
Conrail Office Car Special & Conrail Blog
Conrail 1 Office Car
This former Southern Railway heavyweight car had quite the history and served on Conrail as Conrail 1. The car was assigned in its later years to Ron Conway and Gary Spiegel. I visited the car after the Conrail takeover for an exclusive look in and around this beautiful heavyweight car.
Conrail 4 Office Car
Conrail 4, like Conrail 1, was a heavyweight office car and was purchased in 1983 from the Southern Railway. Conrail 4, while keeping its number 4 since 1953, has seen its share of changes. This car went from sleeper to office car, back to sleeper and is still working hard for Norfolk Southern as NS 4 "Michigan."
Conrail 25 and 26 Coaches
Conrail 25 and 26 are former heavyweight Southern Railway cars that were purchased at a time when the Conrail OCS was rapidly changing under the direction of Stanley Crane. In fact, Conrail purchased three former Southern coaches on August 24, 1983.
Conrail 5 Office Car
Conrail 5, a former Norfolk & Western office car, was a unique car on the Conrail business train. The car served as Conrail 100 “Boston” for Richard Sanborn, former Conrail Chairman. It was renumbered to Conrail 5 “Boston” and ended its career simply as Conrail Office Car 5. Take an in-depth look at this car that served the Conrail Office Special with a streamlined beauty.
Conrail 8 Bedroom Car
Conrail 8 was the second oldest car in the Conrail Office Car Special fleet having been built in 1917. Conrail purchased three coaches from the Southern Railway: Conrail 24, Conrail 25 and Conrail 26. Conrail 24 was rebuilt by the Reading Passenger Shops into an 8 bedroom sleeping car numbered Conrail 8.
Conrail 3 Office Car
Conrail 3 was built in 1928 as an office car and served in that capacity until CSX sold the car in 2001. Interestingly enough, CSX named the car “Philadelphia” and didn’t take too long to shed the car and the city.
Conrail 55 Full Length Dome
Conrail 55, the full length dome car, joined the Conrail OCS train in 1988 and travelled the system in its former Santa Fe stainless steel appearance for 5 years. The Conrail 55 dome originally kept its ATSF designs on the bar, but it was eventually removed. CR 55 could be seen on Conrail Office Car Specials all over the system. Conrail 55 now serves on the Norfolk Southern business train.
Conrail 10 Observation Car
Conrail 10 was built in 1925 and had a complex, but incredible, history before joining the Conrail Office Car Special in 1976. Used in a similar way as Conrail 12, Conrail 10 was a unique Conrail business car. Read about some of the historical events that Conrail 10 has taken part in.
Conrail 9 Theater Car
Conrail 9 ( the theater inspection car) was built in 1954 as a Canadian National dinette, was purchased in 1982, and officially joined the Conrail Office Car Special fleet in March 1985. It became one of the most photographed pieces of Conrail’s special equipment fleet. Get an inside look at the massive picture window of Conrail 9.
Conrail 11 Sleeper
Conrail office car 11 was the staff sleeper for the OCS staff. Rumour has it one of the rooms had exercise equipment installed. Let’s explore the history, technical data, and diagrams of this former Erie 10-5 sleeping car.
Conrail 12 Conference Car
Conrail 12, the Conrail Office Car Special Conference Car, was built in 1952 for the Pennsylvania Railroad and was rebuilt by Conrail's Reading Passenger Car Shops in 1980. This Conrail OCS car was versatile with a rich history, being the only car to have three unique paint schemes and perhaps the only car to have made a brief flight.
Conrail Office Cars 1 & 4 (1st)
Conrail had two Office Cars numbered Conrail 1 and Conrail 4 as part of their OCS train. The original Conrail 1 and Conrail 4 business cars didn’t last too long on Conrail and were both gone by 1981. Conrail 1 (1st) lives on as a frequently seen private car New York Central 3 (NYC 3). Check out the histories and photos of these early Conrail business cars.
Conrail 27 Coach
Conrail 27, the 1947 coach built by Budd, was rebuilt at the Reading car shops for use on the Conrail Office Car Special. It was one of three cars that featured fluting in the business car fleet. Conrail 27 could be seen on all types of Conrail business trains, including Conrail Operation Lifesaver and Board of Director trips.
Conrail 2 - Conrail 19 Test Car
Conrail 2 served on the Conrail Office Car Special until the early 1990s and around 1995 was converted to Conrail 19 Test Car. No longer considered a Conrail business car, the car could be seen sitting alongside the Juniata Locomotive Shop lab. Now in private service as WAMX 800322 “Tallgrass”, its modern history is a bit harder to track down. Check out the history of this former NYC railroad office car.
Former Conrail employee recalls OCS trip
A former Conrail employee recalls his story of riding the Conrail Office Car Special. These trips were usually highly appreciated by those who got the chance to ride them. See why this one particular employee says he was the “luckiest man alive” during his trip.
Three ways Conrail used their Office Car Special
Conrail OCS trains weren’t just for the Board of Directors. In this article I explore three different uses for the Conrail Office Car Special in the words of their employees.
Finance rides the Conrail OCS train
Conrail used their business train and special equipment in many ways. This article explores how the Conrail Office Car Special was used to recognize the Conrail Finance Department. A former Conrail employee shares her experience of the Conrail OCS train that ran from Philadelphia to Enola and back on 9/24/92.