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All photos are copyright by George Elwood, from my collection with credit to the photographer or by the submitter. The photos may be used by individuals for their personal non-commercial use (screen savers, modeling effort, photo albums) without restriction. Reposting or other use REQUIRES permission from the owner of the image or data.

Central of New Jersey (CNJ)

Locomotives

Steam Locomotives

Freight Cars

Freight Cars Diagrams

Passenger Information

Tom Gardner also provided me with information on the 1944 Central of New Jersey passenger roster.

ARR
Mech
Design. 		Marking and
Kind of Car 		NOTES Car Nbrs
or Name 		Seating
Capy 		Length of
Compart 		Length
of Car 		Rates No of
Cars
Bag
Exp 		Mail Inside Over
Buffer 		Mile
age 		Per
Diem
MB Baggage & Mail --- 61 - 74 --- 40 30 70 0 74 4 .085 13.50 13
DC Cafe 1 80 40 --- --- 74 4 83 3 .10 18.50 1
DC Cafe 1 82, 83 38 --- --- 73 4 82 3 .10 18.50 2
PV Officers --- 97 --- --- --- 73 2 82 6 --- --- 1
PV Officers --- 98 --- --- --- 62 3 71 11 --- --- 1
PB Coach, Longitudinal Benches --- 138 - 140 88 --- --- 64 3 73 10 .085 13.50 3
PB Coach --- 141 - 162 88 --- --- 62 1 72 2 .085 13.50 22
CA Comb Bagg & Pass, Long Benches SUF 230 - 243 80 --- --- 59 3 67 10 .07 11.50 7
CA Comb Bagg & Pass --- 244 - 249 50 22 --- 63 0 71 11 .085 13.50 6
CA Comb Bagg & Pass --- 250 - 258 51 22 --- 63 0 71 11 .085 13.50 9
CA Comb Bagg & Pass --- 259 - 268 51 22 --- 62 3 72 4 .085 13.50 10
CA Comb Bagg & Pass --- 269 - 299 51 22 --- 62 3 72 4 .085 13.50 19
CA Comb Bagg & Pass --- 300 48 22 --- 62 3 72 4 .085 13.50 1
CA Comb Bagg & Pass 1 301 48 22 --- 62 3 72 4 .10 18.50 1
CA Comb Bagg & Pass --- 302 48 22 --- 62 3 72 4 .085 13.50 1
CA Comb Bagg & Pass 1 303 51 22 --- 62 3 72 4 .10 18.50 1
CA Comb Bagg & Pass --- 304 51 22 --- 62 3 72 4 .085 13.50 1
CA Comb Bagg & Pass --- 305 - 309 62 17 --- 63 0 72 6 .085 13.50 5
BE Baggage SUF 369 - 378 --- ---- --- 59 3 62 11 .035 7.00 10
BE Baggage SUF 388, 389 --- ---- --- 71 4 74 11 .045 8.50 2
BE Baggage --- 390 - 436 --- ---- --- 70 0 74 4 .045 8.50 47
PA Coach, Longitudinal Benches SUF 695 - 712 80 ---- --- 59 3 67 10 .07 11.50 3
PB Coach --- 801 - 811 78 ---- --- 62 3 71 11 .085 13.50 11
PB Coach --- 812 - 866 78 ---- --- 62 3 72 2 .085 13.50 55
PB Coach --- 867 - 1168 78 ---- --- 62 3 72 6 .085 13.50 302
PO Observation --- 1169 48 ---- --- 54 0 72 6 .085 13.50 1
PB Coach 1 1170 64 ---- --- 62 3 72 6 .10 18.50 1
PB Coach --- 1171 - 1177 64 ---- --- 62 3 72 6 .085 13.50 6
PB Coach 1 1176 64 ---- --- 62 3 72 6 .10 18.50 1
PO Observation 1 1178, 1179 48 ---- --- 54 0 72 6 .10 18.50 2
PB Coach --- 1180,1181 64 ---- --- 62 3 72 6 .085 13.50 2
PB Coach, Reclining Seats 1 1182, 1183 78 ---- --- 62 3 72 6 .10 18.50 2
PB Coach 1 1184, 1185 78 ---- --- 62 3 72 6 .10 18.50 2
PB Coach --- 1186 - 1194 78 ---- --- 62 3 72 6 .085 13.50 9
PB Coach 1 1195 - 1204 72 ---- --- 62 3 72 6 .10 18.50 6
PB Coach --- 1196,1199-1201 72 ---- --- 62 3 72 6 .085 13.50 4
PB Coach --- 1205 -1216 78 ---- --- 62 3 72 6 .085 13.50 12
PB Coach --- 1298, 1299 84 ---- --- 69 1 79 5 .085 13.50 2
PB Coach --- 1300 - 1324 86 ---- --- 62 4 72 6 .085 13.50 25

