Pulpwood on the N&W

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 Dr. J. Brent Greer stated: "I have found some interesting photos and diagrams of cars for pulpwood shipment in the archives, including some innovative designs introduced fairly late in the game (1960's). But I have never seen much if any discussion of this aspect of N&W business. Where were the loading points and who were the ultimate customers of pulpwood traffic in the N&W?"

While others may have factual information about pulpwood shipment origins and destinations for the N&W, I will share observations generally about this commodity based upon my C&O experience on the Richmond Division between 1971 and 1973.

Pulpwood was a low-value commodity loaded on wood-rack cars mostly at smaller rural stations. The shippers were generally small operators who purchased consignments from loggers and loaded the wood --mostly pine-- onto cars on depot house tracks. They rarely had their own spur or wood-yard for spotting and loading cars. Most operators were shipping between one and three cars daily. C&O stations where pulp-wood was loaded included Troy, Columbia, Pemberton, and Mineral; the commonality was that these stations were near tree farms which grow mostly Loblolly Pine because it was fast-growing; usually two feet in height per year.

Aside from being low-revenue, many railroads did not actively invite pulpwood loading for three reasons: 1) specialized cars that could not be used for other commodities; 2) frequent body damage and deterioration to the cars because of rough handling at origins; and 3) pulpwood loads occasionally shifted causing damage to adjoining cars on yard tracks or other close clearances, plus the cost of having to adjust the load en route when shifting occurred.

There were two main consignees for pulpwood. West Virginia Pulp & Paper (now Westrock) at Covington, Virginia, on the C&O, and a company (also now Westrock) at West Point, Virginia on the Southern. If the N&W did not have an on-line paper manufacturer and had to interline shipments, that might also be a reason why the former Virginian and the N&W might not have embraced pulpwood shipments because of the revenue division.

Good morning,

Frank Scheer
f_scheer at yahoo.com
  
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