Surviving 36ft Boxcars in the 50s

[sailormatlac]

Most anthracite lines, the Reading in particular, kept a fleet of 36 footers in service for as long as possible. The main reason for this is that a good number of on line customers had loading docks set up with doors spaced for 36 foot cars. These customers were unwilling or unable to modify their facilities because of space or money problems.


I remember an old American Standard plant on the city line between Jersey City and Bayonne that had a loading dock that started out straight, then curved around the rear of the building. This set up was common in New Jersey's Industrial urban areas. You were still able to see that the loading doors were spaced for 36 foot cars into the 90's, with every other door bricked up and the curved portion taken out of service. So the legacy of the 36 foot boxcar hung around for a while.

Did some search and found out F&C offers a few Reading 36' boxcars. They list them as in service up to 1953.

Matt