Hello everyone! Welcome to the Diner for February, 2024! This month we are going to hook the Diner up to famous passenger trains. We will get to see a lot of North America!
So gang, choose your favourite 'named' train(s) and tell us a bit about them.
Cheers!!
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
There have been an incredible number of named trains. If you need help choosing one, here is Wikipedia's list:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_named_passenger_trains_of_the_United_States_(A%E2%80%93B)
That list only covers trains starting with A or B, but you can see the rest of the alphabetical listings by clicking on the capital letters just down from the top of the page.
I'll kick things off by choosing 'The Canadian'. Here is some history:
In 1953, CP placed an order for 155 stainless steel cars with the Budd Company of Red Lion, Pennsylvania (a Philadelphia suburb) that included 18 rear-end dome cars (Park series), 18 Skyline mid-train dome cars, 30 coaches, 18 dining cars and 71 sleeping cars (Manor and Château series). A subsequent order for 18 baggage-crew dormitory cars brought the final to total to 173 cars: sufficient for establishing an entirely-new transcontinental service and partially re-equipping The Dominion.[6] The interior design of these new cars was contracted to the Philadelphia architectural firm Harbeson, Hough, Livingston & Larson (a company known for its industrial designs on other prominent passenger trains such as the Pioneer Zephyr), and the resulting furnishings and pastel-shaded colour schemes were widely acclaimed.
After deciding to name the Park series dome cars after famous Canadian parks, leading Canadian artists, including members of the Group of Seven, were commissioned to paint suitable murals for these cars.[6] When the decision was made to add budget sleeping cars, the Budd order was supplemented by 22 existing heavyweight sleepers that CP refurbished in its own Angus Shops, each fitted-out with Budd-style stainless steel cladding. To complement the new rolling stock, CP ordered General Motors Diesel FP9 locomotives to supplement an existing fleet of FP7s. Although these F-units remained the preferred power for the train, it would occasionally pulled by a variety of motive power, including Montreal Locomotive Works FPA-2s.
CP christened its new flagship train The Canadian and service began on April 24, 1955. Running time between Montreal and Vancouver was reduced from about 85 to 71 hours, so that passengers spent only three, rather than four, nights en route. Although CP competitor Canadian National Railways began its own new transcontinental service, the Super Continental, on the same day, CP was able to boast honestly that The Canadian was "The first and only all-stainless steel 'dome' stream-liner in Canada" — it was not until 1964 that the CN acquired dome cars from the Milwaukee Road.
The train operated with Montreal and Toronto sections, which ran combined west of Sudbury, Ontario. The Montreal section (also serving Ottawa) was known as train 1 westbound and train 2 eastbound, while the Toronto section was known as train 11 westbound and train 12 eastbound. Matching its streamlined appearance, The Canadian's 71-hour westbound schedule was 16 hours faster than that of The Dominion.
Although initially successful, passenger train ridership began to decline in Canada during the 1960s. Facing competition from new jet aircraft and increased automobile usage following construction of the Trans-Canada Highway, the CP cancelled The Dominion in 1966, and petitioned the government to discontinue The Canadian in 1970. Although this petition was denied, CP during the 1970s attempted to remove itself from the passenger service market. The Canadian was operated at reduced levels, with the government funding 80 percent of its losses.
Via Rail, a federal crown corporation, formally assumed responsibility for CP's passenger services on October 29, 1978, although the Via identity was not assumed by the trains themselves until the following summer. Following the takeover by Via, the Canadian became the company's premier transcontinental train, and initially operated over its old CP route. It was supplemented by the former CN Super Continental, which operated over the parallel, but more northerly, CN route. The Canadian continued to be operated in two sections east of Sudbury and provided daily service west to Vancouver and east to Toronto and Montreal.
The Super Continental was discontinued in 1981 due to sharp budget cuts. Since then, the Canadian has Via Rail's only true transcontinental train. While the Super Continental was brought back in 1985 amid popular demand, it only ran as far east as Winnipeg.
