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  2. Photo: Watermelons In Livestock Car (Undated)

Re: Photo: Watermelons In Livestock Car (Undated)

Steve SANDIFER
 

You could always limit the use of the stock cars for watermelons to the month of May or June, then put them away until the next year.  

A lot of melons came out of Hempstead, TX and Luling, TX. Luling still has an annual celebration known as the “Watermelon Thump.”  http://newsite.watermelonthump.com/  Both of these were on the SP and the SP used stock cars for this purpose.

In researching my stock car book I found documentation about the construction of a siding and stock pen in Peters, TX, just north of Sealy, on the ATSF. The railroad later removed the stock chute when there had been no shipments of cattle for 6 years in order to reduce the taxable value but kept the siding because it was used to ship carloads of watermelons every year.

In 1955 the ICC reported that watermelons were the #4 product shipped in stock cars. But again, a very small number in comparison.

 

Cattle & Horses

261,100

61%

Hogs

102,600

24%

Sheep & Goats

58,400

14%

Watermelons

1,600

 

Brick and Tile

1,400

 

Sorghum grain

800

 

Ceramic sewer pipe

600

 

Tomatoes

300

 

Railroad ties

300

 

Total

427,100

 

 

J. Stephen Sandifer

 

From: main@RealSTMFC.groups.io <main@RealSTMFC.groups.io> On Behalf Of Jim Betz
Sent: Monday, May 30, 2022 10:50 AM
To: main@RealSTMFC.groups.io
Subject: Re: [RealSTMFC] Photo: Watermelons In Livestock Car (Undated)

 

 

 

 

 

Jim Dick,

  This is good stuff!

  Having said that ... if a few stock cars were used - wait for it - every year ... was it such a
stretch that it should be called "exceptional"?

  I agree with your conclusions in general.  And note that far too many of us will use what
was an every season exception to justify having a stock car being loaded with watermelons.
  My response to that is "those exceptions are OK ... but only if you have already modeled
the normal" ... and only if they are 'irregular enough on your layout'  It is easy to have too
many irregularities - they are 'neat" but may not end up with a "prototypical feel" and 
instead you risk being "that layout that is mostly the exceptional/irregular".

  ===>  Which, if that's what you are going for, is OK by me.

  I have a specific set of cars I call "the good stuff" which is full of every day/normal cars
that would be seen in my era  They are not only prototypical (meaning "normal") but
also are at least one cut above in terms of the accuracy and detail level.  And they are
all weathered - to different levels and for different parts of the country.  Since my
layout represents the PNW in the post War years ... cars common in Florida are 
much less likely to show up than cars common in the PNW.  This works - for me.

                                                                                         - Jim in the PNW 

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