The James E. Strates Show: 1957 Paint Scheme

 

 

Introduced 1957
Base Color Pastel blue
Letterboard (base)
Windowband (base) 
Lower Band (base) with dark blue stripe below windows
Lettering Dark blue
Car Name Location Upper center below windows
Car Number

Simple number at each end in dark blue
Roof Silver (or perhaps white)
Other Notes Goldsack noted the cars included the car names of the towns the carnival was scheduled to attend. This may have been the first scheme to feature car names (other than #1).

 

 

Strates train 1957maybe

The accompanying article, dated May 1957, confirms the paint scheme and the car names: Raleigh, Syracuse, York, Hamburg, Shelby, Florence, Clearfield, Charleston, Charlotte, Danville, Elmira, Corning, Binghamton, and Stratesville. [Passenger Car List]

Through photographic evidence or other documentation, we can map the car numbers to the car names as follows:

  • 1 - STRATESVILLE
  • 2 - SYRACUSE. Plan 3975H.
  • 3 - RALEIGH. Plan 2540.
  • 4 - YORK. Plan 3975E-1.
  • 5 - Unknown name. Plan 3959. Possibly HAMBURG, as it was named in 1963, 1966, 1967.
  • 6 - Unknown name. Plan 2540F. Possibly CLEARFIELD, as it was named in1966, 1967, 1970.
  • 7 - Unknown name. Unknown plan. Replaced by plan 3523 [6 compartments, 3 drawing room] in 1959.
  • 8 - Unknown name. Plan 2521J. Possibly DANVILLE, as it was named in 1963, 1966.
  • 9 - Unknown name. Plan 3988. Possibly SHELBY, as it was named in 1963.
  • 10 - FLORENCE. Plan 3959.
  • 11 - CHARLESTON. Plan 2540F.
  • 12 - Unknown name. Unknown plan. Replaced by "pie car" in 1959.
  • 13 - CORNING.
  • 14 - Unknown name. Unknown plan. Replaced by plan 3523 [6 compartment 3 bedroom] in 1959.

Strates sleepers 1950s

The assignments of HAMBURG, CLEARFIELD, DANVILLE and SHELBY are purely conjecture.

That leaves BINGHAMTON, CHARLOTTE and ELMIRA.

Cars #7, #14, #xx and #xx, were replaced by four 6-3's [6 compartments, 3 drawing room] in 1959. One may have become the #12 "pie car" due to the acquisition date. So all four were likely pre-1957 cars that were still in use.

Stratesville 1 two tone

#1, STRATESVILLE, in "modified" (?) 1957 scheme.

Strates 2 1957 fixed #2, SYRACUSE, in 1957 scheme

Strates 5 1957

#3, RALEIGH, in 1957 scheme.

Strates 4 1957 fixed

#4, YORK, in 1957 scheme.

 

#5, unknown.

#6, unknown.

#7, unknown.

#8, unknown.

#9, unknown.

Strates 10 1957 fixed

#10, FLORENCE, 1957 scheme. [Mike Kopischke]

Strates 11 1957

#11, CHARLESTON, in 1957 scheme.

 #12, unknown.

#13, CORNING, in 1957 scheme.

 #14, unknown.