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| − | [[Image:OP-13219.jpg|thumb|350px|right|[[Missouri Pacific Railroad|Missouri Pacific Lines]] all-wood stock car #52967, photographed at [[Pueblo, Colorado]] in March, [[1937]].{{deletable image-caption}}]] | + | [[Image:UTLX 204455 20050529 IL Rochelle.jpg|thumb|300px|A modern tank car, owned by the [[Union Tank Car Company]], passes westbound through [[Rochelle Railroad Park]], [[Rochelle, Illinois]] on [[May 29]], [[2005]].]] |
| − | In [[railroad terminology]], a '''stock car''' is a type of [[rolling stock]] used for carrying [[livestock]] (not [[carcass]]es) to market. A traditional stock car resembles a [[boxcar]] with slats missing in the car's side (and sometimes end) for the purpose of providing ventilation; stock cars can be single-level for large animals such as [[cattle]] or [[horse]]s, or they can have two or three levels for smaller animals such as [[sheep]], [[pig]]s, and [[poultry]]. Specialized types of stock cars have been built to haul live [[fish]] and [[shellfish]] and circus animals such as [[camel]]s and [[elephant]]s. Until the 1880s, when the [[Mather Stock Car Company]] and others introduced "more humane" stock cars, loss rates could be quite high as the animals were hauled over long distances. Improved technology and faster shipping times have greatly reduced losses.
| + | [[Image:Tank car UTLX 12283.jpg|thumb|300px|A tank car on display at the [[Mid-Continent Railway Museum]] in [[North Freedom, Wisconsin]].]] |
| | + | A '''tank car''' is a piece of [[railroad]] [[rolling stock]] designed to carry [[Bulk liquids|liquefied loads]], [[petroleum]] products, liquid [[chemicals]] and [[gas]]ses. Many variants exist due to the wide variety of [[liquid]]s and gases that can be transported. Tank cars can be [[Thermal insulation|insulated]] or non-insulated, [[pressurized]] or non-pressurized, and designed for single or multiple loads. Non-pressurized cars have plumbing at the bottom for unloading, and may have an access port and a dome, housing various valving on the top. Pressurized cars have a pressure plate, with all valving, and a protective cylindrical housing (dome) at the top. Loading and unloading are done through this opening. |
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| + | Within the rail industry, tank cars are grouped by their interior linings and not by the cargo carried. Food service tank cars are lined with [[stainless steel]], glass or cleanable plastic and they are marked as non-pressurized, insulated cars. Usually these are small and carry around 10,000 gallons. Petroleum carrying tank cars are lined with alloy steel, rubber or carbon steel. They are insulated, usually non-pressurized cars (however, very light petrochemicals or jet fuel cars will be pressurized with nitrogen to prevent evaporation to avoid an explosion hazard). These cars are larger, around 23,000 gallons. the ends will be doubled to prevent ruptures during accidents. As of 2007, the multicargo type mentioned above is obsolete. Natural gas, LPG or ammonia carrying cars are basically 60,000 gallon alloy steel pressure vessels on steel wheels. They have no linings, and are double ended. The whale belly type is giving way to higher but standard width cars. |
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| − | ==Initial use and development==
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| − | 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|B&O Railroad]] in general purpose, open-topped cars with semi-open sides.<ref>White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', p 172.</ref> Thereafter, and until [[1860]], the majority of shipments were made in conventional [[boxcar]]s 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.<ref>White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', p 173</ref>
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| − | [[Image:Santa Fe stock car train rev.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Stock cars make up part of an eastbound [[Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway|Santa Fe]] freight train in March, [[1943]].]]
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| − | Getting food animals to market required herds to be driven distances of hundreds of miles to [[railhead]]s in the [[Midwest]], whereupon they were loaded into [[stock car]]s and [[transport]]ed eastward to regional [[processing]] centers. Driving cattle across the plains led to tremendous weight loss, and a number of animals were typically lost along the way. Upon arrival at the local processing plant, livestock were either [[slaughter]]ed by wholesalers and delivered fresh to nearby butcher shops for retail sale, smoked, or packed for shipment in barrels of salt.
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| − | The suffering of animals in transit as a result of hunger, thirst, and injury were considered by many to be inherent to the shipping process, as were the inevitable loss of 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<ref>White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', p 257; Lews H. Haney (1908), ''A Congressional History of Railways in the United States'', New York: vol 2, p 260</ref>), 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.
