Railroad car donated to train depot

Goffstown Editor — Wed, 15 Aug 2007 19:35:00 GMT

David Woodbury is going to have a great deal of empty space in his yard where he spent more than 12 years pouring his time and energy.

For Woodbury, 63, the train has left the station in a sense, something he is OK with.

After having the passenger car in his possession for 15 years, Woodbury has donated the 1907 piece to the Contoocook Riverway Association, where it was delivered early Monday to be put on public display.

When the New Boston resident came across an abandoned train car the late 1980s, it bothered him. He hated to see the historic train potentially rust away to nothing. After negotiating with the owner and the railway, Woodbury had the car delivered to him in 1992.

That was the easy part.

On top of his duties as a lawyer in Manchester, Woodbury began the restoration process based on original builder’s photographs of a similar car. The labor, as well as the story behind it were what drew Woodbury to the project.

“I have an interest in trains, but I also have an interest in historic preservation and woodworking, so those things kind of came together,” said Woodbury. “I had an academic interest, but I also had an interest in doing the work. It’s been a lot of fun over the years, teaching myself to do things and learning to use tools that I didn’t know how to before.”

Woodbury may not have always known exactly what he was doing, but he enjoyed the process nonetheless.

“I enjoyed working on it a lot. I’d try something to see if it worked, and if it didn’t work, I would try something different. There was a certain amount of trial and error,” he said.

With the restoration basically completed, Woodbury was just missing one thing – somewhere to put the train.

“In 2004, after I had done as much work on the car as I could do, the car was kind of just sitting there, and I didn’t have any plans to use it. People suggested a bowling alley or a restaurant, but those didn’t really appeal to me,” said Woodbury. “I wanted to give it to someone who could continue to improve it and display it so the public can have some enjoyment out of it. Luckily, I came across the Contoocook Riverway Association who had similar goals, and off we went.”

The train was moved by a crane and put on a flatbed in order to be delivered to Contoocook Village early Monday, Aug. 13, where it can now be viewed by anyone who wants to have a look at Woodbury’s finished project.

According to Woodbury, the Riverway Association will also be able to accomplish something he sees as very important.

“It’s very exciting for me because if something like this had not come along, then really, all of my work would have been wasted,” he said. “If you don’t keep maintaining these cars, they aren’t going to do well. A car like this can’t be let go for any amount of time before it starts to head downhill.”

Although he plans on keeping himself far from bored, Woodbury also said he doesn’t have anything near as big planned for the future.

“I have nothing in mind for a project like this because I don’t have the time or energy. I have a house that needs attention and a barn that needs work, so I am sure I am going to be able to keep busy,” he said with a laugh.

New Boston News : Contoocook

Railroad car donated to train depot