berk #1223

[wally's C&O]

visited berk #1223 "pere marquette" this past week. one thing , the builders plate was missing by the smoke stack. . any reason why this is missing. pretty important thing to not have. oh 1223 is in grand haven mich.

[CShaveRR]

Isn't Grand Haven a neat place? I may be slightly prejudiced; it's where I grew up.

The 1223 is in pretty good condition for being out in the open. The plate may have been removed during a repainting. I'd personally favor putting a replica plate on it and storing the real ones (Lima, by the way) on a unit that's so accessible. But talk about an engine that now sits where it never ran in real life--not only was this the GTW yard, but I doubt that PM ever ran anything bigger than Mikes on its line north out of Holland to Muskegon and beyond.

I hope nobody stole it!

[CShaveRR]

Pat and I paid a visit to the 1223 yesterday. It's fenced in (probably open when somebody is around to show things off), and it has not been recently painted (it looks pretty good, except for some rust spots and flaking paint in places). But I couldn't see any telltale marks to suggest that the plates were recently removed. I'll bet they've been gone for a while, and that there's nothing sinister about their disappearance.

One disappointment--the GTW concrete coaling tower near the 1223 is no longer safe to be near, due to falling concrete. I don't know how one would go about shoring up a hulk like that. I fear that it may have to be knocked down sometime in the future.

[wally's C&O]

the gate on the berk was left open the next day i returned. hmmmmmmmm. the lock was bent enough that it barely closes.  got some nice pics sitting on the front.  :)