The little red caboose from Cooper Station made its way to its new home in Cabot alongside the Buffalo bike trail on Sept. 11. Tours will be offered this Saturday; a donation to the food bank at Cabot United Methodist Church is requested.

Tours of the World War II-era red caboose that was moved last month from Cellar Works Brewing on Route 356 to the Butler-Freeport Community Trail will be available Saturday.

Chris Ziegler, president of the trail association, said she and a crew of volunteers wiped down the inside of the caboose, but left its historical fixtures — which include seats, a toilet, a sink, a stove, a desk and a cupola — intact for viewing.

Thought to be built between 1939 and 1946 by the Lehigh Valley Railroad, the N-5G class caboose was purchased in 1994 by the late Saxonburg Mayor Reldon Cooper when he built Cooper Station Restaurant, now Cellar Works Brewing.

The caboose weighs about 36,000 pounds and was originally blue. Reldon Cooper had the caboose painted red to match Cooper Station Restaurant.

Ziegler and other trail volunteers involved with purchasing the caboose and having it carefully moved to its new home on 27 feet of train tracks set up along the trail to the north of the Cabot Trailhead on Winfield Road affectionately refer to the unique structure as “Cooper” to commemorate its years at Cooper's Station Restaurant.

Tours of the caboose will be available from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday.

Ziegler said volunteers will decorate the caboose for Halloween.

Butler-Freeport Community Trail shirts, stickers and memberships will be sold at the event.

While tours are free, Ziegler hopes participants will donate to the trail to help make up for the coronavirus-related cancellation of the Buffalo Creek Half Marathon, which is the trail association's largest annual fundraiser.

Money raised at the half marathon is used to maintain the trail all year long, Ziegler said.

Those planning to tour the caboose are asked to take nonperishable food items for the food bank at Cabot United Methodist Church.

The number of people inside the caboose will be limited, and hand sanitizer will be available during the tours Saturday.

Ziegler said the future use of the caboose will be determined over the winter by the trail board of directors.

Ideas bandied about so far include youth organizations selling ice cream and water to runners and cyclists on the trail to benefit their projects or a visitors center, where those using the trail could pick up a T-shirt or other item.

The decision on the function of the caboose will be announced in the spring, Ziegler said.