Rather than steal the other thread, one that made it into preservation totally by accident would be the W&W's ex-PRR B6sa, #60. Essentially the same could be said of #1218, and at least one Kanawha, possibly even Rowland's 614.
Others?

N&W 917, 1118, 1134, and 1151 and Chesapeake Western 662 and 663 come to mind.

Sacramento Northern #1020 was an accidental preservation. It is a trailer that had been stripped of traction motors and controls.

At the time, the BAERA (now WRM) owned the Sacramento Northern 1005, an operational interurban motor, and had it shipped all over Northern California to run on the remaining enclaves of electric railroad still existant. WP had damaged this car in a freight handling accident (more than once, but this last was fatal.) The car was written off by the insurer.

As it happens, WP/SN still owned #1020 and it was the same series as #1005. The notion was cut-and-paste the traction gear from #1005 to #1020, restoring it as a motor, then scrap #1005. The SN shops did not have the manpower so they delivered both cars to BAERA. The BAERA shops were able to restore #1005, though it took awhile.

Aren't most of our collections survivors by accident? Yes some steam locomotives and other things have been donated by various railroads but to me most items are retired from regular service and end up being used for lots of other purposes to give the railroad every last dollar. Passenger cars go from name trains to locals to maintenance of way to perhaps yard office. How many trolleys were saved from being a roadside diner or chicken coop? In the case of ELDCPS all three of our dining cars went on to live many different lives after the EL got out of the long distance passenger business.

Dick -

I'm confused as to your statement that at least one Kanawha was accidentally preserved. I've looked at the original 13 that were saved, and I can't see one that might fit that way of thinking. Can you explain? Thanks.

Les

Les, I'm referring to the Kanawha's that were stripped and in a dead line at Russell, Kty. Of those, I believe one was saved, the others went to scrap. I believe 1604 and 614 were stored in that line at one time, too. This happened fairly late into steam preservation, as I recall.

Dick -

Okay, I see where you're coming from. Except I think that the engines there at Russell were actually held by the C&O for preservation. There was the only 2-8-2 saved (1189), the only 4-8-4 (614), the last built Baldwin (2-6-6-2 #1309), 2-6-6-6 #1604 and three Kanawha's (2705, 2770 and 2781). I think what happened is that the railroad was not getting any more calls from municipalities on line for steam locomotive donations. And the engines were deteriorating. So, the railroad finally said, enough is enough, let's do something with them. The 2705 and 1309 went to the B&O Museum and possibly the others, initially at least. The B&O Museum had a 2-8-2 and only needed one 2-8-4, so the others ended up as scrap. But the engines at Russell had been intentionally held, so I don't think 2705's preservation was at all an accident. Better that the 1189, 2770 and 2781 should be in the "almost" preserved list. Maybe others, such as yourself, see things differently.

Les

There is a NYC tank car in the museum in Elkhart that was sent to the scrapyard there by Conrail. The scrapyard did not scrap it but used it to store hydraulic oil in. Word got to the museum that it was there and no longer being used. After contacting them the donation was arranged and NS moved it to the museum free of charge. It was used by the NYC to ship diesel fuel to remote engine terminals.

Two other cars that were preserved there by chance are 2 Merchants Dispatch flat cars that were originally bi-level auto racks. When Conrail donated the Selkirk Wreck Train the boom car had a hot box near Rotterdam Junction, NY. The car body was loaded onto one flat car and the trucks on a second car. When it arrived at the museum instructions were, "When you get it unloaded give us a call and we will come get the empty cars." well through changes of management at both the museum and the railroad. The boom car never got unloaded.

In 2007 I was ask to give an inventory of all the equipment on the museum property and establish who owned it. Paperwork was there on the wreck train but not the flatcars. A call to NS with the car numbers determined that the cars in fact property of NS and listed as "Bandits" lost in the merger. The demur-age rates mounted to 6 figures. At that point I was told that the person I was talking to had the authority to forgive those charges and was then ask if we would like to keep those cars. Within 2 weeks the donation paperwork came.

I would like to point out that the preservation of those 3 cars would not have been possible with out the generosity of Norfolk Southern Corporation. I would say this they were definitely a good neighbor to us during my time at the museum.

Mark A. Frazier

I tend to think the N&W did their own version of "preservation" of the 4-8-0's since built in 1911 the type survived all the way to the end of steam they kept them in service scrapping some and keeping the rest in service using for switcher work and everything the big mallets werent doing. We are very fortunate to have the last of these engines from the scrap yard otherwise there would be NONE.

The body of a Northern Indiana car was made a home in Michigan City, that car has been recovered for restoration, there were 2 interurban bodies on some indiana location being used for kinda a back ways family homes, I think those 2 cars were recovered as well.

