For many years our equipment had been stored at a variety of locations—C.N.’s Thornton Yard, Terminal Avenue Yard, Cloverdale, Molson’s in East Vancouver, Dominion Bridge (now Bridges Studio), MacMillan Blodel’s Pacific Veneer on Braid Street and Canfor’s Fraser Mills. Plans to marshal all of the equipment with friendly access to North Vancouver and Squamish got underway in the fall of 1993. Several railcar "defects" had to be overcome, some minor, some requiring bypass hoses for the lack of brakes, special handling instructions and a great deal of cooperation from the railways, shop and operating crews.

On September 18,1993, Southern Railway of B.C. moved our Colonist Car 2514, bunk cars 71087 and 71089, cabooses 1817 and 1821, Great Northern 1090 and Ohio Crane 2055 and it’s borrowed 62 foot boom car C.N.666122 from Cloverdale to New Westminster for interchange to C.N. Thornton.

Several boxcars were added to the "hospital move" to increase braking efficiency on the Scott Hill. About this same time a Jordan Spreader, C.P. 404846 was donated and shipped from Calgary. Interchanged to C.N. and arriving at BC Rail in North Vancouver, the spreader was "bad ordered" due to age and returned to C.P. Coquitlam. C.P. completed the required improvements and the spreader was dispatched to Squamish.

In December the car British Columbia and display car Cowichan River were moved from VIA’s Coach yard to pick up our snow plough, C.N. 55365 on Terminal Avenue. These were dispatched to Squamish and were first to be moved into the museum site on May 1, 1994 behind locomotive P.G.E 561.

By May 28 all of the equipment at Thornton had been inspected and special handling bulletins were prepared. The cars were marshaled on Track PS68. The switch list read, from the head end, Open Car WCRX598, Coach 32, CN Diner 60603 (special handling, rear of train), G.N. Observation 1057, Coach 60505, Caboose PGE 1821, G.N. Observation 1090, Bunk Cars 71087 & 71089, Caboose P.G.E. 1817, Colonist Car 2514 (requested rear of train due to fragile wooden frame) and Combine CN 7186.

The Ohio Crane 2055 had been removed from the planned consist several days before due to a missing knuckle, we were now in a catch 22, the Transportation Department wanted the 62 foot flat car back in revenue service and it was laden with the crane boom. Agreement was reached to trail (rear of train) the crane behind C.N’s Caboose 79873 which had been added for braking efficiency. Our cabooses were also occupied to watch for any signs of trouble with the heritage cars. Engine CN 7048 headed the consist.

B.C. Rail’s Squamish/North Vancouver Switcher moved the cars to Squamish on Monday, June 6,1994 without the itinerant Crane and flat car. The Car Department rejected the trailing move because of the missing knuckle. We were still in a bind to return C.N.’s flat car. We searched several museums unsuccessfully in the Pacific Northwest for the unusual knuckle. As luck would have it , member Devon Generous met retired railway conductor, Gordon Sellers at the Pemberton Station Pub where the crane dilemma was discussed. During lunch, the Sellers gazed around at the station artifacts; he said "I think I have a solution for you crane knuckle problem"; pointing to an odd chunk of metal high on a beam. It was an old style "repair" knuckle, which proved to be a fit and a donation from the Pemberton Station Pub. The crane was shipped and the flat car returned to C.N.

Other cars and locomotive 16 were not shipped to Squamish from Molson’s until 1995. We owe a great deal to the employees and officers of the railways involved in these moves and a debt of gratitude for storage for many years; years when the vision of our railway heritage facility was only a dream.