I was alerted recently to a new publication focused on a legendary freight car builder. “Canadian Car & Foundry, Freight Cars 1900-1960” by John Riddell. This is a 200 page soft cover book published by the Bytown Railway Society summarizing the company.
I have a few freight car books that are great references when I build model freight cars. John Riddell’s new book shines a spotlight on a vast number of freight cars built in Canada. The presentation is heavy on photographs with details in the captions. Chapters are organized by car types. Each chapter begins with one of the earliest car designs produced and moves forward through the years.
Ore cars, tank cars, Otis dump cars, snowplows, and cabooses are among the many featured car designs. The photo reproduction is top notch with builder images printed on glossy paper. A large percentage of the freight cars on these pages were built before 1930 but remained in service into the late steam era.
Many Canadian freight cars were seen on US rails. The combined Canadian National and Canadian Pacific freight car fleets totaled 195,222 cars in 1926. Only the Pennsylvania Railroad fleet (264,549 cars) and the combined New York Central Lines fleet (245,379 cars) were larger.
John Riddell and the Bytown Railway Society are to be commended for bringing together many parts for a wonderful Canadian Car & Foundry resource. The book is available through the Society’s website.
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