Boxcar
PRR #30985
40' Youngstown Door Boxcar, the typical post-World War II boxcar was 40 feet in length with a 6-foot door opening on each side. These cars roamed the country in general service hauling such things as eastern merchandise, north western lumber, furniture, paper, auto parts and grain. The shipper made sure his freight fit into the 40-foot general service boxcar if it couldn’t be hauled in tank, hopper or gondola car. Confronted by increasing competition from trucking companies for Less than Carload (LCL) freight during the late 1940s, railroads aggressively marketed expedited LCL services, advertising them on boxcars with colorful paint schemes. The Pennsy introduced "Merchandise Service" banners to many cars assigned to LCL service between September 1947 and November 1957. August 1947 -- "Merchandise Service" paint scheme number one ("MS1") introduced. Applied to 100 X40B, 300 X41B, an unknown number of X29B, and possibly three X26C. Featured a 23-1/4" wide aluminum band with two 4-1/4" white edges. Background for keystone monogram Toluidine Red versus Freight Car Color. "Merchandise Service" letters Toluidine Red with narrow white accent shadows.