Conrail Office Car Train

I've been googling for the past two days and can't find ANYTHING respectable.

Does anyone know if anyone has created a comprehensive, all encompassing, high quality roster of the entire Conrail business train? I'd like to know what cars were ever used and what the disposition was. Info regarding division between CSX & NS is optional but appreciated.

If anyoen can help out, it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

-J.D.

jgallaway81 wrote:I've been googling for the past two days and can't find ANYTHING respectable.

Does anyone know if anyone has created a comprehensive, all encompassing, high quality roster of the entire Conrail business train? I'd like to know what cars were ever used and what the disposition was. Info regarding division between CSX & NS is optional but appreciated.

If anyoen can help out, it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

-J.D.

Not sure on the disposition of the cars but the locos are alive and well. CR 4020 and 4021 were purchased by Bennett Levin (Juniata Terminal Railway) and very faithfully restored to PRR 5711 and 5809. CR 4022 was also purchased by JT but later resold and returned to it's original livery as Erie 833. All three units are serviceable and were recently in Spencer, NC for the Streamliners at Spencer event.

best bet is to get the Color Guide to Conrail Freight and Passenger Equipment they do a good run by on the Office cars. I would type it out but today don't have a lot of time to spare today but if ya want I'll post it some time either later tonight or tomorrow

It is a fairly old resource, but the January 1984 issue of Trains magazine ran an very detailed, 10-page article on "the Executive E" (CR E8 4022). Included in the article was a chart showing the then current Conrail business car fleet.

The roster at that time included:
CR 1 (2nd) - former Southern observation
CR 1 (1st) - former NYC observation
CR 2 - former NYC observation
CR 3 - former NYC observation
CR 4 - former Southern observation
CR 10 - former NYC parlor-observation
CR 11 - former Erie sleeper
CR 12 - board room car (former PRR parlor car)
CR 20 - research (dynamometer) car, former NYC sleeper
CR 21 - track geometry car, former ATSF office car

The chart lists who built the cars, when built, and other notes. While the article does not answer your questions in regards to disposition, it may be useful to you. It includes a detailed history of the first Conrail OCS E8 unit, including some color photos in both the solid blue and the (rare) black/blue paint schemes. The issue includes an added bonus of a nice photo article on 24 fallen flag railroads (including the LV, CNJ, PC, RDG, EL, LHR and PRSL).

Back issues may be available from Kalmbach, and show up on Ebay from time to time.

I've posted this on a couple of different forums, so since I see someone asked, I'll post it here as well. Up until early 1990 or so the train was based in Reading, PA. I managed to record the entire car fleet as it existed during that time.

I don't have dispositions listed, but there are resources out there that can help with that. Hope this helps. The loco's are well represented on-line already, so I'll leave them out.

I tried to insert them as images to display directly, but I got an error message that the maximum width is 800 pixels and mine are a bit larger. I’m not going to resize them, so I posted links to them instead. Hopefully, they all work.


CONRAIL 1

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_1-S1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_1-S2.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_1-S3.jpg

CONRAIL 2

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_2-S1.jpg

CONRAIL 3

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_3-S1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_3-Top-1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_3-Top-2.jpg

CONRAIL 4

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_4-S1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_4-S3.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_4-S4.jpg

CONRAIL 5 – This was CONRAIL 100 renumbered. I have not found my slides of CR 5, but you’ll see it later as CR 100.
CONRAIL 8 - Note that Conrail 8 was originally equipped with 6 wheel trucks and switched to 4 wheel trucks.

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_8-S2.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_8-S1.jpg

CONRAIL 9

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_9-S1-1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_9-S1-2.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_9-S2.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_9-Top.jpg

CONRAIL 9 /CR23 – This is the CN/VIA Dinette stenciled CR 23 that was used to build Conrail 9

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_9_23-1-S1.jpg

CONRAIL 10 – Note that Conrail 10 was originally equipped with 6 wheel trucks and changed to 4 wheel trucks.

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_10-S1-1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_10-S1-2.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_10-S3.jpg

CONRAIL 11

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_11-S1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_11-S2.jpg

CORAIL 12 – Note that the original corrugated roof was replaced with a smooth roof.

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_12-S1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_12-S2.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_12-S3.jpg


CONRAIL 25

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_25-S1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_25-S2.jpg

CONRAIL 26

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_26-S1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_26-S2.jpg

CONRAIL 27

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_27_S1.jpg

CONRAIL 55 – This car would eventually be painted green as well.

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_55-S1.jpg

CONRAIL 100 - This car was rebuilt in Reading in 1988 for incoming Conrail president, Richard Sanborn and named BOSTON as he was a Red Sox fan. Unfortunately he suffered a fatal heart attack after just two months at the helm and only made two trips in it – once on an OCS from North Bergen, NJ to Selkirk, NY and the other to take his body back to Boston for burial. It would eventually lose the yellow stripes and be renumbered CONRAIL 5.

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_100-S1.jpg


CR 65050 or CONRAIL 50 – GENERATOR CAR - Honorable mention as an OCS car is MOW car CR 65050. It was assigned to the OCS and would eventually be repainted green and lettered CONRAIL 50. I never caught it out of this location alongside the passenger car shop.

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/CR_OCS/CR_65050.jpg


That is the complete OCS as I recorded it.
Thanks for looking.

In addition to the Office car fleet, Conrail had another fleet of green cars not associated with OCS. Here is a photo roster of the specialty cars that made up that fleet.

CONRAIL 19 – DYNAMOMETER CAR

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_19-S1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_19-S2.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_19-S3.jpg

CONRAIL 20 – RESEARCH AND TEST CAR

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_20-S1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_20-S2.jpg

CONRAIL 21 – TRACK GEOMETRY CAR

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_21-S1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_21-S2.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_21-S3.jpg


CONRAIL 22 – RAIL ANALYZER CAR

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_22-S1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_22-S2.jpg

CR 22 – These photos show CONRAIL 22 during rebuild from EMD ET800

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_22-1-S1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_22-2-S2.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/C ... Inside.jpg

CONRAIL 23 – TRACK GEOMETRY SUPPORT CAR

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_23-S2.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_23-S3.jpg

This is what #23 was made from – NYC #7494

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/NYC_7494-S1.jpg

CONRAIL 24 – TRACK GEOMETRY SUPPORT CAR

http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_24-S1.jpg

CR 47004 – CONRAIL POLICE DEPARTMENT CAR - I’ve also included a shot of CR 47003 which I think may be the same car – same window arrangements on both sides. Although they may have had two identical cars, I only saw one go into the shops as CR 47003 and one come out as CR 47004.
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_47004-S1.jpg
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_47003-S2.jpg

And to wrap it up, I’ll end with the former CONRAIL POLICE CAR PD-1 which was replaced by CR 47004.
http://home.ptd.net/~murphycc/Non-OCS/CR_PD1-S1.jpg

That’s it. Thanks for looking.

That was a great look at the entire CR Biz Fleet,thank you.