Stock car (rail)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5c/Pullman_Livestock_Car_late_1800s.jpg/300px-Pullman_Livestock_Car_late_1800s.jpg)
In
Initial use and development
Rail cars have been used to transport livestock since the 1830s. The first shipments in the United States were made via the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in general purpose, open-topped cars with semi-open sides.[1] Thereafter, and until 1860, the majority of shipments were made in conventional boxcars that had been fitted with open-structured iron-barred doors for ventilation. Some railroads constructed "combination" cars that could be utilized for carrying both live animals as well as conventional freight loads.[2]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Santa_Fe_stock_car_train_rev.jpg/300px-Santa_Fe_stock_car_train_rev.jpg)
Getting food animals to market required herds to be driven hundreds of miles to
The suffering of animals in transit as a result of hunger, thirst, and injury, was considered by many to be inherent to the shipping process, as was the loss in weight during shipment. A certain percentage of animal deaths on the way to market was even considered normal (6% for cattle and 9% for sheep on average, according to a congressional inquiry[3][4]), and carcasses of dead animals were often disposed of along the tracks to be devoured by scavengers, though some were sold to glue factories or unscrupulous butchers. Increased train speeds reduced overall transit times, though not enough to offset the deleterious conditions the animals were forced to endure.
Some of the early railroad companies attempted to alleviate the problems by adding
... Wishes of attendants regarding care of livestock should be ascertained and assistance rendered in caring for such shipments. ... In absence of special instructions, hog shipments should be watered as necessary. Particular attention must be given to stock unaccompanied by attendants."[6]
However, even with livestock handlers and faster schedules, many stock cars were still listed on company rosters with open roofs and very little in the way of improved conditions for the livestock themselves.[7] Most railroads resisted the call for as long as possible from shippers for improvements to cars specifically designed to carry livestock. The railroads generally preferred to use standard boxcars because that type of car proved much more versatile in the number of different types of loads it could carry.[8]
When the railroads and cattle industry failed to act quickly enough to correct these perceived deficiencies, the government and even the general public went into action. Claims were made that the meat of neglected animals was unfit for human consumption.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Pat106887_diagram.png/300px-Pat106887_diagram.png)
The first patented stock car designs that actually saw use on American railroads were created by Zadok Street. Street's designs (U.S. patent 106,887 and U.S. patent 106,888, both issued on August 30, 1870) were first used in 1870 on shipments between
In 1880, American railroads rostered around 28,600 stock cars. With the innovations developed by Mather, Hicks and others, this number nearly doubled in 1890 to 57,300, and was nearly tripled in 1910 to 78,800.[14] During this period, the cars' capacities also increased. In the 1870s few stock cars were built longer than 28 ft (8.53 m), and could carry about 10 short tons (9.1 t; 8.9 long tons) of stock. Car lengths increased to an average of 34 ft (10.36 m) in the 1880s and stock cars of this period regularly carried 20 short tons (18.1 t; 17.9 long tons) of stock.[15]
Certain costly inefficiencies were inherent in the process of transporting live animals by rail, particularly because some sixty percent of the animal's mass is composed of inedible matter. Even after the humane advances cited above were put into common practice, many animals weakened by the long drive died in transit, further increasing the per-unit shipping cost. The ultimate solution to these problems was to devise a method to ship dressed meats from regional packing plants to the East Coast markets in the form of a
Refrigerated cars
A number of attempts were made during the mid-19th century to ship agricultural products via rail car. In 1857, the first consignment of dressed beef was carried in ordinary boxcars retrofitted with bins filled with ice. Detroit's William Davis patented a refrigerator car that employed metal racks to suspend the carcasses above a frozen mixture of ice and salt. He sold the design in 1868 to George Hammond, a Chicago meatpacker, who built a set of cars to transport his products to Boston.
