Lionel Coal Elevators
All information and trains supplied by Russ MacNair unless otherwise noted
Lionel No. 97 Coal Elevator, postwar
Lionel No. 96 Coal Elevator
General Information
The Lionel No. 96 Coal Elevator was introduced in 1938 and was cataloged through 1940. The No. 96 Coal Elevator has a rectangular black Bakelite base, hinged Bakelite coal receiving bin, aluminum painted tower, elevated cream painted coal bunker, red roof, windows and two-piece ladder and a black chute at the top of the tower on the opposite side from the receiving bin. The coal conveyor with black buckets mounted on a chain is enclosed in an angular steel girder box. The endless chain conveyor is operated by a manually operated hand crank which carries the coal from the receiving bin to the bunker. Although not stated in the catalog, the outer edge of crank wheel has a groove that would enable the crank to be operated automatically by a belt attached to a remote electric motor.
The coal in the bunker is released by a solenoid-actuated remote control dumping mechanism. In operation, the coal elevator is designed to be located between straight tracks located 15-inches apart. An operating coal dump car unloads coal into the receiving bin, the coal is conveyed to the bunker and is then released to a waiting coal car on the opposite track. The unloading operation is controlled by a No. 96C Control Button. Included with the coal elevator was a No. 207 Bag of Artificial coal. The base of the coal elevator measures 11 ½-inches long by 6-inches wide and the coal elevator is 12-inches tall.
The No. 96 Coal Elevator is the manually operated version of the No. 97 Motorized Coal Elevator described below. Both the No. 96 and No. 97 Coal Elevators utilize the same Bakelite base and neither number appears on the base. There are no variations of the No. 96 Coal Elevator.
Lionel No. 96 Coal Elevator
1. No. 96 Coal Elevator with black base, aluminum painted tower and conveyor girder box and cream bunker with red roof (1938-1940).
Lionel No. 97 Coal Elevator
General Information
The Lionel No. 97 Coal Elevator was introduced in 1938 and was cataloged through 1942. The coal elevator was also carried over to the postwar period from 1946 -1950. The No. 97 Coal Elevator has a rectangular black Bakelite base, hinged Bakelite coal receiving bin, aluminum painted tower, elevated cream painted coal bunker, red roof, windows and two-piece ladder and a black chute at the top of the tower on the opposite side from the receiving bin. The coal conveyor with black buckets mounted on a chain is enclosed in an angular steel girder box. The endless chain conveyor is operated by a motor located beneath the base which carries the coal from the receiving bin to the bunker.
The coal in the bunker is released by a solenoid-actuated remote control dumping mechanism. In operation, the coal elevator is designed to be located between straight tracks located 15-inches apart. An operating coal dump car unloads coal into the receiving bin, the coal is conveyed to the bunker and is then released to a waiting coal car on the opposite track. The unloading operation is controlled by a No. 97C Controller. The controller has a knob which activates the conveyor and a button to release the coal in the bunker. Included with the coal elevator was a No. 207 Bag of Artificial coal. The base of the coal elevator measures 11 ½-inches long by 6-inches wide and the coal elevator is 12-inches tall.
The No. 97 Coal Elevator is the motorized version of the No. 96 Coal Elevator described above. Both the No. 96 and No. 97 Coal Elevators utilize the same Bakelite base and neither number appears on the base. The only variation of the No. 97 Coal Elevator is that the aluminum components of the coal loader were painted gray in 1942. The postwar version of the No. 97 Coal Elevator is identical to the prewar variation with aluminum painted tower and conveyor housing.
Lionel No. 97 Coal Elevator
PHOTOS NEEDED
3. No. 97 Coal Elevator Instruction Sheet Form 97-60 Dated 11-38
4. No. 97 Coal Elevator Instruction Sheet Form 97-60 Dated 3-41 with Different Showroom Addresses
1. No. 97 Coal Elevator with black base, aluminum painted tower and conveyor girder box and cream bunker with red roof (1938-1941).
2. No. 97 Coal Elevator with black base, gray tower and conveyor girder box and cream bunker with red roof (1942).
PHOTOS NEEDED
3. No. 97 Coal Elevator Instruction Sheet Form 97-60 Dated 11-38
4. No. 97 Coal Elevator Instruction Sheet Form 97-60 Dated 3-41 with Different Showroom Addresses
Lionel No. 97 Coal Elevator (Postwar) 1946 – 1950
3. No. 97 Coal Elevator Instruction Sheet Form 97-60 Dated 3-48
4. No. 97 Coal Elevator 1947 Box with “New York, Chicago and San Francisco”.
5. No. 97 Coal Elevator 1948 Box with “New York and Chicago”.
1. No. 97 Coal Elevator with black base, aluminum painted tower and conveyor girder box and cream bunker with red roof (1946-1950).
2. No. 97 Coal Elevator with black base, aluminum painted tower and conveyor girder box and cream bunker with red roof (1946-1950). This example has a brown speckled Bakelite coal receiving bin.
3. No. 97 Coal Elevator Instruction Sheet Form 97-60 Dated 3-48
4. No. 97 Coal Elevator 1947 Box with “New York, Chicago and San Francisco”.
5. No. 97 Coal Elevator 1948 Box with “New York and Chicago”.
Lionel No. 98 Coal Bunker
General Information
The Lionel No. 98 Coal Bunker was introduced in 1939 and was cataloged through 1940. The No. 98 Coal Bunker has a rectangular black steel base, aluminum painted tower, elevated cream painted coal bunker with loading chute, red roof, windows and two-piece ladder and a black chute at the top of the tower. The No. Coal Bunker does not have a coal conveyor. Coal is manually loaded into the bunker using the loading chute. The coal in the bunker is released by a solenoid-actuated remote control dumping mechanism. The unloading operation is controlled by a No. 96C Control Button. Included with the coal bunker was a No. 207 Bag of Artificial coal. The base of the coal bunker measures 6-inches long by 4 3/4-inches wide and the coal bunker is 12-inches tall.
The No. 98 Coal Bunker has a nickel plate on the base with “No. 98 Coal House”. Interestingly, Lionel never refers to this accessory as a “Coal House”. All references in the catalog refer to it as a coal bunker. There are no variations of the No. 98 Coal Bunker.
Lionel No. 98 Coal Bunker
1. No. 98 Coal Bunker with black base, aluminum painted tower and cream bunker with red roof (1939-1940).
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