While looking for something else, which I did not find, I came upon a
list of perishable loads delivered to the B&O from the Wabash at
Decatur, IL, between April 13th and 23rd, 1951 destined to
Indianapolis. Hope it will be of interest to some.

While looking for something else, which I did not
find, I came upon a
list of perishable loads delivered to the B&O from
the Wabash at
Decatur, IL, between April 13th and 23rd, 1951
destined to
Indianapolis. Hope it will be of interest to some.

4/13 PFE 2698 Vegts
4/13 PFE 73087 Vegts
4/13 PFE 66779 Vegts
4/14 PFE 62605 Spuds
4/15 PFE 67017 Lettuce
4/15 PFE 98318 Spuds
4/15 PFE 7588 Carrots
4/15 PFE 68032 Lettuce
4/16 PFE 43022 Lettuce
4/16 MDT 23668 Lettuce
4/16 PFE 98538 Lettuce
4/17 PFE 66402 Carrots
4/17 MDT 7178 Onions
4/17 PFE 93742 Onions
4/18 PFE 38633 Can Gds
4/18 PFE 98413 Spuds
4/18 PFE 97992 Lettuce
4/18 PFE 96500 Spuds
4/18 PFE 3680 Lettuce
4/18 PFE 40658 Lettuce
4/19 PFE 61266 Spuds
4/19 PFE 4694 Spuds
4/19 NWX 70052 Can Gds
4/19 SFRD 34071 Lettuce
4/20 PFE 90355 Spuds
4/21 PFE 75355 Lettuce
4/21 PFE 66468 Spuds
4/21 PFE 2988 Lettuce
4/21 PFE 90355 Spuds
4/22 PFE 97736 Spuds
4/22 PFE 76111 Lettuce
4/22 PFE 64158 Spuds
4/22 ART 24467 Lettuce
4/23 PFE 42032 Carrots

Chet French
Dixon, IL

Chet,

Thanks for posting this. Very interesting. Any idea
how these were routed. UP to Council Bluffs? Were
these cars part of block dropped at Decatur from a
train going through to the east?

The Wabash forwarded a large number of perishable cars
to the ERIE at Huntington, IN, for movement east.

Chet French wrote

The Wabash forwarded a large number of perishable

cars

to the ERIE at Huntington, IN, for movement east.

This raises an interesting issue - Since Chicago was
notorious
for lengthy delays (2-3 days to get through the
interchanges) was
it a common practice among the eastern and
midwestern carriers to
exchange perishables at other locations where
connections got the
cars moving east sooner, rather than later?

For example, Huntington is shown 24 miles southwest
of Fort Wayne.
On that same line in Indiana, the Wabash crossed the
Monon, NYC,
NKP, PRR, ERIE, and B&O. I never thought about it
before, but would
Wabash have made most perishable connections via
these lesser
interchanges rather than via the big "gateway"
cities?

Tim O.

The Copeland Interchange Reports at Northwestern
University in Evanston
have numerous ones for both the Wabash & Erie
including the years
1954-1956. The Reports for the B&O, NKP and MONON
are less frequent. For
the Copeland list at Northwestern, go to the STMFC's
files and open up
the Copeland entry which was contributed by Earl
Tuson on 2/22/04.

While these Reports have only total loaded cars
received or delivered,
the volume of loaded cars may provide some idea of
the traffic flows.
The information is available if one goes looking for
it.

Tim Gilbert

Chet French wrote

The Wabash forwarded a large number of perishable cars
to the ERIE at Huntington, IN, for movement east.

This raises an interesting issue - Since Chicago was notorious
for lengthy delays (2-3 days to get through the interchanges) was
it a common practice among the eastern and midwestern carriers to
exchange perishables at other locations where connections got the
cars moving east sooner, rather than later?

For example, Huntington is shown 24 miles southwest of Fort Wayne.
On that same line in Indiana, the Wabash crossed the Monon, NYC,
NKP, PRR, ERIE, and B&O. I never thought about it before, but would
Wabash have made most perishable connections via these lesser
interchanges rather than via the big "gateway" cities?

--- In STMFC@..., Mike Aufderheide <mononinmonon@y...>
wrote:

Chet,

Thanks for posting this. Very interesting. Any idea
how these were routed. UP to Council Bluffs? Were
these cars part of block dropped at Decatur from a
train going through to the east?

Mike,

The larger amount of perishable traffic was received by the Wabash

Kansas City from the SP/CRIP and UP. Some cars were received at
Council Bluffs from the UP. All the cars arrived at Decatur on
trains 82, 90, and 98 from Kansas City. Cars received at Council
Bluffs would have been added to these trains at Moberly, Mo. There
was one exception, PFE 61266, Spuds, arrived at Decatur on train

from Chicago. The Wabash forwarded a large number of perishable

to the ERIE at Huntington, IN, for movement east.

I wouldn't put too much stock in the Chicago bottleneck theory as far as
perishables....
The CB&Q had strict shedules to drop eastbound reefers and livestock at the
IHB interchange at Congress Park. I believe the IHB forwarded the cars to
the NYC, NKP, etc.. with equal haste... an extra 2-3 days for produce, meat
(live or hanging) would not be tolerated by either the railroads or the
shippers...too much money at stake.
Charlie Vlk

The Santa Fe,
like PFE, avoided handing off perishable traffic to the Pennsy, which had
the nation's worst record for timely movement of perishables,

At 03:59 PM 1/20/2005, you wrote:

The Santa Fe,
like PFE, avoided handing off perishable traffic to the Pennsy, which had
the nation's worst record for timely movement of perishables,

In 1954, the Pennsy received 7,500 cars of perishables from the Chicago
Produce Terminal. Approximately 60,000 carloads of perishable traffic
eastbound were handled through the Dolton interchange with the IHB.

I wouldn't put too much stock in the Chicago bottleneck theory as

perishables....
The CB&Q had strict shedules to drop eastbound reefers and

IHB interchange at Congress Park. I believe the IHB forwarded the

the NYC, NKP, etc.. with equal haste... an extra 2-3 days for

(live or hanging) would not be tolerated by either the railroads or

shippers...too much money at stake.