Nostalgia & History > SP Techachapi, 1970, Graffiti Free Freight Cars

Here are a series of freight car photos from the 1970 unknown photographer collection. Cars are in various passing trains.

Jim Evans Collection

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Early container car with door open, late date ice hatch reefers, and all door box.

Jim Evans Collection

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Short line boxcar, NP block, CRI&P grain car.

Jim Evans Collection

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Possible clue to the photographer. Anyone recognize any of these fellows from 42 years ogo?

Regards, Jim Evans

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Looking at videos on Trainorders, it seems to me that the graffiti started around 1998 and picked up big time in 2000 - 2001.
I personally see it as a symbol of cultural decline...sad
Dan

Looks like a model train layout. I used to have models of just about all of those cars. Really like the US Plywood all-door.

Adam

Very, very cool. Someone on this site a few days ago commented that many years ago he didn't take many photos of cars due the high cost of film and processing. I completely agree. I used to take a photo of the train coming, and sometimes going away, but unfortunately freight cars were considered too common and ordinary and few photos were taken due to cost. How I wish I had expended more film on them.

In the first photo of the CB&Q box car, there appears to be scribble marks in chalk. Could these have been left by a carman or member of the train crew?

Switchmen and clerks checking tracks in the yard used to use chalk a lot. Along with shippers. My being a lifer on the Weyerhaeuser(now Collins Pine) loading dock said those all door cars were junk. With all those doors there were just too many seals. They had to wrap a lot of plywood. I hope graffiti is just another passing fad. Maybe someday we will be saying hey remember graffiti. Sure are some neat cars captured on film.

DanHudson Wrote:
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> Looking at videos on Trainorders, it seems to me
> that the graffiti started around 1998 and picked
> up big time in 2000 - 2001.
> I personally see it as a symbol of cultural
> decline...sad
> Dan


Graffiti on freight cars were around in the 1970's, just not nearly as common as it is today. I noticed the container flatcars have no reporting marks! Interesting.

SantaFeRuss

Have no idea who these guys are, but the location is for sure walong.they would be standing near where today the memorial bench stands.Alot of the car shots look to be at walong to

SantaFeRuss Wrote:
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> Graffiti on freight cars were around in the
> 1970's, just not nearly as common as it is today.
> I noticed the container flatcars have no reporting
> marks! Interesting.
>
> SantaFeRuss

Back then most graffiti was done in chalk. Remember "SAG", "Waterbed Lou", Herbie and others? It was more subtle back then. Seems to me that by the early to mid-1980's I started seeing alot of foul language written on freight cars, mostly in chalk but some in paint. It went downhill from there...

BTW the older gentleman in the middle is vaguely familiar but I can't think of his name. I remember meeting someone that looks like him up at Walong in 1974. If I can think of his name I'll post it.


Allen



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/01/12 23:36 by bradleymckay.

bradleymckay Wrote:
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> SantaFeRuss Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
>
> > Graffiti on freight cars were around in the
> > 1970's, just not nearly as common as it is
> today.
> > I noticed the container flatcars have no
> reporting
> > marks! Interesting.
> >
> > SantaFeRuss
>
> Back then most graffiti was done in chalk.
> Remember "SAG", "Waterbed Lou", Herbie and others?
> It was more subtle back then. Seems to me that
> by the early to mid-1980's I started seeing alot
> of foul language written on freight cars, mostly
> in chalk but some in paint. It went downhill from
> there...
>
> BTW the older gentleman in the middle is vaguely
> familiar but I can't think of his name. I
> remember meeting someone that looks like him up at
> Walong in 1974. If I can think of his name I'll
> post it.
>
>
> Allen

I remember those names! All over SP cars.

I took ALLOT of freight car pics in 92-94.. Actual paint graffiti was rare, and this was in CA.

The security on the SP was very lax compared to the modern UP.

bradleymckay Wrote:
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> Back then most graffiti was done in chalk.
> Remember "SAG", "Waterbed Lou", Herbie and others?

The first moniker I remember seeing was "Herby", back in the mid 60's. AND who can forget
"BozoTexino and D Kid".

Kent in Carmel Valley

Like the yellow door lumber/paper shipper SP boxcar...

That container car "looks" SP-ish; did the SP in that era have some pairs of flats that were considered "one car" for rate purposes ? Is the pictured car an ex-bulkhead flat ?

Best rgds, SZ

DynamicBrake Wrote:
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> bradleymckay Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> ---
> > Back then most graffiti was done in chalk.
> > Remember "SAG", "Waterbed Lou", Herbie and
> others?
>
> The first moniker I remember seeing was "Herby",
> back in the mid 60's. AND who can forget
> "BozoTexino and D Kid".
>
> Kent in Carmel Valley



D Kid... is a retired SP engineer from the Los Angeles area

An experiment. Only had a couple on the roster

On the far right is Mr. Five Chime, Jim. As to the others?

Westbound Wrote:
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> On the far right is Mr. Five Chime, Jim. As to the
> others?

Hold on. If that is you,Jim, then how can you claim you don't know the photographer?

Westbound Wrote:
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> On the far right is Mr. Five Chime, Jim. As to the
> others?


The other two is Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper.

Rick