C&S 1006 Timeline, part 9: That Pesky Photo!

The following undated photo has been a conundrum to me.  When was it taken?  Below is some correspondence on this subject between me and Steve Schweighofer.  For clarity, we'll call this "Photo 3"

Theory 1 (Kurt)

So, do you think that [Photo 3] was the earliest of the 3 photos here?  This had been my original thesis because I thought the C&S just dumped the caboose.  It would make sense then that people then fixed it up and set it on boards and so forth.  This would make sense of why the steps are present and then gone, possibly to be refurbished before putting them back on.  

But, the C&S Railway Society makes a good point that the caboose was used on the scrap train between Silver Plume and Idaho Springs.  It must have been trucked to Silver Plume somehow.  Would the C&S have just dumped it in such an awful condition?  Certainly even the photos where it is on boards don’t show an impressive display, but it’s a far cry from the leaning-caboose-of-Pisa look.

Theory 2 (Steve)

Your photo 3, showing 1006 on the ground must have been taken between pulling up the tracks (1939?) and Perry’s 1941 photo, which is already on ties as also shown in your photos 1 & 2. Now, if your photo 3 is the oldest, why is there a newer-model car (1941 Chevy?) in the picture?  If it is a 1941 Chevy, then 1006 was placed on ties in 1941 and just before Perry’s photo.  If 1006 belongs to the city, there should be records of its relocation, which occurred sometime between 1941 and the 1970s, and probably shortly after 1956 when Interstate 70 was approved to be built west of Denver.  This likely would have involved the removal of the depot (and the caboose) and other structures to make way for I-70 and Silver Plume’s Water St.

Theory 3 (Kurt)

After reading the account of a Silver Plume resident that the caboose was delivered by a volunteer truck driver, I suspected that maybe this was the initial condition of the caboose after it's arrival in 1941 and before the town propped it up on ties and tidied it up.  However, the more persuasive argument comes next as Steve observes the background more clearly in the next comment:

Theory 4 (Steve)

I had trouble at first deciding where photo 3 fit in, until I realized which direction the photographer was facing. That photo was taken after the first move, possibly even right after the move and before the caboose was put up on rails.  Also notice the steps are not on, but only lying on the ground where they will be installed.  The caboose is facing east and the Chevy is parked near the front of the Buckley Brothers’ Store.  I know this location by the house visible over the top of the car and the mine dumps on the hill.  Compare these two pictures.  Also, the degree of fading of the herald more closely matches that of a July 1947 photo than that of a 1949-1950 photo.