History is where you find it!
Thirty odd years ago while visiting the Bitter Creek and Western Railroad near Arroyo Grande, CA I engaged in a casual conversation and the subject of an Alaska Railroad headlight came up. One of those fantasy stories of NEW/OLD inventory lost in a time warp, it was in private hands still in the original box addressed to Alaska Railroad. Traveling with my then young family, I had no time to pursue the story.
Years go by. January 2023, and I receive this email message.
“I called you regarding assistance on placing this head light with a museum that has a scope of collection including the Alaska Railroad, AND, that museum will appropriately display it along with other small three dimensional artifacts. Basically, a museum that focuses on the Alaska Railroad. I don't want this wonderful headlight to get lost is a very general "everything railroad" type of situation. Additionally, look at the shipping crate photos. The crate definitely needs to be displayed with the headlight. The original and marked crate raises the historic value of the headlight many times. Notice the Seattle ship to address, the Pyle National sender info. with the model of light number. Lastly, notice the hand written 'Alaska Railroad" on the crate side. Absolutely wonderful artifact with massive provenance!”
“The headlight is brand new old stock never delivered. It is made of stamped sheet metal, not the heavy cast case of modern Pyle lights. It is an electric light and the glass lens is convex, bulges outward.”
“This headlight does not fit our collection and it needs to go to Alaska (it never arrived there). I know you are the right person to talk to and ask assistance from.”
Brad LaRose, Curator
San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum
(805) 550-1836
bradlarose72@gmail.com
I sent a proposal on behalf of Engine 557 to accept and maintain the Headlight and the shipping case for exhibit in the Engine House. The arrangement was accepted and Brad LaRose responded promptly.
“I am cc'ing this email to our Exhibits Committee Chairperson, Gary See. I want him to be on board with this discussion. As curator of our museum, I am satisfied with your proposal. I do think your 557 organization is the proper home for the light. Now that I am comfortable with this idea, I need to present it to my board of directors and give the shipping to Kent, WA. price estimate. That may happen at the next board meeting on 2-14-2023. I do need to deaccession the light, no Alaska artifacts fit into our collections policy scope. Additionally, I need the space for a diesel exhibit (I hate that I even have to use the term diesel, I mean diseasel). I will remind my board they already approved the diesel exhibit several years ago, so...I will get working on this process.”
Arrangements were made for transportation by Karl Hovanits from San Louis Obispo to Fife, Washington, where it would be turned over to our freight forwarder, Lynden Transport. Karl was driving right by Fife on his way to a speeder reunion on the WP&Y in Skagway, Alaska. Talk about the stars or rails aligning!
Brad followed up with this message.
“Several weeks ago, I was able to remove the headlight from the top of a tall exhibit cabinet. It has been on that cabinet performing light duties for many years. I am glad I came up with the idea to contact you and your organization and was able to convince our board of directors to deaccession it to your organization. Last Tuesday at our board meeting, I loaded it into Karl Hovanitz's car and he will be placing the headlight and its original packing into a larger crate with plenty of packing material. I don't have a time line on when Karl will take it with him to the Seattle area, however, I guess within the next several months.”
“Take good care of the light and especially the original crate, this is a one of a kind exhibit, truly Alaska history. It will finally reach its destination!”
Brad LaRose, Curator
San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum
Karl acquired the Bitter Creek and Western Railroad back in 1999 and we have crossed friendly tracks over the years going all the way back to when he brought tour buses to Alaska. He was able to provide these bits of history on the travels of the headlight. “I remember a history that goes back about thirty years. It was in the garage of an 'O' scale modeler in Oxnard I visited with a co-founder of our San Luis Obispo Museum, John Marchetti. They had been friends in the hobby for many years, and both made O scale car kits for sale, mostly Rio Grande narrow gauge.”
“Upon the death of the Oxnard modeler, most of the scale and full size items went to John Marchetti. This was around twenty years ago. John Marchetti, while he was on the board of the San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum, (And I think while he was president at that time too) then gave it to the SLORRM. It went into the museum hall when it opened. When I saw the printed markings with Alaska Railroad, and on the other side, the ship to address, I contacted you. That was nine years ago. The Board was not interested in parting with it at that time.”
The actual history on why the headlight never completed it's delivery 80 or more years ago may never be known.
Here is special recognition to those who have contributed to this historic acquisition for Engine 557.
Brad LaRose, Curator
San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum
(805) 550-1836
bradlarose72@gmail.com
Karl Hovanitz
San Luis Obispo CA
silverado@thegrid.net
Jim and Vic Jansen
Lynden Transportation
The box arrived at the Lynden Terminal in Anchorage for pick up August 8, 2023.
Karl built a super snug shipping box to protect the original crate. Head light in a box, in a box. label reads:
THE PYLE NATIONAL COMPANY
Chicago, ILL. NO. 53C
Shipping containers were produced by RATHBORNE. HAIR & RIDGEWAY Sawmill and box factory of Cass Lake, Minnesota. Their stencil logo appears at several locations on the box.
SUPERSTRONG SHIPPING CONTAINERS RATHBORNE HAIR & RIDGEWAY CO. CHICAGO, USA.
The opposite side reads.
FSS ALASKA WAREHOUSE
MARGINAL WAY, SEATTLE, WA
“ALASKA RAILROAD” is scrawled on the box in large Cursive letters.
There are no dates anywhere . No PO number. No attention line.
FSS (Federal Supply Service) I believe is the fore runner of GSA and that part makes sense. Trying to figure out about when this was originally shipped. During the Depression? Pre or Post WWII?
Comments from Jim Blasingame, retired ARR VP
“This is a very interesting artifact and it brings a lot to my recollection when in the late 1960’s and 70’s the ALASKA Railroad was required to obtain all of its parts and equipment through the GSA in Federal Way, Washington. I was dispatched to that Region 10 in Federal Way WA. to work out arrangements with that organization whereby the ARR would - - order everything through that region and the GSA was required to stock certain pieces of equipment which the ARR WOULD use more often…..”
“It’s possible that article may have been something that the GSA ordered and kept in stock as a vital piece . The ARR provided a list of parts and pieces of equipment that were ordered and stocked but the GSA took it upon themselves to add pieces of equipment in stock unbeknown to the ARR.”
“In the 1930’s the ARR had an office in Chicago to provide logistical assistance to move equipment and other materials to the Railroad in Alaska. That Office has since been superseded with an existing office on Marginal Way in Seattle that’s still operating today.”
James B. Blasingame, ARRC Retired
Anchorage, Alaska
Conjecture is that the headlight sat in GSA Seattle inventory until declared surplus at some point and was likely sold off at auction. We may never know more, but if you can add to the provenance please let us know.
