There are a variety of passenger cars and other rolling stock stored at the Port of Pasco, WA. There's a few old heavyweights, and at least a couple bi-level cars (no, not from 2100).

Who owns these cars and what are the plans for them? It appears that one of the cars is in the process of being scrapped.

Sorry, I don't know any car numbers or other details.

Bob,

At least some of those belong to the Washington State Railroads Historical Society.

http://www.wsrhs.org/

There may also be some privately owned stuff there, too. I stumbled across the stuff at the Port while looking for the "Blue Mountain". I finally found it behind their building at 122 N Tacoma St Pasco, WA 99301
(509) 543-4159

This Washington group was under the gun to move last year.
http://www.tricitiesbusinessnews.com/2012/02/pascos-railroad-museum-seeking-new-home/

Did anything come of that? Toppenish is just an hour away. With the typical diminishing resources of railway museums, maybe they should combine forces with the Northern Pacific museum?

Has anyone heard anything more about this?

According to the WSRHS website, they own two passenger cars, both GN:

30' RPO-baggage #1108 (GN, 1948) to BN #620 (not applied) to RPO No. 315 Restaurant (Seattle) to WSRHS. July 18th, 2002: http://www.greatnorthernempire.net/images/pass_cars/GN1108RPO.JPG (Ben Ringnalda photo)

Wood coach, number unknown. July 18th, 2002: http://www.greatnorthernempire.net/images/pass_cars/GNWoodCoachWSRHS.JPG (Ben Ringnalda photo)

Besides the WSRHS equipment, here's what I have noted as being in Pasco:

SP Gallery Cars:

SP #3720 (AC&F, Lot #04-4787, 1957, 145 seats) transferred in 1985 to Joint Powers Board-Caltrain (JPBX) #3720 sold in 1990 to Tom Rader-Rader Railcar (Tillamook, OR) for Princess Cruises-Tour Alaska (TAIX) #3720, current owner unknown, possibly NRE (see below).

SP #3730 (AC&F, Lot #04-4787, 1957, 145 seats) transferred in 1985 to Joint Powers Board-Caltrain (JPBX) #3730 sold in 1990 to Tom Rader-Rader Railcar (Tillamook, OR) for Princess Cruises-Tour Alaska (TAIX) #3730, current owner unknown, possibly NRE (see below).

SP #unknown (I think this third car is also from Lot #04-4787) to JPBX to Tom Rader-Rader Railcar for TAIX, current owner unknown, possibly NRE (see below).

Unknown Owner:

CN galley-club #651 Club Richelieu (P-S, Lot #6924, Plan #7637, 1954, built as 34 seat parlor #585 Lake Kathlyn) reconfigured in 1965 to 45 seat galley-parlor, reconfigured in 1971 to 38 seat galley-club #651 Club Richelieu to VIA #651 sold (when??) to unknown party, current owner unknown, possibly NRE (see below).

Northwestern Rail Equipment (NRE):

I think this reporting mark belongs to Bruce Moore, but this is unconfirmed. Some of these cars have been restenciled as New Century Rail Transport (NCBX).

GN steam heat car #2 (StLCC, 1928) sold 1968 to WP #592 sold 1972 to unknown party, later (when??) to NRE #2, still in WP paint, now restenciled as NCBX #592. July 2006, as NRE #2: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=999091 (Robert Ulberg photo)

GN baggage-express #247 (AC&F, 1918, built as RPO-baggage #307, later #59) to BN to MofW #976048 sold (when??) to Northwestern Rail Equipment (NRE) #247. July 2006: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=999114 (Robert Ulberg photo)

GN wood coach #909 (built as #381, later #4411, resheathed with steel as #909, builder/year unknown) to MofW to BN sold (when??) to Northwestern Rail Equipment (NRE) #909. July 2006: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=999116 (Robert Ulberg photo)

GN coach #952 (built as #4502, builder/year unknown) to BN to MofW sold (when??) to Northwestern Rail Equipment (NRE) #952. July 2006: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=999117 (Robert Ulberg photo)

GN coach #970 (built as #4520, Barney & Smith, 1914) to BN to MofW sold (when??) to Northwestern Rail Equipment (NRE) #970. July 2006: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=999119 (Robert Ulberg photo)

GN coach #978 (built as #4528, Barney & Smith, 1914) to BN to MofW sold (when??) to Northwestern Rail Equipment (NRE) #978. July 2006: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=999120 (Robert Ulberg photo)

GN Glacier-Series 16DXR-4DB sleeper. I haven't been able to identify this car, or if it is from Lot #6751/Plan #4108 (1947) or Lot #6890/Plan #4108A (1950).

