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Classic Railroad Quiz (at least 50 years old).

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Posted by NP Eddie on Sunday, March 22, 2015 6:35 PM

I forgot that the NP purchased used Slumbecoaches also.

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Posted by NP Eddie on Sunday, March 22, 2015 1:22 PM

Dave and Rob:

I forgot that the NP purchased 15 lightweight coaches from the CNW and MKT.

A total of six dome sleepers (one CBQ and five NP) were converted to "Lounge in the Sky" cars. Two single room were removed and a buffet placed in that area. My wife and I rode on the NCL back from Seattle in 1971 as part of our honeymoon. As information, one as built NCL observation is at the Duluth transportation museum. I was working an afternoon clerking job at old Northtown and saw the NCL many times.

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Posted by rcdrye on Sunday, March 22, 2015 12:43 PM

The NP sleeper-domes (one owned by SP&S and two by CB&Q) were all built new as 4 rmt 4 duplex single room, 4 DBR cars for the North Coast Limited. The duplex single rooms were all on the same level under the dome. Some of the cars had two single rooms removed, and a buffet installed, to allow retirement of the NCL's observation cars.  The domes got tables as well, served by a dumbwaiter like UP's Dome Diners.

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Posted by NP Eddie on Sunday, March 22, 2015 10:13 AM

Dave and All:

This railroad (no longer operating) had six lightweight coaches that were self contained, that is they had generators for heat, etc. Name the railroad that purchased them and what was their disposition?

Dave:

I did not understand your comment about the NP having second hand cars, as the SPS and CBQ contributed cars to the EB and NCL pool.

 

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Posted by daveklepper on Sunday, March 22, 2015 1:48 AM

Even though I got three out of the four, Ed Burns knew the whole answer and had all the details, and I'll be happy to have him ask the next question on this thread.

I did not know the NP cars were second-hand and that had different configuratiohs.   Live and learn.

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Posted by NP Eddie on Saturday, March 21, 2015 6:23 PM

ALL:

As information, the SPS owned one of the NCL dome sleepers, which indicated it was in the Portland line as needed.  The SPS dome sleeper was re-painted SPS colors before the merger. I had a picture of it, but can't find it not. It was a subject of a forum less than a year ago. I suspect the re-paint job to spite the NP or GN.

The other dome cars you mentioned were for the "Chessie", which never ran. These three cars went to the B&O.  In addition, threechair-dome-observation cas were sold to the D&RGW.

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Posted by rcdrye on Saturday, March 21, 2015 6:08 PM

You got three of four.  NP's were built for the NCL, CB&Q's (D&RGW/WP) for the CZ, CPR's for the Canadian, Dominion and Atlantic.   The other series was built for a train that never ran.

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Posted by daveklepper on Saturday, March 21, 2015 5:39 PM

The feature is the dome.  The third series was built for both the Burlington and the NP for the North Coast Limited and may also have been used on the Mainstreeter at times.  The others might be sleeper-obs cars for the DZ, CZ, and Canadian.   And the four trains ran on five different railroads.   In cases 1, 2, and 4, at least one room probablyi was not a revenue sleeping space. If sleeper-obs cars don't count, I am stuck.  I don't think the SP&S counts, because the dome-sleeper ran to Seattle.

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Posted by rcdrye on Saturday, March 21, 2015 7:16 AM

Budd built four series of "feature" sleepers with the same feature for four different trains.  In the order they actually entered service, the first series had four rooms of two different types, the second had nine rooms of three different types, the third had twelve rooms of three different types, and the fourth had the same layout as the first.

What was the "feature", and what were the four trains?

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Posted by rcdrye on Friday, March 20, 2015 12:26 PM

I rode in one of the Crescent cars in 1975 (can't tell you which one) in the Master Room, which was not all that much more expensive than a DBR at that point.  SR guys I had breakfast with said it usually ran empty so was popular for company travel between Atlanta and Washington. Shower was much larger than in-room Superliner shower today.  All of the Master Rooms did have showers as far as I know.