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| − | Some of the early railroad companies attempted to alleviate the problems by adding [[passenger car]]s to the trains that hauled early stock cars. The [[New Jersey Railroad and Transportation Company]] followed this practice as early as 1839, and the [[Erie Railroad]] advertised that livestock handlers could ride with their herds in special [[caboose]]s. These early passenger accommodations were the predecessors of the later "drovers caboose" designs that were used until the mid 20th century.<ref>White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', p 175</ref> Railroad operating rules for livestock and handlers that rode the trains were very limited since the handlers were private contractors or employees of the shippers and they were not employed by the railroads. A 1948 rulebook for the [[Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway|Santa Fe Railroad]], for example, lists only one rule regarding livestock:
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| − | :"... 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."<ref>{{cite book| author=Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway| title=Rules: Operating Department| year=1948| pages=p 153| }}</ref>
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| − | 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.<ref>White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', pp 173-175</ref> 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 [[boxcar]]s because that type of car proved much more versatile in the number of different types of loads it could carry.<ref>White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', p 123</ref>
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| − | 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.<ref name="White Freight 257">White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', p 257</ref> In 1869, [[Illinois]] passed the first laws requiring that limited the animals' time on board, and required them to be given 5 hours' rest for every 28 in transit. Some railroads stepped in with their own new designs at this time, such as the [[Pennsylvania Railroad]]'s class KA stock car, a design first published in 1869 which featured a removable second deck for transporting pigs or sheep.<ref>White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', p 176</ref> However, double-deck stock cars had been experimented with as early as the 1830s on the [[Liverpool and Manchester Railway]] in England.<ref>White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', p 248</ref> Other states such as [[Ohio]] and [[Massachusetts]] soon followed with similar legislation, though effective federal laws would not be enacted until the passing of the Federal [[Meat Inspection Act]] of [[1906]].<ref name="White Freight 257" />
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| − | [[Image:Pat106887 diagram.png|thumb|left|300px|The diagram from {{US patent|106887}} showing a cutaway view of Zadok Street's stock car design.]]
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| − | The first patented stock car designs that actually saw use on American railroads were created by Zadok Street. Street's designs ({{US patent|106887}} and {{US patent|106888}}, both issued on [[August 30]], [[1870]]) were first used in 1870 on shipments between [[Chicago]] and [[New York City]]. They were designed for trips to take 90 hours between the two cities and included water troughs feed from tanks under the floor, and food troughs fed from hoppers in the roof. Street's design proved impractical as each car could carry only 6 steers.<ref name="White Freight 258">White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', p 258</ref> [[Alonzo C. Mather|Alonzo Mather]], a Chicago clothing merchant who founded the [[Mather Stock Car Company]], designed a new stock car in 1880 that was among the first practical designs to include amenities for feeding and watering the animals while en route.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.michiganrailroads.com/RRHX/Timeline/1880s/TimeLine1880.htm| title=Railroad History Time Line - 1880| accessdate=2007-01-08 }}</ref> Mather was awarded a gold medal in [[1883]] by the [[American Humane Association]] for the humane treatment afforded to animals in his stock cars.<ref name="White Freight 258" /><ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.rootsweb.com/~nyherkim/fairfield/matherfamily.html| title=The Mather Family of Fairfield, NY| accessdate=2007-01-08| last=Dieffenbacher| first=Jane| date=[[2002-06-07]]| work=This Green and Pleasant Land, Fairfield, NY }}</ref> [[Minneapolis]]' Henry C. Hicks patented a convertible boxcar/stock car in [[1881]], which was improved in [[1890]] with features that included a removable double deck. George D. Burton of [[Boston]] introduced his version of the humane stock car in [[1882]], which was placed into service the following year. The Burton Stock Car Company's design provided sufficient space so as to allow the animals to lie down in transit on a bed of straw.
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| − | 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.<ref>White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', p 121. White notes the original source for these numbers as statistics from the [[Interstate Commerce Commission]].</ref> During this period, the cars' capacities also increased. In the 1870s few stock cars were built longer than 28 ft (8.5 m), and could carry about 10 tons of stock. Car lengths increased to an average of 34 ft (10.4 m) in the 1880s and stock cars of this period regularly carried 20 tons of stock.<ref>White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', p 247</ref>
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| − | [[Image:OP-19552.jpg|thumb|300px|A [[Union Pacific]] wood stock car fitted with metal ends.{{deletable image-caption}}]]
| + | All tank cars are inspected every couple of years for damage, corrosion, etc. Relief valves and mounts are inspected at every loading. Pressurized cars are pressure tested regularly to insure they are solid. All tank cars operating in North America now feature "double shelf" couplers that will not uncouple in an accident, so the coupler will not puncture other tank cars. |
| − | Certain costly inefficiencies were inherent in the process of transporting live animals by rail, particularly due to the fact that some sixty percent of the animal's mass is composed of inedible matter. And 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 boxcar]].
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| − | ==Refrigerated cars==
| + | Insulated cars (which may also incorporate heating or refrigeration systems) are used when the contents must be kept at a certain temperature. For example, the Linde tank car depicted below carries liquefied [[argon]]. Cars designed for multiple loads have internal bulkheads to separate the contents. Each compartment must have separate plumbing and its own dome if so equipped. The added complexity of multiple-load cars means that they make up a small percentage of the tank car population. If two loads must be transported, it is often simpler to use two tank cars instead of a two-load car. |
| − | {{main|Refrigerator car}}
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| − | [[Image:Pullman Livestock Car late 1800s.jpg|thumb|300px|left|An early [[Pullman Company|Pullman Palace Car Company]] livestock car design from the late 1800s.]] | |
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| − | A number of attempts were made during the mid-1800s to ship [[agriculture|agricultural]] products via rail car. In [[1857]], the first consignment of ''dressed'' beef was carried in ordinary [[boxcar]]s 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 meat-packer, who built a set of cars to transport his products to Boston.
