PROGRESS ON CHURCHILL'S FUNERAL VAN REPATRIATION FROM THE USA'S WEST COAST
August 2007

Report from Steve Doughty - updated 15th August 2007
Project Leader and Deputy Chairman, Swanage Railway Trust.
Photographs are copyright Joshua Nelson unless otherwise noted To view a larger version of any photograph on this page, just click on the thumbnail photograph and subsequently use the Back button on your browser to return to this page.

UPDATE: Please scroll down the page for reports and nearly 50 photos from California taken on 13th and 14th August 2007, plus details of how to easily contribute to this project

The loading team at the Industry Hills golf resort near Los Angeles, California on 13th August 2007.
Photo courtesy Randy Hees

Steve Doughty writes:

Sir Winston Churchill's funeral train catafalque - Southern Railway van S2464S - started its long journey back to the UK from the USA on Monday 13th August, thanks to the generosity of California's City of Industry mayor David Perez and an appeal by Swanage Railway volunteers.

Sir Winston Churchill's funeral train catafalque starts its long journey back to the UK from the USA on Monday 13th August, when preparations begin at the Industry Hills golf resort near Los Angeles for its move to the port of Long Beach.

The Swanage Railway's US team for the Churchill move were Randy Hees, Cris Hart and Sam Sause, the same team who managed the move of Car 14 from San Francisco, together with a new face, Woody Ballard, a friend of Randy. Randy, Cris and Woody are kindred spirits to the SR volunteers, giving freely of their time to help the Brits out, despite having their own railroad projects to look after. Sam is a professional logistics contractor, with a wealth of experience moving anything anywhere to or from the West Coast and whom we employed to find and manage the road transport, deal with freight forwarders, the ports and, as you will see later, the possibility of hitch-hiking spiders. To them all, the Swanage Railway owes a debt of gratitude.

Cris, Randy and Sam have written reports on the move, starting with Cris, dated 30th July. Cris went down to the site last week to prepare the car for the lift and ensure that the company that were going to move it had an advance brief. It's a technical report, but is an interesting summary of the work involved. Randy's comes next and covers the move itself on Monday 13th August and last but not least is Sam's contribution, which also covers aspects of the move on Monday, but adds detail of the arrival at Long Beach.

We also have a large number of photographs courtesy of Joshua Nelson. To see the full set of 50 photos of preparations at the Industry Hills golf resort near Los Angeles for the move of van S2464S to the port of Long Beach, please scroll to the bottom of this page.

Southern Railway van S2464S is removed from its bogies at the Industry Hills golf resort near Los Angeles, California on 13th August 2007. Photos courtesy Randy Hees

The coach is booked to sail for Southampton on the Wallenius Wilhelmsen lines 'Tamerlane' on 21st August and is scheduled to arrive September 19th.

The return of the coach to the UK has been made possible by the generosity of the current owners, the City of Industry. Mayor David Perez has donated it to the Swanage Railway Trust as a 'gift to the British people'.

S2464S leaves the Industry Hills golf resort near Los Angeles, California on 14th August 2007. Photo courtesy Sam Sause

With the success of the reptriation project now assured, The Swanage Railway Trust now has the task of raising additional funds to ensure its long term preservation and display. What form these take will very much depend on how much can be raised. Full details of the repatriation project, including how to donate to the next phase, can be found on our news page at http://www.swanagerailway.co.uk/news319.htm or the Trust's website via this link or by contacting the Trust's Deputy Chairman Steve Doughty at stephen.doughty1@btopenworld.com.

Fund raising continues and I am grateful to those who have already contributed to the costs of returning van S2464S to the UK. However, we do still need to raise much more to finish the job so even if you have already contributed please consider sending a cheque to the Swanage Railway Trust (Churchill Project), Station House, Swanage, DORSET BH19 1HB or via our website at this link.

Steve Doughty
6th August 2007

Donations to the Churchill project can be made to the Swanage Railway Trust (Churchill Fund), Station House, Swanage, Dorset BH19 1HB or on-line by debit or credit card via the Trust’s website at ‘www.swanagerailwaytrust.org.uk’ by following this link.

Please click here to visit the Swanage Railway Trust Appeals section at http://www.swanagerailwaytrust.org.uk/appeals/index.htm#Churchill

Contact details:
Steve Doughty
Deputy Chairman
Swanage Railway Trust
Station House
Swanage
DORSET
BH19 1HB
Tel: 07860-108754
Email: stephen.doughty1@btopenworld.com

Cris Hart's report

Railcar Status Report
Car 2464 at Pacific Palms Resort
Cris Hart, 30th July 2007

On 7/30 I inspected the car and did some preparation for removal.(Lubricate 3 journals and remove 2 brake connecting rods which I put inside the car). For reference I labeled the car ends ‘east’ & ‘west’ and the sides north and south. The ‘west’ end is closest to the restaurant, the ‘south’ side is by the driveway.