In 1878,
In response, Swift financed the initial production run on his own, then—when the American roads refused his business—he contracted with the Grand Trunk Railway (who derived little income from transporting live cattle) to haul the cars into Michigan and then eastward through Canada. In 1880 the Peninsular Car Company (subsequently purchased by ACF) delivered to Swift the first of these units, and the Swift Refrigerator Line (SRL) was created. Within a year the Line's roster had risen to nearly 200 units, and Swift was transporting an average of 3,000 carcasses a week to Boston. Competing firms such as Armour and Company quickly followed suit.
Live cattle and dressed beef deliveries to New York (short tons):[16]
(Stock Cars) | (Refrigerator Cars) | |
Year | Live Cattle | Dressed Beef |
1882 | 366,487 | 2,633 |
1883 | 392,095 | 16,365 |
1884 | 328,220 | 34,956 |
1885 | 337,820 | 53,344 |
1886 | 280,184 | 69,769 |
The subject cars travelled on the Erie, Lackawanna, New York Central, and Pennsylvania railroads.
Specialized applications
Horse cars
For many decades, racehorse owners regarded the railway as the quickest, cheapest, safest, and most efficient medium of equine transport. The horse express car allowed the animals (in some instances) to leave home the morning of a race, theoretically reducing stress and fatigue.
As early as 1833 in England, specially padded boxcars equipped with feeding and water apparatus were constructed specifically for transporting draft and sport horses. In the United States, however, horses generally traveled in conventional stock cars or ventilated boxcars. Early on, the need for improved methods for tethering horses in boxcars, while at the same time allowing a horse enough room to maintain its balance while in transit, was recognized.[17]
Racehorses, and those kept as breeding stock, were highly valued animals that required special handling. In 1885 a
Many of the cars finished out their days in maintenance of way (MOW) service.
Circus use
Many circuses, especially those in the United States in the late-19th and early-20th centuries, featured animals in their performances. Since the primary method of transportation for circuses was by rail, stock cars were employed to carry the animals to the show locations.
The
Fish cars
In the 1870s the railroads of
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/The_Stillwell_Oyster_Car_1897.jpg/310px-The_Stillwell_Oyster_Car_1897.jpg)
In 1881, the Commission contracted and built specialized "fish cars" to transport live fish coast-to-coast.
Fish cars were built to passenger train standards so they could travel at higher speeds than the typical freight trains of the day. Also, by putting fish cars into passenger trains, the cars were held at terminals far less than if they were hauled in freight trains. Fish car services, throughout their use, required that the fish keepers ride along with the cargo; a typical fish car crew consisted of five men, including a "captain" who would coordinate the transportation and delivery, several "messengers" who would serve as freight handlers and deliverymen, and a cook to feed the crew. The cargo's need for speedy transportation and passenger amenities for the crew necessitated the cars' inclusion in passenger trains.
Fish car operations typically lasted only from April through November of each year, with the cars held for service over the winter months. The cars became a novelty among the public and were exhibited at the 1885
The first all-steel fish car was built in 1916. Fish car technology improved again in the early 1920s as the milk cans that had been used were replaced by newer tanks, known as "Fearnow" pails. The new tanks were about 5 pounds (2.27 kg) lighter than the milk cans and included integrated containers for ice and aeration fittings. One 81-foot (24.69 m) long car, built in 1929, included its own electrical generator and could carry 500,000 young fish up to 1 inch (2.54 cm) long. Fish car use declined in the 1930s as fish transportation shifted to a speedier means of transport by air, and to trucks as vehicle technology advanced and road conditions improved. The US government operated only three fish cars in 1940; the last of the fleet was taken out of service in 1947.
In 1960, Wisconsin Fish Commission "Badger Car#2" was sold to the Mid-Continent Railway Historical Society, where it is in the process of being restored as a part of the Society's collection of historic rolling stock. 2
Poultry cars
From about 1890 to 1960, shipping live chickens and other birds by rail in special "henhouses on wheels" was commonplace. The cars featured wire mesh sides (which were covered with cloth in the winter to protect the occupants) and a multi-level series of individual coops, each one fitted with feed and water troughs. An attendant traveled on board in a central compartment to feed and water the animals. The cars were also equipped with a coal stove that provided heat for the center of the car.
