SOU X358 Caboose

Believe it or not, this is where our standard gauge fixation all started! X358 was built in 1974 to monitor the rear end of freight trains on the Southern Railway. This being the Bay Window type, the crew would have to watch over the train using the bay windows slung over the sides of the car, since most freight cars were too tall to see over from the more accustomed rooftop cupola. X358 served the South well until 1991, when cabooses in general were being phased out in favor of Flashing Rear End Devices. The budding TCRM acquired this car in 1992, its first ever full size piece of rail equipment!