Message: 2 Date: Sun, 19 Jun 2005 11:32:21 -0400 From: "Schuyler Larrabee" <schuyler.larrabee@verizon.net> Subject: RE: Stock car end doors
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----- Original Message ----- From: Rupert and Maureen To: STMFC@yahoogroups.com Sent: Saturday, June 18, 2005 10:02 PM Subject: [STMFC] Stock car end doors
Most of the CB&Q stock cars are shown in 1925-7 ORER's as having an upper door 2 ft x 3 ft at one end and a rail door 22 1/2 inches x 14 3/4 inches both ends. The upper door was the same size as those on box cars, and has been referred to previously as "lumber loading". The rail door appears in diagrams to be simply a small panel sliding on rails mounted vertically on either side. Up till 1925, almost all the stock cars were shown as having only the "lumber doors", although #64500-649999 (class SM-8 built 1907) were shown as having rail doors from the beginning. Does anyone know what was the purpose of the rail doors? Was it perhaps for hosing out the cars after the stock had been unloaded?
Like the lumber doors used for loading and unloading long pieces of lumber into the cars (by hand, one piece at a time), Rail Doors were for loading and unloading lengths of rail. They would be located at floor level.
Neither job sounds like fun but given the cheap cost of labour in those times, allowed for more use of the stock cars.
