BN 375845

Box Car

Built 1967 as Great Northern 138687. It is a 50' plate-C high capacity box car, with cushion underframe, ABD brakes, roller-bearings, and double plug doors. BNSF donated "identical triplets" 236407, 236660, and 375845 in June 2004.

This car series was built by Pacific Car & Foundry in 1967, and delivered in Big Sky Blue. 236660 and 236407 have been restored to their as-delivered appearance. Click here for a photo of Big Sky Blue GN 138466, from the same series. Photo from the collection of Ralph Back.

Big Sky Blue was the Great Northern's last paint scheme before the Burlington Northern merger. It was introduced in the spring of 1967 by a secretly-painted train of business cars, and was to be applied to all rolling stock. However, not everything got repainted by the 1970 merger date. It is said the same design firm in St Paul designed both the GN "Big Sky Blue" and BN "Cascade Green" paint schemes. They are very similar.

375845 had been retired early due to bad-order doors. Notice one door is missing in the photo - it had been placed inside and welded to the floor for safe keeping. Museum shop forces straightened the bent door hardware and re-hung it.

Of the three, 375845 is unique in that the BN modified it and renumbered it. (When first renumbered, it was BN 236687.) Therefore, the museum plans to restore it to BN Cascade Green rather than GN Big Sky Blue.

Car Data

Plate C

BLT 9-67

SER ABD EMERG ABD

Great Northern Railway
Equipment Trust of 1967 the
First National City Bank of
New York. Trustee, Owner, Lessor.

Sources:

1. "Great Northern Equipment Pictorial Book Two - Freight Cars," by Scott R. Thompson; data p118.