Caboose 562807 was built by the Wabash Railroad in its Decatur, Illinois, shops in 1948. After the Wabash merged into the Norfolk and Western Railroad in 1964, the caboose was renumbered on the Norfolk and Western’s equipment roster. During its service on the railroad, it operated in Ohio, West Virginia, Illinois, and ultimately Virginia. It was assigned to Norton, Virginia, in the early 1980s and made many trips into Appalachia and Andover. Retired, stored, and slated for scrapping, it was donated to the Town of Appalachia in 1988. Before telemetry devices were placed on the rear of trains, cabooses housed a train’s flagman and conductor. The flagman switched cars en route and protected the rear of a stopped train from following traffic. The conductor, the boss of the five-person train crew, was traditionally called captain or cap in recognition of his authority. Both crewmen usually rode in the cupola on top to keep a constant lookout over the train.