Western Railroad Discussion > "OSHX 1"

About a month ago, my work took me to San Jose, & while perusing TO during some downtime, I came across the thread linked here: http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?1,3058295,page=1, which pertained to OSH (Orchard Supply Hardware) Their free annual calendars, as well as the railroad job one of the founders of OSH held before buying into the company. I knew that in San Jose, just behind their "flagship" store, on a severed spur off the former SP coast line, sits a custom painted boxcar "OSHX 1". Being just a few blocks away, I decided to stop by & grab a shot, The angle of the afternoon sun made for good lighting, but the paint job has paid the price from the years of exposure. (I first saw the car back there in '96, & even then it looked as if it had been there awhile) I'm not a freight car expert, but based on the car design, door size, & silver paint on the roof & ends, my hunch tells me this may be a former DODX car. I'm unsure if the OSHX reporting mark "belongs" to OSH or not. I'm hoping somewhere here in the collective wealth of knowledge known as Train Orders, someone will have the answer to this cars history.

-Desmond Praetzel "4451 Puff"

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A number of roads had silver paint schemes for their 40' boxcars during the 1960s "colorful" era. The Western Pacific orange feather design comes to mind. Also, all AT&SF MOW service boxcars I remember seeing were painted silver.

Ray

Roundhouse / Model Die Casting did this car in HO as a special edition in the 1970s? MDC also did a copula caboose in an OSH/SP scheme representing the ex-SP caboose that was also behind the flagship store.

The President of OSH (for lack of a better title), Al Smith, was a huge railfan (which is why the railroad calendars). He wanted to put up a big sign for the store, located next to the SP tracks on San Carlos St. and the City Council denied him the permit, so to spite them, he had the box car built and parked it on a siding next to the store!! Very clever. There were models made of the car and our son has one for his layout. Orchard has announced that they are going to demolish the store and rebuild on the same site and the box car will be trucked out to the San Jose Historical Museum (History San Jose Park) and on display there. I know this because we just had lunch with Ken Middlebrook at the museum last Friday and he told us that OSH had approached the museum about donating it and he had participated in the discussions.
C.

Carol Voss
Bakersfield, CA



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/31/13 08:48 by CarolVoss.

Thanks,Desmond, for the great photo of this
unique car, and thanks, Carol, for the good news
about this boxcar. Big thanks in advance to OSH
for the upcoming repainting! THANK you, San Jose
History Museum, for saving this car!
(I remember that boxcar -- so glad it is
being saved!)



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/30/13 12:32 by Margaret_SP_fan.

CarolVoss Wrote:
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> Orchard has announced that they are going to
> demolish the store and rebuild on the same site

It's good to know that at least the boxcar will live on. I always liked the older, art-decco inspired architecture of the San Jose OSH store, although it did limit the square footage of that shop in contrast to other OSH stores. It's unique enough that I actually tried to get a picture of the the front side of the building at the same time I took the boxcar pic, but the sun just wasn't in my favor. Hopefully the new building's architecture will have "personality" & not end up looking like the one-size-fits-all "big box" structures that newer, larger businesses seem to utilize these days.

-Des

4451Puff Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> CarolVoss Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
>
> > Orchard has announced that they are going to
> > demolish the store and rebuild on the same site
>
> It's good to know that at least the boxcar will
> live on. I always liked the older, art-decco
> inspired architecture of the San Jose OSH store,
> although it did limit the square footage of that
> shop in contrast to other OSH stores. It's unique
> enough that I actually tried to get a picture of
> the the front side of the building at the same
> time I took the boxcar pic, but the sun just
> wasn't in my favor. Hopefully the new building's
> architecture will have "personality" & not end up
> looking like the one-size-fits-all "big box"
> structures that newer, larger businesses seem to
> utilize these days.
>
> -Des
Actually, the San Carlos store is a hodge podge of tacked on extensions and I understand that their newest ones are very large and well laid out, though I have not seen one and don't know what the exteriors look like.
C.

Carol Voss
Bakersfield, CA

This would help explain the Calendars they sell.

Someone at OSH management loves train.

Jerry Martin
Los Angeles, CA
Central Coast Railroad Festival

Actually, they give them away free, with purchase, before New Years. In the old days, you didn't even have to buy anything!

GP25 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> This would help explain the Calendars they sell.
>
> Someone at OSH management loves train.

Orchard Supply Hardware (OSH) was founded as an agricultural co-op in 1931. My father in law bought $400 worth of shares. Over the years Al Smith, who worked his way through Cal Poly SLO as an SP brakeman, bought up a lot of the stock and he and his brother managed OSH. Al taught FFA ag classes in local high schools and when the OSH stock was sold to WR Grace, Al made about $17 million and my father in laws stock was worth $100 K in 1987 when my mother in law died. Al took a portion of his profits and bought the 3200 acre Swanton ranch north of Santa Cruz and built his little railroad there and then leased for $1/per year to the Cal Poly Ag Engineering department to maintain. When Al died iin 1994 he left the ranch to Cal Poly, then valued at $26 million and at the time the single largest donation to the school. You can google Swanton Ranch and find out all about the little railroad and etc. Al was also a major donor to the CSRM and to the Billy Jones railroad in Vasona Park in Los Gatos.
He started the railroad calendars back in the '70's IIRC and fortunately all subsequent owners have carried on the tradition.
C.


s

Carol Voss
Bakersfield, CA

Interesting boxcar; the weathering really gives it character.

Seeing that car reminded me of one I snapped earlier this month.

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CarolVoss Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> GP25 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > This would help explain the Calendars they
> sell.
> >
> > Someone at OSH management loves train.
>
> Orchard Supply Hardware (OSH) was founded as an
> agricultural co-op in 1931. My father in law
> bought $400 worth of shares. Over the years Al
> Smith, who worked his way through Cal Poly SLO as
> an SP brakeman, bought up a lot of the stock and
> he and his brother managed OSH. Al taught FFA ag
> classes in local high schools and when the OSH
> stock was sold to WR Grace, Al made about $17
> million and my father in laws stock was worth $100
> K in 1987 when my mother in law died. Al took a
> portion of his profits and bought the 3200 acre
> Swanton ranch north of Santa Cruz and built his
> little railroad there and then leased for $1/per
> year to the Cal Poly Ag Engineering department to
> maintain. When Al died iin 1994 he left the ranch
> to Cal Poly, then valued at $26 million and at the
> time the single largest donation to the school.
> You can google Swanton Ranch and find out all
> about the little railroad and etc. Al was also a
> major donor to the CSRM and to the Billy Jones
> railroad in Vasona Park in Los Gatos.
> He started the railroad calendars back in the
> '70's IIRC and fortunately all subsequent owners
> have carried on the tradition.
> C.
>
>
> s


Thanks for the brief history Carol. I hope the tradition never stops.
Each OSH Calendar I have purchased. Has been really outstanding to look at.
The one Amtrak Ticket Agent at Van Nuys. Has at least 3 calendars at the Station.

Jerry Martin
Los Angeles, CA
Central Coast Railroad Festival

Who is making you PAY for a calender? They give them away FREE!!!

Planning a grand re-opening event of its Van Nuys store:

http://www.homechannelnews.com/article/orchard-supply%E2%80%99s-new-format-expands

Interesting, Al Smith's office was a SP caboose.

Hookdragkick Wrote:

> Seeing that car reminded me of one I snapped
> earlier this month.

That Santa Fe car points out why the OSH car is probably not ex-ATSF. Most of Santa Fe's 40-foot boxcars had five panels on each side of the door instead of 6 as on the OSH car. The few classes of 6-panel cars Santa Fe did have don't appear to match the OSH car in other details.