Photo: NYC Cincinnati Freight Yard (1954)


Bob Chaparro
 

Yes, even a museum got these reporting marks confused.
Bob Chaparro
Hemet, CA


Jack Mullen
 

On Thu, Nov 3, 2022 at 09:32 AM, Bruce Smith wrote:
The point was being made that the SLRX cars (aka Anheuser-Busch), seen in the photo of Cincy, were not noted in the NYC consists on the CASO (canadasouthern.com) site. Thus, they likely did not travel to/through Canada (as much).
Actually, the point I made about absence of SLRX cars in the CASO dataset had *nothing* to do with travel through Canada, because the trains in the dataset are from NYC lines around Toledo, Ohio, USofA. 

The canadasouthern.com website contains a ton of data relating to the parent NYC, including a huge set of consists mostly from the '40s and adjacent decades, geographically as previously mentioned.  As the website title suggests, the site does feature many cwt of things specific to the CaSo railway.  But no consist data from the Canadian side. There is a lot of other steam era freight car stuff. The site is well worth exploring, tho it can be hard to navigate.  Terry Link deserves a big thank you for collecting and sharing all this.

Jack Mullen


nyc3001 .
 
Edited

Ben, it wasn’t intended to be a threadjack; it was merely an observation (along with a few others) about the photo and the makeup of the cars therein.

The data aren’t only from the CASO railroad. Most of the data (46,000 cars) actually are from the Toledo and Lake divisions, much closer to the photo’s locale than the CASO. It was noteworthy to me that a database of 46,000 cars observed in only Ohio didn’t include even one SLRX car, but a single photo taken in a different part of Ohio had 3.

Jack’s answer regarding routing sounds reasonable.

-Phil


Benjamin Hom
 

Alex Schneider wrote:
"The scope of the CASO site is all NYC, notwithstanding the name."

...except as Bruce Smith pointed out, the observation that drove the threadjack you asked about stemmed specifically from CASO data.


Ben Hom


Alex Schneider
 

The scope of the CASO site is all NYC, notwithstanding the name. 

Alex Schneider


From: main@RealSTMFC.groups.io <main@RealSTMFC.groups.io> on behalf of Benjamin Hom <b.hom@...>
Sent: Thursday, November 3, 2022 11:33:23 AM
To: main@RealSTMFC.groups.io <main@realstmfc.groups.io>
Subject: Re: [RealSTMFC] Photo: NYC Cincinnati Freight Yard (1954)
 
Alex Schneider asked:
"...the photo was taken in Cincinnati. How would Canada be involved?"

Check upthread - there was a minor threadjack (triggered by the presence of a cut of St Louis Refrigerator Company reefers in the Cincinnati photo) speculating why the CASO data on Terry Link's website showed a lack of SLRX reefers.


Ben Hom


Benjamin Hom
 

Alex Schneider asked:
"...the photo was taken in Cincinnati. How would Canada be involved?"

Check upthread - there was a minor threadjack (triggered by the presence of a cut of St Louis Refrigerator Company reefers in the Cincinnati photo) speculating why the CASO data on Terry Link's website showed a lack of SLRX reefers.


Ben Hom


Bruce Smith
 

Alex,

The point was being made that the SLRX cars (aka Anheuser-Busch), seen in the photo of Cincy, were not noted in the NYC consists on the CASO (canadasouthern.com) site. Thus, they likely did not travel to/through Canada (as much). That has since stimulated a discussion of how RBs (insulated boxcars) carrying beer might have transited the northern NYC routing (through Canada).

You got to keep up man, the topic changes faster than the weather around here! ;)

Regards,
Bruce
Bruce Smith
Auburn, AL


Alex Schneider
 

Ken, the photo was taken in Cincinnati. How would Canada be involved?

Alex Schneider


From: main@RealSTMFC.groups.io <main@RealSTMFC.groups.io> on behalf of akerboomk <ken-akerboom@...>
Sent: Thursday, November 3, 2022 9:03:48 AM
To: main@RealSTMFC.groups.io <main@RealSTMFC.groups.io>
Subject: Re: [RealSTMFC] Photo: NYC Cincinnati Freight Yard (1954)
 
While I believe Jack's comment is probably the "real" answer...