One of the two MRs in the PRR cars, and the only one in the NYC cars, could be joined en-suite with the DBR to sleep four. Prewar PRR cars are listed with 1956 retirerement dates by the Pullman Project.

The prewar PRR cars were round-end, postwar ones flat-end.

I'll post someting later this evening.

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Posted by Deggesty on Friday, March 20, 2015 10:50 AM

Right! I missed seeing the Mountain View and Tower View, so you went me one better--and I did not remember that the Crescent series had an  upper berth. I understand that each room also had a shower. Whereas the PRR and NYC cars were Buffet-lounge-observation cars, the Crescents were built for mid-train operation, and were Buffet-lounge cars.

Even though I used the lounge section in a Crescent car several times, I never had occasion to even look inside a master room. I did spend part of one night in the lounge stretched out on a sofa (I boarded in Greenville), where I slept until we reached Gainesville, woke, ate breakfast--and when I returned to the lounge, a porter put me into a bedroom in Caroline County (RF&P sleeper), where I stayed until we arrived in Atlanta.

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Posted by rcdrye on Friday, March 20, 2015 6:44 AM

Pullman's Master Room was built in cars for these trains:

New York Central's Twentieth Century Limited

     4 cars 1 MR, 1DBR Plan 4079 (rebuilt to 4DBR plan 4079A in 1946)

Pennsylvania's Broadway Limited

     1938 version 2 Master Room, 1 DBR 4 cars for Broadway Limited, 2 cars for Liberty limited  (all View series) Plan 4080 PRR assigned one or more to Parlor service in the mid 1950s.

      1948 Broadway Limited 2 MR, 1 DBR (Mountain View, Tower View) Plan 4133

Southern (PRR/SR/WPR/L&N) 1 MR, 2 DR Crescent series plan 4160

Southern's version had a third, upper berth like a drawing room.

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Posted by Deggesty on Thursday, March 19, 2015 3:26 PM

Yes, I misremembered my notes when I answered the question. It is interesting that the C&EI dropped out of the market before the Wabash did.

There was one Pullman accommodation that existed in three configurations; each configuration was originally consigned to a particular train. All of the cars were built by Pullman Standard.

If you had day only Pullman service, Pullman required six seat tickets, though there were only two berths in the room. At least one railroad required two and a half rail tickets for the use of berth service--and five rail tickets for seat service.

What was the nature of the accommodation, and what trains would you ride to occupy it?

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Posted by KCSfan on Thursday, March 19, 2015 1:04 PM

Deggesty
 

 The IC had the Diamond Special--but no faster overnight train, although a day train was faster. The C&A had the Dearborn, and the C&EI had the Midnight Express; 

Close enough Johnny. You've mentioned all three trains and railroads but got two of them mixed up. The Dearborn was the C&EI train and the Midnight Special was the C&A train. 

Mark

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Posted by Deggesty on Thursday, March 19, 2015 11:10 AM

FlyingCrow

Why do I think the C&EI overnight train was called the "Silent Knight"?   I recall my C&EI tt has that goofy picture of that suit of armor on it.

 

 

In later years, the train became quieter, and was so called.

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Posted by FlyingCrow on Thursday, March 19, 2015 11:04 AM

Why do I think the C&EI overnight train was called the "Silent Knight"?   I recall my C&EI tt has that goofy picture of that suit of armor on it.

 

AB Dean Jacksonville,FL
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Posted by Deggesty on Thursday, March 19, 2015 9:59 AM

KCSfan

Each of three railroads that ran between two major cities designated one of their trains as being "non-stop" while in fact all three made at least one intermediate stop. All of the roads had other trains that ran between the same two cities on faster schedules than those of the "non-stops". Name the railroads and the trains they billed as being "non-stop".

