Year was 1958...Yes it's Fairmont, NE.
-----Original Message-----
From: georgecrawfordsr <georgecrawfordsr@comcast.net>
To: CBQ <CBQ@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Tue, May 29, 2012 8:15 am
Subject: RE: [CBQ] Combines v. waycars
What year was this. Is this Fairmont Nebraska which is about 18 miles south of York?
Having spent a considerable number of nights in said combines I can confirm Hol's statement...In addition to the normal "appurtenances" on combines used where branch line locals tied up in towns where electricity was available they were equipped with the regular 110 volt wiring and light fixtures so the crew could have almost all the "comforts of home.
I spent my final days with the CB&Q on the Fairmont Hildreth local where we had one of the converted motor car trailers...Sadly I never wrote downt the number. When we tied up at Hildreth sometime in the wee hours of the morning and after the switching was done and the waycar (combine) spotted behind the depot th e conductor would be standing by with the long extension cord plugged into an outlet on the corner of the depot. He would walk over and insert the "female" end of the cord into the receptical about floor height on the side of the car and VOILA...we had 110 volt 100 watt lighting over the "let down" table where we enjoyed our "post midnight" repast and made minimal "ablutions" before bedding down for a few hours of dark sleep.
Rupert:
Yes, the former motor car combines were all (except for the straight baggage ones) fitted out with conductor's desks and other waycar appurtenances, as they were specifically intended for mixed train use.
Hol
When an ex-motor car combine brought up the markers on a train in lieu of a waycar, was the combine fitted out to provide facilities for the crew?
Rupert Gamlen
Auckland NZ