Note also that SLRX would be carrying beer - an alcoholic product - there *may* have been "administrivia" issues going thru Canada (more paperwork)?
Anyone know if Milwaukee beer products went thru Canada?

--
Ken Akerboom


Philip Dove
 

Would car loads of Alcohol and the like have been sealed by a customs official to avoid delays if it was passed through Canada on a train that didn't stop in Canada? In the UK untaxed alcohol is overseen by a Customs officer and travels in sealed car loads called bonded goods, (good=freight) 


Philip Dove
 

The humidifier might speed up corrosion and decay of models. A lot of my stock is made of card, it warps in humidity. I might invite heavy smokers to operate the layout. 


akerboomk
 

While I believe Jack's comment is probably the "real" answer...

Note also that SLRX would be carrying beer - an alcoholic product - there *may* have been "administrivia" issues going thru Canada (more paperwork)?
Anyone know if Milwaukee beer products went thru Canada?

--
Ken Akerboom


Jack Mullen
 

On Wed, Nov 2, 2022 at 10:13 AM, nyc3001 . wrote:
Note that there are 3 SLRX insulated boxcars in the foreground. In the consists at canadasouthern.com, there isn't a single instance of a SLRX car recorded, which makes me wonder if the SLRX cars were confused with Swift (SRLX) cars.
Others have noted that confusion between SLRX and SRLX did occur in the real world. Also among model railroaders and perhaps manufacturers.
However, I don't think that has anything to do with the absence of SLRX in the large collection of consists at canadasouthern.com. All the SRLX loads reported have contents shown as some type of meat or related food product;  no beer or beverages.  Empties fall in the same number ranges as the loads, valid Swift number series. I think this eliminates significant reporting or transcription errors as the reason we don't find SLRX.

So why do we see many SRLX cars and no SLRX?  I think the explanation is routing.  The consists on the CASO site are NYC traffic, principally Toledo-area.  We get traffic moving in the Chicago-New York corridor, plus some more local Michigan/Ohio/Indiana stuff.  There's a lot of meat and  livestock going east from the Chicago area, Swift and other packers in the data.  SLRX loads, by contrast, would be originated in St Louis, and eastbounds would be likely to be routed through Cincinnati rather than via Toledo.  In short, the data is just collected from the wrong line segments to have a good chance to see SLRX traffic in this dataset. 

 Jack Mullen 


Steve and Barb Hile
 

Especially when they are next to one another in the train!  :>)

 

 

Steve Hile

 

From: main@RealSTMFC.groups.io [mailto:main@RealSTMFC.groups.io] On Behalf Of Douglas Harding
Sent: Wednesday, November 2, 2022 1:36 PM
To: main@RealSTMFC.groups.io
Subject: Re: [RealSTMFC] Photo: NYC Cincinnati Freight Yard (1954)

 

SLRX is the reporting marks of St Louis Refrigerator Car Company, the railroad of the Anheuser Busch company. There were hauling beer, ie Budweiser.

 

The reporting marks are often confused with those of Swift SRLX

 

Doug Harding

https://www.facebook.com/douglas.harding.3156/

Youtube: Douglas Harding Iowa Central Railroad

 

From: main@RealSTMFC.groups.io <main@RealSTMFC.groups.io> On Behalf Of nyc3001 .
Sent: Wednesday, November 2, 2022 12:13 PM
To: main@RealSTMFC.groups.io
Subject: Re: [RealSTMFC] Photo: NYC Cincinnati Freight Yard (1954)

 

Note that there are 3 SLRX insulated boxcars in the foreground. In the consists at canadasouthern.com, there isn't a single instance of a SLRX car recorded, which makes me wonder if the SLRX cars were confused with Swift (SRLX) cars. Incidentally, the Swift reefer in the foreground seems to be from the 3300 series, which was the largest series of Swift wood reefer.