Besides the cars in Pasco, NRE also owns/owned:

Moved to Portland:

GN wood business car #A26 (2nd) (built as 4C sleeper 30 seat buffet lounge observation #9017, Barney & Smith, 3/1911) resheathed with steel 1/1925 as #917 rebuilt 6/1925 to business car #A30 (3rd) renumbered 3/1927 to #A28 (2nd) renumbered 5/1947 to #A26 (2nd) transferred to MofW department 6/1967 as #O3445 to BN sold 11/1984 to Southwest RR Car Parts sold (when??) to Bruce Moore as NRE #A26, restenciled as NCBX #826, moved to Portland with #973 (see below) for Oregon Pacific RR, which planned to refurbish the car, then burned by vandals in 4/2006, subsequently stored on OPR siding at former Gold Junction (Portland Traction Co.) in Sellwood neighborhood of Portland, sold to a private owner who plans to restore the car. As NCBX #826 in Portland, May 2005: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=994987 (Robert Ulberg photo)

GN coach #973 (built as #4523, Barney & Smith, 1914) to BN to MofW sold (when??) to Northwestern Rail Equipment (NRE) #973, moved to Portland with #A26 (for whom??), current status unknown. In Portland, date unknown: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=994780 (Robert Ulberg photo)

Stored in Walla Walla:

CB&Q baggage-messenger #1007 (CB&Q, 1953) to BN to MofW sold (when??) to NRE #1007. June 2012: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3077570 (Richard Olson photo)

GN 60 seat short distance coach #1111 (P-S, Lot #6718, Plan #7495, 1947 Empire Builder/1951 Western Star) to BN #6001 (not applied) to MofW #968030 sold (when??) to NRE #1111. June 2012: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3077549 (Richard Olson photo)

GN 21 seat lunch counter diner-18 bunk dormitory #1144 Red Eagle Lake (P-S, Lot #6718, Plan #7498, 1947 Empire Builder/1951 Western Star) built as 20 seat lunch counter lounge-18 bunk dormitory CB&Q #1144, reconfigured in 1951, transferred from CB&Q to GN in 1955 to BN to MofW #968123 sold (when??) to NRE #1144. June 2012: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3077550 (Richard Olson photo)

GN 68 seat coach #1301 (P-S, Lot #6751, 1947 Empire Builder/1951 Western Star/1955 Empire Builder) built as 2DB-1DR sleeper-29 seat buffet lounge observation #1191 Missouri River (Plan #4109) for 1947 Builder, transferred in 1951 to Western Star, reconfigured to 6RM-4DB sleeper 9 seat lounge observation #1191 Twelve Mile Coulee (Plan #4109K) when reassigned back to 1955 Builder, reconfigured in 1967 to 68 seat coach #1301 to BN #6802 (not applied) to Amtrak #6802 retired and sold in 1977 to Union Center Venture-St. Louis Union Station sold (when??) to NRE #1191 Missouri River. Still in Amtrak Phase I. March 2009: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=1542825 (Richard Olson photo)

GN 48 seat long distance chair #1225 (P-S, Lot #6886, Plan #7629V, Mid-Century Empire Builder) to BN #4826 (applied) sold in 1973 to NJDOT #107, later NJT #5314 sold (when??) to NRE #1225. Was this car sold to URHS in 1987, and resold in approximately 1991?? http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=379314 (Sam Davey photo)

Sources:

1. "Streamliner Cars Volume One: Pullman Standard" by W. David Randall (RPC Publications, 1981)

2. "Streamliner Cars Volume Three: ACF - Other Builders" by W. David Randall (RPC Publications, 1982)

3. Jerry LaBoda's photo links database: http://passcarphotos.info/

4. Ben Ringnalda's GN Empire website: http://www.greatnorthernempire.net/GNEThisMonthsFeature.php

5. Photos located on: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/

6. Minnesota Transportation Museum page for Mid-Century Empire Builder: http://www.mtmuseum.org/roster.php?div=jsr&page=1951_builder

7. MTM page for 1947 Empire Builder: http://www.mtmuseum.org/roster.php?div=jsr&page=1947_builder

8. GNRHS Reference Sheet #227: http://www.gnrhs.org/ref_sheet_227.htm

9. Washington State Railroads Historical Society: http://www.wsrhs.org/

10. Friends of the BN passenger car pages: http://fobnr.org/bncarlist/passenger/bnpassmain.htm

"GN Glacier-Series 16DXR-4DB sleeper. I haven't been able to identify this car, or if it is from Lot #6751/Plan #4108 (1947) or Lot #6890/Plan #4108A (1950)."

