Train Routes/Prices West Coast (Seattle) to Chicago

[dakotafred]

The Milwaukee Road's Pacific Coast Extension "strayed," rather, into North Dakota, nipping only the southwest corner, as the tracks do to this day on the surviving segment owned by BNSF.

The route's main Dakotas trackage is in South Dakota, via Aberdeen, Mobridge and Lemmon.

[rcdrye]

Most railroads would handle private cars, especially company business cars, on secondary trains, particularly if the premier train had its own observation.

[timz]

wjstix

At that time, each railroad would have several trains covering the route.

One Seattle-Chicago train on each route in April 1935-- NP also had the Alaskan with thru coaches and sleepers Seattle to St Paul.

[wjstix]

Just to amplify a couple of things....

The Milwaukee was the only railroad that ran from Chicago to Seattle on it's own tracks. It's line went north to Milwaukee, then westacross Wisconsin until it crossed the Mississippi. It then followed the west bank of the river to Hastings, MN. There it crossed over the east bank for the final 15 miles to St.Paul MN. It then ran west from there to Seattle.

Trains of the Northern Pacific and Great Northern were hauled by the Burlington Route (which the two railroads co-owned) west from Chicago across Illinois to the Mississippi, where it followed the east bank of the river to St.Paul. At St.Paul Union Depot, the CB&Q engines were cut off, and NP or GN engines hauled the trains the rest of the way west.

BTW today's Amtrak Empire Builder uses the old Milwaukee route from Chicago to St.Paul, then former GN trackage to Seattle.

At that time, each railroad would have several trains covering the route. Prices for tickets would depend on whether you were in a compartment or berth on the Empire Builder or North Coast Limited, or in a coach seat on a lesser train.

As Deggesty noted however, hauling a private car would be a different matter. If it was the private car of an individual, it would be quite expensive. If you could afford to own (or hire a car from Pullman), you probably didn't need to ask how much it would cost.

If it's a private car owned by the railroad and assigned to a President, Vice President, Division Superintendent etc. for his use, it would be a different matter....

[timz]

In 1930 one-way fare Chicago to SF/LA was $79.84, but in 1934 the coach one-way to SF/LA was down to $34.50. One-way first class was $65 I think, plus the charge for the bed/room. Dunno if Chicago to Seattle likewise reduced.

Excursion round-trip fares in 1930 were less than double.

[Deggesty]

The faster trains took three nights and two days--leaving late in the day, and arriving the third morning. Depending upon the road, there was at least one other train, which took longer--perhaps with a morning departure and an arrival earlier in the morning than the deluxe train arrived, taking three days and three nights.

 

[Foolster41]

Thanks for all the replies! 

 

So it looks like it'd cost around $80, which is a lot of money for the time! 

 

it'd take about 3 days to from Seattle to Chicago?

 

Trains (going east) typically left at night, and arrived at monring? Or was there trains running

all day? 

 

Wouldn't it be if it was 60 hours, the trip would end at about the same time of day as start?

 

[timz]

In 1933 and 1935 the three eastward trains left Seattle 2030, 2130 and 2145-- arrived Chicago 0845 to 0900. NP left first-- it was slowest.

[Deggesty]

MidlandMike

The Milwaukee Road SEA-CHI also strayed into South Dakota.

 

Yes, Mike, how did I forget that it crossed South Dakota--in much the same way that the Nashville and Chattanooga wandered back and forth between Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia as it came into Chattanooga from Nashville?

[MidlandMike]

The Milwaukee Road SEA-CHI also strayed into South Dakota.

[Deggesty]

Timz, I do not know when competitive fares came into use, but it may well have been at that time if you were traveling between Chicago and one of the four cities on the West Coast that the fare was the same, no matter which--Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, or Los Angeles--was your destination the fare was the same. Thus, even though the C&NW/UP route to Seattle was longer than the other three, the fare was the same. I could write more about some of the niceties of competitive fares, but such would be extraneous to this thread.

[timz]

In 1929 the schedule betw Chicago and Seattle became 63 hr westward, 61 hr 15 min eastward, same as the no-extra-fare schedule between Chicago and SF/LA. One-way fare Seattle to Chicago might then have been the same as from SF/LA: $79.84 plus the space charge. The RRs to California had reduced their fares by 1934, but dunno if the ones to Seattle had-- probably so.

[Deggesty]

Yes, there were three routes directly from Seattle to Chicago back then: the Milwaukee Road, The Great Northern/Burlington, and the Northern Pacific/Burlington; all three crossed Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.

Also, the Union Pacific/Chicago and North Western had through service, which crossed Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Nebraska, Colorado, and Iowa.

I do not have access to any tariffs, so I cannot help you on the cost. A private car did cost more than ordinary travel; as I recall, the standard tariff for this was eighteen first class fares for each private car.

[Foolster41]

Hello! I hope this is the right place for this. I'm currently writing a young adult historical/modern fantasy novel that takes place during the great depression (1934).

I was considering having my main characters ride a private car from Seattle to Chicago. I was wondering how much that would cost (in the money of the time) to do so? Were there passengers routes directly from Seattle back then?

The story is about a boy who's planning on running away and riding the rails (as many as 100,000 children did then), when a bird flies through his window and turns into a girl Now he has to help her find her way home and together they escape an alchemist who uses a power that's either magic or science that wants to take her humanity. 

Thanks!