| + | In the [[United Kingdom]], [[Ireland]], and [[New Zealand]], tank cars are generally called '''tank wagons''' or '''tanker wagons'''. |
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| − | In [[1878]], [[meat packing|meat packer]] [[Gustavus Franklin Swift|Gustavus Swift]] hired engineer Andrew Chase to design a ventilated car, one that proved to be a practical solution to providing temperature-controlled carriage of dressed meats, and allowed Swift & Company to ship their products all over the [[United States]], and even internationally. The refrigerator car radically altered the meat business. Swift's attempts to sell Chase's design to the major railroads were unanimously rebuffed, as the companies feared that they would jeopardize their considerable investments in stock cars, animal pens, and feedlots if refrigerated meat transport gained wide acceptance.
| + | ==History== |
| | + | <gallery> |
| | + | Image:RR-1331.jpg|The narrow domes on these [[East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad]] tank cars mirror the designs of the first all-steel units. |
| | + | Image:OP-16236.jpg|Texaco, Inc. (TCX) #723, a single-dome tank car designed for transporting [[gasoline]], passes through [[Amarillo, Texas]] on [[April 4]], [[1936]]. |
| | + | Image:OP-16233.jpg|This double-dome tank car has two separate interior tanks, which allow different products to be transported in the same car. |
| | + | Image:OP-19582.jpg|This unusual three-dome tank car has an oversized center dome. |
| | + | </gallery> |
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| − | In response, Swift financed the initial production run on his own, then — when the [[United States|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 [[American Car and Foundry Company|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.
| + | Tank cars have always been specialized pieces of equipment. The interior of the car is usually lined with a material to isolate the car's structure from the contents, such as [[glass]]. Loading a liquid into a car that is designed to carry something else is unwise and sometimes dangerous. Even after a thorough cleaning, traces of the previous contents may remain. Loading a [[pesticide]]-carrying tank car with [[cooking oil]] is one example. The cooking oil will at best be unpalatable and at worst become toxic. |
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| − | [[Image:Unloading a stock car rev.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Sheep are unloaded from the upper level of a [[Wisconsin Central]] stock car in [[Chicago, Illinois]] in [[1904]].]]
| + | As a result of this specialization, tank cars have always been "one-way" cars. Other cars, like [[boxcar]]s can easily be reloaded with other goods for the return trip. Combinations of the two types were attempted, such as boxcars with fluid tanks slung beneath the floors. While the car could certainly carry a load both directions, the limited size of the tanks made this style unsuccessful. |
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| − | '''Live cattle and dressed beef deliveries to New York ([[tons]]):'''<ref>''Railway Review'', [[January 29]], [[1887]], p. 62.</ref>
| + | Because of their one-way nature, tank cars are simply dead weight half of the time, making them unappealing to major railroads. A large percentage of tank cars are owned by companies serviced by railroads instead of the railroads themselves. This can be verified by examining the [[reporting mark]]s on the cars. These marks invariably end in ''X,'' meaning that the owner is not a [[common carrier]]. |
| − | {| class="toccolours"
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| − | |align=center | <small>''(Stock Cars)''
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| − | |align=center | <small>''(Refrigerator Cars)''
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| − | |align=center | '''Year
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| − | |align=center | '''Live Cattle
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| − | |align=center | '''Dressed Beef
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| − | |-
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| − | | 1882
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| − | |align=center | 366,487
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| − | |align=center | 2,633
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| − | |-
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| − | | 1883
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| − | |align=center | 392,095
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| − | |align=center | 16,365
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| − | |-
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| − | | 1884
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| − | |align=center | 328,220
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| − | |align=center | 34,956
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| − | |-
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| − | | 1885
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| − | |align=center | 337,820
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| − | |align=center | 53,344
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| − | |-
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| − | | 1886
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| − | |align=center | 280,184
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| − | |align=center | 69,769
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| − | |}
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| − | </small>The subject cars travelled on the [[Erie Railroad|Erie]], [[Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad|Lackawanna]], [[New York Central Railroad|New York Central]], and [[Pennsylvania Railroad|Pennsylvania]] railroads.
