"OUR" PLACE - SEE NEW THREAD!

[passengerfan]

Good Morning Tom and the gang. Time for a coffee and a crumpet from the Mentor Village Bakery.

Sorry for the repaet but could not find the other NP streamliners so this will have to do. The NCL appeared back on page 226. Sorry for the repeat. See what else I can find later today when I have more time and I am more awake.

Barndad and Nick keep the cute stories coming i try them on my young ladies at work and they laugh too. So far they seem to suit all generations.

NORTH COAST LIMITED CB&Q – NP – SP&S Trains 25-26 September 9, 1948 Chicago – Seattle/Portland daily 2,318 miles each direction 52 hours each way Although this is the date generally listed for streamlined NORTH COAST LIMITED operation the trains in actual fact heavyweight head end cars and heavyweight sleeping cars were still operated in the trains until 1952.

The NORTH COAST LIMITED oldest named train to the Pacific Northwest dating from April 29, 1900 was owned by the Northern Pacific Railway and was the last of the northwest’s premier trains to be fully streamlined. The September 9, 1948 date is generally accepted as the date the final car of the orders to equip the lightweight streamlined NORTH COAST LIMITED was delivered from Pullman Standard and placed in a consist departing Chicago by the CB&Q. Actually the NORTH COAST LIMITED kind of evolved into a lightweight streamlined train over a period of about 1-1/2 years. Six sets of equipment were required for daily operation of the NORTH COAST LIMITED between Chicago and Seattle and Portland. The NORTH COAST LIMITED when it began service as a lightweight streamlined train was the slowest of the premiere trains between Chicago and the Pacific Northwest. The CB&Q owned one set of equipment of the NORTH COAST LIMITED, as they were the operator between St. Paul and Chicago. For power the CB&Q supplied their own E-Units over their trackage. Between St. Paul and Seattle the NP purchased EMD A-B-B sets of F3 diesels to power the NORTH COAST LIMITED. The NP would soon switch to A-B-A sets of power, as they did not require turning at terminals. Each consist of the NORTH COAST LIMITED carried a through Chicago – Portland Coach and Sleeping car forwarded to and from Portland by the SP&S from Pasco, Washington. The following is the initial six eleven car consists of the NORTH COAST LIMITED between Chicago and Seattle – Portland. The last train set is shown without power as one set was being serviced in Chicago.

6500A EMD F3A 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Cab Unit

6500B EMD F3B 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Booster Unit

6500C EMD F3B 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Booster Unit

400 3,000-Gallon Water Baggage Car

425 30” Railway Post Office 21-Crew Dormitory Car

500 56- Revenue Seat Day Coach

588 56- Revenue Seat Leg Rest Coach

589 56- Revenue Seat Leg Rest Coach (Chicago – Portland)

494 26- Revenue Seat Coach Buffet 20- Seat lounge Car

450 12- Seat Lunch Counter 30- Seat Dining Car

ABERDEEN 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

BILLINGS 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

BISMARCK 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Portland)

RAINIER CLUB 4- Double Bedroom 1- Compartment Buffet 26- Seat Lounge Observation

SECOND CONSIST

6501A EMD F3A 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Cab Unit

6501B EMD F3B 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Booster Unit

6501C EMD F3B 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Booster Unit

401 3,000-Gallon Water Baggage Car

426 30’ Railway Post Office 21 Crew Dormitory Car

501 56- Revenue Seat Day Coach

590 56- Revenue Seat Leg Rest Coach

591 56- Revenue Seat Leg Rest Coach (Chicago – Portland)

495 26- Revenue Seat Coach Buffet 20- Seat Lounge Car

451 12- Seat Lunch Counter 30- Seat Dining Car

BRAINERD 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

BUTTE 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

DETROIT LAKES 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Portland)

SPOKANE CLUB 4- Double Bedroom 1- Compartment Buffet 26- Seat Lounge Observation

THIRD CONSIST

6502A EMD F3A 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Cab Unit

6502B EMD F3B 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Booster Unit

6502C EMD F3B 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Booster Unit

402 3,000-Gallon Water Baggage Car

427 30’ Railway Post Office 21- Crew Dormitory Car

502 56- Revenue Seat Day Coach

592 56- Revenue Seat Leg Rest Coach

593 56- Revenue Seat Leg Rest Coach (Chicago – Portland)

496 26- Revenue Seat Coach Buffet 20- Seat Lounge Car

452 12- Seat Lunch Counter 30- Seat Dining Car

DICKINSON 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

FARGO 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

HELENA 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Portland)

ARLINGTON CLUB 4- Double Bedroom 1- Compartment Buffet 26- Seat Lounge Observation