In the aftermath of another round of deep budget cuts made to Via Rail on January 15, 1990, Via again discontinued the Super Continental, this time permanently. The Canadian was moved from CP trackage to the CN route plied by the Super Continental for its first quarter-century, dropping the Montreal section. The new longer route bypassed Thunder Bay, Regina and Calgary in favour of Saskatoon and Edmonton. This maintained transcontinental service and allowed Via to operate its government-mandated service to small communities along the line. At the same time, the absence of transportation alternatives along the CP route allowed entrepreneur Peter Armstrong to develop the Rocky Mountaineer excursion service.[7] Moreover, while pre-1990 schedules had daily service on both the CP and CN routes, service following the 1990 cuts was a mere three days per week, reduced further to two times a week in the off-season.
In 2007, the schedule was lengthened so that the train now takes four nights, rather than three, to travel between Toronto and Vancouver. The four-night schedule is almost identical (in terms of travel time) with that of the 1940s, despite substantial technological change since then.
In 2013, the train was honoured by being featured on the back of the new polymer Canadian ten-dollar note.
As of 2022, Via Rail continues to operate the Canadian using the rebuilt ex-CP Budd passenger equipment.[9]
Due to CN's shortage of capacity on the cross-country line, 12-hour delays had become almost standard. On-time performance had fallen from 84% in 2009 to just 8% in 2017.[10] Continuing delays reached nearly 2 days in length by mid-May, 2018.[11] To address this issue, the schedule was lengthened again, effective July 26, 2018, to four days and four nights in each direction due to continuing schedule-reliability problems on the host railway: CN.[12] This change has almost entirely resolved the issue.
The Canadian currently takes 94 hours 15 minutes westbound[13] vs. 95 hours 29 minutes eastbound.[14] This is 13h50m vs. 12h19m slower than the SSContinental's 80h25m vs. 83h10m[15] and 13h5m vs. 12h24m slower than the Dominion's 81h10m vs. 83h5m[16] schedules from 1952. The difference is entirely due to CN freight traffic being prioritized over passenger traffic along the route.[11]
I have actually had the pleasure of dining on board The Canadian and it was pretty posh, at least by my standards at the time. My mom and I travelled from Toronto to Vancouver and back aboard The Canadian in 1965. It was quite an experience.
Thanks for moving the Diner this month, Dave! We get an extra day in this years February, yipee!
I was fortunate enough to have enjoyed the top-notch appointments of both The Canadian and the CN's Super Continental back in the early '70s.
CP_VIA_1 by Edmund, on Flickr
One train I never had the fortune to ride was the 20th Century Limited. It was discontinued in 1967 and Cleveland, where I grew up, was not an 'official' passenger stop for the Century.
NYC_Century_GCT by Edmund, on Flickr
Regards, Ed
Canadian Pacific Dining Car Service Menu c. 1960's by Thrifty Nancy, on Flickr
"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."
Good morning!
Ridge Farm IL, former Cloverleaf (NKP/N&W)
Bill Tidler Jr.
Near a cornfield in Indiana...
Hi Everyone,
Dave: thank you for moving the diner. You pack a wealth of information on one name train. Good job.
One of the more memorable train trips we ever took was to ride Canadian VIA from Windsor, OT to Moncton, NB. There were like 17 of us traveling together. On the return part of the trip we crossed the Quebec bridge. Massive steel beams and columns in that one. Fun trip.
Jim (with a nod to Mies Van Der Rohe)
The Panama Limited is escaping these snow-covered parts. By tomorrow the train will be in Sunny New Orleans:
Panama_4027 by Edmund, on Flickr
Panama_4036 by Edmund, on Flickr
https://www.american-rails.com/panama.html
Cheers, Ed
Good afternoon Diners. A large coffee please, Flo.
A hectic night last night. Older granddaughter broke her finger playing basketball. A few hours in hospital being attended to also meant I had to get and look after grandson.
Anyway our daughter and granddaughter came to our house to collect grandson. It was just after midnight when they arrived. They had a 40 mile journey home to North Tynedale.
Elizabethan Express
Vintage railway film - Elizabethan express - 1954 (youtube.com)
To the world you are someone. To someone you are the world
I cannot afford the luxury of a negative thought
Good morning, diners. I'll have my usual breakfast.
In the 1950s, my grandfather in Tacoma, Washington, was sick and in the hospital. My mother and I rode the Union Pacific 'City of Portland' to Tacoma.