| + | To understand tank car history we need to go to the first tank built, which was in Pennsylvania to move petroleum. It consisted of three open vats bolted to a flat car. The problem came as tank car design and liquid cargo types expanded. Investing in new cars all the time made tank cars unappealing to railways, so a new company was founded: [[Union Tank Car Company]]. this company was charged with building, maintaining and running, on behalf of the railways, the tank car fleet. |
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| | + | ==Timeline== |
| | + | [[Image:OP-3471.jpg|thumb|Chicago and Northwestern Railway tank car #6093 sits on a siding in [[Lusk, Wyoming]] on [[August 1]], [[1947]].]] |
| | + | [[Image:Carro cisterno de Ferrovie Eritrea.jpg|thumb|A ''carro cisterno'' (tank car) of the [[Eritrean Railway]] (''Ferrovia Eritrea'', or ''FE''), date unknown. The 2-axle car is 7,000 [[millimeter|mm]] (23 [[foot (unit of length)|feet]]) long, and has a 6,650 [[kilogram|kg]] (14,660 [[pound (mass)|lb]]) load capacity.]] |
| | + | * [[1865]]: Flats with banded wooden tanks mounted on top are employed for the first time to transport crude oil from the fields of [[Pennsylvania]]. |
| | + | * [[1869]]: Cast iron tanks (with an approximate capacity of 3,500 gallons / 13,200 l per car) replace wooden tanks. |
| | + | * [[1888]]: Tank car manufacturers sell units directly to the oil companies, with capacities ranging from 6,000 gallons to 10,000 gallons (22,700 l to 37,800 l). |
| | + | * [[1903]]: Tank car companies develop construction safety standards; more than 10,000 tank cars are in operation. |
| | + | * [[1915]]: A classification system is developed by the tank car industry to ensure the correct match of product being shipped to car type. Some 50,000 tank cars are in use. |
| | + | * [[1920]]: Welding technology replaces riveting in tank car construction, enhancing the safety of cars. |
| | + | * [[1930]]: 140,000 tank cars transport some 103 commodities (in addition to oil) to market. |
| | + | * [[1940s]]: Virtually every tank car is engaged in oil transport in support of the [[World War II|war effort]]. |
| | + | * [[1950]]: Pipelines and tanker trucks begin to compete for liquid transport business. |
| | + | * [[1963]]: The Union Tank Car Company (UTLX) introduces the "Whale Belly" tank car. |
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| | ==Specialized applications== | | ==Specialized applications== |
| − | ===Horse cars=== | + | {{Cleanup|date=April 2007}} |
| − | For many decades, [[Horse racing|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.
| + | ===Gas transport=== |
| | + | [[Image:OP-20296.jpg|thumb|left|Tank cars such as [[Canadian National Railway]] #51860, shown passing through [[Quebec|Québec]] in August, [[1937]] were designed to transport [[industrial gas]]es under high pressure.]] |
| | + | [[Image:Linde-raix708a.jpg|thumb|right|This [[Linde AG|Linde]] tank car transports refrigerated liquefied gases and is insulated in order to prevent the contents from evaporating during transport.]] |
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| − | [[Image:OP-2278.jpg|thumb|left|300px|[[Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway|AT&SF]] #1996, a "palace-style" horse express car, lays over in [[San Diego, California]] on July 28, 1935. The unit most likely arrived as a part of one of Santa Fe's passenger train consists.]] | + | ===Milk cars=== |
| | + | [[Image:BFIX 520 20050716 Illinois Railway Museum.JPG|thumb|Borden (BFIX) #520, a restored milk car on display at the [[Illinois Railway Museum]].]] |
| | + | A milk car is a specialized type of tank car designed to carry raw [[milk]] between farms or regional creameries and processing plants. Not all milk cars were tank cars. Today, milk would be chilled before loading, and moved in a glass lined, food service tank car. |
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| − | 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.<ref>White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', p 265</ref>
| + | ===Pickle cars=== |
| | + | A pickle car is a specialized type of tank car designed to carry [[Pickled cucumber|pickle]]s. This car has four visible wooden tanks and is roofed. Pickles which are preserved in salt brine are loaded through hatches in the roof. Obsolete in 2007 |
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| − | Racehorses, and those kept as breeding stock, were highly-valued animals that required special handling. In 1885 a [[livery]] and [[stable]] operator from [[Toledo, Ohio]] by the name of [[Harrison Arms]] formed the Arms Palace Horse Car Company to service this market niche. Arms' cars resembled the [[passenger car]]s of the day; they featured [[clerestory]] roofs and end platforms and came equipped with passenger car trucks (as they were intended for passenger train service). The units were segregated into two separate compartments, each containing eight individual stalls. By the late 1880s Arms had acquired two competing firms, Burton and Keystone. While the cars operated by George D. Burton closely resembled the Arms design, the Keystone Company's cars were much more utilitaran in design as they were intended for transporting animals of lesser value and inclusion in standard freight train consists. The Keystone fleet eventually grew to more than 1,000 cars.<ref>White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', pp 266-267</ref>
| + | ===Tanktainers===<!-- This section is linked from [[Containerization]] --> |
| − | | + | [[Image:Railroad car with container loads.jpg|thumb|A [[Union Pacific Railroad]] tank container and another [[containerization|container]] aboard a [[flatcar]].]] |
| − | Many of the cars finished out their days in [[maintenance of way]] (MOW) service.
| + | A tanktainer, also known as a tank container, is a specialized type of [[containerization|container]] designed to carry [[bulk liquids]] or [[dangerous goods]] on standard [[intermodal freight transport|intermodal]] equipment. The tank is held within a box-shaped frame the same size and shape as a container. |
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| − | ===Circus use===
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| − | Many circuses, especially those in the [[United States]] in the latter [[19th century|19th]] and early [[20th century|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.
