Lorton & Occoquan RR Boxcar - Static Train Cars on Waymarking.com

"Boxcars were acquired in much the same way as most of the Lorton and Occoquan Railroad engines – government and local railroad surplus. The boxcar you see here probably dates to the 1920s. This 40-foot long wooden car was likely obtained as a scrap car, with the metal ends added later. Beneath the car is a metal truss system that adds structural support. In the early 20th century boxcars like this were produced by hundreds of companies in the United States. Very few survive in a restored fashion today.

What do we know about the boxcars at Lorton?

With the advent of mass-produced metal boxcars, many railroad companies began scrapping their wooden boxcars. Two wooden boxcars, possibly including the one you see here, were procured from Alexandria’s Potomac Yard. In the 1930s, an 80-foot Department of Fisheries express car was purchased as surplus from the government and converted into a passenger car for prisoners. Wooden benches were installed to transport prisoners from their dormitories to their worksites throughout the complex.

The Lorton and Occoquan Railroad line represented a vital asset to the correctional complex which attempted to be as self-sustaining as possible. In addition to their use as prisoner transport, boxcars were used to bring shipments of supplies such as food and coal into the complex. They also served to take shipments of inmate-produced goods such as bricks out of the complex.

In early 2006, a Park Authority archaeologist discovered this wooden boxcar while performing a pedestrian survey of the area. The boxcar was almost completely hidden under vines and grasses that had grown up around it. Later that year the FCPA reclaimed the boxcar from the natural undergrowth and set about protecting and restoring it to its present condition.
(text taken from on-site sign)

Type of train car: freight, wooden boxcar Location: trail side display on former L&O RR right-of-way now a walking and bicycle trail Price (In local currency): 0.00 Interaction allowed: no Visiting hours: Not listed

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Date Logged Log   11/04/2012 trexM8s visited it