FOURTH CONSIST

6503A EMD F3A 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Cab Unit

6503B EMD F3B 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Booster Unit

6503C EMD F3B 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Booster Unit

403 3,000-Gallon Water Baggage Car

428 30’ Railway Post Office 21- Crew Dormitory Car

503 56- Revenue Seat Day Coach

594 56- Revenue Seat Leg Rest Coach

595 56- Revenue Seat Leg Rest Coach (Chicago – Portland)

497 26- Revenue seat Coach Buffet 20- Seat Lounge Car

453 12- Seat Lunch Counter 30- Seat Dining Car

JAMESTOWN 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

MISSOULA 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

PASCO 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Portland)

MONTANA CLUB 4- Double Bedroom 1- Compartment Buffet 26- Seat Lounge Observation

FIFTH CONSIST

6504A EMD F3A 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Cab Unit

6504B EMD F3B 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Booster Unit

6504C EMD F3B 1,500 HP Diesel Passenger Booster Unit

404 3,000-Gallon Water Baggage Car

429 30’ Railway Post Office 21- Crew Dormitory Car

504 56- Revenue Seat Day Coach

596 56 Revenue seat Leg Rest Coach

300 (SP&S) 56- Revenue Seat Leg Rest Coach (Chicago – Portland)

498 26- Revenue Seat Coach Buffet 20- Seat Lounge car

454 12- Seat Lunch Counter 30- Seat Dining Car

VALLEY CITY 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

WALLA WALLA 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

PORTLAND (SP&S) 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

TACOMA CLUB 4- Double Bedroom 1- Compartment Buffet 26- Seat Lounge Observation

SIXTH CONSIST

405 3,000-Gallon Water Baggage Car

430 30’ Railway Post Office 21 Crew Dormitory Car

505 56- Revenue Seat Day Coach

598 (CB&Q) 56- Revenue Seat Leg Rest Coach

599 (CB&Q) 56- Revenue Seat Leg Rest Coach (Chicago – Portland)

499 26- Revenue Seat Coach Buffet 20- Seat Lounge Car

455 (CB&Q) 12- Seat Lunch Counter 30- Seat Dining Car

CHICAGO (CB&Q) 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

DUBUQUE (CB&Q) 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

SAVANNA (CB&Q) 6- Roomette 8- Duplex Roomette 1- Compartment 3- Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Portland)

MINNEAPOLIS CLUB (CB&Q) 4- Double Bedroom 1- Compartment Buffet 26- Seat Lounge Car

In 1954 The NORTH COAST LIMITED became the VISTA-DOME NORTH COAST LIMITED and became one of the premier trains of North America. Each of the five consists received two Vista Dome 46-leg-rest seat coaches replacing two of the 56 seat flat top coaches. The other two Vista-Domes were Sleeping cars and were assigned two per consist replacing flat top sleeping cars. The NP operated the Vista Domes with a flat top car between so passengers had an unobstructed view. The NP VISTA-DOME NORTH COAST LIMITED was a faster train matching the timekeeping of the EMPIRE BUILDER by that time and had introduced the Raymond Loewy two-tone green paint scheme with white separation stripe.
In 1958 the VISTA-DOME NORTH COAST LIMITED received new 48-seat Dining cars from Budd the last new Dining cars ever built before Amtrak.
In 1959 the VISTA-DOME NORTH COAST LIMITED added a single unpainted stainless steel car a Slumbercoach to each consist. The reason this car was unpainted was due to the fact they operated in a pool with the VISTA-DOME DENVER ZEPHYR Slumbercoaches and that train was all stainless steel. The NCL lasted until Amtrak and many feel that this route should have been retained rather than the more northerly GN EMPIRE BUILDER route. The reason for the more northerly route was simply that no Interstate paralleled that route like the one that followed the NP across Montana.


TTFN AL

[Anonymous]

Good morning again Tom. Sorry to eat and run but I must! Great start on the NP today. Here's a true story from the past:

From the May 1936 pages of Railroad Stories magazine

No. 822, eastbound Northern Pacific way freight from Helena to Bozeman, Montana, was nearing the end of its run one summer afternoon several years ago. The crew, weary of a long day of pick-ups, set-outs, “spots,” and wrestling merchandise, were on overtime, as usual, and greatly relieved to find themselves at Storey, a blind siding only four or five miles west of the home terminal. Here the last work of the day would be done.

