Passenger Car Department

The Mt Harvard has changed its appearance since my last report on the sleeper. We have continued working on it through the winter and have made great strides on our goal of operating the Pullman. The change, has been amazing! I will explain as well as letting the pictures do the talking. You will remember we had our first xmas party in the Mt Harvard lounge last December. At that time party goers were impressed when shown our progress on the sleeper. We are making more progress concentrating now on the vestibule. Renewing and repairing that area is now our goal. Along with that is the prepping of both exterior sides for future painting.

Here is what the vestibule deck looked like in November 2018.

Another view of the project ahead of us.

Gregg has been restoring the vestibule deck floor. He has done this by removing the old rusted steel plate and then installing new painted steel sheets to support the deck.

He now has the new deck plate installed and painted black.

A more detailed view of the replacement steel welded in place.

This exterior sheet has also been replaced.

Gregg finished drilling holes and now a second coat of primer has been applied.

January, 2020 Gregg was busy fitting a new side panel into place.

He is checking his work.

North side of the vestibule.

The long awaited installation of the second stair. I am sure glad I had them manufactured eight months ago.

In April 2019 I contracted with Harmony Metal of Gilberts, Illinois to manufacture 6 duplicate stairs at a cost of $1200 ea.  One stair was installed in August, 2019 on the Mt Harvard. Now the second stair has been installed. An additional four stairs were made for the John McLoughlin's future installation.   

Just a reminder what the area looked like before we started this side of the restoration.

Here Sandi is trying to persuade the stair to get into proper alignment.

Using a comealong device, we moved the stair into position. Gregg drill holes from underneath and then fastened the last stair to the frame of the car.

Here is the finished product.  A couple of things must be added but now one can enter the sleeper from either side of the car.

The next job we worked on was installation of the two steam traps. These were removed in order to transport the Mt Harvard from the Mid Continent RR Museum to IRM.

The last project we started on before the shutdown was the rebuilding of the two traps for the vestibule. Parts have been made for the rebuild but we ran out of time to reassemble them.

Here Gregg is removing the brass support pieces for future installation.

We have also been working on the exterior. 

Here Bob Olsen of Waukegan, Illinois, is sanding one side of the car in preparation for future painting. 

Bill L. Davis, part of the father son team.

Darek Mitura pausing for the camera while  sanding a panel.

Bill R. Davis prepping the rivets.

I am so very proud of all the volunteers and employees that have contributed to this project! Many hours of work still lay ahead of us but we are all working together to get the job done. The Virus has complicated our time frame to return the Mt Harvard to limited service. Hopefully, we still might see the project get finished by the end of this year.

The Mt Harvard restoration is being solely funded by your donations to the restricted fund. Please consider a donation to help with the restoration of the Mt Harvard project! https://www.irm.org/donations/category/passenger-car-department/  

Continuing the restoration news on the John McLoughlin is the repainting of the Men's bathroom. Mark Hoffmann started by abrading two walls in late 2018.    They were primed to preserve the surface from rusting but we never top coated them. 2019 brought an increase in activity in the entire sleeper. That is when the work in the men's bathroom resumed. You will see, in these pictures, our renewed efforts.

We have sanded this wall and now Sandi is ready to prime.

Partially primed.

Now the wall has been primed and Sandi is applying the top coat.

The wall is painted but still lots to do.

We now switch our efforts to this wall. A future mirror will be installed in that large white area.

Now we have started the hardest job. Working on the ceiling and using a sander and electric wire wheel to remove the old paint. Thats Tim Fennell inspecting Sandis fine work.

Taking a break from the ceiling we worked priming and painting on another wall.

Not shown in any of these pictures is the actual painting of the ceiling. As we found out in the Mt Harvard, working over your head on the ceiling is no easy task. The ceiling did get painted! Many thanks to Mark, Andrew, Tim, Bob, our volunteers.

Here we just finished painting the last two walls. A corner sink gets reinstalled underneath the mirror.

Here I have installed most of the brass shelves. Already, it looks more like the mens bathroom.

With much of the work completed we moved on to the stripping the old paint from the steam and water pipes below the sinks. They are now also painted. That almost finishes the job. Removing the clutter will make it even better!

