Burlington Refrigerator Express
Encyclopedia
Burlington Refrigerator Express (BREX) was a railroad refrigerator car
leasing company that was formed on May 1, 1926 as a joint venture between the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
(CB&Q) and the Fruit Growers Express
Company. The move helped the FGE expand its business into the Pacific Northwest
, and added almost 2,700 ice bunker units to the existing car pool already under lease by the Burlington to the FGE and Western Fruit Express
(WFE).
Burlington Refrigerator Express Roster, 1930–1970:
Source: The Great Yellow Fleet, p. 16.
Refrigerator car
A refrigerator car is a refrigerated boxcar , a piece of railroad rolling stock designed to carry perishable freight at specific temperatures. Refrigerator cars differ from simple insulated boxcars and ventilated boxcars , neither of which are fitted with cooling apparatus...
leasing company that was formed on May 1, 1926 as a joint venture between the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington or as the Q, the Burlington Route served a large area, including extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri,...
(CB&Q) and the Fruit Growers Express
Fruit Growers Express
Fruit Growers Express was a railroad refrigerator car leasing company that began as a produce-hauling subsidiary of Armour and Company's private refrigerator car line. Its customers complained they were overcharged. In 1919 the Federal Trade Commission ordered the company's sale for anti-trust...
Company. The move helped the FGE expand its business into the Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
, and added almost 2,700 ice bunker units to the existing car pool already under lease by the Burlington to the FGE and Western Fruit Express
Western Fruit Express
Western Fruit Express was a railroad refrigerator car leasing company formed by the Fruit Growers Express and the Great Northern Railway on July 18, 1923 in order to compete with the Pacific Fruit Express and Santa Fe Refrigerator Despatch in the Western United States. The arrangement added 3,000...
(WFE).
Burlington Refrigerator Express Roster, 1930–1970:
| 1930 | 1940 | 1950 | 1960 | 1970 |
| 2,448 | 2,025 | 1,895 | 1,581 | 1,987 |
Source: The Great Yellow Fleet, p. 16.