Commemorative State Box Cars

There are six cars that make up TYCO's Commemorative State Box Car series. The car used is the 50' plug-door box car, which is cataloged as model number 339 in its most generic offering. This set of six was cataloged in 1975-76 and 1976 only. The images shown are taken from those catalogs. Notice the steps are open on these examples, the samples I possess all feature filled-in steps. I assume both likely exist and I've simply not run across the 'open-step' version yet.

The choice of states does not appear to make any specific group. With only six, they certainly are not representing the original thirteen colonies. Perhaps TYCO had plans to produce more and interest or sales did not materialize for this series. In the late '70s, Mantua offered a set of cars similar to this group with each lettered for a state of the union. Some collectors may confuse them with this set, but note that only the six below make up TYCO's mid 1970's collection of Commemorative State Box Cars.