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| − | [[Image:RBBX2.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Animal car#RBBX 63009 from the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus Train "Blue Unit" in July, 2002. The animal loading ramps stow directly under the doors on the underside of the car.]]
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| − | The [[Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus]], which still travels America by rail, uses special stock cars to haul their animals. When a Ringling Brothers train is made up, these cars are placed directly behind the train's [[locomotive]]s to give the animals a smoother ride.<ref name="Circus Train Facts">{{cite web| url=http://www.trainweb.org/carl/CircusTrains/CircusTrainFacts.htm| title=Circus Train Facts| accessdate=2007-01-08| last=Morrison| first=Carl }}</ref> The cars that Ringling Brothers uses to haul elephants are custom-built with extra amenities for the animals, including fresh water and food supply storage, heaters, roof-mounted fans and water misting systems for climate control, treated, non-slip flooring for safety and easy cleaning, floor drains that operate whether the train is moving or not, backup generators for when the cars are uncoupled from the locomotives, and specially-designed ramps for easy and safe loading and unloading. Some of the cars even have built-in accommodations for animal handlers so they can ride and tend to the animals at all hours.<ref name="Circus Train Facts" />
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| − | ===Fish cars===
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| − | In the 1870s the railroads of [[United States|America]] were called upon to transport a new commodity: live fish. The fish were transported from hatcheries in the [[Midwest]] to locations along the [[Pacific Ocean|Pacific]] coast to stock the rivers and lakes for sportfishing. The first such trip was made in 1874 when Dr. Livingston Stone of the U.S. Fisheries Commission (which later became the [[United States Fish and Wildlife Service]]) "chaperoned" a shipment of 35,000 [[shad]] fry to stock the [[Sacramento River]] in [[California]].<ref>{{cite web
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| − | | url = http://dcbooth.fws.gov/fishcars.htm
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| − | | title = Booth National Historic Fish Hatchery
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| − | | accessdate = 2007-01-08
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| − | | date = [[2002-08-21]]
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| − | | language = English
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| − | }}</ref> The fish were carried in open milk cans stowed within a conventional [[passenger car]]. Dr. Stone was required to change the water in the cans every two hours when fresh water was available.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.catskillarchive.com/rrextra/fishcar.Html| title=The Fish Car Era of the National Fish Hatchery System| accessdate=2007-01-08| last=Leonard| first=John| year=1979 }}</ref> The majority of the fish made the trip successfully and the result was a new species of shad for western fishermen.
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| − | [[Image:The Stillwell Oyster Car 1897.jpg|thumb|310px|left|The 30-ton capacity "Stillwell Oyster Car," built by Pullman in 1897, was a wooden [[tank car]] designed by Arthur E. Stilwell for (as the name implies) transporting live [[oyster]]s from [[Port Arthur, Texas]] to [[Kansas City, Missouri]] by rail.]] | |
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| − | In 1881, the Commission contracted and built specialized "fish cars" to transport live fish coast-to-coast for stocking.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.wnrmag.com/stories/1998/jun98/hatch.htm| title=The Badger Fish Cars & Dr. Fish Commish| accessdate=2007-01-08| last=Gilbert| first=Stephen| year=1998| month=June| work=Wisconsin Natural Resources Magazine }}</ref> The technologies involved in hauling live fish improved through the 1880s as new fish cars were built with icing capabilities to keep the water cool, and aerators to reduce the need to change the water so frequently. Some of the aerators were designed to take air from the train's steam or air lines, but these systems were soon deprecated as they held the potential of reducing the train's safe transit; the air lines on a train were used in later years to power the [[air brake (rail)|air brakes]] on individual railroad cars.
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| − | Fish cars were built to [[passenger train]] standards so they could travel at higher speeds than the typical [[freight train]]s 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 service, 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.
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| − | 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 bit of a novelty among the public and they were exhibited at the 1885 [[North, Central and South American Exposition (1885)|New Orleans Exhibition]], the 1893 [[World's Columbian Exposition|Chicago World's Fair]], and the 1901 [[Pan-American Exposition]] in Buffalo, New York. As fish cars became more widely used by hatcheries, they were also used to transport regional species to non-native locations. For example, a fish car would be used to transport [[lobster]] from [[Massachusetts]] to [[San Francisco, California]], or to transport [[dungeness crab]] back from [[San Francisco]] to the [[Chesapeake Bay]].
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| − | [[Image:Montana State fish car rev.jpg|thumb|right|300px|The ''Thymallus'', a "fish car" of the [[Montana]] State Fish Service, circa 1910. The attendants are loading stainless steel milk cans filled with fish onto the car.]]
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| − | 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 [[pound (mass)|pounds]] (2.3 [[kilogram|kg]]) lighter than the milk cans and included integrated containers for ice and aeration fittings. One 81-[[foot (unit of length)|foot]] (26.7 [[metre]]) long car, built in [[1929]], included its own electrical generator and had enough capacity to carry 500,000 young fish up to 1 [[inch]] (2.5 [[centimetre|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]], with the last of this fleet taken out of service in 1947.
