Charles S. Purinton

"Charles" Purinton was the son of IBLS founder "Carl" Purinton.

Running at W. H. Nichols Track

From Critical Past:

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  Charlie as engineering in film from Waltham, Mass 1932

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  Charlie S. Purinton running W. H. Nichols' locomotive.

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Children seated on a small locomotive at a mini railroad station in Waltham, Massachusetts.

This railroad was built as a hobby by Mr. W. H. Nichols at his Nichols Machine Company in 
Waltham, Mass. Mr. Nichols was a pioneer in the hobby of building "live steam" locomotives. 
He built a multi-gauge track at his factory and hosted "meets" of the Boston Society of Model 
Engineers. The film clip shows his 7-1/4" gauge locomotive "Ella Cinders" pulling a trainload 
of people around the track. The locomotive was copied after one that Mr. Nichols remembered 
from his home in Canada on the Hamilton & Dundas Railway. The prototype was a "dummy" locomotive 
which had a streetcar type body built over the boiler. Mr. Nichols never finished that part, 
and ran the miniature locomotive with no cab at all. The model still exists, and is owned by 
decendents of Mr. Nichols. It was still operable into the 1990s, and is scheduled for a rebuild 
in the near future. The boy in the close-up and running the train in the film is Charles S. Purinton. 
"Charlie" was the son of the late Charles A. "Carl" Purinton, founder of the Brotherhood of Live 
Steamers and that group's secretary for many years. Carl built and operated many model steam 
locomotives over the years until his death at 101 in February, 1999. Charlie also was an avid 
live steamer and locomotive builder who constructed many model engines. He passed away in 
November, 2010. The man seen working on the engine in the film clip is W. H. Nichols himself.

Obituary

From The Steaming Priest:

AMESBURY, MA — Charles S. Purinton, 88, of Amesbury, and formerly of Byfield, died Thursday, Nov. 11, 2010 at the Country Manor Nursing Home in Newburyport.. He was the husband of Barbara (Sweet) Purinton.

Mr. Purinton was born in Boston on July 22, 1922, son of the late Charles A. and Mary Russell Watson Purinton. Charles graduated from Wentworth Institute and was a World War II veteran serving with the U.S. Navy. Charles retired from Sylvania as a machinist. He was a member of the Northeast Live Steamers Club and enjoyed designing, building and running steam locomotives.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by his three children and their spouses, Charles A. and Jane Purinton of Salisbury,. Nancy P. and Thomas Cuff of Frederick, Md., and Sarah P. and Michael Lord of Rowley; also a sister, Harriot “Bunny” Nutter of Topsfield; three grandchildren, Aisha L. McKibben and Zachary W. Purinton, Chad H. Lord; and two great-grandchildren, Hannah and Vianne Lord.