A Brief History

The Casey Jones was built by Clyde Jones in the shop of the Sunnyside Mine in Eureka, CO. He used a Maxwell motor and assorted parts laying around including what may have been part of the former Stover Railbus.

It was originally intended to serve as an ambulance to get those in need of a doctor from the mine area down to Silverton, a distance of 8 miles, which by rail only took 20 minutes but by wagon it would be a measurably longer trip. Even though it was intended for emergencies, it was also used by the mine foreman for social occasions where he needed to be in Silverton, which probably partially explains how Clyde was able to build it in the first place.

It was originally designed to seat 11 passengers and the “steering wheel was really a brake wheel since the 4 wheel front truck did all of the steering necessary.

The first public mention of its existence was made in the newspaper, the “Silverton Standard” in the summer of 1915.

Casey Jones was used so much that eventually it was involved in enough accidents that it was necessary to rebuild it. In this rebuild, it was equipped with a more powerful Cadillac Motor, transmission, drive shaft and differential to replace the original ones.

By 1929 Casey was ready for yet another rebuilding. It received a new body built by Hans Tanstad of the Eureka carpenter shop which among other things, provided room for 12 passengers to sit which is the final form it is now.

A feature often overlooked by modelers and manufacturers is the side window spacing. The first window behind the door is a single one then there are two pairs behind it. The spacing between the windows of each pair and between the pairs is not identical as is most often modeled incorrectly.

This car is on now on display in Silverton, Colorado as one of the many exhibits of the San Juan County Historical Society.