V&T Passenger Car Roster

The Virginia & Truckee Passenger Car Roster was compiled by the staff of the Nevada State Railroad Museum. If there are any corrections or suggestion please forward them to Collections Manager..

Notes:

In Cost Column, * denotes cost to V&T.

All V&T passenger cars were built with wood bodies and underframes except No. 23 all-steel, and Nos. 21 (2nd) and 24 with added steel underframes. Most cars were fitted with James Spear's anti-clinker coal stoves, water coolers and dry-hopper water closets. Original kerosene oil lamps upgraded to 32 volt DC electric lights on many cars beginning in December 1917, eventually including Nos. 1-4, 13-14 and 17-20. All cars had four-wheel wood-frame trucks and 33 inch diameter wheels with friction bearings except arch bar trucks on Nos. 5?, 6? and 20(2nd); composite trucks on Nos. 18, 20(2nd) and 21(2nd); cast steel on No. 23; and Simplex freight car trucks on No. 24.

Early cars were built with manual brakes; Westinghouse air brakes were applied beginning October 1874 and eventually on all passenger cars except Nos. 5 and 6. Original cars were equipped with link and pin couplers. The V&T began applying Miller platforms and couplers in June of 1878; Miller's were used on Nos. 1-4, 13-14 and 17-18. V&T passenger cars were upgraded beginning January 1902 to knuckle automatic couplers; all cars were eventually equipped except No. 5. Beginning in the 1890's, platform end-timber railings were fitted with splash guards on winter-train cars, eventually including Nos. 7-8, 11-12, 16, 20 (2nd) and 21 (2nd).

The exterior of early passenger cars was variously painted maroon, light blue, light brown, or light green as alternate consists of summer or winter trains. Circa January 1883, V&T passenger cars standardized with yellow bodies, brown trim, gold or yellow lettering, red numbers, and black underframe and trucks. Around 1924, the trim color changed to green. This remained the V&T's standard paint scheme until abandonment.