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UPDATED: Ladysmith locomotive moved into shed for safe keeping

Old Ladysmith locomotive moved into shop for restoration
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An old locomotive that forms an important part of Ladysmith’s history has been moved for the first time in several decades to its new home inside a shed on the heritage park grounds.

A tireless group of volunteers working under the umbrella of the Ladysmith & District Historical Society spent every Saturday rain or shine since 2015 to spike new railway ties in order to prepare for the day when the Comox Logging Company’s Locie #11 could be moved inside and permanently restored.

“I had no idea it would roll that easy. It took off on its own. It didn’t want to stay there,” said Harry Blackstaff, who spearheaded the project along with wife Shirley.

A couple dozen people gathered to see a front end loader carefully guide the locomotive along the tracks.

Shirley said she was nervous the morning of the move as many long hours had been contributed by volunteers in their 60s and 70s in getting to this point.

“We had to pull the old ties out and push the new ones in and this all had to be level and measured with a special tool to make sure it wasn’t going to fall off the track,” she said.

“Now we can get started on the restoration of the train, which is what we wanted to do, to the best of our ability.”

Harry is no stranger to the railroad industry and held various position over the years from car knocker all the way up to engineer.

It was in 2012 that he and Shirley, who recently received a Distinguished Service Award from Heritage BC, grew tired of watching helplessly as parts were stripped from the locomotive by vandals.

The couple decided to take their case to the town, Set on making sure the important piece of local history was not lost altogether.

“It’s our only big train left. All the others have been given away to Port Alberni and Cowichan Lake,” Shirley said.

The town obliged by leasing them space to begin work and a long term vision for the heritage park site next to the Machine Shop has started to unfold.

Alex Garvin was also a volunteer on the project and had previously worked with Pacific Northern Rail Contractors in Alberta.

“It was a lot of bow work and we had to check the gauge and the distance between the rails and in some places we had to pull them closer together or push them apart,” he said, describing the level of detail required to ensure Locie #11 was safe to move. “It’s great to see it now get some care. They’re disappearing and there’s a lot of history.”

The team will now continue their efforts inside the shed to sandblast the train and replace the missing parts. Their lease is also up for renewal next month.

“The idea is to get it cleaned and painted and make it look like it’s runnable , but it won’t be because it costs way to much,” Harry said.

Meanwhile, Shirley has created a slideshow of the project so far for visitors to watch.

She also has a vision for the shed where many hope the locomotive will remain permanently on display.

“I want to get this building restored. I think this is too unique of a building to tear down,” she said, adding that timbers have already been donated and they are now looking to replace the windows.

Harry even fished out a logging truck that went over the bank in the 1940s and has it back up and running.

He’d like to see the museum moved to the heritage park were the town’s history can be presented along with some of its largest artifacts.

“That’s the history of Ladysmith that could disappear and if we don’t keep it it will be gone,” he said.

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