Mark 

 

When I read the question, I thought of Chicago-St. Louis and the IC, C&A, and Wabash. But, when I looked in my 1930's Guide, I discovered that the Wabash was not one of the three--but the C&EI was. The IC had the Diamond Special--but no faster overnight train, although a day train was faster. The C&A had the Dearborn, and the C&EI had the Midnight Express; both roads had faster overnight trains. All three "non-stop" trains were overnight.

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Posted by KCSfan on Thursday, March 19, 2015 9:44 AM

Each of three railroads that ran between two major cities designated one of their trains as being "non-stop" while in fact all three made at least one intermediate stop. All of the roads had other trains that ran between the same two cities on faster schedules than those of the "non-stops". Name the railroads and the trains they billed as being "non-stop".

Mark 

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Posted by daveklepper on Thursday, March 19, 2015 5:02 AM

happy to have helped and look forward to your question.

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Posted by ZephyrOverland on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 5:30 PM

KCSfan

 

ZephyrOverland
 

Not exactly.  You got the RR and the endpoints right, but not the actual name. 

 

Mark

 

 
Close enough - the actual name was "Whitelight Limited" or "White Light Limited" (I've seen both spellings).  The train began in mid-1926 as part of Lackwanna's enhancement of its overnight New York-Buffalo train services.  Contemporary ads desceribed the new service as a "radical improvement in night trains with faster times and better schedules." The name lasted through the mid-1930's. The link below takes you to an early ad for the Whitelight Limited.
 
Mark, the next question is yours.
 
Whitelight Limited

 

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Posted by KCSfan on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 5:02 PM

ZephyrOverland
 

Not exactly.  You got the RR and the endpoints right, but not the actual name. 

DL&W No's 9 & 14, the Whitelight.

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Posted by ZephyrOverland on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 3:37 PM

daveklepper

Phoebi Snow    (white)

Miss Snow alights, her frock still WHITE.  She took the road of anthracite.

 

Miss Snow's frock may have been white, but the color was not part of her name, unlike the train I'm looking for.  Look at rcdrye's latest answer for further insight.

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Posted by ZephyrOverland on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 3:35 PM

rcdrye

All of the references I've found show the DL&W's Twilight without any Limited, Express or other extension.  I don't find a reference to any other "light" trains.

1956 DL&W timetable lists The Phoebe Snow, The Twilight (I did leave out the "The"), The Westerner, and the Owl on the NewYork (Hoboken) to Buffalo run.  By that time the through cars with NYC were gone.

 

Go back a little further...you're seeing the "light". Look at daveklepper's latest answer for further insight.

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Posted by daveklepper on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 3:06 PM

Phoebi Snow    (white)

Miss Snow alights, her frock still WHITE.  She took the road of anthracite.

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Posted by rcdrye on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 2:41 PM

All of the references I've found show the DL&W's Twilight without any Limited, Express or other extension.  I don't find a reference to any other "light" trains.

1956 DL&W timetable lists The Phoebe Snow, The Twilight (I did leave out the "The"), The Westerner, and the Owl on the NewYork (Hoboken) to Buffalo run.  By that time the through cars with NYC were gone.

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Posted by ZephyrOverland on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 2:16 PM

rcdrye

What you can find when you're looking for something else...

DL&W Twilight from Hoboken to Buffalo.  Sometimes carried cars for Toronto and Detroit via NYC(/TH&B/CP)

 

Not exactly.  You got the RR and the endpoints right, but not the actual name.

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Posted by rcdrye on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 1:21 PM

What you can find when you're looking for something else...

DL&W Twilight from Hoboken to Buffalo.  Sometimes carried cars for Toronto and Detroit via NYC(/TH&B/CP)

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Posted by ZephyrOverland on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 10:56 AM

rfpjohn

I would say the Blue Comet, but that ran out of Jersey City.

 

Sorry rfpjohn, wrong color and the train ran out of Hoboken.

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Posted by rfpjohn on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 10:43 AM

I would say the Blue Comet, but that ran out of Jersey City.

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Posted by ZephyrOverland on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 10:35 AM

Another clue:

The color of the illumination is part of the train name.

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