Here's a photo of South Shore (ex-C&O) caboose 345 that's preserved at Hesston:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPi ... id=2128816

When the C&O acquired control of the Chicago, South Shore & South Bend Railroad, they brought in a bunch of these former C&O steel cupola cabooses. They kept their yellow C&O paint and were given a South Shore Line herald. Here's the 345 wearing that paint scheme:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPi ... id=2367659

Note that in the first photo, the caboose at Hesston is painted in the South Shore's "usual" orange and maroon. I have seen some photos of these cabooses in service on CSS, including numbers 319, 327 and 329 in addition to the 345, all of them in yellow. My question is, did the South Shore eventually paint the 345 (possibly others) in orange and maroon after the C&O sold the railroad, or is this just something the folks at Hesston did to honor the South Shore?

One other thing; is the 345 the only survivor of these CSS&SB, ex-C&O cabooses?

Appreciate anyone who might be able to answer either, or both, of these two questions.

Thanks!

Les

Les - when Hesston acquired the 345, it was painted in the usual orange and maroon scheme. We acquired if from the former Lutheran Church of the Dunes, located near the intersection of US 12 and Ind 212. It's been turned into a funeral home now. They were using it for a youth group meeting place. I don't know much of it's earlier history. Dave "Chief" Spencer, retired SS motorman might know more, or maybe some of the other old SS heads can chime in. Chief referred to it as The South Shore Hilton, room 345.

C&O was obviously lazy and just slapped the logo on. Venango finished the paint jobs.

C&O was trying to abandon the passenger service and was intentionally not repairing-restoring the passenger cars, why when the orange cars were finally retired and some bought /donated whatever, many of the cars were in really bad condition.

John -

Thanks! I always figured you guys got CSS 345 direct from the railroad, so appreciate your advising of the way it actually happened.

If the church acquired it from the South Shore, it's not very likely that they would have repainted it, so the orange/maroon paint scheme was probably what was on the caboose when they received it. Which means it probably had that scheme when it was in regular service on the railroad, at least at the end of its time there.

I saw one other of these CSS (ex-C&O) cabooses after it left the railroad, and it still had its yellow paint. I can't recall the road number now and maybe I have a photo of it somewhere, IF I can ever find it. That caboose became the property of a railroad club in the northern Illinois area and I think that they eventually tried to give it to a museum, but I'm pretty sure that that never happened as I have never seen any other of these CSS/C&O cabooses in any preserved caboose lists. Of course, one might have been preserved with its old C&O number and paint scheme, but I don't know what particular C&O cabooses were sent to the South Shore.

Thanks again John for the information.

Les