Dear Pioneer,
I hope you and your yard have been managing alright in the snow! They tell me this has been the coldest January on record, and I believe them. My axles almost hurt! Hopefully this letter will take our minds off the cold, at least for a little bit.
This month marks the arrival of some parts we sourced from a trolley museum in Wisconsin. That’s not unusual by itself – we’re always strapped for parts – but these were essential for one of our cars. CA&E 321 is an old wooden interurban car from 1914. She’s been here for even longer than I have (can you believe it’s been six years?) but was not in the best shape. The guys have been in talks to have her scrapped to make room for some equipment that could be made operational, but scrapping is a final decision and requires hard work and shop space.
East Troy trolley museum had CA&E’s sister cars, 318 and 319. When 318 joined them several years ago, the IRM suggested that 318 might be able to provide parts for her sisters to be fully restored, but East Troy wanted a working pair and weren’t ready to give up on 318. Well, news came down last year that the restoration would be too expensive for both cars, so our guys offered to buy 318 to fund the restoration of 319 and acquire parts for 321, saving them both. Our guys drove up to Wisconsin to get the parts and left only her wood exterior behind, since that was the only part 321 wasn’t missing.
Without 318, all three cars might have been scrapped, but through 318’s sacrifice, her sisters can go on to be preserved. But it gets more interesting! After our guys came back with the parts, rumor reached them that 318’s wood body wasn’t taken to the scrapyard, but had been driven off on a flatbed to go live on someone else’s private property. The Goddesses say that’s ridiculous, but I lived off-property for some time myself, so I know it’s not impossible. Either way, 318 will always be a part of 319 and 321, which is a nice thought all on its own.
Anyway, I don’t want my letter-writer to be out in the cold for too long and I’m sure your letter-reader feels the same way, so I tried to keep things brief. Luckily she has a cozy spot to retreat to in our new Technical Library! More on that and some other additions soon, assuming the weather gets better. Please stay warm until then!
Your friend,
Pilot