Does anyone know the colors of boxcars during the Civil War? In particular, the Memphis-Charleston RR of Mobile-Ohio RR that went through Corinth, MS. I took a quick glance through the secondary sources and it appears nothing definitive is stated (John White in "The American Freight Car" goes out of his way to say he does not know for certain).

Any help would be appreciated. I was asked by a historian at another park regarding an exhibit planned showing Civil War era boxcars.

Thanks,

Patrick McKnight
Historian, Steamtown NHS

pat_mcknight@nps.gov

> Does anyone know the colors of boxcars
> during the Civil War?

This may be one of those questions that is hard to prove for certain, and may have more than one answer due to repaints, etc.

Along the lines of the perversity of the universe, the quickest way to get an answer may be to paint the exhibit using the best available information. Surely, as you put the final stroke of paint on, and clean the brush, someone will come forward claiming it is wrong and PERHAPS supplying new info.

Bob Kutella


68trolley@comcast.net

> Surely, as you put
> the final stroke of paint on, and clean the
> brush, someone will come forward claiming it
> is wrong and PERHAPS supplying new info.

I agree. Part of this exercise is to show the guy that called me up the original question the fickleness of railfans. Working at a Civil War park he knows the attention to detail Civil War "buffs" have. I like to say the only group with more attention to detail (after you repaint the piece or set up the exhibit) is the railfan. Not that this is bad, but part of the work environment (what does not kill you makes you stronger).

Still looking for suggestions though. I am thinking if they go with a non-descript reddish-brown they might get away with it.

Pat McKnight
Historian, Steamtown NHS



pat_mcknight@nps.gov

> Still looking for suggestions though. I am
> thinking if they go with a non-descript
> reddish-brown they might get away with it.

Seconded. Heck only knows what color the cars were actually painted, but you can't go wrong with a muddy boxcar red. It's the default choice--and leaves the critics having to affirmatively justify any alterantive with good evidence.

eledbetter@rypn.org

> Still looking for suggestions though. I am
> thinking if they go with a non-descript
> reddish-brown they might get away with it.

> Pat McKnight
> Historian, Steamtown NHS

You might try asking the question a little differently, "What color were Civil War barns painted?" I quite sure the Civil War railroads would use the same inexpensive paint that was available to farmers and ranchers for use on their out buildings (if any was used at all).

Ed

Check out the Smithsonian link below or do an online search for Civil War Musuems to see what they can tell you or point you in a good direction.

My Brother-in-law is into Civil War history and I can find out what he may know about it.

Smithsonian

Maybe Walt Disney knew.

In the film "The Great Locomotive Chase", what color would he have painted the boxcars?

Anybody know a good medium? Maybe we can get a seance going and ask him.

Or maybe we could get Ted Turner to colorize the film and see how they turn out.

G. Mark

Look at our Revamped Website
aw90@comcast.net

The oldest preserved box cars I can think of are some ancient four-wheel cars (with link-and-pin couplers) from Singer that went to the Branford Trolley Museum. I believe they were last painted a generic box car red, but I don't know when. Somebody from Branford would probably have a good idea of their history, and whether they've ever tried to determine what the original color was.

> Maybe Walt Disney knew.

> In the film "The Great Locomotive
> Chase", what color would he have
> painted the boxcars?

> Anybody know a good medium? Maybe we can get
> a seance going and ask him.

> Or maybe we could get Ted Turner to colorize
> the film and see how they turn out.

> G. Mark

No need to bother Ted, Mark. The film was made in color.

Maybe you need to buy a color television!

There are really two questions here, one on the general or typical color of civil war era boxcars and the second about the specific color of the cars used by the Memphis-Charleston RR of Mobile-Ohio RR.

There is a lot of evidence that early boxcars were painted a variety of colors including the typical iron oxide red, but also including grays, blacks and yellows.

As for the Memphis Charleston RR I would suggest that a carful newspaper search might answer the specific question.

As noted by others, you won't rock the boat too badly if you chose a mineral red, on the other hand more accurate, but less expected color would give a wonderful opurtunity to surprise and educate.

You might consider painting a US Military RR paint job. I suspect (but don't know) that those colors are better known.

Randy Hees

Carter Bros Builders
hees@ix.netcom.com

As I remember, the two iron boxcars at the B&O railroad museum were from this time period. I would hope that in repairing them an analysis of the paint was conducted. While this wouldn't be information about the railroad you are looking for, it would provide dfinitive evidence on at least one example. In combination with the general information about railroad paint provided elsewhere in this thread should be useful for the exhibit.

Tom

rrhistorian@hotmail.com

Paint boxcars? Who has time to paint boxcars? It's all I can do to keep the engines running and the cars on the track what with the war taking away most of my shop staff and the vastly increased traffic loads. Sure, any paint that still sticks to any of them could be one of any variety of colors, but no time for such inconsequential niceties as paint now.........

dave

irondave@bellsouth.net

Sounds like a damn Confederate... Up here in the North we paint our cars... No wonder we won the War (at least for now)

Randy

> Paint boxcars? Who has time to paint
> boxcars? It's all I can do to keep the
> engines running and the cars on the track
> what with the war taking away most of my
> shop staff and the vastly increased traffic
> loads. Sure, any paint that still sticks to
> any of them could be one of any variety of
> colors, but no time for such inconsequential
> niceties as paint now.........

> dave


hees@ix.netcom.com

Bear in mind that even some major roads in the south were still using strap rail as late as the war.

Don'tknow what common practice was in California at the time. The NC&O car postdated the war, it is the oldest I have worked on from the left coast.

dave

irondave@bellsouth.net

California was just starting to really build railroads durring the Civil War, but common practice was Mineral red, (most commonly Tuscan) but there were some yellow cars. Yellow was the most common color for passenger cars. We were using heavy (50 lb) T rail, and by 1867 hac converted to fish plates instead of chairs for rail joints.

Randy Hees

http://www.spcrr.org
hees@ix.netcom.com