The Illinois Central had several thousand "GS" gons equipped
w/Dreadnaught ends.

That's something I didn't know... did they ever run east of Chicago? And
how long did they last?
Andy

Roughly? All-steel GS gons lasted on the IC from 1912 to about 1985. The last time I saw one with shiny wheels was in 2006 (part of the KB&S' MOW fleet). They were renumbered numerous times, and rebuilt bunches of times as well (solid bottom, container, woodchip service, etc).

To be a bit more precise, the IC started using Dreadnaught ends on composite GS gons in 1927, and on all-steel cars in 1940.

The IC was the 10th largest railroad in the United States in the 1950s, one of the most profitable, hauled as much coal as the L&N, and served the third largest city/industrial area in the country. Think their cars might have gotten around a bit?

Ray Breyer
Elgin, IL