Wichita and AT&SF

[RoyPBower]

Can anyone tell me why the AT&SF mainline bypassed Wichita?

Thanks,

Roy

[wanswheel]

Excerpt from History of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway by Keith L. Bryant, Jr.

As early as the summer of 1870, [T. J.] Peter had dispatched survey crews west from Emporia toward Fort Dodge. At Peter's request, former Governor Samuel J. Crawford asked General John Pope to provide the surveyors with an escort of infantry because of hostile acts by Indians in the area. The troops guarded the crews as they ran two lines, one west from Wichita, taking a shorter route, and the other west from Newton, following the "great bend" in the Arkansas River. The latter survey, though longer in mileage, would provide lower grades and reduce the cost of construction and future operations. The management selected the longer route for these reasons, not, as critics would later charge, to increase the size of the land grant. From Fort Dodge west the survey followed the river through a flat country where large fills and cuts were unnecessary. By the end of the year the survey crews located the line, and Peter ordered construction materials and hired track gangs.

[nanaimo73]

Wichita did find itself located on two mainlines later on. 1887 saw the completion of the line through Oklahoma City to Fort Worth and Galveston. The current Transcon was completed in 1907. That lasted until the Ellinor cutoff was built through the Flint Hills in 1924, providing a shortcut for freight traffic.

[daveklepper]

The Texas Chief regularly had a drop sleeper for Wichita that I rode a number of times.   My first ride in a dome car was on the Texas Chief on my way to Wichita from Chicago.   Finally went back tot he roomette around 1AM.

[RoyPBower]

So Dave, was the sleeper dropped at Newton or at Wichita? What year was this? Thanks, Roy

[daveklepper]

First trip in a dome was in 1959.  The Wichita sleeper was always dropped at Wichita.   The Texas Chief did run through Witchita.   The last time I rode the Wichita drop sleeper was around 1969. I think.

Wichita also had sleeper to Denver.   I rode it in 1960.  It was on the MP, went to Herendon (I think) on a mixed train, then the Colorado Eagle to Denver.  I had flown to Chicago, great concert in Orchestra Hall, but I had to leave early, missing the encore, to catch the TC, drop sleeper to Witchita, Denver sleeper to Colorado Springs (actually to Palmer Lake, the porter forgot to wake me up, and I saw we were in CS station, dressed quckly in my roomette, found the conductor, train stopped at Palmer Lake, towerman going off duty drove me back to Colorado Springs and the Broadmore Hotel.   That evening the joint train to Denver (rode the D&RGW dome snack car), night in the Brown Palace, then the CZ to SLC.  Night in the Hotel Utah, now an LDS meeting and office facility with an IMax Theatre.   Then a day sightseeing and business, and a flight to Boise.

[RoyPBower]

Very nice trip. I envy you!

[Deggesty]

Yes, a nice trip. It sounds like those I used to take. On one, in 1968, I went through Wichita on the Texas Chief on one leg of a trip from Tuscaloosa, Alabama, to Tuscaloosa. It started with Tuscaloosa to Birmingham to Nashville (we were too late getting into Nashville to connect with the St. Louis train so I spent the rest of the night in Nashville and left twenty-four hours after I had planned to leave) to St. Louis, where I spent the day sightseeing. Then, the MoP to Kansas City where I took a welcome roomette on the TC down to Ft. Worth so I could take the Louisiana Eagle to New Orleans. The conductor out of Shreveport saw that my ticket had been issued by Southern and thought that I would be taking the Southerner out of New Orleans. Little did he know that I still had quite a way to go. After visiting my brother and his family in Baton Rouge (bus up and back), I left for Kansas City on the KCS's Southern Belle, where I spent the night before taking the Rock Island's Plainsman up to Minneapolis. From there, I had a duplex roomette to Milwaukee on the Pioneer Limited. In Milwaukee, I visited Trains Magazine. Rosemary Entringer and Frank Shaffer were wonderful host and hostess, and Rosemary let me look through the proofs of Dave Morgan's book on the 4501 engine (Dave was away, so I did not get to meet him). Then, down to Chicago on the Morning Hiawatha, and back to Birmingham on the Seminole to take the Southerner down to Tuscaloosa. The Southern issued the ticket for this 4551 mile trip, and I used the Southern for only 110 miles.