The concept is thought to have been the brainchild of William P. Jenkins, a freight agent for the Erie Railroad. Jenkins collaborated with a Muncie, Indiana poultry dealer by the name of James L. Streeter on the design of a specialized car designed solely for transporting live fowl. The Live Poultry Transportation Company was formed about the same time that the first poultry car patent was issued (U.S. patent 304,005, issued August 26, 1884). By 1897, the company had 200 units in operation.[23]
The Continental Live Poultry Car Company, a rival concern, was founded in 1890. Continental thought to dominate the market by offering larger cars, capable of transporting as many as 7,000 chickens in 120 coops, but the oversized cars failed to gain wide acceptance, and the firm closed its doors after just a few years in business.[23]
Modern conversions
In the 1960s, the Ortner Freight Car Company of
The
Strings of 5-10 of these "HOGX" cars were, until the mid 1990s, hauled twice-weekly at the front of double-stack intermodal freight trains. However, this service was terminated when Farmer John Meats shifted to hogs produced locally in California. The units have since been scrapped.
See also
- Cattle wagon
- Deportation
- Livestock trailer
References
- ^ White 1993, p. 172
- ^ White 1993, p. 173
- ^ a b c White 1993, p. 257
- ^ Lews H. Haney (1908), A Congressional History of Railways in the United States, New York: vol 2, p 260
- ^ White 1993, p. 175
- ^ Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (1948). Rules: Operating Department. p. 153.
- ^ White 1993, pp. 173–175
- ^ White 1993, p. 123
- ^ White 1993, p. 176
- ^ White 1993, p. 248
- ^ a b White 1993, p. 258
- ^ "Railroad History Time Line - 1880". Archived from the original on 2005-04-19. Retrieved 2007-01-08.
- ^ Dieffenbacher, Jane (2002-06-07). "The Mather Family of Fairfield, NY". This Green and Pleasant Land, Fairfield, NY. Archived from the original on December 1, 2005. Retrieved 2007-01-08.
- ^ White 1993, p. 121
- ^ White 1993, p. 247
- ^ Railway Review, January 29, 1887, p. 62.
- ^ White 1993, p. 265
- ^ White 1993, pp. 266–267
- ^ a b Morrison, Carl. "Circus Train Facts". Retrieved 2007-01-08.
- ^ "Booth National Historic Fish Hatchery". 2002-08-21. Retrieved 2007-01-08.
- ^ Leonard, John (1979). "The Fish Car Era of the National Fish Hatchery System". Retrieved 2007-01-08.
- ^ Gilbert, Stephen (June 1998). "The Badger Fish Cars & Dr. Fish Commish". Wisconsin Natural Resources Magazine. Archived from the original on 2006-11-09. Retrieved 2007-01-08.
- ^ a b White 1993, p. 270
Notes
Bibliography
- Kinsey, Darin (Autumn 1997). "The Fish Car Era in Nebraska". Railroad History (177): 43–67. ISSN 0090-7847.
- OCLC 26130632.
- ISBN 978-0-8018-2743-3.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway#1997 — photo and short history of a horse/express car built by the Pullman Company in 1930; it was subsequently converted into a roadway machine parts car.
- Capsule History: Rutland Stock Cars — how the stock car was developed, improved and used by one railroad in New England.
- Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus Train — Blue Unit — photos and descriptions from November, 1998.
- Sacramento History Online — Transportation/Agriculture — photos of livestock transportation subjects in northern California in the early part of the 20th century.
- Union Pacific Railroad#43009 — photo of a 3-level stock car built for Union Pacific Railroad in 1964 and a short history of the hog hauling service to Los Angeles.
- Guide to Rail Cars