Not exactly preservation but a former CLS&SB car was stored in South Bend on the South Shore east yard on it wheels was made use by the St Joe Valley Railroad club
and built a model of the NYC/Northern Indiana/ South Shore in O scale, the model in the prototype, I have the Traction and models article on this. However the members had to run off to WW2 the car still remained with the layout, but the trucks were removed, probably for the metal. The members came back, saw the warped layout from the car lift, I don't recall if they restored the layout but they eventually decided to leave the car, the car eventually moved near the airport and became a diner, alas a fire made this car a final ending.

I have heard rumors of a sister car still existing somewhere, I've tried to track down some details but ran into dead ends.

I'm not sure exactly how much of this is truth and how much of this is tall tales.....

... but I was told at one point that the FIVE heavyweight Pullman cars at the Central Pa. Chapter NRHS's museum at White Deer, Pa. were diverted by a conspiring Conrail yardmaster from shipment for scrap storage to end-of-track on the Conrail spur (ex-Reading main) that served the station, and conveniently "lost" off the system, then formalities were arranged to make the transfer official with the payment of a few dollars or whatnot.

The Conrail employee that supposedly did this has died by now, so I'm reasonably safe in telling the tale. The guy also bought, outright from Conrail, a wooden PRR X23 boxcar from "camp car" duty, and that was the first car added to that museum's collection, ca. 1982 or so.

Chattanooga Traction Company #4 an SW-1 now in the hands of Gulf and Ohio Railways in Knoxville and used on the Three Rivers Rambler.

Was once Southern Railway #1002 and spent a large portion of its career running back and forth on the "LL Sub" between Lexington and Lawrenceburg, KY over the Youngs High Bridge at Tyrone, KY. #1002 continued this under Norfolk Southern until the 1980's when the LL Sub between Versailles and Lawrenceburg was either shut down or sold off due to the cost of replacing the then 100 year old Youngs High Bridge. At one point #1002 was the oldest diesel locomotive on the NS roster.

The remaining line from Lexington to Versailles was sold to the G&O Company and operated for a number of years as the Lexington and Ohio Railroad. NS parked #1002 on a disused siding behind an 84 lumber in Versailles, KY and more or less FORGOT that they put it there. It remained there for several years until the G&O sold the Versailles line to R.J. Corman.

Once Corman found out #1002 was there he claimed it as his own and had her moved to his Lexington shops were she was painted R.J. Corman colors and put back to work switching the aluminum plant in Berea, KY which Corman served. NS caught wind of this and quickly reminded R.J. that he bought the trackage in Versailles and not their locomotive which was sitting on it. NS collected the engine where shortly thereafter she was donated (or sold I'm not clear which) ironically back to the G&O who fixed her up as CTC #4 and put her to work in the tourist trade.

Essentially a really old EMD got saved because she was shifted away on a siding and was forgotten about long enough that she became worth saving when the right people got reminded she was there.

Charlotte Trolley car 85 was found by a building inspector condemning a house into which it had been built. It had been the last car running the final trip.....then a snack bar at Douglas Field, then.....who knows? Ended up as part of a rental shack.

The car was still covered in house material when preserved. No sign of the number or builder was visible. We didn't know it was the last car to run untilI was strippping interior paint and found one painted 85 under old varnish and 6 coats of house paint.

So, a car built in Charlotte by Duke Power to run on their streetcar system and made the last trip ended up making the first trip in and out of the old bus barn, and went on to short runs from the trolley museum at South End until......modern light rail.

This month the city council vetoed a budget that would have funded a streetcar system connecting downtown with west side and east side streetcar suburbs. The future looks uncertain again...

dave

The conversion of retired Alco FA1s and FA2s into LIRR power cars in the late 60's and early 70's insured their survival until diesel loco preservation came into vogue.

Examples of NH,NYC,L&N,WM and SP&S now survive.

DPK

In many, many ways; Yes, they are. Sometimes, it is the circumstances during the railroad ownership, other times, it is the circumstances of the post-railroad ownership.

By example here is more of the story of the Sacramento Northern Interurbans.

The SN 1005 first survived because it was one of five SN interurbans deeded to the Toll Bridge Authority to pay for the automatic train control equipment installed on the SN interurban fleet. The five cars disposal was slower than the other interurbans and they ended up going to the Key System to help carry the war-time loads. Thus the 1005 was around to be preserved in the post-WWII era.

The SN 1020 survived the scraping because it and a sister car were kept by the SN for inspection trips and probably moving work crews to remote sites; for this it got a "MW" number. The 1020 was originally a trailer without motors. It has now been restored to that configuration as a car of an SN predecessor.

PRR Diesel Electric Railcar #4662 at Wilmington and Western was purchased by the National Capital Trolley Museum to be used as a power plant for overhead trolley wires. For some reason they ended up not using her and she ended up out in the woods near Lake Roland, MD. She sat for several years and was heavily vandalized. The story would have ended there but she was discovered by a couple of W&W members who convinced the W&W to purchase, move, and restore her. Today she is one of the stars of the W&W roster and has run many miles earning her keep.