Re: Longest Narrow Gauge Passenger Car?

Pullman Sleeping cars and business cars seem to be among the longest narrow-gauge passenger cars.

Reproduced Pullman floor plans in Ralph L. Barger's A century of Pullman Cars, Volume II: The Place Cars show a variety of body lengths depending on interior accommodations:
42'-5" for 10 section Plan 73 cars built in 1879 through 1881 (29 cars in 5 order groups) [a number of these cars later went to Mexico]
42'-6" for 8 section-smoking room-buffet Plan 155 cars built in the 1882 (6 cars)
48'-0" for 10 section-buffet Plan 178 cars built in 1883. (6 cars)
48'-5" for 8 section-stateroom-buffet Plan 1001 cars rebuilt in 1889 from Plan 73 cars for service in Mexico. (2 cars only)
50'-0" for 8 section-stateroom-buffet Plan 1594 cars rebuilt in 1900 from Plan 73 cars for service in Mexico. (2 cars only)

A couple of business cars in California & Nevada:
The Carson & Colorado/Southern Pacific ng business car #10 which SP named "Elsmeralda" has a body length of 44'-6" over end sills. Car was built 1897 in the Virginia & Truckee shop in Carson City, Nevada, for the C&C. After its 1905 modification, which converted one open platform into an observation platform (lengthening it about 18"), the car's total overall (over platforms) length was 51' 8-1/2".

The later ng business car SP #20 was a little bit shorter. The body length is 42'-6" (42'-4" over sills) and over buffers (uncoupled) it was 51'-6" This car has an interesting history, It started out as DSP&P# 025 in the 1880s, then #050, became UP #06 (with sg and ng trucks), then to Nevada-California-Oregon "Lakeport" and then finally SP #20.

Brian Norden

PS By the way the name "Elsmeralda" comes from a Nevada county, which was named for the mining district at the old mining camp of Aurora.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/21/2019 01:56PM by Brian Norden.