The train halted upon the main track and the engine was promptly cut off. Pulling over the east switch, they backed into the siding and into the spur, which runs parallel to the siding for several car lengths before losing itself into a pile of earth. Instructions were to pick up a car of peas for movement to the Bozeman and spot an empty, or empties, on the spur in place of it. The empty cars stood between the locomotive and the load of peas. To expedite the move, both empties and load were pulled above the spur switch, then, with a gentle kick, the loaded car was uncoupled and allowed to roll into the side track. Under direction of the conductor and head brakeman the engine finally shoved the empty cars into the spur.

The swing brakeman caught the load as it rolled over the spur switch and swarmed up the ladder, club in hand, to stop the car a short distance in the clear. Spinning the slack from the brakewheel, he inserted his club and bore back upon it. But, though he cinched and cinched, the headway of the car did not lessen! To the contrary, the speed increased, and when it had reached twenty to twenty-five miles an hour the brakeman descended the ladder and jumped. The car lurched out through the west switch of the siding, splitting the points, and pounded off down the main track into the gathering darkness. The brakeman, somewhat bruised, raced back up the siding and informed the conductor of what had happened, and the conductor rushed to the telephone booth to notify the dispatcher.

The old main line from Logan to Bozeman, twenty-five miles, lies on a steadily ascending grade, eastbound, with the exception of a sag between Manhatten and Central Park. So severe and steady is the gradient that an alternate main line was built from Logan to Bozeman for eastward tonnage trains. This line leaves the old main at the east end of Logan yard, follows a circuitous route, and crosses the old main line at grade at BR tower, some three miles west of Story.

The second trick towerman at BR, noting that it was growing dark, decided it was time to eat. No trains were within miles of the interlocking plant save No. 822, which had passed eastbound a short time before. The old main line, having been the last route used through the plant, was clear. No derails forbade use of the track, though signals were at stop in both directions.

The towerman had just hoisted his feet to the lever bank, and opened his mouth to insert a sandwich, when something without headlight or markers shot across the diamond, westbound, and was swallowed by the darkness. The towerman, doubting his senses, leaped to his feet, snapped on the headset and told the dispatcher.

And at that instant, the conductor of No. 822 succeeded in unlocking the door of the Story phone booth and breathlessly broke in on the wire with the true facts. The train dispatcher’s stomach described a flip-flop. Then he assured himself there was nothing out of Logan, eastbound, on the old main line, with which the runaway could collide. But there was an eastbound tonnage train standing in the Logan yard, which would at any moment whistle off and pull out across the old main line into the low grade route. This train would be directly in the path of the carload of peas!

Employees commandeered a handy speeder, rushed to the east end of Logan yard and lined up the switches from the main line into the quarry spur. The heavily loaded runaway came pounding down through the reverse curve into the yard at breakneck speed, struck the turnout, roared in upon the quarry track, and with a terrific crash brought up on the rocks at its end, twenty miles from the scene of the escape. There it burst open like an over-ripe melon, sowing peas over many square miles of ground.

There was an investigation, of course. Severe discipline was meted out to the guilty ones. And down in St. Paul, a high official of the company wrote, in part; “One of the most disgraceful accidents ever brought to my attention.” – Chick Bliss, N.P. telegrapher.

[:I] A men’s foursome is waiting at the tee while a ladies foursome is hitting
from the ladies' tee.The ladies are moving slowly. When finally the last lady steps up to hit the ball, she hacks it 10 feet; she goes over and hacks it another 10 feet, then another 10 feet....She looks up at the men who are watching and says apologetically. "I guess all those f***ing lessons I took this winter didn't help." One of the men immediately replied: "Well, you know...that's your problem. You should have taken golf lessons instead." [:I]

[siberianmo]

Now arriving on track #1 …..
Railroads from Yesteryear! Number Eight


Used with permission from: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Formatting differences made necessary due to Forums requirements. Some heralds from other sources.


Northern Pacific Railway

Locale: Ashland, Wisconsin and St. Paul, Minnesota to Seattle, Washington, Tacoma, Washington and Portland, Oregon

Reporting marks: NP

Dates of operation: 1864 – 1970

Track gauge: 4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm) (standard gauge)

Headquarters: Minnesota

(copied from public domain)
A Northern Pacific train travels over Bozeman Pass, June 1939.

The Northern Pacific Railway (AAR reporting mark NP) was a railway that operated in the north-central region of the United States. The railroad served a large area, including extensive trackage in the states of Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin. The company was headquartered first in Brainerd, Minnesota, then in St. Paul, Minnesota.

History

The Northern Pacific was chartered on July 2, 1864 as the first northern transcontinental railroad. It was granted some 47,000,000 acres (190,000 km²) of land in exchange for building rail transportation to an undeveloped territory. Josiah Perham (for whom Perham, Minnesota is named) was elected its first president on December 7, 1864.

