Exploring the history of Clark County, Washington
The Old Caboose
There is a historic red railroad caboose on the Jane Weber Arboretum property. It is located on the lower parcel next to the stream and over looking the Columbia River.
The railroad caboose is one of two constructed by the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway in October of 1942 in shop facilities in Vancouver, Washington. Prior to 1942 four cabooses had been built, 703, 704, and 714 in 1913 and 719 in 1911. Because of the lack of materials and manpower at that time only two cabooses, 769 and 761, were constructed. The cost of construction was $2929.50 each. The two cabooses served the entire rail line system from 1942 until 1966. The caboose was brought to the property after it was sold by barging the caboose across the Columbia from Oregon to the property. The existence of the other caboose is unknown.
The caboose was removed from the steel carriage and was placed on cribbing made of railroad ties and wood posts. There is a small standing platform on the front and one on the back of the caboose. And on each side of the caboose there are bumpouts from the side so the conductor could see what was happening on both sides of the tracks from inside of the caboose. Later cabooses would utilize a cupola on top to serve the same function.
A conductor, who was most often assigned to his specific caboose, was the one in charge of managing the train and lived in the caboose. This was his home and where he resided. Inside is a small living room area, a bed, a primitive toilet, an iron stove for heat and cooking, a small ” ice box”, and a smaller cupboard and closet.
The caboose was transported by barge on the Columbia River to the property where the caboose was used for entertaining guests, and at a later time the caboose was rented as housing. One family with three children lived cozily in the caboose for a time.
At a time the caboose was a point of pride to the SP&S Railroad and to the conductor(s) who lived in it. The years have been hard on the caboose but recent restoration efforts led by Rob Seaman and dedicated volunteers are restoring the lookout as part of efforts to preserve the history of Vancouver.
Caboose Restoration
The caboose’s roof no longer shed water and was allowing water in. Attempts were made to place material on the roof to help keep water out but this had limited benefits. The roof was the first piece that needed to be addressed.
Old growth wood was donated by the Wind River Trust and new rafters were fabricated. As the old roof was removed the damage to the walls was exposed and required repairs before the rafters could be installed. Once the rafters were installed the tarps were placed back over the top with better support and effectively kept the water out of the caboose.
Once the roof was better supported then it was determined that working from the bottom up would be easier. The caboose was sagging severely and as siding was removed it was apparent that the floor beams had severe rot. The south end porch had no wood supporting the metal and the north porch was only supported by the ground as the metal was on the ground. Efforts were undertaken to remove the rotten beams and replace them with new wood while also leveling the floor.
Currently the roof still needs to be sheathed and siding needs to be replicated. Efforts are still continuing and the story of the restoration will be updated as efforts move the caboose back to its original state.
