There is a gentleman near where I live in Alberta with his own private track (maybe 3000 ft long), a locomotive, a Pullman coach, a box car, and a few other cars I can’t see from the road all on his ~200 acre farm.
Are private railroads on someones farm or ranch common (relatively speaking)? Has anyone else seen this before?
Sounds like fun and more power to these folks who can afford to do this. I’d imagine planning permission from the County and/or State/Province and lots of spare cash for a project like this!?
Here in Southern California specifically La Mirada Yard on BNSF there is a gentlemen who owns a building that does not get any rail service but he does own a track directly behind his building in which he has a few Pullman cars and an old Santa Fe caboose.
The most famouse private railroad would be the Grizzly Flats Railroad belonging to the late Ward Kimbal. It was located in California and from what I understand had two steam locomotives and a number of cars. Kimbal was an interesting fellow, he was a Disney animator and also an avid collector of vintage toy trains.
Maybe some of the Pennsylvania (PDN?) residents can help on on this.
I remember reading( somewhere) about a gentleman who owned an early construction project locomotive ( I think it was a Shay, but I may be mistaken about that). I think he lived in Western Pa., and had a track on his property that ran up a hill with the ade of switchbacks.
Cannot remember, exactly but it was enough track for him to enjoy running his engine on it. This locomotive was, I think, an early Shay, [possibly a two foot gauge], it only weighed several tons (?) and had been purchased originally to haul construction materials around job sites for a construction company.
It was an interesting story about the preservation and this man’s hobby and how he ran the engine on his own ROW in his backyard.
Sorry, My memory is not better on this particular situation![%-)]
Ward Kimball’s GFRR was located on his property in the Pasadena area not too far from Henry Huntingdon’s estate. There was about 300’ of three foot gauge tack along with some structures. Most of the equipment is now located in the Grizzly Flats enginehouse at Orange Empire Railway Museum in Perris - this includes both the Emma Nevada and the Chloe.
Ward was quite a character - met him a few times while working on the Grizzly Flats enginehouse back in 1991-92.
I think you are referring to the Foster Brook and State Line Railroad. There are videos of the shay running on youtube, here is a link to one of them: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mX3wdLlEWE
This is a quote from the second link of “The Two Footers”:
"Lima Locomotive Works, Inc. built Shay 3118, in May 1920. This being one of a total of 40 two-foot gauge Shays constructed by Lima, and one of the only two known surviving two foot gauge Shays built by Lima. Shay 3118 was built for Good Roads Construction Company, which used the Shay in a rock quarry in Leachville, Arkansas
Yes, I was referring to private railroads with “real” equipment.
Funny though, the costs are not that high. Looks like to me you could lay your own track for about $160,000 a mile using relay rail and volunteer labor, used ties and reclaimed hardware. A locomotive can be had for $80,000, and another $50K for a coach. I’d imagine the real cost would be hauling it all there by truck.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying it’s cheap either. Just that considering what some guys spend on private airplanes and boats I’m surprised there aren’t more private “real” railroads on peoples properties. Again, I imagine the trucking costs and logistics are the real killer.
As to the costs - aside from all the land to put it on, don’t forget the grading -excavation for cuts, and fills, etc. - and any bridges or culverts that would be needed - we’ll assume no tunnels or rock excavation/ blasting are involved. [swg] Few pieces of land that large are level enough for a rail line with the requisite large-radius curves, so inevitably some earthwork will be needed. Likewise, unless it’s in a really dry area, that much land is going to have significant stormwater runoff and a few watercourses, which will have to be crossed and preserved - let alone any required permits for that . . . [:-^]
Sam - I had no knowledge of that 2-ft. gauge line in far NW Pennsylvania until you mentioned it and the others responded. Thanks to all for that info ! [tup]
to me that would be a little expensive…160K per mile…even if my wife did allow it. Private aviation is alot cheaper…160K will get you a decent small plane or boat which I think would be alot more fun than running a engine and maybe a boxcar around an expensive circle of track in the backyard… But…if you’re willing to scale down to O or HO scale train ownership becomes alot more affordable…
You could also get one those little rideable trains you sometimes see in amusement parks. The engines are gas and much like what you have in a lawnmower…
Referenced is a private railroad operating in Texas with at least one Garrett Locomotive, on the Hempstead and Northern RR.
(From the Thread):
DSchmitt:
Garratts were used in Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, and South America. One Garrett (a 2-ft gauge 2-6-2+2-6-2) was purchesed by a wealthyTexan in 1985 and operated, with authenic South African rolling stock,on his Hempstead and Northern Railroad located on his property near Houston.
Cast steel beds for some Garretts were manufactured in the USA and shipped to Britian and Europe where the Garretts were assembled…
At one time ALCO considered building Garretts for the US market.
This comment really jumped out when I was reading the comment. So I went searching for it:
The “Ft. Madison, Farmington and Western RR” was a privately owned on private property standard gauge RR near Donnellson, (southeast) Iowa, built primarily by one man (Dave Minor) and some volunteers.
Alas, I believe the owner died a couple of years ago and and it has all been sold. I do not know the disposition of all the equipment or what the future is for the track and “town” on the grounds.
DSchmitt: