Tired of photographing/watching trains? Want to get your hands dirty and help restore historic equipment and an 1862 rail yard? Ever see an 1862 rail yard?

Well, we have one in Pemberton Township, Burlington County at the Pemberton Township Historic Trust. We are located in an old PRR station that was restored in 1995, followed by rebuilding the section house on the original foundation in 2000. This station was part of the facility that included a rail yard with a coal trestle, ash pit, turntable, freight house, doodlebug engine house, and rumor has it, a two or three bay roundhouse.

To date we have uncovered the freight house foundation, the ash pit, the turntable wall, the bunk house foundation, the outhouse base, an oil house floor, an inground concrete drainage ditch and several other foundations that were near the yard but not part of it. These other foundatios were torn out when Wawa built a superstore on the ground.

We completed the excavation of the ash pit and are in the process of unearthing the doodlebug engine house. Once we find the doodlebug engine house, we will lay track over both foundations and run that track back to the turntable wall.

We have several pieces of rolling stock on site that needs restoration from just painting to a frame off restoration.

We have:
100 ton GE centercab diesel that we started four years ago.
Tidewater tank car built in the '20s.
Gondola
Hopper car
Flat car
N5C caboose
N6B caboose (chassis)
NX23 caboose
A CNJ caboose with narrow body

We will put this yard back together as it was back in the 1860s. We also will have a 1.5 mile excursion running. And we always are on the lookout for other historic rolling stock. So, do you want to be a part of it or are you satisfied with just standing by the tracks and taking pictures?

If you want to help, PM me or call the station and leave a message at 609-894-0546, or just show up Saturday at 9:00 AM. We are located at 3 Fort Dix Road right next to the Super Wawa. Park behind the station and walk across the trail and through the fence. Bring your gloves. Long pants are optional but recommended since we do get into some tall weeds/grass. I bring something to drink and there is the Wawa next door.

So, are you up for the challenge? Wanna' play with trains?

Later!
Mr. Ed

Ugh! When will we stop shooting ourselves in the foot?

Do you guys have a website? Photos?

We did have a link through the township but that has evaporated. Once we become part of the county, we will be back online. I have posted pictures of all of our rolling stock over at The Railfan Network. Go to Tourist Railway and Museums then click on Tourist Railways and Museums again. Scroll down the page until you come across The Pemberton Townshi Historic Trust.

Steamtown-care to elaborate on your comment.

Later!
Mr. Ed

It's not an official web site, but I found pictures and a description here: http://www.pineypower.com/pemberton_rr.htm and two more pictures here: http://legongventures.com/north_pemberton_station_museum.htm

Thanks Mark.

Later!
Mr. Ed

Concerning the question of SO: I think Mr. Ed's comment about "playing trains" was merely a light-hearted attempt to encourage others to come out and support their restoration/preservation efforts with a little bit of sweat equity. I do understand SO's questioning of this term in the context of how we (the rail preservation community) come across to the masses.

I like to think that the recently-concluded steam gathering in Owosso, MI was a great example of professionalism that, hopefully, built some good will among the public and the supporting railroads alike. This kind of good will is hard to build and probably easy to evaporate.

You are correct John. It was merely a term to entice others to join us in restoring this historic site and all of the equally historic rolling stock we have acquired.

Thanks.

Later!
Mr. Ed