Definitely, bring back Chessie… I think I read someplace recently that when CSX Corp. was formed in 1978 or 79 (??), they said that the name was “just temporary”… I think it’s well overdue to bring back the cat, or at LEAST come up with a better name!!!
IF I had a cat I’d name it Chessie
DOGGY
I agree heavyd and fuzzybroken. There is a need to preserve our heritage in all aspects.
Trains Mag had a fascinating article some time ago about where the name CSX came from.
The letters C and S were the initals of the merging RR companies (but I can’t remember what the S stood for - I know somene will help us out here) .
The article explained that the lawyers from both sides (while they were going through all the legal stuff for merging) agreed to use the letter 'x ’ as a fill in till a third part of the name was agreed to.
But the ‘x’ ended up staying! good grief! Not much imagination!
Does anyone else rememebr that article? I found it very informative.
Kozzie
Dave
The other system merging was Seaboard System, previously known as the “Family Lines -SCL/L&N”.
Peter
Thanks Pete [:)] I just can’t believe no-one could come with anything to replace the ‘X’
If you read the artilce I mentioned, what did you think of it? I found it very informative, particularly the backgound story to CSX - all those fallen flags
Dave.
Dave,
It is a while since I read the article, and I had some idea of the background of the merging companies anyway. Perhaps I should dig it out again.
However, using “X” as the last letter of the company abbreviations on freight cars is very common in the USA, with GATX and TTX as examples.
So there was a sort of precedent to having “X” as the last letter of a Railroad company name, and it may have been originally suggested in this regard.
Except, of course CSX freight cars are lettered “CSXT”(for CSX Transportation).
Peter
As mentioned in the article, an “X” denotes a non-railroad owned car (we won’t get into trusts). Since the same rules that dictate the “X” for said cars also say that RR equipment CAN’T end with an “X”, CSX had to add a “T” (or something other than an X), yielding “CSXT”. Of course, they are also using “NYC” on the cars they got in the Conrail split-up.
Back when Esso (Standard Oil) wanted to bring all of their various lines under one umbrella, they spent considerable time and money coming up with “Exxon”. And CSX did it by accident. If you look at the corporate world in general, though, you’ll see a lot of that going on. Either they use the initials of all of their merger partners, or invent a completely new word (verizon isn’t in my dictionary - what’s it mean?)
You can’t really say that the initials we are used to seeing on railroads are the same thing. AT&SF, CB&Q, even NKP all stood for something else, they weren’t the company name in and of themselves.
But, yeah, we need a name more colorful than CSX. Any ideas? It’s not like we’re going to get them to actually make the change, or repaint the rolling stock, but a little dreaming can be entertaining. What would be a good, representative name, and perhaps some ideas for paint. We all like the fallen flags, but let’s be forward looking and c
…I found a picture of “Chessie” imbedded in a terrazzo floor in a depot in Prince, W V but have not the knowledge to put it on here but if anyone would like to see it I can send it via e-mail.
Chessie cat comes from the Chesapeake and ohio Sleep like a kitten slogan right?
Correct you are. You can also read “Chessie, the Railroad Kitten” by Tom
Dixon, Jr. It should be available at most hobby shops; it’s been a few
years, so I’m not exactly sure where you can find it. Try some of the
railroad books sources on the internet. (Go to the C&O Historical
Society.)
Actually, the Chessie cat became our logo in honor of C&O/B&O employees; we could nap at the drop of a hat!
…Item: I have a C & O throw blanket over my La Z boy chair here in our home office…Bought it at a hobby train store in the Orlando area, Florida. Has Chessie and the two kitten’s image on it. Very nice.