Passenger coach positioning

[Dr_Bullitt]

In the steam era on mixed freight and passenger trains, were the passenger coaches closest to the engine or at the back?

 

Thanks

[rcdrye]

It depends.  A common mixed train configuration used a baggage-coach combine at the rear of the train as both passenger accomodations and "caboose".  This also made switching easier, as the combine didn't have to be set off for freight switching moves.  Most passenger equiment assigned to mixed trains was stove-heated, rather than heated with steam from the locomotive. A few railroads, notably Georgia RR and UP, operated mixed trains with steam-heated equipment behind the locomotive.  

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

The Georgia RR and UP trains could be described as mainline mixed trains that primarily handled TOFC/COFC behind the passenger cars.  In the early Amtrak era when Southern was outside of Amtrak, the "Piedmont" operated in a similar fashion with four FP7's up front followed by the passenger consist and 20-30 TOFC flatcars on the rear.