MOVE YOUR CABOOSE

Lorain organizations move historic caboose from West 14th Street to Black River Landing

Lorain welcomed back a piece of its industrial heritage on Aug. 17 in bringing back a historic locomotive car to Black River Landing.

In an exercise of patience, coordination and perseverance the 60-year-old Baltimore & Ohio (B&O) Railroad caboose was moved from the “end of the line” at Black River Wharf at West 14th Street and Broadway to Black River Landing where it will be used for educational purposes.

“It’s not every day that you see a caboose rolling down Broadway,” said volunteer and project committee member Jason Layne. Volunteers pushed the caboose from West 14th Street up to West 13th and loaded the locomotive onto a truck, and

“This caboose worked in this very spot when the coal-yard occupied the wharf just downriver.”

— Gail Bonsor, one of the organizers of the event

rolled it down Broadway Avenue treating residents and onlookers to a rare sight.

The move was the culmination of more than a year of planning that included obtaining ownership of

the caboose, its drop-off by donor CSX Railroad near downtown Lorain, and the construction of crushed stone foundations to support the moving equipment.

CSX Railroad donated B&O Caboose 903855.

A series of fundraising events and activities throughout the community are supporting this endeavor.

The committee in support of the project said adding the caboose to Lorain’s revitalized waterfront is a project of Main Street Lorain and the Lorain Growth Corporation, organizations dedicated to making Lorain a better place to live, work, and play.

“This caboose worked in

this very spot when the coalyard occupied the wharf just downriver,” explained Gail Bonsor, one of the organizers of the event. “We will renovate the caboose for use by civic groups and as a tangible part of Lorain’s industrial history.”

Layne was part of the caboose’s 2005 restoration project and said the project

was part of conductor Paul T. Barney’s wishes for it to brought back and have its story continued.

“At the end of the day, this was PT’s (Paul T Barney) vision. He wanted that caboose restored,” Layne said.

Project chair Gail Bonsor said in July with the relocation of the caboose will

enable them to continue restoring. She said the caboose needs cleaning, a paint job and window repairs, but generally is solid and in surprisingly good shape inside.

Bonsor said the caboose could be ready for public viewing in 2020 after the upgrades have been completed.

KEVIN MARTIN — THE MORNING JOURNAL Volunteers push the historic Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Caboose 903855 onto a truck at West 13th Street and Broadway Avenue in Lorain. The caboose was moved to Black River Landing after a year of preparations and will be used to civic and educational purposes.