Here's something I'd like to have more info on, but have had little luck in finding much, including heritages, acquisition dates (for some), or retirement dates/dispositions. Over the years, Amtrak has rostered at least 37 cabooses, most of which appear to be ex-PC, along with at least one ex-FEC and 2 ex-B&LE. Most of these were assigned to MofW duties on the Northeast and Keystone Corridors, but at least one was assigned to Chicago. I'm not sure on how many are still on the roster, but there are at least a few left. Listed below are the cabooses (and info) I've been able to find, sourced from RR Picture Archives and Jim Hebner's website: http://www.hebners.net/Amtrak/amtCAB.html; Hebner lists that the ex-PC cabooses were acquired in 1973. If anyone can add heritages or additional cabooses I've overlooked, that would be very much appreciated. Thanks in advance.

#14000. Ex-PC #19016, nee-PRR Class N5 #477246, built in 1918 by PRR?

#14001. Ex-PC #19019, nee-PRR Class N5 #477413, built in 1923 by PRR?

#14002. Ex-PC #19001, nee-PRR Class N5 #477460, built in 1926 by PRR?

#14003. Ex-PC #19025, nee-PRR Class N8? #478881, built when??

#14004. Ex-PC #19009, nee-PRR Class N8? #478876, built when??

#14005. Ex-PC #19005, nee-PRR Class N5 #477126, built in 1917 by PRR?

#14006. Ex-PC #19021, nee-PRR Class N5 #477212, built in 1918 by PRR?

#14007. Ex-PC #19003, nee-PRR Class N5 #477115, built in 1917 by PRR?

#14008. Ex-PC #19023, nee-PRR Class N8? #479715, built when??

#14009. Ex-PC #19022, nee-PRR Class N5 #477462, built when??

#14010. Ex-PC #19015, nee-PRR Class N5 #477060, built when?? This caboose was retired at an unknown date and was subsequently sold. It is now located at the B&M depot in Hinsdale, NH.

#14011. Ex-PC #19024, nee-PRR Class N8? #478878, built when??

#14012. Ex-PC, no further info.

#14013. Ex-PC #19006, no further info.

#14014. Ex-PC #19017, nee-PRR Class N8? #479711, built when?? This caboose was retired at an unknown date and was subsequently sold to the Gettysburg RR, current status/location unknown.

#14015. Ex-PC #19008, no further info.

#14016. Ex-PC, # unknown, built in 1926 by PRR? Nee-PRR Class N5? No further info.

#14017. Ex-PC #19007, nee-PRR Class N5 #477536, built when??

#14018. Ex-PC, no further info.

#14019. Ex-PC, no further info.

#14020. Ex-PC, no further info.

#14021. Ex-PC, no further info.

#14022. Ex-PC, no further info.

#14023. Ex-PC, no further info.

#14024. Ex-FEC, # unknown. From what I saw picture wise, this appears to be one of the FEC's well-known rebuilt boxcar cabooses. No further info.

#14025. No info whatsoever. Possibly ex-PC or Conrail Class N11?

#14026. Ex-B&LE #203, built in 1957 by whom? Listed for sale as of March 2003, was later (when??) sold to the Newport Dinner Train (Newport, RI). With the flooding from Sandy, is this caboose still around?

#14027. Ex-B&LE #202, built in 1957 by whom? Listed for sale as of March 2003, and was subsequently sold in 2005. It is now located at the B&M depot in Hinsdale, NH.

#14030. Ex-PC or Conrail Class N11? Built 1970?? And by whom?

#14031. Ex-PC or Conrail Class N11? Built 1970?? And by whom?

#14032. Ex-PC or Conrail Class N11? Built 1970?? And by whom?

#14033. Ex-PC or Conrail Class N11? Built 1970?? And by whom?

#14034. Ex-PC or Conrail Class N11, # unknown. Built in 1970?? And by whom?

#14035. Ex-PC or Conrail Class N11? Built 1970?? And by whom?

#18036. Is this actually #14036? Ex-PC or Conrail Class N11? Built 1970?? And by whom?

#18037. Is this actually #14037? Ex-PC or Conrail Class N11? Built 1970?? And by whom?

#18566. PC or Conrail Class N11? that was apparently sold to Amtrak, but did not receive a #140xx-series number for an unknown reason. Built 1970?? And by whom?

Lastly, looking at the above info, it would seem logical that there would also be cabooses rostered as #14028 and #14029. If so, would these also be ex-B&LE, or ex-PC/Conrail Class N11's?
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Additions and corrections are welcome. Thanks in advance.

Any photos? I can't recall ever seeing even a pic of an Amtrak hack (Amhack?)...

