THE 80'S, PT15; MORE TRUCKS

More of Hillsdale in the 80's...

An old International Harvester CargoStar hauls a load of coiled steel. There was once a machine shop in town, but it was a casualty of the 1983 recession. A stamping plant took over in 1984, making metal gaskets for Volkswagon, but the 1988 closure of the New Stanton plant spelled the end of that operation. Today, the facility operates as TC's Tool & Die Co.

When Kenworth introduced the T600 in 1984, it was an instant best seller. Here, one pulls a new 48' XTRA Intermodal trailer from the storage lot.

Another T600, this one with a sleeper, pulls a 48' trailer for National Van Lines.

Yet another T600 day cab, in contract service with the Post Office, heading to the distribution center. The Post Office used 40' trailers into the 90's, although contract carriers used longer trailers.

.A Peterbilt cab-over rolls a 48' Rail-Bridge container out of town. The 48' domestic container began the intermodal revolution, as finally the railroads had a container that could match the capacity of over-the-road trucks; being able to double-stack them meant that the railroads could move them more efficiently than the competition. Note that J&S Trucking is still beside KFC. The move out of town came in 1992.

Today, J&S Trucking is visited by a Smith's Transfer semi, as the driver walks from the office back to his truck. Unfortunately, Smith's Transfer would go out of business in 1988.

Three 80's icons are seen here; a 40' Conrail "Trailvan" trailer, pulled by a Mack model R tractor, and a Cadillac Seville with the infamous "chopped trunk".