Most any freight train could handle livestock. Livestock could not be kept
confined to a car for longer then 28 hours by Federal Law unless a release
was signed for up to 36 hours. In a bygone era when a lot of farmers in the
midwest would buy feeder or stocker cattle. Feeders were just that to be
feed while stocker cows were for breeding. Often in the midwest feeder
calves were bought in the fall and run in the corn fields after harvest to
eat the crop residue and be feed over the winter when farm work was at it
slowest. While much is made of the livestock rushes on the narrow gauge
most of the shipments say east of Lincoln or the Twin Cities would have been
smaller only by carload lots. Often these shipments were made from a buyer
out west to a midwest consignee who would pick the livestock up at the
stockyard nearest his farm. Loaded stock cars were alway handled on the
head end of a train so slack action would not injure the stock and for easy
setout or pickup of cars. See Bulletin No 25 Drawing shows Beatrice Neb.
ONE chute with 7 pens available so there would be a switching problem if
more then one car of stock was setout. The train or a wayfreight or
possible a switch eng would have to respot the cars so a multiple car
shipment could be unloaded or loaded. The Burlington kept 10 Main Feed
Yards were livestock was unloaded for feed, water, and rest before reloading
to finish the trip. Alliance, Neb.: Brush, Colo.: Casper, Wyo.;
Galesburg, Ill.; Lincoln, Neb.; McCook, Neb; Mongtomery, Ill; Quincy,
Ill; and Sheridan, Wyo. Another reason to feed in transit was livestock
lose weight while off feed and confined to a stockcar. By unloading and
feeding them they would gain weight with feed and water so they would weight
more for the sale as most livestock is sold by live weight at time of sale.
My Condensed Schedule for July 1948 shows leave Denver 9 PM Mon. Creston 6
PM Tue; Ottumwa 10 PM Tue; Galesburg 2:45 AM Wed; Chicago 10:00 AM Wed.
So any livestock shipment would have HAD to be setout at Galesburg for Feed
water and rest.
sjh
----- Original Message -----
From: Doug Harding <dharding@c...>
To: <BRHSlist@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Saturday, May 11, 2002 10:12 PM
Subject: [BRHSlist] Livestock Trains
> Does anyone know the schedule for the Q's fast freight train #62? Esp
across
> Iowa in 1949? According to Dorin's book "Everywhere West" train #62 made
the
> Denver to Chicago run in 31 hours, later cut down to 28. Dorin says this
was
> their fast livestock train dating back to 1941. I would like to know the
> schedule for a connection during my op sessions.
>
> Doug Harding
> Iowa Central Railroad
> www.cal-net.net/~dharding/ <http://www.cal-net.net/~dharding/>
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