NOTES:

Blue Comet observation cars

That Blue Comet observation car at the old Union Gap Restaurant along Rt.22 in Clinton was indeed a parlor car, with separate wicker parlor seats that could be moved to the passenger's whims. The interior is finished in inlaid mohogany. The CNJ didn't sell tickets to ride in the Blue Comet obs cars, as it wanted the obs available to anyone paying the extra fare to ride that train. Since the train began in 1929, operating during prohibition and the depression, it had no galley. The Blue Comet cars were unusual in that they were completely a parlor with huuuuuge rear platforms, perhaps the largest on any railroad. The obs platform is indeed outside, and under all that flakey paint are brass rails, trim and pinacles.

All three exist, and all were built by Bethlehem Shipbuilding around 1928, as were many of the CNJ coaches. The orientation of the lapped riveted seams made these cars gather water around the window sashes over the years, which is why relatively little of the CNJ coach fleet exists.

The Union Gap car is the Biela, the DeVico is NJT 1, and the Tempel (note the spelling) is owned by the Tri-State Chapter NRHS based in Morristown -- NJT donated the car, but Tri-State contributed toward the move of the Tempel from Bay Head to Morristown around 1985. In 1997 Tri-State leased the car to the City of South Plainfield and the South Plainfield Historical Society to become an historical library and museum. Tri-State spent more than $20k on that car to try to restore it in the 1980s, but the deterioration was just too much and those working on the car abandoned the project in the late 1980s.

While the Union Gap is indeed for sale again, it is unlikely that the car is in danger. But it would be wise to keep tabs on the new owners just in case -- more than one Victoria's Station has scrapped railcars on little notice. The difficulty in moving Biela would make it expensive to preserve. With boxcars trailing most Amtrak trains these days, there are significantly fewer p.v.'s in transit these days, too, making restoration even more of an uphill battle.

Of all of the Blue Comet obs cars, NJT 1 is the most roadworthy, but its interior has been completely rebuilt and altered. However, all it needs is a little new metal and a lot of new paint.

Also, it's very unusual for cars with observation platforms to not have at least small parlor sections. Pullman did have a series of all-section sleepers with obs platforms, but I've never seen or read about a coach built with an observation platform. (Andy Muller did add a platform to a Lackawanna m.u. coach).

Mike Del Veccho

Routes & Interchanges

Railroad Interchange Point
East Jersey RR & Term Bayonne
Erie Lackawanna Lake Jct
Lehigh Valley Bound Brook
Jersey City
Oak Island Jct
Perth Amboy
Phillipsburg
Mount Hope Mineral Mt Hope Mineral Jct
New York & Long Branch Long Branch
Matawan
Red Bank
South Amboy
Penn Central Farmingdale
Weehawken
Oak Island Jct
Perth Amboy
Penn-Reading Seashore Bridgeton
Winslow
Rahway Valley Aldene
Raritan River South Amboy
Reading Bound Brook Jct
Phillipsburg
Port Reading Crossing
Staten Island RR Crandford Jct
Wharton & Northern Lake Jct

Building and Structures

Models

Manuf Gauge Model Man # Mod # Remark
Aristo-Craft G Gondola 41000 40'Drop end
Aristo-Craft G RS-3 22200
Aristo-Craft G Cov Hop 41200 37' Cov Hop
Aristo-Craft G Box 46000 40' SD Box Car
Rivarossi HO PAX SET RIV6910 1920 Hvy Wgt, Bagg, Comb, Pullman, Diner
Rivarossi HO PAX SET RIV6911 1920 Hvy Wgt, RPO, coach, duplux sleeper, obs

Last changed - 31 Aug 2008