Here's a Google street view of two cabooses and a box car in Hinsdale NH. Rainier Rails listing above identifies one of the cabooses as Amtrak.

https://www.google.com/maps/@42.7842431,-72.4782591,3a,75y,247.17h,90.27t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sybvowpHkeIm22KUi1_0eXg!2e0!7i3328!8i1664

During the halcyon days of Amtrak's foray into the carload express business (managed by a gentleman some of you may have heard of named Edwin Earl Ellis Jr.) there were occasional positioning moves of empty MHCs with a 'Pepsi Can' or some of the ex Go Transit geeps leading and a silver caboose on the rear as a rider car. Amtrak tried very hard to convince the host railroads that these were passenger equipment moves.

GME

Hmm, name sounds familiar. I wonder how that worked out for Amtrak?

I certainly saw cabooses on various work trains during my years with Amtrak in the NEC. They were a fairly common sight at the MoW base North (East) of Perryville. The ones I remember were orange, not silver. I think I might have a slide somewhere of one as part of a work train on one of the long bridges between B'More and Wilmington, but not close enough to make out a number.

There's some information here:

http://www.hebners.net/Amtrak/amtCAB.html

AMTK 14006 is said to be owned by Ocean Gate Historical Society. Google Street View reveals there is indeed a caboose there painted in PRR colors. No number is obvious but it looks like the same type of car, at least.

AMTK 14034 appears to be on Cape May Seashore Lines: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/rsPicture.aspx?id=305460

In searching for PRR N6b's, I randomly came across:

Amtrak 14008 was at Winslow Junction, NJ on the SRNJ for a while, build date 4/19, apparently gone somewhere else by now.

Amtrak 14034 at CMSL at Tuckahoe had formerly been at Rio Grande just to the south; it's a class N11 steel transfer caboose ("box on a flat car"), as are several others around that number set as I recall.

The FEC Caboose/ cabeese ( there were 5 AutoTrain #90, 91, 92, 93, 94 ) were use on the original AutoTrain and were acquired when Amtrak purchased the assets of the bankrupt AutoTrain Corporation. I'm not sure how many made the transition into Amtrak service.

The FEC hacks started as ventilated boxcars and converted to bay window cabeese by FEC Then AutoTrain Rebuilt them again into very tall cupola cabeese.

Thanks to everyone for the replies!

Amhack, Amboose/Ambeese, Amcab...

For photos, try either the referenced page on Jim Hebner's website, or the following page on RR Picture Archives: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/rsList.aspx?id=AMTK&cid=1

Thanks, Frank and ADM IV, for the info! Even though I used the page on Jim Hebner's website as a resource, somehow the dispositions for #14006 and #14034 did not make it into my post the other day.

Thanks, hotbox, for the info! If Amtrak placed more than just one of the ex-AT, nee-FEC cabooses into service, then I wonder what numbers they were assigned? Perhaps Jim Hebner was partially incorrect, and not all the cabeese in range #14018-#14023 were ex-PC, and perhaps the #14025 was nee-FEC as well? If Amtrak placed all 5 ex-AT cabeese in service, and #14025 was one of these, then maybe #14021-#14023 were the other 3? If #14025 was not one of these, then maybe #14020-#14023 were the other 4? Or maybe #14024 was the only one that saw service for Amtrak. A mystery at this point, it seems.

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Additions and corrections are welcome. Thanks in advance.

According to Captive Cabeese, seven ex-Amtrak cabeese turned up at Burnham, Pa. the end of a branch out of Lewistown that served Standard Steel and Kovalchick Salvage, so 99% odds these were grabbed by Kovalchick. None of them are anywhere around there now (or are very well hidden), and they were reported as "STILL THERE??" in the 2008 edition.

However, in going out after those cabeese, I found this list, basically Kirkpatrick's 2009 update of the 2008 list:

http://pc.smellycat.com/list/2009-01/msg00008.html



It should be mentioned that the four at Burnham not specifically identified were given "reporting marks" of "KC" and numbers 4502-4505, and apparently shipped on CR to Burnham under said numbers. Again, 99.8% circumstantial evidence that this stands for "Kovalchick Corporation," the official company name of the company owning the scrapyards in Burnham and Indiana, Pa.

Now, strictly a gut feeling suggests to me that a couple of these missing cabooses will turn up elsewhere once numbers are cross-checked--for example, maybe at that caboose motel at Titusville, Pa. . . . . but, after all, Kovalchick IS a scrapyard........

Thanks, ADM IV, for all the info!

That means that the one I had listed as ex-Auto Train, nee-FEC, #14024, is actually former Pittsburg & Shawmut. Inferring from that, maybe Amtrak never placed any of the cabooses acquired from Auto Train in service, or at least didn't give them #140xx-series numbers, or maybe they're some of the cabeese for which the heritages aren't listed.

Amtrak 14008 is still in South Jersey, and is for sale. It is currently being used a storage facility for lots of 24RL air brake cores. If anyone is interested in either the caboose or the cores I can get you in touch with the owner; just send me a PM. We talked just this morning about this.

Does anyone know -- did Amtrak ever update any (or all) of these work cabooses with 223 compliant glazing?