For the next six years, backers of the road struggled to find financing. Though John Gregory Smith succeeded Perham as president on January 5, 1866, groundbreaking did not take place until February 15, 1870, at Thompson Junction, Minnesota, 25 miles (40 km) west of Duluth, Minnesota. The backing and promotions of famed Civil War financier Jay Cooke in the summer of 1870 brought the first real momentum to the company.

Over the course of 1870, the Northern Pacific pushed westward from Minnesota into present-day North Dakota. It also began reaching from Kalama, Washington Territory, on the Columbia River outside of Portland, Oregon, towards Puget Sound. Four small construction engines were purchased, the Minnetonka, Itaska, Ottertail and St. Cloud, the first of which was shipped to Kalama by ship around Cape Horn. In Minnesota, the Lake Superior and Mississippi Railroad completed construction of its 155 mile (250 km) line stretching from St. Paul, Minnesota, to Lake Superior at Duluth in 1870. It was leased to the Northern Pacific the following year, and was eventually absorbed by the Northern Pacific.

In 1871, Northern Pacific completed some 230 miles (370 km) of railroad on the east end of its system, reaching out to Moorhead, Minnesota, on the North Dakota border. In the west, the track extended 25 miles north from Kalama. Surveys were carried out in North Dakota protected by 600 troops from General Winfield Scott Hancock. Headquarters and shops were established in Brainerd, Minnesota, a town named for the President John Gregory Smith's wife Anna Elizabeth Brainerd.

In 1872, the company put down 164 miles (264 km) of main line across North Dakota, with an additional 45 miles (72 km) in Washington. On November 1, General George Washington Cass became the third president of the company. Cass had been a vice-president and director of the Pennsylvania Railroad, and would lead the Northern Pacific through some of its most difficult times. Attacks on survey parties and construction crews building into Native American homelands in North Dakota became so prevalent the company appealed for Army protection from President Ulysses S. Grant. In 1872 the Northern Pacific also opened colonization offices in Europe, seeking to attract settlers to the sparsely populated and undeveloped region it served. Survey parties accompanied by Federal troops, railroad construction, permanent settlement and development, along with the discovery of gold in nearby South Dakota, all served as a backdrop leading up to the Battle of the Little Bighorn and the defeat of General George Armstrong Custer in 1876.

In 1873, Northern Pacific made impressive strides before a terrible stumble. Rails from the east reached the Missouri River on June 4. After several years of study, Tacoma, Washington, was selected as the road's western terminus on July 14. However, for the past three years the financial house of Jay Cooke and Company had been throwing money into the construction of the Northern Pacific. Like many western transcontinentals, the staggering costs of building a railroad into a vast wilderness were drastically underestimated. For a variety of reasons, led by the costs of constructing the railroad itself, Cooke and Company closed its doors on September 18. Soon, the Panic of 1873 engulfed the United States, ushering in a severe recession which would drag on for several years. The Northern Pacific, however, survived bankruptcy that year, due to austerity measures put in place by President Cass. In fact, working with last-minute loans from Director John Commiger Ainsworth of Portland, the Northern Pacific completed the line from Kalama to Tacoma, 110 miles (177 km), before the end of the year. On December 16, the first steam train arrived in Tacoma. The year of 1874, however, found the company moribund.

Northern Pacific slipped into its first bankruptcy on June 30, 1875. Cass resigned to become receiver of the company, and Charles Barstow Wright became fourth president of the company. Frederick Billings, namesake of Billings, Montana, formulated a reorganization plan which was put into effect. This same year George Custer was assigned to Fort Rice, Dakota Territory, and charged with protecting railroad survey and construction crews.

In 1877, construction resumed in a small way. Northern Pacific pushed a branch line north from Tacoma to Puyallup, Washington, where it turned east to reach coal fields around Wilkeson, Washington. Much of the coal was destined for export through Tacoma to San Francisco, California, where it would be thrown into the fireboxes of Central Pacific Railroad steam engines. This small amount of construction was one of the largest projects the company would undertake in the years between 1874 and 1880. That same year the company built a large shop complex at South Tacoma, Washington. For many years the shops at Brainerd and South Tacoma would carry out heavy repairs and build equipment for the railroad.

On May 24, 1879, Vermont lawyer Fredrick Billings became the president of the company. Billings tenure would be short but ferocious. Reorganization, bond sales, and improvement in the U.S. economy allowed Northern Pacific to strike out across the Missouri River by letting a contract to build 100 miles (160 km) of railroad west of the river. The railroad's new-found strength, however, would be seen as a threat in certain quarters.

