LINCOLN, N.H. — The state of New Hampshire is looking to sell the Flying Yankee, the 1935 articulated New England streamliner built by Budd Co. for the Boston & Maine Railroad that is virtually identical to Burlington’s Pioneer Zephyr.
The Concord Monitor reports the state has issued a Request for Proposals for sale of the three-car trainset, which has long been at the Hobo Railroad in Lincoln, N.H., and has been the subject of failed restoration attempts both private and state-funded. Proposals are for “the relocation and encouraged restoration” of the trainset, and will be rated under a number of criteria addressing how they plan to handle preservation of the equipment. The buyer will have to sign “permanent restrictive covenants” regarding preservation and maintenance of the train at the time of closing; a document addressing those restrictions, along with other documents related to the potential sale, are available at the “Cultural Resources” page of the New Hampshire Department of Transportation website. Prospective buyers can view the train on Nov. 15 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., with components available for inspection from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
As described in the 2021 Classic Trains special issue, Burlington’s Zephyrs, the Flying Yankee was ordered just two months after the completion of the train that would come to be known as the Pioneer Zephyr in June 1934, and entered service as the Boston-Portland-Bangor, Maine, Flying Yankee on April 4, 1935. Unlike the Burlington streamliner, which included a Railway Post Office in the power car, the Boston & Maine trainset had coach seating in all three cars, as well as a baggage section, buffet, and solarium lounge. It operated on various New England routes until its retirement in 1957, after which it was displayed at the Edaville Railroad tourist line for 36 years.
It was moved to New Hampshire in 1993 as part of a restoration effort, was acquired by the state three years later, and moved again in 1997. But the restoration effort ran aground with the death of project leader Robert Morrell, and the train has been stored in Lincoln since 2005.
A nonprofit group formed in 1996 to support the restoration effort, the Flying Yankee Association, said Friday that it will apply to gain ownership of the train.
“The Flying Yankee Association is in a unique position, with both a dedicated team and strong partnerships, to ensure this beloved treasure not only remains true to history, but to have it ride down the tracks under its own power once again,” Brian LaPlant, the association’s chairman, said in a press release.
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