in case you may not know, it was the last car at the end of a train, usually it was a red or occasionally a yellow color which would be clearly noticed
this car was manned in order to monitor the train from that end for any issues, particularly in case an axle from one of the coal cars locks up and catches on fire
but i guess this feature was eliminated due to improvements in the wheel assemblies, or maybe because they had new electronic monitoring for the crews in the locomotives
if you are under the age of thirty, this may not have been general knowledge to you since the use of these cars were phased out sometime in the 1980's, now a red flashing light signifies the end of the train
you can see one of these cars parked near the city square just north of the Tennessee/Kentucky border in Guthrieβ there is just enough rail underneath to hold it braked in place
i think the rails once extended to the mainline and the car was trapped there when acetylene cutters terminated its route in either direction.
the men who rode it are now the ghosts of everlasting employment.
now we have thousands riding the caboose of their careers amidst red blaring lights that flash from all imaginable directionsβ
many of them sitting motionless upon routes that go nowhere...