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Revised 12/22/02

It was common to find foreign road cars on Santa Fe passenger trains. These cars fit into four categories:

• Express box and express cars. These were used to transport mail from coast to coast as well as such timely items as national magazines.
• Express reefers. These transport special perishables. Greg Martin reports that commodities with a refrigerated "shelf life" of less than 7 days include fish, green onions and strawberries and of course blood and pharmaceuticals. Less than 14 days, lettuce, tomatoes, sweet cherries, peaches/nectarines, green leafy vegetables, avocados, mangos, pineapples and papayas, cut flowers, mushrooms and meat products.
• Pool sleepers. Santa Fe had arrangements with other railroads so that a passenger could travel coast to coast in the same sleeper compartment as the car was transferred from one train and carrier to another.
• Tourist cars and special operators. These include convention specials (such as the Shriners) and tourist groups (such as those visiting the Grand Canyon).

The primary interchanges were at Chicago and Kansas City.

The information which follows comes from Fred Frailey’s Quarter Century and from conversations on the internet with Andy Sperandeo (MR), Michael Flick, Dennis Henry, Bob Burton, Richard Hendrickson, Tom Cockle, Jim Hurt, Jerry Pitts, Fritz Milhaupt, Bob Zoeller, Dennis Rockwell, John Moore, Martin Obed, John P. McCort, and Wes Leatherock. See Quarter Century for your time period and specific trains.

#7/8, Fast Mail, is probably the most photographed train with foreign cars. Part of this is because the PA units were frequently in charge. It ran from Chicago to Los Angeles. The Second Quarter 1997 issue of The Warbonnet, was devoted to the Fast Mail Express. With the permission of the Society, the entire article is enclosed for your benefit. The actual consist will vary depending on the era you are modeling, but cars which were seen on it included:

• NYC Express, Storage Mail, and Express Reefers from New York City, Buffalo, Detroit, and Springfield via Chicago to Kansas City, Wichita via Newton, or LA.

• PRR Express, horse cars, and theatrical scenery cars from Philadelphia to LA.

• Erie, Erie-Lac, and DL&W Express from Jersey City to LA.

• MoPac Express from Kansas City to LA & MoPac Storage Mail from NY, St. Louis, or Pittsburg via Kansas City to LA.
• New Haven express cars.
• B&O baggage express.
• ACL express cars.
• REA Pool Reefers which could include ACL, GN, KCS, NC&SrL, PRR, SAL, and REX.

#3/4 California Limited in postwar years was a mop-up train for overflow traffic for the Fast Mail. Just about anything seen on #7/8 might show up on #3/4. In the 60s, Frailey indicates it carried a lot of MP traffic and even CRIP from Buffalo to Kansas City to Gallup.

#5/6 Ranger, ran from Chicago to Galveston.

• REA express reefers were common.
• Photos show a NYC fishbelly express reefer and PRR R50s on this train.
• MKT express cars operated from Chicago to Kansas City in the mid 50s.

#9/10, Kansas City Chief, included:

• MKT Express box car - Katy handoff at Kansas City extended from 1937 to 1963.

• KCS Express box car, from Chicago to Kansas City. KCS had express boxcars in extremely dark green (looks black) with red and yellow sill stripes like the passenger cars, but that was in the '60s. They also purchased 6 Santa Fe's 1820 series baggage cars in 1964.
• NYC storage mail occasionally appeared in the late 50s.

After 1960, the head end load added:

• CMSP&P storage mail from Milwaukee via Chicago to Kansas City.
• PRR express from Philadelphia via Chicago to Kansas City.
• Erie storage mail from Hoboken via Chicago to Kansas City was listed in 1967.

#11/12 (111/112), Kansas Cityan / Chicagoan. Frailey does not document any foreign cars on these trains but photos indicate their presence.

#17/18, Super Chief, was a crack sleeper train interchanging sleepers with other roads in the 50s. After 1954, coast to coast sleeping cars on this train were protected by Santa Fe's stainless steel cars. Only rarely (Frailey says once or twice a month) would sleepers from eastern connections be seen in place of Regal or Pine cars. These sleeper pools were:

• (Pine Leaf, Gem, Creek, Pass, Ring, Beach) B&O 10-6 from Washington (Capital Ltd.) via Chicago to San Diego.
• (Pine Arroyo, Brook, Dale, Island, Cove, Fern) NYC 10-6 from New York (20^th Century Ltd.) via Chicago to LA.
• (Regal Gate, Gulf, Arms, Creek, Town, Court) NYC 4-4-2 from New York (20^th Century Ltd.) via Chicago to LA.
• (Regal Ruby, River, Spa, City, Inn, Ring) PRR 4-4-2 from New York (Broadway Ltd.) via Chicago to LA.

#19/20, The Chief began carrying coast to coast sleepers in April, 1946.

• B&O 6-6-4 from Washington via Chicago to San Diego. Santa Fe cars smooth-side Valley cars covered this connection and B&O cars appeared only in exceptional situations. "Shadow-lined" cars were used at times, of course, during the short period (1948-1953) when "Shadow-lined" "Valley" cars existed. In the fall of 1951, this changed to a 10-6 with Pine series assigned. If the B&O 10-6 sleeper was their P-S Plan 4167 (B&O 7040-49) series, that is Brass Car Sides 173-41.

• NYC 4-4-2 Imperial series (Imperial Domain, Imperial Empire, and possibly others) from New York via Chicago to LA. These cars were re-named in the 1948-49 to the Bridge series.