General:
The car is filled with racks and restaurant supplies. The roof is sealed, I saw no leaks. The fire alarm system is still hooked up. Hotel Engineering will likely salvage the fixtures. A piece of flex conduit exits thru the roof over the west end. The west end is tight against the platform and the roof of the station second floor is just overhead. Car body may need to shift slightly east when lifting although it may be OK going straight up.

Car end diaphragms around gangway:
The bellow-like diaphragms on each end should be pulled back into the car to prevent damage during shipment. If you push the in there a locking lever, however I’d recommend two ratchet straps are tightly pulled rope be applied to secure them from shaking free. There’s places to tie to either side of the diaphragm to grab handles on the coach.

Diamond plate between station platforms and coach:
Whoever put the plate in-between the platform and car first welded angle irons at 90 degree angle to the car and the diamond plate to that. In addition it is welded in a few places to the steel uprights that provide the side structure of the car. The plating goes around about 2/3 of each side of the car, I counted 28 places where the angle iron or diamond plate needs to be cut. The diamond plate is about ˝ from the car frame, cutting the angle irons about 1 or 1 1/2” from the car frame will allow the restoration folks to make the final close up cuts and grind. The diamond plate that is attached to the frame should be cut the same distance from the car to preserve the car frame. I made pointers to all the welds with white paint marker on the diamond plate.

The torchman should have a firewatch person & spray the car sides & bottom with water before cutting. (I didn’t see a hose bib but engineering said they could bring a hose if needed. There running water in the restaurant by the car). There’s some wooden footplate under the doors that needs to be left intact.

Trucks(Bogies):
The main pins that connect the bogies to the car body are in place but loose, there are no keepers through the slots in the bottom of the pins. (Possibly the car was put into place with the trucks first then lowering the body on). I was able to reach into the center of the bogie and push each pin up by hand. Neither truck appears to be welded to rails but could be rusted to it. There are sections of ˝” plate welded to the rails to block the eastern truck from moving. I was able to access three of the journal boxes lubricate. The woolen pads in the bottom where shot but I added Texaco HD57 “Journaltex” as much as possible. Referencing the diagram below that’s be journals 6 7 and 8.

West End

1 2
3 4
5 6
7 8

East End

All other journal boxes were in accessible. Journal # 6 felt perfect when I ran my hand under it

Buffers:
The east end hook between the buffers has an extension pole welded to it. A combination of plate, tube and square stock it, Steve Doughty wants that off because it extends beyond the buffers, I indicated places to cut it off, cutting through the ~ 4” round tube should be fine, leaving the part around the hook for the Brits to finish.

Brake line:
This runs along the exterior of the car, the place where it was exposed to the elements (northeast end) it is gone beyond repair and Steve says cut it off. The brackets that held that pip up have rusted away. However, leave in place the part under the east end where it connects to the brake line valve and flexible hose. This may cut easily with a Sawsall. *Be careful of any particulate matter in the insulation although it is wrapped already*.

Condition of wooden sides and doors:
The wooden doors are sagging and not perfectly fitting but seem tied on. There are makeshift locking bars applied to the insides of the doors. The middle door on the North side has more rot than most, and also there are two foot long sections to the right of that door that are not a structural problem but would benefit from cover if the car encounters rain being moved in England . When the car is cleared out it should be more evident if some reinforcement is needed to secure them for transit. An alternative is to ratchet strap them tightly together so prevent vibration.

Car underframe:
I removed the two connecting rods between the bogies and the brake fulcrums, labeled them and put them in the car. Each is about 9’ long. I separated the leather drive belt between the generator and the axle but the belt needs to be tied up to the bogie or removed and put in the coach.

The batteries are in place. Steve says to leave them here rather than pay the shipping. I couldn’t see what that would entail to remove them but the probably slide out. One battery compartment door is under the car, please put it in the car before closing it for shipment.

Lifting points:
It’s a wooden sided coach and needs to be lifted from the bottom frame only. There are two main beams running the length of the car –the outside sills. Looking at the east bogie I noted the wheels are 8’ apart, each 4’ from the center of the bolster(bolster is the pivot point). Besides the center bolster, the next crossways beam towards the center of the car is 88” from the bolster, however towards the car end it’s 72”.

With the components under the car attached: brake cylinder and pivot beam, battery box, the trucker should be prepared with cribbing to support the car on the truck under each bolster and have enough cribbing to keep those item clear—approx 24-30”.

Summary:

Torch cut: The extension on the east bogie hook, vacuum brake line, the angle iron and diamond plate
Lube: Journals 1-5
Tie down: Diaphragms, doors
R.I.P. Sir Winston Churchill

Randy Hees' report, 13th August 2007

I left home in San Mateo (near San Francisco Airport) at 1:30 am on Monday... picked up a friend and fellow member of our group, Woody Ballard, at 2:00, then south towards Los Angeles. We stopped for breakfast at the half way point about 4:30, saw sunrise as we hit the Tehachapi’s, and reached the City of Industry , and the car about 8:00 am. The forklifts had arrived but not yet been unloaded. Sam was already on site.