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| − | In 1960, [http://www.midcontinent.org/collectn/woodpas/wfc2.html Wisconsin Fish Commission "Badger Car#2"] was sold to the [[Mid-Continent Railway Museum|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.
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| − | ===Poultry cars===
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| − | [[Image:Live Poultry Car.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Live poultry cars such as this were set low on the wheels, which allowed for a taller body and therefore provided more cargo space. This car could hold over 5,000 chickens, 2,000 geese, or 1,400 turkeys.]]
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| − | 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. A human attendant traveled on board in a central compartment to feed and water the animals along the way. The cars were also equipped with a coal stove that provided heat for the center of the car.
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| − | The concept is thought to 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 ({{US patent|304005}}, issued [[August 26]], [[1884]]). By 1897, the company had 200 units in operation.<ref name="White Freight 270">White, ''American Railroad Freight Car'', p 270</ref>
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| − | 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.<ref name="White Freight 270" />
| + | ===Vinegar cars=== |
| − | | + | [[Image:OP-16131.jpg|thumb|Two double wooden-tank vinegar cars owned by the Speas Co. wait for their next assignment in [[Denver, Colorado]] ''circa'' [[1965]].]] |
| − | ==Modern conversions== | + | A vinegar car is a specialized type of tank car designed to transport [[vinegar]]. The largest such car built was built by [[Morrison Railway Supply Corporation]] in 1968. The car's underframe included all of the modern conveniences of freight car design including roller bearing [[bogie|trucks]] and cushioning devices built by FreightMaster, while the tank that rode on it, made of Douglas fir, could hold 17,100 gallons (64,730 liters). The car, called the largest wooden tank car ever built, took 18 months to complete construction. Obsolete in 2007- vinegar now moved in ordinary tank cars lined with glass, plastic, or alloy steel.<ref>{{cite journal| journal=Railway Age| month=[[October 28]]| year=[[1968]]| title=Week at a glance: Vinegar by rail - in giant wooden tanks| pages=p 11| volume=165| issue=17| }}</ref> |
| − | [[Image:HOGX July 1994.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Pigs receive fresh water during a stop at Dry Lake in the [[Nevada]] desert in July, [[1994]].]] | + | <br style="clear:both;"> |
| − | In the 1960s, the Ortner Freight Car Company of [[Cincinnati, Ohio]] developed a triple-deck hog carrier for the [[Northern Pacific Railway]] based on the design of 86-foot long "hi-cube" [[boxcar]] called the "Big Pig Palace." They later brought out a double-deck version called the "Steer Palace" that hauled livestock between [[Chicago]] and later [[Kansas City, Missouri|Kansas City]] to slaughterhouses in [[Philadelphia]] and northern [[New Jersey]] until the early to mid 1980s on [[Penn Central]] and [[Conrail]] [[intermodal freight transport|intermodal]] trains.
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| − | The [[Union Pacific Railroad]], in an effort to earn more business hauling [[Hog (swine)|hog]]s from [[Nebraska]] to [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]] for Farmer John Meats, converted a large number of 50-foot auto parts [[boxcar]]s into stock cars. Originally built by Gunderson Rail Cars in [[Portland, Oregon]] for the [[Missouri Pacific Railroad]], the conversions were done by removing the boxcars' side panels and replacing them with panels that included vents that could be opened or closed. The tri-level cars featured built-in watering troughs.
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| − | Strings of 5-10 of these "HOGX" cars were, until recently, hauled twice weekly at the front of double-stack [[intermodal freight transport|intermodal]] freight trains. In spite of the technological improvements in these new car designs, they were unable to overcome the advantages of highway transport of livestock. The units have since been scrapped.
