Leo,
I don't know of the Pacific Fruit Express operations in particular, but I do
know that perishables and meat especially were sent through to Peoria on the Q.
In the recently republished Q freight train data sheets for 1968 Galesburg -
Peoria trains 104 and 106 both delivered meat and perishables to the TPW and
NKP. In paricular 106 delivered to NKP train PB-98 (Peoria-Buffalo) and to TPW
22. Deliveries to the NKP had a cutoff time of 1030A for a 1215P departure and
the cutoff for TPW 22 was 130P for reefers billed to reice and 200P for
non-icers. The TPW had a nice modern icing dock but the Q had none. From what
I've learned on the list, even potatoes were shipped through Peoria in old Q
ice bunker cars in the BN era.
As one who models this line I'm really interested in anything concerning it. I
don't know what the CPT is but I do know what the PTC was. This was the Peoria
Terminal Co. which was a termial switching operation under the complete
ownership of the Rock Island. This still wouldn't make a lot of sense though to
hand off traffic to the Rock Island for forwarding to Chicago. It wouldn't make
much sense for the PTC to be handling any of this traffic to another road
either because the Q had direct interchange with the TPW and interchange via
the Peoria and Peking Union to the NKP.
Getting back to the meat traffic end of things, that 104 train to Peoria
received at lot of Morrel meat reefers off of train 118 out of Ottumwa.
Ken Thompson
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