After reinstalling all of the wall light fixtures, brass shelves and two sinks we moved on to the more difficult job! The team was to begin the most labor intensive work yet, the repainting of all four sections. Removing old paint from ceilings and walls was going to be a major, major job! We first had to remove the four seat cushions that made up each Pullman seat. No easy task. The seat cushion themselves are very heavy. Made up of metal coil springs, straps and wood, each weighted about 40 pounds. Yes, That's one reason why these sleepers were called heavyweights. Everything about these Pullman sleepers is super heavy. They were made to last a long time. My back can attest to that. Anyway, the next blog on the John Mcloughlin will focus on our repaint of the four sections. Donations to continue this project can be sent to: https://www.irm.org/donations/category/passenger-car-department/     Thanks, Roger.

A job that was long on the wish list of coach department projects was finally completed June, 2019. Thanks to the energy and determination of Nick Dey, who spearheaded the project, our RPO again is in beautiful shape and should be kept that way for many years. Nick started the project in mid August, 2018. Working in barn 3 by himself his goal was to repainted the 1923 for the Museum Showcase Weekend but because of the lack of volunteers that date was missed. In early September saw the RPO moved into barn 14 and the work there was continued. With more volunteers helping in the Fall, 2018, and Spring of 2019, the 1923 finally was repainted and re-lettered and placed back in service for RPO days in June of 2019.

RPO now located in barn 14.

Sides are sanded in preparation for primer.

Here is Nick working on sanding and taping the roof line.

Another view.

The car side sanded, old lettering removed.

Primer applied on lower course.

As Nick Dey watches Ben Metzger primes more of the side.

September 11 saw this side completely primed.

The 13th saw the other side primed.

Unfortunately, the team just ran out of time to complete the job in the Fall of 2018. The next year was sure to bring a renewed emphasis to complete the job. In the spring of 2019 Gregg Wolfersheim entered the picture and thus completed the project.

Gregg first painted the roof black and then began sanding and abrading the primer in preparation for the finish coat Sherwin Williams Urethane.

A smiling Gregg after the paint job. And What a beautiful job it was.

Both sides of the car were painted with Sherwin Williams paint.

The lettering reapplied.

The 1923 also reapplied onto the car side. Boy does it look nice!

The completed project displayed outside Barn 13.

The goal was to demonstrate how the railroads use Railroad Post Offices in bygone service years. We met that goal when the freshly painted car was used again on RPO Days 2019! I didn't take any pictures of it in operation last year but I sure heard many favorable comments from members and visitors alike. Thanks to Nick Dey, Gregg Wolfersheim and the many volunteers who spent countless hours working on the CB&Q 1923. Again, it takes a team effort. If you wish to see more painting projects like this in the passenger coach dept PLEASE contribute to https://www.irm.org/donations/category/passenger-car-department/    Thanks, Roger.

December of 2019 will be a well remembered month in the coach department for we received an early Christmas gift. The "gift" was the PAWNEE, previously owned by John E.N. Blair. It was the last heavyweight, all-steel, non-streamlined private car built by The Pullman Company. It arrived on our interchange that grey, cold December 12th day. This long awaited Pullman heavyweight, historic, private car was switched into our campus about 1:15 PM. It moved, proudly, on its own wheels from Landisville, PA to Union, IL on three different railroads. Quite a fete considering all the regulations required by the railroad to move any type of passenger car, let alone an old car such as the "PAWNEE". It was a amazing accomplishment!

West of Olson road is where the PAWNEE was cut off from the rest of the train and brought up to us.

The UP takes it past the switch ready to set it out on our siding.

Bring our car back to us.

Another view.

You can't imagine how excited and happy I was to see the PAWNEE finally at the museum. It took an lot of phone calls and maneuvering to get it here.

Our US Army switcher, 8537, backs up to it on the West end. Thats Bob Olson in the picture. 

Heres Nick. Hes our conductor for the day.

The crew, Gregg, the engineer, and Nick in the cab of the 8537.

Thats Nick and I on the platform.

Here is another shot. Boy, did she ride nice over our rails. Quite a smooth ride. Didnt even feel any joints.

