Twin Tank Milk Cars: How were they used?

I haven't read it al yet, but, you might find this interesting: Milk Run

Milk trains consisted of tank cars and can cars..... sometimes one or the other and at others both kinds. Tankers were came in two forms, a tank which sort of sat on a flat car base, and the enclosed tank car such as the one you ordered.  Milk tank cars usually were loaded from tank trucks which collected the milk from various dairy farms.

As to railroad operations with these tank cars ... I'm not quite sure if these cars were loaded from a team track or spotted on a siding so they could be loaded by several tank trucks, and later being picked up by the local milk train and hauled to the processing plant. 

Glass lined bulk milk cars were seen on Wisconsin rail lines in the mid 1930's to the early 1950's. All we see now is roadgoing bulk milk transport trucks.

Trivia: The technique used to line the rail cars cast iron tanks with glass was developed for the brewing industry by a fellow named Caspar Pfaudler. The first such tanks were made in 1887 by the Dickson Manufacturing Company, who interestingly also produced hardware for steam locomotives. Eventually Dickson merged with other companies to form the American Locomotive Company (ALCO).

Big Jim, very interesting article. Thanks. I didn't realize that these things ran as long as they did. Learn something every day, ya know.

I echo the thanks to all for the information, very interesting.

Yes, great info (and trivia) so far everyone.  I can't link to the article at present but will try later or when I get home.  Keep those factoids coming!

Thanks,

Kristine

Big Jim, thanks for sharing the article with us.  Very interesting read on the history of milk cars.  I didn't realize that milk cars lasted into Amtrak times. 

I have a wooden reefer milk car, but now it seems I need a Borden's car as well!

Jim

You may also find this to provide some useful information on milk trains and associated activities: http://users.rcn.com/jimdu4/Mi...ins/modelingmilk.htm

Thank you for starting this post and Jim for the information link !  You guys done good 

Clem

As the trackage declined in quality and became quite rough the railroads realized that a potential new product possibly worth millions was at their fingertips. The tank car was a new way to make MILKSHAKES,however it was never well received by the American public and went away

clem k posted:

Thank you for starting this post and Jim for the information link !  You guys done good 

Clem

"What he said."  I've been able to sneak peaks at Big Jim's PDF and MWB's link at lunch.  Interesting idea about the connection to beer technology.  I think I'd read that somewhere but along the lines of poor people were getting sick drinking the mash milk.  Looking forward to savoring the full details this evening.  Already I'm getting ideas for operations involving a (real) glass milk bottle or two to symbolize a milk processing plant ... (How many remember those fine roadside attractions?  I think there's still one in Boston for Hood's -- perhaps near South Station?)

Thanks guys,

TRRR

As the trackage declined in quality and became quite rough the railroads realized that a potential new product possibly worth millions was at their fingertips. The tank car was a new way to make MILKSHAKES,however it was never well received by the American public and went away

In reality, if the milk warmed up enough a sloshing tank car was an effective means of churning chunks of BUTTER.  I have read about this happening a few times...

I have that car in American Express and REA liveries.  Now, did one or the other, or both actually ran cars with these tanks inside?

And K-Line did come up witk a flat car with two Borden tanks on it.

Interesting stuff on MWB's link. The Borden's milk tank/containers were slid off the truck trailers onto the railcars, a precursor of intermodal transport: 

http://users.rcn.com/jimdu4/Mi...ins/National_Car.htm

If interested in the milk industry, one of the better books out there is this one.  It's been out for several years and is very well done. 

Tom 

At the farm, milk is sampled for testing, the weight, of the amount to be shipped, is also recorded, and the temperature of the milk, when pumped to the bulk truck. The weight is an indirect measurement.  There is a calibrated stainless steel rod that determines the weight, related to the inches of milk, in the tank. There is a corresponding chart for each/every tank.  Some tank systems may have a chart recorder for the raw milk temperature, over the few days it's stored, before pick-up. Usually a very good refrigeration system, the tank will also have an agitator/paddle to stir the milk before sampling and pumping to the tank truck.    Usually milk that is well refrigerated will make the trip to a processing plant without additional truck refrigeration required.  The sample is tested for antibiotics, bacteria count,  and butter fat content.  Any antibiotics present, is a serious problem.  Relatively high bacteria count indicates problems with the milking and storage system sanitation, another problem.   Butter fat determines the quality of the milk. Higher butter fat content, the more value is added to the milk.   You have a serious problem with your milk, you may  have to pay for the entire milk truck contents.   IMO Rail pick-up of milk would have been after delivery to a raw processing plant and then moved to a larger urban plant for bottling and other processing;  pasteurized, homogenized, 2%, 1%, skim cream, ice cream, cheese, etc.  Though at one time all this was done at small, community oriented, creameries.      

If you search on the 2 rail forum Ed Rappe has a posting on how the PRR used to handle milk train cars from Huntingdon PA to Philadelphia.  Here's an excerpt of the start of that from the PRR T&HS discussion web:

"For many years two Supplee milk cars were picked up and dropped off at Huntingdon PA each day. I understand in the steam era the milk cars were set out and picked up on a siding behind the shelter on the south side of the main, and that a locally based H class consolidation performed this function. One of the Supplee cars was exchanged with the H&BTM RR for movement to a creamery in Bedford PA. The Supplee car moved into Bedford using H&BTM trackage rights over the PRR Mt. Dallas branch. "

Here is the further discussion:

http://prrthsdiscussionweb3023...?page=1#.WJFFCfKmvDA

Having ridden in the bed of a 1937 Chevy pickup along with banging, clanging milk cans out a rough and curvy farm road to deposit them beside the highway for pickup, this is a subject l am interested in.  I just recently acquired Matchbox 1938 IH trucks to bash into the insulated trucks that picked up the cans. However, they drank milk in Denver, too,，and l have never seen mention of the Denver and Interurban, D&RGW, or ? using specialized cars to move milk. Anybody know? I see such for Wisconsin and the NE, but not even for California.