This is the Pumpelley Glacier, former BN MW 968210, one of the Lot 6890 cars. It was sold circa 2011 to a private party from Fort Worth, TX and moved to a facility in Iowa for rebuilding, but that work is on hold for now.

Thanks, Topfuel, for identifying the Pumpelley Glacier!

Don't let Ed Ellis know about them. He'd probably buy them all. (-:

According to the Alaska Rails website 3720 and 3730, along with four other cars, 3713, 3716, 3722 and 3724, were brought to Alaska by Tom Raider and his Alaska Tours operation, with the cars carrying Port of Tillamook Bay paint and numbered POTB #1, #8, #3, #9, #3 and #7, with each car also carrying PPCX numbers that are not known. 3712, 3717 and 3730 were acquired by ARR and numbered 600 - 602, and were retired in 2002, with 600 being sold to Alaska Metals Recycling 11/05. On the ARR page there is an update from Jody Moore back in 2004, on a few of the cars in Pasco, but nothing more up to date.

Also worth noting is that there are two former SP gallery cars on the Sierra RR that have been rebuilt to hi-level coaches. I do not know their histories but I do remember that at one time POTB had some cars like this in use on the line but have not been able to find more on them. I do not know if the SERA cars are the ones I saw in shots of the POTB or not. Here are some links to the SERA cars...

http://railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=96744
http://rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=2195429
http://s1221.photobucket.com/user/bloodonfire3/media/Railfanning/Woodland%20California/GEDC0319.jpg.html

In searching Google for POTB I ran across a couple of photos taken by Richard Bauer back in 2006. The shots show POTB 3713 and a second car whose number isn't visible up in Pasco...

http://www.barraclou.com/rail/coaches/potb.jpg
http://www.barraclou.com/rail/coaches/potb3.jpg

Hopefully more can yet be found.

Okay, I think I've figured this out:

Looking again at the Alaska Rails page, Jody Moore lists the three cars in Pasco as POTB #1, #6, and #3.

Going by the roster on the same page, these cars would be:

#1: PPCX #3720

#3: PPCX #3722

#6: there is no PPCX number listed for #6 on the page, but looking at the Richard Bauer photos linked by Jerry, one of the cars in Pasco is noted as PPCX #3713, so this would appear to be #6.

I'm wondering if the cars now on the Sierra RR were formally owned by Transcisco Tours, the oversized windows and blanked doors would seem to support this.

Of the ex-SP gallery cars purchased by Transcisco (a total of 19), BN acquired 6, I don't know the disposition of the other 13:

#3700 to Transcisco #800535 Sacramento (diner) to BN #A39 to BNSF #43 Rio Grande River to track geometry-inspection theater #80

#3701 to Transcisco #800534 Lake Tahoe (sightseer coach) to BN #A32 to BNSF #41 Flathead River

#3702 to Transcisco #800533 Donner Lake (sightseer coach) to BN #A33 to BNSF #42 Skagit River to track geometry-inspection theater #87

#3703 to Transcisco #800532 Club High Sierra (2nd) (club lounge-dance floor) to BN #A31 to BNSF #40 Fox River

#3704 to Transcisco #800519--current status unknown

#3707 to Transcisco #800537 San Francisco (diner) to BN #A41 to BNSF #45 Powder River

#3708 to Transcisco #800536 San Jose (diner) to BN #A40 to BNSF #44 Colorado River

#3709 to Transcisco #800520--current status unknown

#3710 to Transcisco #800531--current status unknown

#3711 to Transcisco #800530--current status unknown

#3721 to Transcisco #800529--current status unknown

#3723 to Transcisco #800528--current status unknown

#3724 to Transcisco #800527--current status unknown

#3725 to Transcisco #800526--current status unknown

#3727 to Transcisco #800525--current status unknown

#3728 to Transcisco #800524--current status unknown

#3729 to Transcisco #800523--current status unknown

#3732 to Transcisco #800522--current status unknown

#3737 to Transcisco #800521--current status unknown

So what ever happened to the GN/NRE 2, later NCBX 592?

"So what ever happened to the GN/NRE 2, later NCBX 592?"

I have been to that location in recent months and did not see that car there.

Yeah. I sent an email to the WSRHS a while back, but as of yet no response. I'm starting to wonder if they are an active group anymore.

Found an alternate address for the WSRHS, got a response:
"I'm not positive, but think it was cut up for scrap. Not sure."
Doesn't look good.