West India Fruit and Steamship Company information
West India Fruit and Steamship
Overview
Headquarters
Roanoke, Virginia
Reporting mark
WIF
Locale
Southern Florida and Cuba
Dates of operation
1946–1961
Technical
Track gauge
4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
The West India Fruit and Steamship Company operated a railcar ferry service between the Port of Palm Beach, Florida, and Havana, Cuba, from shortly after World War II until deteriorating relations between the United States and Cuba culminated in the United States embargo against Cuba. The company offered six of its ferries for sale in June 1961, citing the fact that "trade had dwindled to the vanishing point"[1] and service ceased in August 1961.[2]
WIF&SS Co., in its role as a car ferry operator, acted as both a railroad and a steamship line. The service was described as “The Superior All-Rail Route to Cuba.” Freight from anywhere in North America could be routed to Cuban consignees “in the same cars and packaging in which it left point of origin in the United States.” This had advantages enumerated in WIF&SS Co. sales literature – reduced transit time, less handling of freight, and no repackaging.[3]
^"WEST INDIA LISTS FERRIES FOR SALE; Six Rail Car-Auto Vessels Served U.S.-Cuba Trade". New York Times. June 2, 1961. Retrieved 2008-01-06.
^"Boxcar Modeling The West India Fruit Car", Mainline Modeler, May 1988.
^Superior All-Rail-Route to Cuba [brochure], West India Fruit and Steamship
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