Just off the top of my head, Duke or SCANA - is there a corporate successor to the quarry company? Perhaps the crane company that built it?

dave

It appears that the Bytown Railway Society members think so. As they have restored, and operate ex-Central Vermont, Steam Crane, 4251, complete with Boom Car, 4313.

www.bytownrailwaysociety.ca

Preserving a crane -- worth it? Let me ask, why would you not preserve it? You already own it, you have already made an investment in it and it is (rather than was) the last operating piece of a railroad of special interest to your group. Why would you have doubts now? It seems like your real question is, should we walk away from an obligation we have already made?
Preservation is not an exact science; in fact I think it could be argued it is more of a pain in the arse than anything else. It is not easy. I think a definition of preservation is one problem followed by another problem, followed by another, followed by another. And the process never ends. The moment you think you finished preserving something, it starts to degrade, that’s life. Yet, the rewards are great.
Yes, museum across the country has bitten off more than can chew. I don’t think that’s a bad thing when you consider the alternative, scrapping. Yes, there are piles of rusting “junkâ€

Mark,

Well said.

I think many of us are overwelmed by our projects. The result can be tunnel vision, and as a result we lose the projects that give all of our sites depth.