Creosote

[t. alexander]

Ok folks, here's the low down on my research (so far) of the origin of creosote

Seems it all started 150 years ago in Britain when a man named Henry Burt told of his discovery to all that cared...All two of them Actually it was a big deal since the railroad folks was needing a way to preserve the rail sleepers (ties) and wood pilings for the rapidly expanding railroad there.

I still hav'nt found out when it became widely used here in America. Thats really what Im trying to find out.

Anyway Looks like Mr. creosote has a birthday coming up soon

Btw when my wife asked me what I was doing I told her research. But there was no way I'd tell her what for.

Now since it looks like I'm in for the night I'm going to do something real exiting and crack open a Mountain Dew. Also known as a coke if you live down here

t.

 

[Vic]

Hi T, When I was working in Macon Ga in the 70's there was a creosote plant there. They treated utility poles and rail ties there. Even had its own little 2ft gauge railroad on the property to shuffle the materials around. Man! did it smell bad when the wind would blow from that direction Seems that I heard that the plant is no longer there as it was closed for enviromental reasons.
I remember that as a kid you could buy creosote in gallon cans at the hardware store.

BTW.... About that Mountain Dew.....You ain't far enough South ... Down here in SW Georgia the old timers called that and any other soft drink a "dope" That term came from the cotton mill workers...they could drink one real fast and get a sugar rush which helped them keep up the grueling pace in the mills. The guy that sold them from a pushcart was know as "the dope man". My! have times changed

 

[RI541]

Yea all the good stuff has been outlawed, I still have a gallon out in the shed, just haven't had the heart to throw it out. Never know I might need it sometime

do either of you remember Cloridain? The insectiside? That was the cats meow Killed everything with more than four legs, But I guess some people got real sick with some. I got some of that too. not much though, its probrobly dried up by now but you never know I might need some of that too

 

[t. alexander]

Vic, Those old timers were'nt drinking the original, original formula of coke were they? slam one of those down and they would get more that a plain sugar rush

RI, There was also the stuff that was put on gravel roads to cut down on the dust. Was that creosote? now they use soy bean oil, now there's a versitle plant.


t.

 

[Vic]

Hey Shane, I sure do remember Clorodane.....it was called "cotton dust" down here. One of my chores as a kid was every spring I had to take a bag of it under the house and spread it around so we didn't have any bugs in the house during the summer Dang sure worked too

Like I said on another thread about glue....if the package says "harmful or fatal or may cause brain damage" you know it will work

 

[60103]

Some things don't scale down

When I was younger (so much younger than today), my father used creosote on a post in the back yard. I got the bright idea that it would do just dandy for the extra wood ties I was putting on my Lionel track.
After they traced the smell, those ties went out of the house so fast...

 

[t. alexander]

60103, that's pretty funny talk about getting that creosote coloring right

Just remembered when I was little I laid a piece of steel wool across my dad's Lionel track with the power on.

t.

 

[RI541]

OUCH!!!!

I'm glad you are still here to tell the story