On August
18, 1918, the United States Railway Administration announced that
the SFRD (Despatch) would be under Federal control of the USRA effective January 1, 1919. Subsequently,
the United States Railway Administration eliminated Santa Fe Refrigerator
Despatch on that date. USRA took control of SFRD (Despatch) cars with the
operation of the cars remaining under the Santa Fe Railway.
The Santa Fe
immediately reorganized Despatch, which was a separate company, as the Santa Fe Refrigerator Department, a department of
the railroad, thus allowing more control of the refrigerator cars and
operations as allowed under the USRA. SFRD then stood for Santa Fe Refrigerator
Department.
As late as 1924 (six years after the “D” stood for
Department) the Official Railway Equipment Registers SFRD reporting marks were
still listed as Santa Fe Refrigerator DESPATCH.The Registers had not caught up with the official change.
