The attached photo is not identified as to a rail, transit, or location. Anyone recognize this tool car?

Harry Nicholls

It will take me some research, the freight motor in the back will help, its clearly flatland, the design on the motor hints me some fort wayne area line but theres Iowa also and Ohio and pennsylvania, just take this as a jumping off point.

Looks like the car is "No. 1", but can't make out the lettering. Bigger monitor needed!

Les

I believe it says "Tool Car", but that doesn't help much.

The photo does say Tool Car #1.
Harry

Also note the "Tool Car No. 1" has a Van Dorn drawbar rather than MCB, which would seem to indicate a line with little or no interchange freight... Pennsylvania odd gauge, maybe?

it might not be a freight related line, but the larger interurban networks could have their own series of freight cars and be able to run on sharp street curves.

The landscape looks like the flat plain you get adjacent as a result of a glacial lake bottom (near some moraines). The white bow tie paint job on the flat roof freight motor in the background reminds me of the Northern Indiana Ry.

Pole lines in the background. Indiana, or Iowa Interstate?

A friend named Scott Greig may have come up with the answer: "Scioto Valley Traction Co. Probably at Picway Power Plant, Groveport, OH." It appears that electric operations at the power plant continued after the SVT quit under the name Ohio Midland Light & Power. A couple of photos showing equipment with the distinctive (and unusual, for freight equipment) "bow tie" painted on the ends that is shown in the mystery photo:

http://donsdepot.donrossgroup.net/dr0101/omlp40.jpg

http://www.columbusrailroads.com/new/?menu=07Railfanning&submenu=30Road_Trip&submenu4=10Twilight_of_Traction (about halfway down)

from some researching, the Scioto Traction lines operated south from Columbus Ohio, renamed to the Scioto Power and Light company then in 1932 to the Ohio Midland Power and Light.

The diamond front paint job clued me to the Northern Indiana, checking some rosters, I don't see a #1 Tool car, they had a sand car that was powered and blatently named the Sand Car with a number. But not in any diamond paint job but some light colored paint like this tool car (black and white image) I didnt see any box motors in a diamond paint job. But the passenger cars did even in a reversed color diamond.

I think its a good nail on the Ohio Midland, it had to serve coal powered electric plants, when it abandoned C&O and N&W took over some trackage serving the power plants, eventually dieselized. The line had streetcars and freight operations. I'm still looking for more descreet OM info, I think a CERA book is here.

Other lines that used the "bow tie" paint job included the Hagerstown & Frederick and the Shore Fast Line, both of which had places where the poles, etc. might have matched that photo. But I can find no evidence of such a car on either line, and I'm sitting in a place full of reference material for that stuff.

Do we think that the Van Dorn drawbar indicates that Tool Car No. 1 was "kitbashed" from an old wood interurban?

Les

Is this the trackage (or part of it) that later became the Midway RR?

the rounded roof is a good clue this is a bashed car, pretty common with the interurban lines when they need a specialty car, use an older car no longer in passenger service.