I can say that it was available in at least some form in the 50's.
The dump...err house (which dates to the early 50's not far from the
O&W Kingston branch - gotta get that STMFC connection somehow)...I'm
currently trying to make somewhat habitable was done with some form of
18" wide sheets of 1/2" thick gypsum board. Mostly paper backed, but
foil backed on the exterior walls (and of course, no insulation in
said walls). Some is also stamped that it's approved for use (can't
remember exact wording) in NYC meeting all applicable NYC and FD
codes. This was finished with a hardshell skim coat of plaster (and
I'd have expected lathe and plaster myself). As for shipping, or who
manufactured the stuff (unless it's marked on the side that was skim
coated I don't remember seeing any manufacturers markings) and where,
I'll have to defer to others. What surprised about it is that outside
of a neighbor or two to have experienced the same thing renovating
their houses, nobody I've talked to (including contractors) has ever
seen the stuff themselves. So I'm wondering if it was a regional
thing in the northeast, or of this would have been a nationwide
product being shuttled around in a myriad of otherwise unremarkable
boxcars?

Tim Barney

--- In STMFC@..., Don Worthy <don_worthy@...> wrote:

Hey fellows, I didn't think that "sheetrock" was around in the 40s

or even the early 50s. Here in the south, homes were still using the
plastered walls and ceilings. Also, during the 50s many homes and
company buildings were using beautiful "real" wood paneling.

So, I'm wondering "when" did "sheetrock" become a wide spread

product?? I have a feeling that it came around in the 60s. I know the
Kaolin companies made big advances in their field and Kaolin (chalk)
is 90% of sheetrock.

Don Worthy

Dennis Storzek <destorzek@...> wrote:
--- In STMFC@..., "espeeac12" <milesinniles@>

wrote:

How was Sheetrock (Drywall) Originally shipped by rail? When? I'm

going

to have a couple of sheetrock loads for my late 1940's-1959 era

layout.

Does anyone show pictures of this early operation? How was it

unloaded?

In boxcars, at least prior to WWII, when my dad was working as a
driver and yardman for various lumber yards in Chicago. The transition
to bulkhead flats came after the war, when plastic wrapping technology
advanced to the point where this moisture sensitive load could be
protected. When I see Dad later this week, I'll ask him when he saw
the first bulkhead flats.

Dennis






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