Caboose

the caboose brake van or guards van whatever you call it it symbolizes the end of a train but what's the story behind these iconic rail cars the term caboose was derived from this low german word which was a small cabin built upon a ship's deck this word evolved over time with the dutch and then the french in the 18th century the term cambos possibly spread to the english language through french sailors interacting with americans during the american revolution as early railroads developed in england in the united states longer trains needed a better source of braking power in 1840s america railroad brakeman would fashion wooden shacks on top of flat cars or use box cars as an office on wheels the auburn and syracuse raroid was one such early user with conductor nat williams monitoring his train in the last boxcar on a mixed passenger freight train within the car he kept flags lanterns chains and tools he wrote reports and ate meals sitting on a wooden box with his desk being an upside down barrel also in the 1840s in the uk railways took inspiration from industrial tramways and began adding a brake van the term likely deriving from the fact it would stop whatever was left of the train if there was a break in the couplings in the 1870s the term was replaced with brake van a slightly different spelling back in the us the term caboose was first officially used in 1859 within court documents regarding a lawsuit with the new york and harlem railroad so what were cabooses used for well for starters they housed a conductor to sort documents break men to climb on top of the train and apply the brakes and a flagman to walk down the line and flag down or stop any nearby trains with a flag or lantern the caboose of course also assisted in braking while placed at the rear of trains the locomotive engineer could give off a whistle signal of when to start braking and then the brake men or in the case of the uk the guard within the caboose would start slowing the train down the same principle would be applied to break coaches on british railways a coach that acted as a standard passenger compartment and brake van in the case of early american brakeman on freight trains they would walk atop the train as it moved along and applied the handbrake wheels on each car a very dangerous job especially in winter or in areas with tunnels the caboose crew would also look out for any dragon equipment flaming hot boxes derailments or any other number of possible issues by the 1850s and 60s the gaboos had taken on the form similar to a box car or passenger car in 1863 conductor tb watson of the chicago and northwestern railway had to use an old boxcar as a caboose while his actual caboose was assigned to a work train he realized he could see his train much better if he sat on top of some boxes and looked through a hole in the roof of the boxcar after arriving in clinton iowa he suggested to the master mechanic of the railroad's clinton shops that an elevated section above the roof with glass that he called a crow's nest should be added to the cnw's new way cars or cabooses to better monitor trains this was the origin of the cupola the cupola would create the iconic shape of the modern caboose the cupola was placed either at the center or far end of the car within the cupola the crew could monitor the train and have a good view over the rail cars the caboose would also typically have oil later electric marker lights to better signify the status or end of a train in low bike conditions some cabooses also had air whistles to act as a warning while a train reversed down a track on the inside the caboose had storage for first aid kits tools and spare train supplies like re-railers coupler knuckles and fusees the caboose also offered rudimentary beds and seats there was also a stove for warmth and cooking and sometimes a bathroom and sink the caboose itself would often be painted red as it was cheap but the color became another staple of caboose design american railroads had several specialized cupola caboose designs depending on the railroad's needs and evolved with time the westinghouse air brake system would be implemented on trains throughout the late 1800s and into the early 1900s with the caboose seeing this change too no longer requiring brakeman to walk on top of a moving train some other design evolutions included in the bobber caboose a small design that often bobbed or swayed as it moved down the track some rail cars were also converted into cabooses but with time some railroad needs required a completely new caboose design in the early 1900s the drover's caboose was created for livestock trains with one half housing the livestock drovers and the other half for the train crew however the cupola based design had a potentially fatal flaw as a train begins to move slack action kicks in as each car coupling pulls on the other and jerks the train into motion as the head end begins to accelerate the caboose is the last to be jolted into motion with the most amount of built up force this would sometimes throw the caboose crew out of their seats or out of the cupola and onto the bottom wood floor another problem was height clearances and new freight cars becoming taller and larger so the cupola was just about useless thus in 1923 the bay window design was created by the akron canton and youngstown railroad within the center of the car are extensions for windows to look out towards either side of the train throughout the 1930s and 40s railroad cars began to be constructed from steel as opposed to wood including cabooses for short haul runs between yards and switching the transfer caboose was created they had large viewing platforms but left cooking sleeping and bathroom accommodations radios would also be added within most cabooses of the time for better communication between each end of a train with ever increasing car sizes the extended vision caboose would be created in the 1960s by the international car company this allowed for a roomier cupola and better views on the sides and over top of freight trains regardless of their design crews took great pride in their personal cabooses often decorating them to their liking within reason the caboose would be painted all sorts of colors to better fit the railroad's branding but always stood out as a classic end of any freight train but as iconic and charming as the caboose was it was an extra cost to railroads with extra crew members and an entire rail car to maintain an experiment by the florida east coast in 1969 had a flashing red light and of train device replace a caboose a 1978 experiment by the seaboard coastline to remove the caboose was the ge bq 23-7 locomotive hosting room for a five-man crew the locomotive was disliked by crews and deemed unsuccessful in this venture technology had other plans though by the 1980s and 90s signaling and locomotive technology had become far more advanced and could replace the job of a caboose crew in the mid to late 1980s railroads began eliminating the caboose in favor of end of train devices or eots also known as a flashing rear end device or fret these electronic devices along with other trackside machines could relay any technical information or problems to the locomotive where the engineering conductor could assess the situation five man crews with the caboose were no longer required by law and over time the iconic railroad caboose began disappearing from mainland american railroads the last caboose regulations were lifted by 1988 by then a new caboose cost eighty thousand dollars while a new eot device cost four thousand five hundred dollars despite their replacement and many being scrapped a good lot of caboose has found an extended life on modern railroads like csx norfolk southern and union pacific acting as shoving platforms where the train crew can stand while switching many cabooses have also been preserved in parks museums or were used for some other purpose while the days of watching a friendly face caboose crew wave to trackside passers-by may be over the caboose still lives on in other ways as a really useful little rail car [Music] you

Channel: AmtrakGuy365

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Keywords: Amtrakguy365, Caboose, Railroad, Railway, Train, Trains, Commentary, History, Railroad caboose, Train caboose, Railway caboose, Brake Van, Railroad History, Train Caboose, Freight, Car, Freight Car, Rolling Stock, Caboose History, Locomotive, Caboose train, Red caboose, Cupola, Bay Window, Cupola Caboose, Caboose ride, Caboose museum, Train caboose ride, Freight Train, Rolling, Stock, Education, Train history, Caboose house

Id: TccWO7bkTz8

Length: 8min 10sec (490 seconds)

Published: Sun Jan 09 2022