ry Museum back in 1974.

The reprint was occasioned by the American Association of Musuems asked ARM to present a seminar regarding large outdoor object preservation. Story is that a military equipment group wanted to do such a presentation and AAM decided to ask ARM to do the presentation because ARM was an affiliated organization and the military museum group was not. Story is that the room was full and overflowing into the hallway for the presentation.

Unforunately, the ARM reprint has been sold out. The little 12-page booklet still has value and needs to be reprinted.

ARM's Railway Museum Quarterly for Winter 2005 (just received) has a three-page discussion on this topic, by CSRM's Kyle Wyatt.

Friends of LIRR #35 have the article permanently on their site. It is a solid piece of direction for conserving parl locomotives.

http://www.lirr35.org/