Here is just a little bit of the history of the car. Harry Payne Bingham, the original owner, was the son of wealthy Cleveland, Ohio, industrialist Charles Bingham, president of Standard Tool Company. His father, Charles, was also a trustee of the then monopoly Standard Oil Company. Does that name sound familiar? That company was owned by John D. Rockefeller, Sr. Harry was born in 1887 and died in1955. In 1930 Harry, now a multi millionaire, place an order with the Pullman company for a private sleeping car. He named it ,of course, PAWNEE. The rest of the story will be told in upcoming articles in the Rail and Wire.  

Crossing Olson Road.

A three quarter shot. Please notice the beautiful painted exterior. Not a bit of rust on the side sheets. The stairs are painted in primer and will be painted black this coming season.

A side view on the streetcar loop next to barn 9.

The three of us took some extra time and switched it ontoo the leads going into barn 10. Again this picture is on the streetcar loop operating towards the creek.

A close up of the side of the PAWNEE. Please notice the beautiful condition of the side of the car. I cant emphasis enough how beautiful it is.

Let me introduce John E.N. Blair. He is the gentlemen who previously owned it and gave to IRM. This was taken about two years ago in the inside store facility in Landisville Pa. 

John had the foresight to secure it inside and have it repainted to its previous Pullman green color. This is the reason why the PAWNEE now is so extremely well kept and in beautiful shape. If you wish to view the PAWNEE please visit barn 10.  I will be more than happy to show you the car.  It is now stored in that barn along with other freight and passenger car projects.  If you wish to donate to the PAWNEE to continue the interior restoration please send a check or visit https://www.irm.org/donations/pawnee/       Thanks, Roger.

The increased restoration activity in the heavyweight sleeper, John McLoughlin, began in earnest, the Spring of 2019.  My long-term goal is to operate this sleeper, along with our other heavy weight sleepers, in our demonstration Pullman passenger train!

Here Sandi is re-priming a section in the long hallway.

With much of the interior restoration of the Mt Harvard finished my focus shifted from the Mt Harvard to the John McLoughlin. Comparing both projects I soon realized that the "John" was certainly going to be a more complicated and very expensive project! We had, in the past, worked in barn 3, on both the exterior, as well as, the interior. It was a fill in project and took a long time to complete anything. What we did accomplish took years. Please review past blogs concerning those efforts. The reader will soon realized the extent of our concentrated efforts. A project like this takes a lot of men and women power, as well as, paid and volunteer help. Critical to our success is You. Please come out and help!

These hallway walls and ceilings had been prepped and sprayed primed a number of years ago. Now they had to be primed again.

Here is the hallway entrance by the door. Notice the color difference between ceiling and walls.

Once that area was completed we turned our attention to the other end of the sleeper.

Here Mark Hoffmann is again prepping the surface in the hallway near the mens bathroom.

Mark is masking an area so that he can prime the area.

Two days later Sandi is painting that area.

Here is the finished product. Walls are painted. Yet to be done is the ceiling. Thats the hardest part. We began removing all the old ceiling paint by scraping and then sanding to get a uniform surface.

Sandi is painting around the Emergency tool box.

Andrew, our new volunteer, continues removing more old paint in hallway leading to the drawing room.

Not to be out done, the exterior receive a makeover from Howard Geier. Years ago Mark Hoffman and I needle chipped both sides of the John McLoughlin and applied a coat of Sherwin Williams primer and satin top coat.  I knew I wanted to coat it with a finish coat but never got around to it. Now the opportunity presented itself.

Howard is painting and having fun doing so.

The finished product below the belt rail.

Another beautiful August day and again Howard is painting above the window line.

The sleeper is finished painted on one side.

What a beautiful job Thanks Howard! Nice work as always!

Well, we got one side painted now for the other side. That might take a while for the car has to be turned around and that takes a lot of switching! If you are interested in volunteering see me or the other volunteers in our shop, barn 10! Progress on the John McLoughlin is on the fast track. Your donation will certainly help us reach our goal. Please consider a donation to the John McLoughlin restoration fund.   Thanks, Roger Kramer.