Investment a labor of love

Andrews Railroad enthusiasts Patricia Broughton and Lynn Hushion had a vision of a little red caboose nestled in the Smoky Mountains by the Valley River.

X256, as she’s known, has been dubbed Caboose Creek. The newest AirBnB in town is part of StationHouse Co-Hosting.

Hushion was bitten by the railroad bug at age 17.

“Just me and my guitar,” she said. “I left Connecticut and went west all by myself to every state in the country.”

Hushion’s love for trains and rail travel was deeply ingrained on that trip “because you go places cars can’t go, through mountains and valleys, places no one’s ever been before and it’s just really amazing.”

That freedom and access to the unknown parts of America led her to become a real estate agent. That way she could help others find hideaways in the Smoky Mountains.

Broughton had fallen in love with the history of the Iron Horse and its role in shaping the expansion and development of America.

“I was so intrigued with the history and knew we didn’t want to re-create a caboose look, we wanted something legitimately old,” Broughton said of yearning for authenticity with Caboose Creek.

That legitimate thing came to them from a gentleman in Carrollton, Ga., who had somehow procured X256 but let her languish around his own version of a home-grown rail-yard.

“She’d really just wasted away, and had to be completely gutted and restored,” Broughton said.

That restoration includes a carefully curated blend of modern touches with nostalgic pieces, including two new windows cut in to allow more light. The curious perch also known as the cupola allows plenty of room and light to flood the diminutive space, making reading time mandatory.

The spacious bedroom and bath with barn door enhance the rustic ambiance, and you can almost feel the car winding down the tracks although she’s grounded. Boutique touches such as period décor, a fire pit, WiFi and a spacious deck for outdoor enjoyment add to the caboose’s appeal.

Once they’d purchased both the property adjacent to the Valley River and sealed the deal on the caboose, plans to get her to her destination fell into place.

Broughton said instead of bringing her up on rails they had to find what’s called a “lowboy” – a specialized flatbed truck used for moving houses – the gentleman and his son were somewhat a pair of engineers. So they welded wheels onto her and brought her up from Georgia, then towed it with just the wheels on the back all the way.

“We had to put in the foundation and tracks first, which we’d purchased separately, and they had to set it perfectly upon the tracks or else she would’ve just tipped over because of her weight at 50,000 pounds. So it was like white knuckles watching them set her in place. But it was fun,” she said.

“You could say it all went off without a hitch,” she added with a laugh.

Hushion said, “It was a serious adventure, her traveling here, but great, so great, to see her perfectly in place.”

Manufactured in Reading, Penn., in 1933, X256 has a sister car, X255, which was used primarily on the Savannah-Atlanta line as quarters for the train crew on the tourist line route, according to Broughton’s research from historical societies and railroad registry departments. After the Southern Railroad took over the line, the little red caboose was used in Appalachia because its smaller size made it easier to turn around on mountain switchbacks.

X256 made her way trailing through north Georgia, Tennessee and Asheville, so landing in Andrews brings her back to the mountains of western North Carolina.

“She’s been all over these mountains making her rounds and is home now,” Broughton said proudly.

Once cabooses were no longer needed because crews didn’t have to stay overnight, or even need quarters to make lunches and dinners, they faded from rail fame and limelight. As electronic controls and computerized devices took over, trains crews were downsized, making the caboose obsolete.

Resurrecting this forgotten piece of American history has truly been a “labor of love,” both Broughton and Hushion passionately agree. The ladies look to offer the caboose to rail enthusiasts and curious experience seekers, helping expand the rental market in Andrews.

“We love being in this town. Andrews is something special, and we hope to help it grow,” Broughton said. “We both got here as fast we could, and after meeting and becoming friends, we knew we were onto something meaningful to share with both railroad lovers and the general public.”

When asked about the possibility of finding X256’s sister caboose to add as another rental to the site, the pair grinned conspiratorially and said “Great!” while Hushion added, “Yet another project. We love it. Challenge accepted.”