Longtime forum member, former C&NW/UP employee, author, resident rolling stock expert, good friend and really nice guy Carl Shaver, known here as CShaveRR, has passed away after a long battle with cancer.
Carl was one of the first forum members that I met in person after meeting him here on the forum. Over the years we had the opportunity to spend much more time together, mostly here in Illinois but also when he visited Colorado while I was living there. The picture above was taken at the Colorado Railroad Museum back in 2007. It shows Carl in his element, looking at rolling stock. One of things I’ll always remember about Carl was just how carefully he watched the “rest” of the train after the locomotives had passed. The first time I saw a manifest pass us at Elmhurst, I was ready to chat up something about the locomotive consist as soon as it was by us until I saw him watching the rest of the train with profound focus ready to make notes on his pad about anything he saw. This lesson not only taught me that railfanning has so many different appeals for different people but it also taught me to look at railroading in new ways for my photography.
Many of our visits involved dining and Carl knew all the best places for both a good meal and a good view of the tracks. The waitstaff at some restaurants like Two Brothers in Italy in Elmhurst were so accustomed to his request for a seat with a view of the tracks that he didn’t even have to ask when he and Pat showed up. And this knowledge extended well beyond the Chicagoland area. I remember when I traveled to the Grand Canyon and he learned about the route I was planning to take, he gave me a restaurant recommendation in Gallup, NM of all places!
That’s really sad. Carl was so knowledgeable and also such a friendly guide to the daily workings of the rails, especially his beloved C&NW. He will be missed.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Having recently turned 90. I have to consider each additional day of a useful and basically happy life as a real gift from the Eternal. I admire Carl for battling bhius illness for such a long time. I believe that the Sprit of the Righteous is eternal, and think that Carl somehow still reads these Forums.
I was fortunate enough to meet Carl on one of my trips to the Midwest. Pat brought him to Rochelle, where we watched trains and chatted for a while, then I got a narrated tour of our trip back into Carl’s neighborhood. Pat met us for lunch - I forget where, but, yes, with a view of the tracks.
Carl also suggested a motel on the way to Rochelle which could have offered a view of the tracks, but those rooms weren’t available. Full service!
I was also fortunate enough to have Carl and Pat visit the Adirondack Railroad one fall. We were doing our Pumpkin Trains, and I was busy with the “Punkin Patch,” so I wasn’t able to spend as much time as I would have liked with them.
By coincidence, however, a local arts center had an exhibit of quilts, which is something long-time members of the forum will recall is a love of Pat’s. So I left the Punkin Patch in capable hands and spent some time in town with Carl and Pat. And I got Carl on the locomotive for the return trip from the Patch to Thendara, where they caught the train back to Utica.
Mentor,Author,Friend.Watched Matt grow up over the years. Alot of fries were consumed.One of the quilt designs of Pats came from Marion Ohio’s Union Station.On one of our visits to Rochelle the “train rooms” were available in Dekalb.I even found a book he helped author and have his signature as well.Yes the conversations with Mookie and Ed would be quite entertaining.Peace,Love Hugs cancer sucks.
Bummer. I got to meet Carl a couple years ago when he and Pat were traveling back from California. My wife and I took them out to dinner and then back to our house for ice cream afterwards. Carl was a real fun guy to talk to. Pat was super interesting as well. She could be a host for The Antiques Road Show.
There wasn’t much exciting to show them for rail stuff around our town. I gave them directions to the home of the Dakota & Iowa Railroad about 20 miles north of us in Dell Rapids S.D. Carl said he found some good stuff there, and they found a quilt store there too.
Funny, how it can be a small world. Carl and Pat had traveled to see their daughter in California that was dealing with cancer. After the daughter lost her battle, I found out that she was on a forum with me that is totally unrelated to trains.
Not much I could add to the story of Carl Shaver ( and his bride, Pat ) We never got to ‘shake’, but over time we had a nuimber of ‘meetings’… We were able to communicate via P.M.s here, on the FORUM, and via Facebook.
Carl was always hepful to me, the rookie railfan; over time, he gave me insights into to new ways to look at trains… As others have mentioned, to look at the train… after the power had passed. I think it was mentioned by another here; Carl is probably calling that meeting together, of our other friends; who have also passed, to order now.,
God Bless 'em.[angel] R.I.P. , Sure miss each one.
As Overmod said, “RATS, just RATS” I live less than three miles from Carl’s home and never got to meet him. At 86, I don’t have the mobility I used to have. So I procrastinated. Loved his posts and knowing his stomping grounds, I could really relate to what he posted. And yes, He will be missed.
Carchaeologist by Chris May, on Flickr
