Santa Fe 999624 – Caboose
This caboose was built in 1949 at the Santa Fe’s West Wichita, KS shops as AT&SF #2299, the second to last of the series 2201-2300 cabooses. As built, these cabooses rode on ASF Rude Control trucks, had a Duryea cushion underframe, a peaked roof like most metal boxcars, a full width cupola, and Morton steel roof walkways. They were commonly used in mainline service around the Santa Fe system.
In 1968 the Santa Fe rebuilt 37 of these cabooses for local and transfer yard service only, and their cupolas were painted yellow to denote them for this type of service. As one of those rebuilt #2299 was renumbered as #999624. Being a Class Ce-3 caboose, it had a boxcar-style angled roof, rather than a curved roof like our Class Ce-2 caboose, AT&SF #999359.
Cabooses were largely phased out in the 1980s, and #999624 was retired in 1982. The Santa Fe sold #999624 in 1983 to Ken Mitchell of Guthrie, OK. It sat on display at a location just south of Guthrie for many years, resting on a set of old CB&Q trucks. Ken’s son Mark Mitchell donated the caboose to the Oklahoma Railway Museum in 2018.
As of August 2019 it has been moved to the museum grounds and placed on a set of ATSF trucks, formerly under one of our Frisco cabooses. It is planned to restore the caboose to its as-built appearance. It is in rather good condition and surprisingly still has its original sash windows.
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