Although not what I am modeling, I have an interest in that time of railroading, so here are some resources off the top of my head:
This Texas & Pacific Steam Roster gives build dates and manufacturers for the T&P in that era. Almost all were 4-4-0’s and a few 0-6-0 switchers for that railroad in the 1880’s. There are a few pictures of some of the old stuff to be found on that site.
I found The Great Locomotive Chase to be a very good site to learn about late 19th Century railroading (not to mention a fascinating true story). If you have never seen Buster Keaton’s 1927 slap-stick silent film, “The General,” you are in for a treat. It tops most lists of “greatest all time movies” and for good reason.
The major model manufacturers think railroads were invented just before the Great Depression.
In HO MDC/Roundhouse has brought out 1 new engine and updated several cars and locomotives, but hasn’t put out a new car style car in over 30 years (and all the recent redetailing date the cars to post 1910 or even post 1915 or so). Bowser has introduced a couple 1920’s era steel cars that can be backdated to 1900-1910 era steel cars. The rest have never put out a wood underframe car. Ever.
I don’t expect a wave of new models, but may one semi-accurate car every decade or two might be nice.
Not in the 1880’s, most of them were dead or in prison by the 1880’s. Cole Younger was in Stillwater (MN) state prison from roughly 1876-1901 IIRC after the Northfield MN attempted bank robbery was crushed. Still there were other train robbers around. [:)]
There’s a company that models in RMC or MR that makes Civil War era freight cars, I don’t remember the name or anything but might be worth looking into.
That era and locale would be good to represent the great cattle drives. Cattle were driven from Texas to the nearest railroad connections in Kansas City, Dodge City, etc. to be sold and shipped east to packing plants (Chicago mainly).
I believe that people ate meat, dairy and produce at locations other than Chicago.
In the 1880s the population was much more rural than it is today, most North Americans ate locally grown meat, dairy and produce.
In 1880 the national freight car fleet was as follows: 194,500 boxcars; 70,500 flat cars; 28,600 stock cars of all kinds; 183,500 coal cars of all kinds; 3,000 tank cars of all kinds; 300* refrigerator cars; Cabooses, construction & work cars not reported. (*Railroad owned [Poors] ) There were an additional 54,000 freight cars owned by Fast Freight lines and shippers. (Poor’s)
Shippers and Fast Freight lines owned 1500 refrigerator cars in 1885. (Poor’s) Of those cars 1200 were owned by just 5 companies Hammond, Swift, Dodd, Cudahy and Armour. In 1885 Hammond had the largest fleet (600). By 1900 Armour had the most (12,000) (Poor’s). These 5 companies operated principly out of Chicago and Kansas City. Their products went overwhelmingly to the port cities of Boston and New York for export. (Poor’s) Demand for refigerator service west out of Chicago was largely unheeded until the Missouri Pacific and Wabash formed their own Fast Freight Company to provide the service. (White ARFC)
You can find a summary of this on pgs 129-130 of White’s American Railroad Freight Car.
Other notes: the life span of freight cars of the 1880s was about 16 years (White ARFC) so very few Civil War era cars would still be in revenue service in the 1880s. Cars were bein
it took me a while to find this, cuz i kept looking in the wrong places but…
Trainloads for selected US Railroads (average tonnage CARRIED by trains on a few selected railroads) in 1883.
Boston & Albany 103
Chicago & Alton 188
Chicago & Northwestern 121
Cleveland Columbus Cincinatti & Indianapolis 218
Illinois Central 100
New York Central 200
average of all US railroads 129 tons
(sorry no listing in the table for Pennsylvania or Southern Pacific)
what does this mean?
with the following assumptions 1) freight cars of the 1880s could carry about 20 tons, and 2) there are two loaded cars for every empty car in the train (and that is a big assumption)
so the average US Railroad train would have had 7 loaded cars and 3 empty cars -10 cars,
On the Illinois Central it would have been 5 loads, 3 empties - 8 cars
while on the CCC&I it would read 11 loads 6 empties - 17 cars
While the New York Central and Pennsylvania were boasting about their 1000 ton burden / 50 car trains, there must have been more short trains than long ones.
In terms of models
i don’t think there are many model locos on the market that can pull that many cars
so this is really nothing but a fun exercise in research…
on my HO layout set in 1890s New England i run 4-10 car trains mostly with 4-4-0s and 2-6-0s, my biggest power is an H3 2-8-0.
the original sources quoted by White in American Railroad Freight Car pg 70