It's also interesting how few Central cars are clearly visible in the shot. There is what appears to be one NYC Enterprise covered hopper in the same cut of cars as the SLRX insulated boxcars, and there's also what looks to be a Central PS-1(?) to the upper left. 

-Phil Lee


Dennis Storzek
 

On Wed, Nov 2, 2022 at 11:13 AM, nyc3001 . wrote:

It's also interesting how few Central cars are clearly visible in the shot.
But there is a Soo Line car, the next track over from the locomotive. :-)

Dennis Storzek


Douglas Harding
 

SLRX is the reporting marks of St Louis Refrigerator Car Company, the railroad of the Anheuser Busch company. There were hauling beer, ie Budweiser.

 

The reporting marks are often confused with those of Swift SRLX

 

Doug Harding

https://www.facebook.com/douglas.harding.3156/

Youtube: Douglas Harding Iowa Central Railroad

 

From: main@RealSTMFC.groups.io <main@RealSTMFC.groups.io> On Behalf Of nyc3001 .
Sent: Wednesday, November 2, 2022 12:13 PM
To: main@RealSTMFC.groups.io
Subject: Re: [RealSTMFC] Photo: NYC Cincinnati Freight Yard (1954)

 

Note that there are 3 SLRX insulated boxcars in the foreground. In the consists at canadasouthern.com, there isn't a single instance of a SLRX car recorded, which makes me wonder if the SLRX cars were confused with Swift (SRLX) cars. Incidentally, the Swift reefer in the foreground seems to be from the 3300 series, which was the largest series of Swift wood reefer.

It's also interesting how few Central cars are clearly visible in the shot. There is what appears to be one NYC Enterprise covered hopper in the same cut of cars as the SLRX insulated boxcars, and there's also what looks to be a Central PS-1(?) to the upper left. 

-Phil Lee


nyc3001 .
 

Note that there are 3 SLRX insulated boxcars in the foreground. In the consists at canadasouthern.com, there isn't a single instance of a SLRX car recorded, which makes me wonder if the SLRX cars were confused with Swift (SRLX) cars. Incidentally, the Swift reefer in the foreground seems to be from the 3300 series, which was the largest series of Swift wood reefer.

It's also interesting how few Central cars are clearly visible in the shot. There is what appears to be one NYC Enterprise covered hopper in the same cut of cars as the SLRX insulated boxcars, and there's also what looks to be a Central PS-1(?) to the upper left. 

-Phil Lee


Jim Betz
 

Phil,

  Is that "murk" or simply "fog"?  Perhaps a humidifier?  I model the PNW so I
could certainly use fog - more than occasionally - of course if I lay it in heavy
enough that you can't see the far end of the yard my crew would have to
work in heavy coats and hats with ear flaps ... hey, wait a minute ... that's
prototypical too.  Maybe we are missing something here - "dress for 
success" can take on a whole new meaning.  Besides, if you have fog
you don't need super-detailing!

  ===> Environmental Modeling.

  "Don't go to Jim's layout in the fall - he's that weirdo that models a foggy
morning in November - he turns down the heat and you'll freeze your butt
off and you'll have trouble reading the reporting marks.  Wear a heavy coat,
a hat, gloves, wool socks and heavy boots."

             - Jim in Burlington, Wa. (yes, it's 39 and foggy here this morning)

P.S. Wait Wait - I don't need no stinking humidifier - I can just open the door.


Noel Widdifield
 

That diagram was the Mystery Photo in the last issue of the NYCSHS NYCentral Modeler.
Thanks, Noel


Philip Dove
 

The track second from the right, is it gantlet track or what? The hopper car on the far end of the line starting with the Swift reefer has internal staining in a light shade, an interesting detail l have never seen modelled. How could we ever model that  polluted air murk? Next thing in DCC smell and smoke chips? Perhaps good old imagination will still have to fill in the unmodellable aspects on our model railroads. 


Hudson Leighton
 

Scale track on the lower right.

-Hudson