We spent two days and two nights on the train. One regret is that my mother and I took no pictures on the train.
That trip really jump-started my love for trains. I loved flushing the toilet and seeing the ties and track going by under the train. I had never seen a 'finger bowl' in the dining car before. I also loved to stand on the shifting floor between cars. I spent the majority of both days sitting in the dome.
It was a great trip.
I hope everyone has a great day.
York1 John
Howdy diners. Janie, a chocolate malt please.
Was put behind the 8 ball first thing this morning. I was backing out of the garage to head to work when I noticed the dome light on in my daughter's car. Uh oh. Sure enough, dead battery. I was going to leave it and just make her walk to school (we live really close), but she also has to work tonight and nobody else may make it home before she has to leave. So, I was late for work jump starting and running her car long enough to get enough charge back in the battery for her. That set up the rest of the morning to feel like a race. At least it's the last day of the work week for me.
I'm looking forward to reading all the info on named trains this month. That's something I wish I had been able to experience, but alas, born too late. (At least for a decent train in the U.S.)
Mike
Good Afternoon,
Ed, glad to hear your treatments are going ok.
I have only been on the Super Continental. Once when I was 12 I went out to BC with ny Grandmother to visit relatives on her side. We went to Vernon on the way out which meant our car was dropped at Salmon Arm and then picked up by the train down the Okanagan Valley. Came back from Vancouver. I had an upper berth. That was in 1960. Last time was spring 1971 from Winnipeg to Toronto. I went down to pick up a new car. What I saved in freight paid for the trip. I remember great food in the dining car.
I did get the Consolidation out of the engine house. I think its wheels need a cleaning. I uae a paper towel soaked in alcohol that works well for me. It is pulling a work train with a work caboose I got for Christmas 1959.
Time for tea
CN Charlie
Thanks, Charlie!
When I rode the Super Continental from Torinto to Winnipeg they were still running the former Milwaukee Super Domes on the train.
I doubt this would qualify as a fancy name train. Mixed train, maybe?
CSX Q406 GUILFORD AVE 2-25-93 by Don Kalkman, on Flickr
My very first ride on a named passenger train was aboard the ERIE's Lake Cities from Cleveland to Youngstown (on a connecting train) then Youngstown to Hoboken, N.J. back in 1966.
EL_Last-Lake Cities-1 by Edmund, on Flickr
Not quite as fancy as the Phoebe Snow but at least there was a full diner.
Lackawanna_Tavern by Edmund, on Flickr
E-L_coach setout-Huntington-IN by Edmund, on Flickr
Most of my childhood I travelled on buses; even the long haul (in those days) from Leeds to Newcastle.
One time, for some unknown reason to me I was taken by train, Leeds City to Newcastle. Not just a train, but a named one; NORTH BRITON nameboard at the front. At the time I was not really interested in railways, so the occassion was lost on me. Just the memory of the nameboard.
The North Briton ran from Leeds City to Glasgow Queen Street, calling at York, Darlington, Newcastle, Edinburgh Waverley and Glasgow Queen Street.
David
Good morning, everyone. Just coffee this morning -- I'm heading out the door.
Nothing like waking up and walking to diner on a moving train! It's strange, but everyone in the diner is dressed like they're going to church.
Have a great day, everyone.
York1 Nothing like waking up and walking to diner on a moving train! It's strange, but everyone in the diner is dressed like they're going to church. Have a great day, everyone.
In the 1950s that was the way to dress and dine. Even at home as a young boy wearing a tie at mealtimes. Those were the days
Back in the 50s and 60s, one would always dress up to travel. I'm not old enough to remember what the societal rationale was, but I'm sure it would've had something to do with respect. Anyway, that's how it was done then.
Thinking about it, I've ridden several UP passenger trains from early youth to adulthood. I don't remember any name trains except the Amtrak Southwest Chief, which was originally the ATSF, from Chicago's Union Station to Topeka, KS. My Dad had said that it was pretty much a straight shot from Chicago to Kansas City. That train would've been two full days from Chicago to LA.
Good morning from the sunny West Coast where it is supposed to be nice for the next week at least. So close to T-shirt weather on my scoot with the mutt.
Three trips into Vancouver in three days for us and every time we get home from that rat race of traffic and hoards of people both my wife and I climb out of the car and just take in the silence.