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| | + | ==="Whale Belly" cars=== |
| | + | [[Image:GATX96500.jpg|thumb|GATX 96500, the largest railroad tank car ever built at 63,000 gallons capacity.]] |
| | + | In the early [[1960s]], the [[Union Tank Car Company]] (UTLX) introduced a series of "whale belly" tank cars which offered increased capacity over the standard cars of the day. Capable of carrying 33,000 gallons (125,000 l) (for example [http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/csox31084.jpg CSOX #31084]) to as much as 63,000 gallons (238,500 l) in the case of [[General American Transportation Corporation|GATX]] #96500, which had been conceived as a 'rolling experiment' of sorts. The largest tank car ever placed into regular service, [http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/utlx83699.jpg UTLX #83699], was rated at 50,000 (189,200 l) gallons, and is now on display at the [[Galveston Railroad Museum]] -- first hit the rails in 1963 and remained in service for over twenty years. This behemoth is 89 feet (27 m) in length and weighs 175,000 lb. (79,400 kg) empty; the car, which rides on four two-axle trucks to distribute the additional weight, was used to transport such diverse substances as [[liquefied petroleum gas]] (LPG) and [[anhydrous]] [[ammonia]]. |
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| | ==References== | | ==References== |
| − | * {{cite journal| author=Kinsey, Darin| year=1997| month=Autumn| title=The Fish Car Era in Nebraska| journal=Railroad History| issue=177| pages=43-67| id={{ISSN|00907847}}| }} | + | * {{cite web| title=History Of The Rail Tank Car| author=Herron, J.|date=April 2002| work=e-Train, the online magazine of the Train Collectors Association| url=http://tcaetrain.org/articles/tickets/tankcar/index.html| accessdate=April 20| accessyear=2007}} |
| − | * {{cite book| author=White, John H., Jr.| year=1993| title=The American Railroad Freight Car| publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press| location=Baltimore, Maryland| id=ISBN 0-8018-5236-6| }} | + | * {{cite book| author=White, Jr., John H.| year=1993| title=The American Railroad Freight Car| publisher=The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, Maryland| id=ISBN 0-8018-5236-6}} |
| − | * {{cite book| author=White, John H., Jr.| year=1978| title=The American Railroad Passenger Car| publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press| id=ISBN 0-8018-2743-4 (pbk.: set: alk. paper); ISBN 0-8018-2722-1 (pbk.: v.1: alk. paper); ISBN 0-8018-2747-7 (pbk.: v.2: alk. paper)| }}
| + | <references /> |
| − | <div class="references-small" style="-moz-column-count:2; column-count:2;"><references/></div>
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| | ==External links== | | ==External links== |
| − | * [http://www.sdrm.org/roster/passenger/mw205993/index.html 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. | + | {{commons}} |
| − | * [http://users.rcn.com/jimdu4/stockcar.htm Capsule History: Rutland Stock Cars] — how the stock car was developed, improved and used by one railroad in [[New England]]. | + | * [http://rwhales.railstuff.net/ Rail Whales] |
| − | * [http://www.trainweb.org/hotrail/rrbx.html Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus Train — Blue Unit] — photos and descriptions from November, 1998. | + | * [http://tankcarhomepage.railfan.net/ Modern Tank Car Homepage] |
| − | * [http://www.sacramentohistory.org/search.php?topic=801 Sacramento History Online — Transportation/Agriculture] — photos of livestock transportation subjects in northern [[California]] in the early part of the [[20th century]]. | + | * [http://www.utlx.com/dictionary/dict.asp Tank car dictionary] |
| − | * [http://www.sdrm.org/roster/freight/stk43009/ 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]].
| + | * [http://www.robertjohndavis.com/milktrains/ Milk Trains blog for information specific to milk tank cars.] |
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| | {{Freight cars}} | | {{Freight cars}} |
| | [[Category:Freight equipment]] | | [[Category:Freight equipment]] |
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| | + | [[eo:Cisterna vagono]] |
| | + | [[fr:Wagon-citerne]] |
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A tank car is a piece of railroad rolling stock designed to carry liquefied loads, petroleum products, liquid chemicals and gasses. Many variants exist due to the wide variety of liquids and gases that can be transported. Tank cars can be insulated or non-insulated, pressurized or non-pressurized, and designed for single or multiple loads. Non-pressurized cars have plumbing at the bottom for unloading, and may have an access port and a dome, housing various valving on the top. Pressurized cars have a pressure plate, with all valving, and a protective cylindrical housing (dome) at the top. Loading and unloading are done through this opening.
Within the rail industry, tank cars are grouped by their interior linings and not by the cargo carried. Food service tank cars are lined with stainless steel, glass or cleanable plastic and they are marked as non-pressurized, insulated cars. Usually these are small and carry around 10,000 gallons. Petroleum carrying tank cars are lined with alloy steel, rubber or carbon steel. They are insulated, usually non-pressurized cars (however, very light petrochemicals or jet fuel cars will be pressurized with nitrogen to prevent evaporation to avoid an explosion hazard). These cars are larger, around 23,000 gallons. the ends will be doubled to prevent ruptures during accidents. As of 2007, the multicargo type mentioned above is obsolete. Natural gas, LPG or ammonia carrying cars are basically 60,000 gallon alloy steel pressure vessels on steel wheels. They have no linings, and are double ended. The whale belly type is giving way to higher but standard width cars.
All tank cars are inspected every couple of years for damage, corrosion, etc. Relief valves and mounts are inspected at every loading. Pressurized cars are pressure tested regularly to insure they are solid. All tank cars operating in North America now feature "double shelf" couplers that will not uncouple in an accident, so the coupler will not puncture other tank cars.
Insulated cars (which may also incorporate heating or refrigeration systems) are used when the contents must be kept at a certain temperature. For example, the Linde tank car depicted below carries liquefied argon. Cars designed for multiple loads have internal bulkheads to separate the contents. Each compartment must have separate plumbing and its own dome if so equipped. The added complexity of multiple-load cars means that they make up a small percentage of the tank car population. If two loads must be transported, it is often simpler to use two tank cars instead of a two-load car.
In the United Kingdom, Ireland, and New Zealand, tank cars are generally called tank wagons or tanker wagons.