Initially things moved slowly, as the crew from Hulbert Bros brought in their job box, blocking, and trenching plates.

The crew distributed the plates, supported by crib work over the curbs and landscaping. There were many discussions… We determined where to place the straps to lift the car. Steel plates, added after the car was placed on site were cut to give access for the straps. More equipment was brought in (Hubert Bros. yard was located nearby, and many trips were made for additional material)

Hotel management, city officials and at least one City Council member dropped by. A photographer from Worldnews.com arrived and spent the day taking pictures. The local rail fan community was aware of the move, and showed up in force to watch.

The heavy forklifts were rigged with booms and stretcher bars. The transport truck was backed down the narrow lane. They needed to lift the read of the truck with the forklift using chains to align it with the car. More trench plate and blocking was setup. Straps were dropped under the car. Two of us climbed underneath and set the straps… We paused for a lunch break. Fortified we rejoined the effort, only to find the initial straps were too long. Straps were changes. Under the car we went again. All was ready.

We walked around the car for a final time. The hotel approved and the railing at the car end was cut off.

The lift was quick and simple, without drama (the best kind of lift)

The forklifts backed up on the trench plate, allowing the truck to be backed down under the car. The forklifts were shifted, and blocking was placed on the deck of the truck. The car was lowered. It was determined that the end steps and vacuum hose bracket needed to be removed to allow the car to be set down. We burned off the bolt heads, preserving the original parts. They were stowed in the car body along with a battery box door and two body steps found under the car.

As the crew tied the car down we took a look at the trucks, which rolled easily (at least when a pry bar was applied.)

With the car ties down, Woody and I left for points north at about 4:30. Sam, concerned about his flight and needing to visit a local client left. (he would later change his flight to a closer airport and get a chance to drop by to see the car after it was moved to the top of the hill) We stopped for a bite to eat at Philippe’s, across from the old Terminal Annex post office, then headed out. I dropped Woody off at his house about 11:00, and reached home about 11:30 (817 miles later). Sam, flying north had beaten us by about 2 hours.

12 hours later the car, on Tuesday morning, accompanied by a police escort and the Mayor of the City of Industry left for the Port of Long Beach and its appointment with a Southampton bound ship. It was a media event, covered on the local news.

Report from Sam Sause, 13th August

PS to Randy’s report - Good report Randy only editing I would make would be to emphasis more that the drama in moving this car was really lacking compared to the Pullman #14, but the weather was better. The operation on this one was almost struck like watching paint dry. After visiting my client for about 40 minutes I did go back to the hotel and managed to get a couple of good pics of both the bogies and the rail car after they had been relocated from the jobsite.. The hotel management peeps were in the process of getting a “shot” of the rail car sitting on the edge of the Eisenhower golf link to emphasize the Churchill and Ike relationship and will create a caption for the picture to point out the last “encounter” of Ike and Winnie>.

Delivery to the pier was all but routine. Tues morning the mayor with an entourage of press, hotel management peeps and city officials left with the Halbert Bros trucks carrying the bogies and the rail car. They were scheduled to leave at 10AM for a 1PM delivery appointment at the pier. Somehow they all did not manage to show up at the pier until 2:30 and the pier was ill prepared to provide the wood blocking to set the car on. In spite of all my talking to them several times last week and as late as Monday afternoon advising them they needed to supply blocking to set the car on they did not manage to make any advance preparations. They advised me not to worry as they had plenty of wood around the dock to set the car on. So I did not worry until this afternoon about 3PM when the pier advised me that they would be unable to off-load today. I got on the horn then to every one I had been talkkng to at the pier including my pier lift people and the pier super. I was really frantic there for an hour our so, but the wood was finally found and the rail car was placed on blocks. My lift company saved the day by scouting the pier for some wood big enough to handle the support. This wood is technically suppose to be furnished by the pier. The Terminal manager, Chris Harding, was extremely helpful through all the turmoil however and also thanks to him the trucks were not turned away at the gate.

The next surprise was that pier super almost refused to accept the load because their were cobwebs and spiders on the undercarriage. Again Chris came to our rescue to help work things out. The mayor’s presence may have influenced his actions a bit, but at any rate he Victoria (my contacat at the lift company) were the heroes of this saga and definitely saved the day. Chris did however but insists that the undercarriage be cleaned prior to loading to vessel as he is concerned that the UK dept of health would seriously object to the spiders and dirt on the undercarriage. He contacted a company he has worked with in the past that does this type of clean up and I will be talking to them tomorrow. The worse case scenario is that he could have rejected the the load and require it be cleaned prior to delivery.

The following photgraphs were taken on 13th August 2007

The following photgraphs were taken on 14th August 2007