• NYC 10-5 Cascade series from New York via Chicago to LA were added in 1949. These were soon replace by 10-6 River Cars (Chicopee River, Indian River, Kankakee River).

• PRR 4-4-2 Imperial series (Imperial Pass, Park, and Point) from New York via Broadway Ltd. to Chicago to LA. After January 15, 1954, the sleepers were shifted to the Super Chief and protected by ATSF Regal stainless cars.

#1/2, San Francisco Chief began in 1954 as Santa Fe's crack train between Chicago and Oakland. Photos show it with PRR sleepers.

#23/24 (123/124) Grand Canyon often carried foreign road sleepers in chartered tour service. Frailey listing the 1953 consist includes 5 cars assigned to Vanderbilt tour, two to Cook tour, and one to Pullman. The 4/02 Warbonnet had an extensive article with consist information. Express baggage cars from the East were also included.

• B&O Steel Exp. 1500-1599 Class C-15 (1951-53).
• CB&Q Steel Exp. 8600-8899, former troup kitchen (1951-53).
• CRDX (KCS) Exp. Ref., 1001-1025, former troup sleeper (1951-53).
• GN Exp. Ref., 1950-1979, 200-2038, Wood sides, steel underframe (1951-53).
• MP storage mail from Pittsburg or Philadelphia on the Kansas City to LA end from 1957. Exp. Box 88300-88324, 50' dbl. door steel box (1951-53).
• NRC Exp. Ref. 100-579, wood sides, steel underframe (1951-53).
• NYC express from New York, Buffalo, and Springfield ran from Chicago to LA from 1957; Milk 6401-6660 wood sides fishbelly underframe; Steel Exp. 7398-7499 60' 4 axle; Steel Exp. 8600-8734 74' 6 axle; and 9200-9399 former troop sleeper (1951-53).
• PFE Exp. Ref. 500-799, wood sides, steel underframe.
• PRR X29 express box cars, 2000-2499, 9456-9594, 49314-57641, 97949-103324; R50b Exp. Ref. 2551-3100 (1951-53).
• REX Exp. Ref. 1236-1278, 1279-1828, Wood sides, steel underframe; 6100-6599 All steel; 6600-6799 former troop sleeper (1951-53).
• SAL Exp. Box 700-754 X-29 with side ventilators; Exp. Ref. 33600-3641 wood sides, steel underframe (1951-53).
• UP Exp. Box 9100-9229, 40' double door (1951-53).

Selected Pullman heavyweight sleepers found in 1951-53 consists listed in the Warbonnet included:

• CB&Q 12/1
• CNO&TP (Southern) 10/2
• CRIP 14 Sec
• NYC 12/1, 14 sec.
• PRR 10/4, 12/1
• Pullman Pool cars, 8/5, 14 sec. 12/1, 10/2
• SP 12/1, 6/3
• UP 12/1

#75/76 California Special/Texas Ran from Houston to Clovis. It's consist included:

• T&P storage mail.
• MP 6-6-4 from New Orleans to Houston on MP, from Houston to Clovis on the California Special, from Clovis to Bakersfield on the Grand Canyon, and from Bakersfield to Oakland on the Golden Gate. MP cars could be seen in Oakland and ATSF "Valley" cars in New Orleans.
• A list of selected consists in Lubbock, TX, (Warbonnet) includes: (1956) T&P HW baggage 1116; (1956) PRR 9153 HW baggage; (1957) NYC 8605 HW baggage; (1957) MP 2557 HW baggage; (1957) MP 4169 HW baggage; (1958) PRR 5084, 6069, 6096 HW baggage and MP 4270 HW baggage. The article mentions mail storage cars from MP, T&P, PRR, and NYC.

Others: Aside from cars supplied on a regular basis under the various pool service agreements, as noted above, foreign road head end cars turned up all the time on single trips. Hendrickson has photos of a Rock Island baggage car, GN express reefer, and an NRC express reefer on Santa Fe rails, and has seen photographic evidence of numerous others. Railway Express Agency express reefers were common, including the post-WW-II welded steel cars (HO models just coming out from Branchline) and the reefers converted from wartime troop sleepers. The weekly newsmagazines (Time, Newsweek) were printed on the east coast and rushed to California in box express cars every week, usually Pennsy X29s.

Railway Prototype Cyclopedia, RP Cyc 6. 200l. This has a superb article on Express Box Cars with photo and a roster of many lines.

Railway Prototype Cyclopedia, RP Cyc 7, 2002. This has a superb article on Express Reefers with photo and a roster of many lines.

Burton, Bob. Lubbock. The Warbonnet: 2/99. Santa Fe Railway Historical & Modeling society.

Collias, Joe G. and George, Raymond B. Katy Power: Locomotives and Trains of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad. MM Books, Crestwood Missouri, 1986

Drury, George. A 4-4-2 passenger car? Pullman sleeper. Model Railroader, June 1975 page 47. This article describes the "Imperial" 4-4-2 cars and describes how to kitbash one from AHM 10-6 cars. Such kitbashing is not necessary due to the Eastern Car Works kit. The article includes drawings and floor plan of UP 4-4-2 Twin Peaks.

Frailey, Fred W. A Quarter Century of Santa Fe Consists. Godfrey, IL: RPC Publications, 1974. Paperback, 208. (Out of Print.)

Geissel, J. Harold. New York Central express reefer. Model Railroader, July 1953 page 45.

George, Raymond B. MKT Lines in Color. Morning Sun Books, 1994.

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