Lewes caboose gets “big shove” down railroad track

The move was short, but Lewes’ big red caboose had to make room for another piece of railroad history long in the making.

Volunteers from the Lewes Junction Railroad and Bridge Association pushed the caboose 100 feet west on the track in Stango Park March 29. They called it the “Big Shove.”

Sen. Russ Huxtable, D-Lewes, even interrupted a walk through the park to help.

A railroad tie was placed across the track to prevent the 20-ton railcar from continuing down the bike trail. The caboose had not been moved in more than two years.

The LJRBA had to make way for a coal tender that will soon arrive and take its place on the rails.

According to the LJRBA, the tender’s main section, called the box, has been rebuilt from original Pennsylvania Railroad plans of the correct vintage. Distinctive elements of other original equipment were incorporated into the final design by Mellinger Manufacturing of Willow Street, Pa.

A former Pennsylvania Railroad steam engine is being restored in Yorklyn and will join the exhibit in the future.

The organization said the tender could arrive as early as Tuesday, April 8, but that could be delayed.

The caboose is now in position and ready for the next open house, scheduled for Sunday, April 6.

For more information on the exhibit, go to lewesjunctionrr.org.