Had a very frustrating couple of days on the "Executor" front. It's as if a person comes to you and says, "My hand keeps getting burned", and you say to them, "Well don't stick your hand in the fire and it won't get burned", and then they just look at you like you are speaking a foreign language. Yesterday I had to tell a lady you and your husband had no Will in place, Here is the name of a good Lawyer. Her husband died and she has no access to his retirement funds. It will get straightened out and she will have to plead with the tax man to not take a huge chunk in taxes as she is not named as the Beneficiary. The car and boat were in his name as well as some other things. My guess is six figures to clean it up. Stupid is as stupid does.
When I was two, in April 1959 we climbed aboard The Canadian in Winnipeg for our move to the West Coast. My sister was able to tell me the exact date we hopped aboard and there are a couple of people on some Canadian Pacific FB groups that are trying to hunt down the exact consist of the train I was on so I can re-create it.
Just how I remember the trip. Yep, even at age two I do remember snippets.
I hear the recycling truck coming. I'll mosey out for a chat with the driver, it's what we retired guys do, don't ya know.
All the best to all.
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
Good afternoon diners. Zoe, a big rice krispie treat and a glass of chocolate milk please.
BATMANthere are a couple of people on some Canadian Pacific FB groups that are trying to hunt down the exact consist of the train I was on so I can re-create it.
I got an email this morning that made me sad. It was from Model Train Stuff asking me to rate/review some of the things I bought just before Christmas. I know there are other shops and there are plenty of folks who are not sad to see them go (I've read the thread about them...some of it a bit harsh), but they were my go to source. I actually liked how their website was laid out and could find what I wanted easily. I still don't understand how right up to the end (other than what appeared to be a Christmas sale/moving sale) once they realized they were going to close up, why didn't they mark down everything they had and try to get some liquidity from their inventory? I think they still had a fair amount of stuff in stock. I doubt manufacturers would take back what they hadn't sold. Oh well.
Hope everyone with difficulties on the health front are doing okay. I'll back in later.
When we remodeled our kitchen I ran a new circuit into the pantry for a large charging station and put in another plug on another wall in there to charge the little Dyson stick vacuum the wife had. It had a holder I mounted by the new plug. Life was good. So we get the new Dyson and the new holder is massive as it holds all these attachments this one comes with. It goes over the plug using the old screw holes. My wife had an MRI ordered yesterday and is now at the hospital waiting for that and I am chatting with her trying to figure out where she now wants it mounted. So another coffee was in order.
BATMANMy wife had an MRI ordered yesterday and is now at the hospital waiting for that
Hope everything turns out OK. If it helps, tell her there are some model railroaders who are thinking of her.
I donated some more stuff to my old train club today. I had several structure kits that I had purchased for my original layout plan. About half were Walthers Cornerstone background structures which are of no use to me now that the layout will be free standing, and the rest did not fit into my current plan. There were a few kitbashed structures in the mix too.
The Treasurer of the club, Dave, was very happy to receive them, but he explained that the club had pretty much stopped taking donations for the time being because they had been overwhelmed by previous donations! In the past two years they have sold a fortune in donated train stuff, to the point that the clubhouse rent is covered for the next several years. Three years ago they were struggling to pay the rent. Now, they are sitting pretty!
For those of you who are members of a club that could use some financial assistance, I strongly recommend looking into asking for donations and reselling them. It does take a lot of work and at least one person has to be willing to put in a lot of time, but the rewards are significant. You do have to be carefull about not getting sucked in to dismantling layouts unless there is a lot of saleable stuff involved.
The best part for me is that I now have some empty shelf space! Also, my workbench was a disgrace so I was forced to clean it up before Dave came. I even put in a new cutting mat.
BATMANMy sister was able to tell me the exact date we hopped aboard and there are a couple of people on some Canadian Pacific FB groups that are trying to hunt down the exact consist of the train I was on so I can re-create it.
I've always found it interesting to 'track' down some of the cars that I either personally rode in or remember seeing while out 'trainspotting'. Here's one consist I kept from a ride I enjoyed on No. 1 back in the day:
Consist by Edmund, on Flickr
Cape Porcupine? Now there's a great name for a Pullman!
