Post by URR566 on Jun 15, 2014 17:58:53 GMT -5
The Bessemer purchased 3 bay window cabooses from the International Car Company in 1974. Classified as NE4 and numbered 1990-1992, the cars were the first bought new cabooses acquired since the five NE2 class cars arrived in 1960. They were also the first Bessemer cabooses equipped with roller bearing trucks.
The following year, the railroad returned to International for more bay window cabooses. Seventeen cars were purchased this time, being classified as NE5 and numbered 1993-2009.
The NE4 cabooses had one window on the side of the body with the air cylinder, no windows on the opposite side, one window on each end of the car, and the side skirting under the bay window is long and angled at each end. They also sported a two chime horn on the roof for reverse train movements.
The NE5’s are nearly identical, however only one end of the car has a window, the other end doesn't have any. One side of the car doesn't have any windows, while the other side of the car has two windows (the side with the air cylinder). The side skirting is short and has straight ends, and these cars were equipped with a single chime horn on the roof versus the two chime on the previous NE4 cars. Both classes of cars received dual flashing red lights on each end.
These modern cabooses helped the Bessemer retire their aging NE1, NE2, and NE3 classes over time, and by the late 1980’s, these were the only active cabooses found bringing up the rear of their trains. They remained in service until the time the railroad began using the flashing rear end device (FRED) on their trains.
Starting in the late 1980’s, the Bessemer began removing some of these cars from their roster, as they were now surplus.
Six cars (one NE4, five NE5’s) were transferred to sister US Steel owned road, the Union Railroad. They were renumbered as URR C-100 through C-105. In 1992, four more joined them on the Big U, becoming URR C-106 through C-109. With all ten cabooses, their original Bessemer numbers were and are still to this day unknown.
One car (an NE4) found its way to Kasgro Rail Lines, numbered KRL 074. It is used as a crew car when transporting high and wide loads. It has traveled all over the country under Kasgro ownership. Like the cabs transferred to the URR, its original B&LE number is also unknown.
The B&LE held on to several cabooses. Numbers 1996 and 2002 were stored at Albion in the late 1990’s, before going to the Union Railroad. The URR still has them but does not use them, they were only ever intended as parts sources to keep their own cabooses going. B&LE 2001 and 2007 were repainted in the late 1990’s and were retained for service, with the 2001 being used at Butler, and the 2007 being kept at Greenville. Both cars survived under CN ownership. In 2008, caboose number 2007 was sent to Calgary, Ab, and has not been seen since. Number 2001 remains at Butler.
Out of the combined twenty cars from the NE4/NE5 classes, fifteen of them were accounted for at one point or another after being removed from the roster. Currently, only thirteen are still known to exist. As mentioned above, B&LE 2007 vanished in Calgary circa 2008. The other car whose existence is unknown is the Union Railroad C-106. This car has not been seen in years, in fact, many say they have NEVER seen it, there are no photos of it online, so there may be a chance that it never even existed at all. An interesting little fact is that all three NE4 cabooses still survive as KRL 074, URR C-100, and URR C-109, making them the last entire class of cabooses from the Bessemer and Lake Erie railroad still in existence.
The following year, the railroad returned to International for more bay window cabooses. Seventeen cars were purchased this time, being classified as NE5 and numbered 1993-2009.
The NE4 cabooses had one window on the side of the body with the air cylinder, no windows on the opposite side, one window on each end of the car, and the side skirting under the bay window is long and angled at each end. They also sported a two chime horn on the roof for reverse train movements.
The NE5’s are nearly identical, however only one end of the car has a window, the other end doesn't have any. One side of the car doesn't have any windows, while the other side of the car has two windows (the side with the air cylinder). The side skirting is short and has straight ends, and these cars were equipped with a single chime horn on the roof versus the two chime on the previous NE4 cars. Both classes of cars received dual flashing red lights on each end.
These modern cabooses helped the Bessemer retire their aging NE1, NE2, and NE3 classes over time, and by the late 1980’s, these were the only active cabooses found bringing up the rear of their trains. They remained in service until the time the railroad began using the flashing rear end device (FRED) on their trains.
Starting in the late 1980’s, the Bessemer began removing some of these cars from their roster, as they were now surplus.
Six cars (one NE4, five NE5’s) were transferred to sister US Steel owned road, the Union Railroad. They were renumbered as URR C-100 through C-105. In 1992, four more joined them on the Big U, becoming URR C-106 through C-109. With all ten cabooses, their original Bessemer numbers were and are still to this day unknown.
One car (an NE4) found its way to Kasgro Rail Lines, numbered KRL 074. It is used as a crew car when transporting high and wide loads. It has traveled all over the country under Kasgro ownership. Like the cabs transferred to the URR, its original B&LE number is also unknown.
The B&LE held on to several cabooses. Numbers 1996 and 2002 were stored at Albion in the late 1990’s, before going to the Union Railroad. The URR still has them but does not use them, they were only ever intended as parts sources to keep their own cabooses going. B&LE 2001 and 2007 were repainted in the late 1990’s and were retained for service, with the 2001 being used at Butler, and the 2007 being kept at Greenville. Both cars survived under CN ownership. In 2008, caboose number 2007 was sent to Calgary, Ab, and has not been seen since. Number 2001 remains at Butler.
Out of the combined twenty cars from the NE4/NE5 classes, fifteen of them were accounted for at one point or another after being removed from the roster. Currently, only thirteen are still known to exist. As mentioned above, B&LE 2007 vanished in Calgary circa 2008. The other car whose existence is unknown is the Union Railroad C-106. This car has not been seen in years, in fact, many say they have NEVER seen it, there are no photos of it online, so there may be a chance that it never even existed at all. An interesting little fact is that all three NE4 cabooses still survive as KRL 074, URR C-100, and URR C-109, making them the last entire class of cabooses from the Bessemer and Lake Erie railroad still in existence.
