When we drove past this train during a recent road trip, something about it snagged my attention. With very little time, I slid down an embankment in sandals to look it over.

1. It's pretty evident that this train will never move again. It was so long that I couldn't see whether it had an engine. Later, on Google Maps, I saw that it did. In fact this track leads to an abandoned switch-yard.


2. Other than tree debris, I saw no vandalism, graffiti or litter--even tho a high school was just across the road.


3. Centerbeam cars were designed to carry bundled construction material such as sheetrock, says Wikipedia. The ratcheted cables were to hold down the load.


4. The center truss would seem to limit the kinds of cargo the cars could carry; maybe that's why they went out of style? It makes a good trellis.

I always like abandoned trains

You might be surprised at what can run again, properly-greased wheel bearings can sit around for decades and still move. I've even gotten 100-year-old mine carts in damp underground tunnels to roll. Sometimes railroads will park unused cars on old side tracks or abandoned lines, waiting for the economy to change and the cars to be needed again. If they were truly 100% abandoned, the railroad would probably scrap them, so if they're parked somewhere, the intent is usually to re-use them one day or use them for spare parts (although the railroad could go out of business or something else could happen to change those plans).

There's a spot in Wisconsin that had a lot of these stored down an abandoned branch line near a mothballed sawmill, some research told me that a major railroad was leasing the line to store the cars until the lumber industry picked up again. The same track also had a string of older cars that had been stashed there by a tourist railroad. Some of those cars looked like they'd never move again; rusty, falling apart, siezed up, etc. However, the next time we went back, they'd all been moved elsewhere on the track.

Pics of those: http://drainfreak..../twincities/ghost/

Posted by Ganesha 3. Centerbeam cars were designed to carry bundled construction material such as sheetrock, says Wikipedia. The ratcheted cables were to hold down the load.

I've always meant to look up what those cars were for. Thanks.
Nice find.

Freak, your Wisconsin ghost train pics are wonderful. And your background info makes this quite a fine set.

I see the centerbeams in your last pic.

Posted by Ganesha Later, on Google Maps, I saw that it did. In fact this track leads to an abandoned switch-yard.

Did you ever check out the switch yard?

No, I was out of time. Later I looked on Google Maps. The train has an engine on the end that's in the switch yard, and a second centerbeam flatcar train is there too. I couldn't tell if any buildings or other remnants survive.