History
OP-16233.jpg
This double-dome tank car has two separate interior tanks, which allow different products to be transported in the same car.
OP-19582.jpg
This unusual three-dome tank car has an oversized center dome.
Tank cars have always been specialized pieces of equipment. The interior of the car is usually lined with a material to isolate the car's structure from the contents, such as glass. Loading a liquid into a car that is designed to carry something else is unwise and sometimes dangerous. Even after a thorough cleaning, traces of the previous contents may remain. Loading a pesticide-carrying tank car with cooking oil is one example. The cooking oil will at best be unpalatable and at worst become toxic.
As a result of this specialization, tank cars have always been "one-way" cars. Other cars, like boxcars can easily be reloaded with other goods for the return trip. Combinations of the two types were attempted, such as boxcars with fluid tanks slung beneath the floors. While the car could certainly carry a load both directions, the limited size of the tanks made this style unsuccessful.
Because of their one-way nature, tank cars are simply dead weight half of the time, making them unappealing to major railroads. A large percentage of tank cars are owned by companies serviced by railroads instead of the railroads themselves. This can be verified by examining the reporting marks on the cars. These marks invariably end in X, meaning that the owner is not a common carrier.
To understand tank car history we need to go to the first tank built, which was in Pennsylvania to move petroleum. It consisted of three open vats bolted to a flat car. The problem came as tank car design and liquid cargo types expanded. Investing in new cars all the time made tank cars unappealing to railways, so a new company was founded: Union Tank Car Company. this company was charged with building, maintaining and running, on behalf of the railways, the tank car fleet.
Timeline
- 1865: Flats with banded wooden tanks mounted on top are employed for the first time to transport crude oil from the fields of Pennsylvania.
- 1869: Cast iron tanks (with an approximate capacity of 3,500 gallons / 13,200 l per car) replace wooden tanks.
- 1888: Tank car manufacturers sell units directly to the oil companies, with capacities ranging from 6,000 gallons to 10,000 gallons (22,700 l to 37,800 l).
- 1903: Tank car companies develop construction safety standards; more than 10,000 tank cars are in operation.
- 1915: A classification system is developed by the tank car industry to ensure the correct match of product being shipped to car type. Some 50,000 tank cars are in use.
- 1920: Welding technology replaces riveting in tank car construction, enhancing the safety of cars.
- 1930: 140,000 tank cars transport some 103 commodities (in addition to oil) to market.
- 1940s: Virtually every tank car is engaged in oil transport in support of the war effort.
- 1950: Pipelines and tanker trucks begin to compete for liquid transport business.
- 1963: The Union Tank Car Company (UTLX) introduces the "Whale Belly" tank car.
Specialized applications
Template:Cleanup
Gas transport
File:Linde-raix708a.jpg This
Linde tank car transports refrigerated liquefied gases and is insulated in order to prevent the contents from evaporating during transport.
Milk cars
A milk car is a specialized type of tank car designed to carry raw milk between farms or regional creameries and processing plants. Not all milk cars were tank cars. Today, milk would be chilled before loading, and moved in a glass lined, food service tank car.
Pickle cars
A pickle car is a specialized type of tank car designed to carry pickles. This car has four visible wooden tanks and is roofed. Pickles which are preserved in salt brine are loaded through hatches in the roof. Obsolete in 2007
Tanktainers
A tanktainer, also known as a tank container, is a specialized type of container designed to carry bulk liquids or dangerous goods on standard intermodal equipment. The tank is held within a box-shaped frame the same size and shape as a container.
Vinegar cars
A vinegar car is a specialized type of tank car designed to transport vinegar. The largest such car built was built by Morrison Railway Supply Corporation in 1968. The car's underframe included all of the modern conveniences of freight car design including roller bearing trucks and cushioning devices built by FreightMaster, while the tank that rode on it, made of Douglas fir, could hold 17,100 gallons (64,730 liters). The car, called the largest wooden tank car ever built, took 18 months to complete construction. Obsolete in 2007- vinegar now moved in ordinary tank cars lined with glass, plastic, or alloy steel.&
"Whale Belly" cars
File:GATX96500.jpg GATX 96500, the largest railroad tank car ever built at 63,000 gallons capacity.
In the early 1960s, the Union Tank Car Company (UTLX) introduced a series of "whale belly" tank cars which offered increased capacity over the standard cars of the day. Capable of carrying 33,000 gallons (125,000 l) (for example CSOX #31084) to as much as 63,000 gallons (238,500 l) in the case of GATX #96500, which had been conceived as a 'rolling experiment' of sorts. The largest tank car ever placed into regular service, UTLX #83699, was rated at 50,000 (189,200 l) gallons, and is now on display at the Galveston Railroad Museum -- first hit the rails in 1963 and remained in service for over twenty years. This behemoth is 89 feet (27 m) in length and weighs 175,000 lb. (79,400 kg) empty; the car, which rides on four two-axle trucks to distribute the additional weight, was used to transport such diverse substances as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and anhydrous ammonia.
References
External links
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ja:タンク車
