Re: NNG - Santa Fe Southern just sold - news release

If you are in to the esoteric field of 'beer archaeology," I know approximately where you might find a buried boxcar load of Coors beer!

The Lamy to Santa Fe branch line crosses Avenida Vista Grande a few miles from our house. One day in the 1980s, Eldorado Volunteer Fire Department (which I started and was the fire chief) received a call to respond to the crossing for an unknown railroad problem. We were greeted there by the engineer of the train, who informed us that there had been a derailment which involved the boxcar. He asked us if we would stand by to protect the scene until law enforcement arrived.

We did so. It was probably the Santa Fe County, New Mexico, Sheriff's Department which responded, but perhaps it was the state police. Once law enforcement arrived, we started to leave, whereupon the engineer told me something which I clearly remember: He stated that railroad police were en-route. They would take over, prevent anyone not directly involved from entering the scene of the derailed car, and wait for the arrival of whatever contractor had been hired to handle the load of beer.

The most interesting thing the engineer told me was that, as Coors Beer had to be refrigerated, the contractor would excavate a large hole and bury the beer in it. I only know that the site is somewhere near the railroad tracks of what is now the Santa Fe Southern.