Named Passenger Trains NOLA-Florida Pre-Amtrak

[rjemery]

What were the named passenger trains that ran between New Orleans and  Florida in the 1930s through but not including the Amtrak era?

The Gulf Wind was an overnight train, but I seek information on any daytime limited or express service between the two points.

[BaltACD]

http://www.american-rails.com/gulf-wind.html

[Deggesty]

rjemery

What were the named passenger trains that ran between New Orleans and  Florida in the 1930s through but not including the Amtrak era?

The Gulf Wind was an overnight train, but I seek information on any daytime limited or express service between the two points.

 

There never was any daytime service between Jacksonville and New Orleans. Before the Gulf Wind was inaugurated, there was daytime service between Jacksonville and Pensacola, with a through sleeper that arrived in New Orleans in the morning, and left New Orleans at night. After the Gulf Wind was inaugurated, this train was continued, as one that left Flomaton early in the morning, arrived in Pensacola about daybreak (I rode it once), and continued on to Jacksonville; the westbound arrived in Flomaton late at night; there was no through service through Flomaton on this train. 

The Gulf Wind was the best service ever between the two cities.

[Deggesty]

BaltACD

http://www.american-rails.com/gulf-wind.html

 

Thanks, Balt; this tells it far better than I could have told it.

[BaltACD]

Deggesty

BaltACD

http://www.american-rails.com/gulf-wind.html

Thanks, Balt; this tells it far better than I could have told it.

Rode the Gulf Wind as a kid with my family in 1959 or 1960 from New Orleans to Jacksonville.  Remember dinner in the diner, an L&N car named Square Key Tavern - with it's ride quality it should have been named Square Wheels Tavern - it got switched out at Flomaton.

Later in my career, I have supervised the entire route from New Orleans to Jacksonville on various jobs, including when the Sunset Limited operated on the route prior to Katrina.

[alphas]

When I was a student at Florida State U. in 1967 the Seabord track was about 100' behind my rooming house.    The Gulf Wind at that time was down to a normal 4 cars if my memory is correct.   I believe it was a baggage car, diner, coach, and sleeper. 

[Deggesty]

In February of 1967, I had an upper from Jacksonville to New Orleans. I did not notice how many coaches were on the train, but it may have been only one. The Seaboard diner (off at Tallahassee) served a good dinner, and the L&N diner (on at Mobile, not Flomaton, according to the timetable) had a good breakfast. I do not recall a rough ride the three times I ate breakfast and the two times I ate dinner in the L&N diner (60,61, & 67, and 62 & 66). Perhaps that diner had been scrapped by then.

Both eastbound and westbound, the Gulf Wind was then combined with the Piedmont Limited Flomaton-New Orleans, westbound, the Piedmont Limited was combined with the Pan American south of Montgomery. And, in '60, the headend cars that had been carried on #1 came into New Orleans on #99 (this train)--it was quite a sight from the observation car to see the train curving into New Orleans.

[ZephyrOverland]

The only other name train of note on the Jacksonville-New Orleans route was the New Orleans-Florida Limited, established in November 1924.  It gained some notoriety a year later when it handled a short-lived Jacksonville-Los Angeles transcontinental Pullman, connecting with SP's Sunset Limited.  The SAL/L&N train took about 20 hours to travel between the two cities, so there never was any pure daytime service between New Orleans and Jacksonville.  There were other connecting SAL and L&N services (unnamed and named, such as the Seaboard Mail and Express and New Orleans-Florida Express) what handled through New Orleans-Jacksonville Pullmans, but the New Orleans-Florida Limited was the main train on this route until replaced by the Gulf Wind. 

Myron Bilas

 

[dakotafred]

Deggesty

In February of 1967, I had an upper from Jacksonville to New Orleans. I did not notice how many coaches were on the train, but it may have been only one. The Seaboard diner (off at Tallahassee) served a good dinner, and the L&N diner (on at Mobile, not Flomaton, according to the timetable) had a good breakfast. I do not recall a rough ride the three times I ate breakfast and the two times I ate dinner in the L&N diner (60,61, & 67, and 62 & 66). Perhaps that diner had been scrapped by then.

Both eastbound and westbound, the Gulf Wind was then combined with the Piedmont Limited Flomaton-New Orleans, westbound, the Piedmont Limited was combined with the Pan American south of Montgomery. And, in '60, the headend cars that had been carried on #1 came into New Orleans on #99 (this train)--it was quite a sight from the observation car to see the train curving into New Orleans.

 

Johnny:

You sure did your share of train riding back in the day, when it was so worthwhile. If I may inquire into your good luck: Was it in the course of business, or how did it come about otherwise?

(I will confess that most of my own pre-Amtrak train travels were courtesy either of my parents or pass privileges associated with my employment on U.P.)

Thanks -- and many more miles to you.

[Deggesty]

Fred, most of my travel, even when I was working, was for pleasure. I did take a few trips for the primary purpose of attending meetings--and I often extended them to cover more routes than the meetings required. The greatest extension was of a trip from Tuscaloosa to Black Mountain, N.C. and back. One such trip was almost a simple roundtrip with an excursus to Bristol to visit my college (A conductor gave me a free roundtrip Knoxville to Morristown and back on that trip). The long excursus was from Birmingham to St. Louis (IC), St. Louis to Chicago (GM&O), Chicago to Washington (B&O), Washington to Black Mountain to Winston-Salem (family visit)-Greensboro-Danville-Tuscaloosa (SOU) instead of Tuscaloosa-Knoxville-Asheville-Black Mountain and return (this was in 1968),

By far, most of my rail travel has been since 4/30/71--on my last pre-Amtrak trip, I met a woman who had enjoyed travel by rail before I began to enjoy it; a little over a year later, we married and enjoyed much travel together, especially after I retired. 

[dakotafred]

Thanks, Johnny. That 1968 expansion of your itinerary was some kind of "excursus"!

You were smart to go when the going was good. I kick myself now for missed opportunities. Even when I rode: When multiple routes still offered -- albeit with a little indirection -- why was I such a slave to the conventional choice?

Still, I'm so glad -- even at the price of gray hair -- that I was around to enjoy the rides that I did, which now have a fairy-tale quality about them.