Railway Restoration Project 113 moved CNJ private car #98 from the Wanamaker, Kempton and Southern Railroad, Kempton, PA. to Minersville, PA. on January 3. Since the WK&S is now an isolated line, the move was accomplished by highway. Since the two points are only about 80 minutes travel time (the actual time the car was rolling) apart the whole trip was done by truck. The car still needs rebuilding but it is now on live rails adjacent to the Reading and Northern Railroad. A lot of the work was donated by volunteers including United Ironworkers Local 420, and many local organizations, fire police, fire companies and local businesses who assisted Daily Trucking and Dickenson Crane Service in moving and rerailing the car. It was a community event when the car arrived.

As always, we'd be interested in hearing future plans for the car. Although I believe it wasn't being used at the WK&S, are there plans for restoration or operation? What condition is this car in currently?

Plans for CNJ 98 are for repair (we hesitate to use the word restoration) and operation. The car is in fair structural condition with no major rot. The interior is generally intact but will be modified somewhat for excursion service. The problem is a bent frame under the observation end. Someone with the proper knowledge will have that fixed relatively quickly. It, of course, has not been updated since leaving the CNJ, so we will have to determine how far to go with upgrades for local usage.

Bernie Perch