Slow & Easy caboose open to public

Living history at the Grand Encampment Museum Sat., July 22, will feature the opening and start of tours of a recently remodeled caboose which ran on the rails of the now defunct Saratoga & Encampment Railway, better known as the Slow & Easy.

Official dedication of the caboose is scheduled for Aug. 16 at the GE Museum grounds.

A news release from the GEM notes:

In December of 2014 Gene Bashor donated a wonderful piece of history, a caboose from the Saratoga and Encampment (S&E) Railway, that was delivered to the Grand Encampment Museum by Brad Hiebeg.

The Caboose was in need of substantial repair however.

GEM is blessed to have wonderful and capable people as volunteer Jerry Anderson and GEM board member Anita Morris, together with the aid of director Tim Nicklas, were able to rebuild the Caboose to authenticity. Mike Pannel is an expert on caboose roofs and his insight was greatly appreciated. The doors, flooring and exterior finish proved challenging at times. Paint was copied to the original color and window panes are original.

Donations that were given dedicated to the caboose were graciously accepted and used to rejuvenate and enhance this wonderful display.

In 2017 a deck was built across the side of the caboose in hopes of drawing concerts, theater, plays, artists, displays or to use to the imagination. Electricity has been installed to accompany any of the previous mentioned venues.

Discussion of how to safely move a glass display case from the Doc Culleton building to the caboose has been a topic of many board meetings. With the wonderful snowfall we have had this year, that discussion ended with the use of two tractor inner tubes, some rope and local volunteers by loading the case and sliding it across the snow.

Artifacts and displays of railroad history are being moved from other places in the museum to the new facility known as “The Caboose”.

It has been many years of patience and hard work, but finally, this summer, “The Caboose” is now completed and opened to the public, with the official dedication in August.