CN 1084 Cape Porcupine 6-1976 mb by mbernero, on Flickr
When Jason Shron of Rapido bought the CN sleeper 'Edmundston' I recalled that I had seen that car in, of all places, Washington D.C. back in 1973 on one of the trains arriving for the Nixon inauguration. I sent him a short film clip of the car and he was pleased to see it.
My nephew has a nice collection of railroad cars at least one of which I had traveled in back when. That was the B&O sleeper-lounge-obs Wawasee.
Thomas Underwood Coll B&O418 by John W. Barriger III National Railroad Library, on Flickr
Fun Stuff!
Best wishes in regards to your wife's health outcome, Brent.
ART BY ERIC SMITH
Good morning
Thanks for starting us out for another month Dave. Alot of interesting information you provided...Nice! I'm also enjoying everyone's passenger car experiences.
We've only rode on a passenger train twice over the years here. The first one probably about twenty years ago. We used to go to Chicago every early Spring, just to fiddle around for something fun to do. That was before some of the areas we frequented got a bit rough. In the spring time, we certainly knew what was meant by "The Windy City" and learned to bring the chapstick along
One year Judy saw coupons for Amtrak on the Wheaties cereal boxes at the grocery store. With her understanding of my love for trains, it's needless to say we had Wheaties for breakfast that week. Darndest thing I'd ever heard of, seem to remember we both went to Chicago and back for 40 bucks on those coupons.
The ride down was very peaceful and pleasant. Just love it when the train speeds by a signal, and that serene sound...Ding, Ding, ding, ding, ding, fading back to silence, with just the clicking of the rails again...quite relaxing. We spent most of our time in the dome observation car, enjoying the ever changing scenery, of farms, the quaint little towns, industries, and what may have you?
The ride back was a little less desirable though, louder and obnoxious it was. Yes, a bit more rambunctious group of folks, making for a less pleasant ride back for sure. At the Chicago station, there was some street characters, trying to sell you a free news paper to read on the train for a buck or two. We weren't suckers, but bought the first one anyway, just to have one at hand to avoid more confrontation...
There wasn't a diner car on that train, but a snack bar we visited a few times. All in all, an interesting and fun experience.
I'll save the other passenger car story for another time.
Hoping for the best possible outcome for your better half's MRI Brent. Thoughts and best wishes my freind
Enjoy your Saturday gentlemen
TF
Good morning, diners.
Mike, your daughter's car battery dying is catching. My wife's Expedition went dead in the garage during the minus 20°sF we had two weeks ago. It was too heavy to push out of the garage to get some jumper cables to it, so I had to call someone and wait for over two hours. It seems there were a lot of dead batteries around town.
I miss the days when you could jump a dead battery, drive to the Sears auto store, get in line, buy a battery, have it put in, and drive out the other side of the building, all without ever getting out of the car.
In New Orleans, I had my battery stolen out of my pickup several times. I finally got a very heavy chain and padlock and chained the hood shut. (Then I had to get another chain and padlock when someone stole my spare tire that was under the pickup bed.) Nothing more maddening than coming out in the morning to go to work and find your battery cables cut and the battery gone.
Normally this time of year we get snow, but the temperatures in the high 30s today means we are getting rain. Farmers don't benefit much from this rain -- the ground is frozen, so most of the moisture will run off or evaporate instead of going into the ground.
My wife grew up in Cleveland, and she says this cloudy weather every day is getting to her. She says it was like this in Cleveland a lot. Weeks or months when it seems like you see very little sunlight.
Hope everyone with the medical issues can have a good day today. Have a great Saturday, everyone.
The City of Los Angeles, when trains looked like trains should look:
Funny car battery story:
I had a co-worker who was having battery problems. One morning, her battery was dead, and she couldn't figure out why. The next morning, the same thing, and the next. She checked everything, but no lights were left on. I said, "I know this sounds silly, but climb in the trunk and have someone close it. See if the trunk light stays on."
The next morning she came in and asked me "How did you figure that out?"
We once rode on the Cape Cod Railway, a tourist line that did lunch trains. We were lucky enough to be seated in and old parlor car. Turns out it was a car that was in the consist for the City of New Orleans back in the day.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS