The Boxcar Desk

You get one shot at this one.

We salvaged a section of an old Maine Central boxcar, and the first thing that caught our eye was the color. Pure fall. The rich, burnished hues of a maple turning as the temperatures drop.

Years of service on America's railroads left their mark. The weathered steel, the layers of patina, the wear earned mile after mile. It had so much character, it didn't need a thing. It simply spoke to us.

This car once ran a line moving Maine's wood products to paper mills around the country, returning to pick up another load of the trees that give this piece its unmistakable autumn color.

We framed the weathered steel in blackened steel end panels, adding a contemporary edge without losing the industrial character. The result is less a desk than a piece of railroad history, displayed in a way you can put to work.

And then there's the paint.

A fragment of an unknown tag? A graffiti artist testing a can? We'll probably never know. Some mysteries are better left unsolved.

The top carries its own story: beautifully refinished, bookmatched boxcar flooring, assembled from three 12-inch-wide panels and laminated into a substantial butcher-block-style surface. Original railroad character, ready for a new chapter.

Put this in your office, and you can pretty well script the conversation.

“I've never seen a desk like this.”

“No. You haven't. And you never will again. It's one of a kind. Crafted from boxcars. Pure railroad history, framed and put to work.”

“You get to spend your workday here?”

“You best believe it.”

The Boxcar Desk. One of one. When it's spoken for, it's spoken for.

84" L × 36" D × 30" H
Steel & reclaimed boxcar wood
Made in America.