The third annual Road-Car-n-Sales, held on September 24th, was a huge success, with the Lorain Caboose Commission showing off historic rail cars heading to their permanent home at the city’s Black River Landing. Helped raise funds to offset renovation costs.
“I think the event went very well,” said Jim Long, president of Main Street Lorraine Development Corporation, the nonprofit that owns the caboose.
Long said more than 150 vehicles, including cars, trucks and motorcycles, participated in the event.
According to Gary Schaefer, chairman of the Lorain Caboose Committee for Main Street Lorain Development Corp, each participating driver was asked to donate $10 for a fundraiser, but the event was free and open to the public. .
Schaefer said the event was also attended by many regular customers.
“There was a little something for everyone who was here,” Long said.
The event included live music, various food vendors, and fundraising contests such as raffles.
Next year, the group plans to expand its venue to include more food vendors and other attractions.
The artifact, called caboose #3855, represents part of Lorain’s railroad history, Schaefer said.
According to the Lorain Caboose Committee website https://loraincaboose, where the caboose sits was once the rail yards of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, where millions of tons of coal traveled and iron ore and taconite were shipped to ships. I was back and forth. .org/.
The caboose served Lorain on CSX Transportation trains at one point, and two men volunteered to refurbish it, Schaefer said, once working on the caboose.
In fact, it was CSX Transportation that donated the caboose to Main Street Lorraine Development Corporation, Long said.
The caboose has a scrap value of about $30,000, but its historical significance makes it a valuable part of Lorraine’s history, he said.
According to the website, “Once the restoration is complete, Caboose #3855 will be more than just a pretty face.” “It is used in conjunction with many civic and educational programs and activities.”
Long estimates put the entire renovation project at about $30,000, he said. So far, the group has about $12,000 in labor costs, he added.
First, the caboose’s commission wants the caboose’s exterior to be completely painted by winter, Mr Long said.
The caboose was recently painted with a new coat of primer, Long added.
Volunteers will begin interior work, including restoring the railroad crew’s living quarters and mobile offices, he said.
“It has a stove, a toilet, a heater and everything,” Long said.
To learn more about or contribute to caboose, visit loraincaboose.org.