Ferdinand Heinrich Gustav Hilgard had been born in Bavaria in 1835, emigrating to America in 1853, at the ripe old age of 18. Settling in Illinois, the well-educated Hilgard became a journalist and editor, covering the Lincoln-Douglas debates, then the American Civil War for the larger New York papers, changing his name to Henry Villard along the way. He went back to his native Germany in 1871, where he came in contact with European financial interests speculating in American railroads. When he returned to the United States after the Panic of 1873, he was the representative of these concerns. In the few short years prior to 1880, Villard intervened on the behalf of these interests in several transportation systems in Oregon. Through Villard's work, most of these lines wound up in the hands of the European creditors holding company, the Oregon and Transcontinental. Of the lines held by the Oregon and Transcontinental, the most important was the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company, a line running east from Portland along the south bank of the Columbia River to a connection with the Union Pacific Railroad's Oregon Short Line at the confluence of the Columbia River and the Snake River near Wallula, Washington. Within a decade of his return, Henry Villard became the head of a transportation empire in the Pacific Northwest that had but one real competitor, the ever-expanding Northern Pacific. Northern Pacific's completion threatened the holdings of Villard in the Northwest, and especially in Portland. Portland would become a second-class city if the Puget Sound ports at Tacoma and Seattle, Washington were connected to the East by rail. Villard, who had been building a monopoly of river and rail transportation in Oregon for several years, now launched a daring raid. Using his European connections and a reputation for having "bested" Jay Gould in a battle for control of the Kansas Pacific years before, Villard solicited — and raised — $8 million from his associates. This was his famous "Blind Pool," Villard's associates were not told what the money would be used for. In this case, the funds were used to purchase control of the Northern Pacific. Depite a tough fight, Billings and his backers were forced to capitulate; he resigned the presidency June 9. Ashabel H. Barney was brought in as an interim caretaker of the railroad from June 19 to September 15, when Villard was finally elected president by the stockholders. For the next two years, Villard and the Northern Pacific rode the whirlwind.

In 1882, 360 miles (580 km) of main line and 368 miles (592 km) of branch line were completed, bringing totals to 1,347 miles (2,168 km) and 731 miles (1,176 km), respectively. On October 10, 1882, the line from Wadena, Minnesota, to Fergus Falls, Minnesota, opened for service. The Missouri River is bridged with a million-dollar span on October 21, 1882. The Missouri was handled by a ferry service most of the year. During winters, when ice was thick enough, the rails were laid across the river itself. General Herman Haupt another veteran of the Civil War and the Pennsylvania Railroad, set up the Northern Pacific Beneficial Association on August 19. A forerunner of the modern health maintenance organization, the NPBA ultimately established a series of four hospitals across the system in St. Paul, Minnesota, Glendive, Montana, Missoula Montana, and Tacoma, Washington, to care for employees, retirees, and their families.

Events reached their climax in 1883. On January 15 the first train reached Livingston, Montana at the eastern foot of Bozeman Pass. Livingston, like Brainerd and South Tacoma before it, would grow to encompass a large backshop handling heavy repairs for the railroad. It would also mark the east-west dividing line on the Northern Pacific system. Villard pushed hard for the completion of the Northern Pacific in 1883. During Villard's presidency, crews were averaging a mile and half (2.4 km) of track laying each day. Finally, in September, the line neared completion. To celebrate, Villard chartered four trains to carry visitors from the East to Gold Creek in central Montana. No expense was spared and the list of dignitaries included Frederick Billings, Ulysses S. Grant, and Villard's in-laws, the family of abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison. On September 11, the Gold Spike was driven at Gold Creek.

However, Villard's fall turned out to be even swifter than his ascendancy. Like Jay Cooke, the enormous costs of contructing the railroad now consumed him. Wall Street bears attacked the stock shortly after the Gold Spike, after the realization that the Northern Pacific was a very long road with very little business. Villard himself is said to have suffered a nervous breakdown in the days following the Gold Spike, and he left the presidency of the Northern Pacific and the United States to convalesce in Germany in January, 1884. Again, the presidency of the Northern Pacific is handed to a professional railroader, Robert Harris, former head of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. For the next four years, until the return of the Villard clique, Harris worked at improving the property and breaking away from its tangled relationship with the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company.

Throughout the middle 1880s, the Northern Pacific pushed to reach Puget Sound directly, rather than a roundabout route following the Columbia River. Surveys of the Cascade Mountains, carried out intermittently since the 1870s, now began anew. Virgil Gay Bogue, a veteran civil engineer, was sent to explore the Cascades again. On March 19, 1881, he discovered Stampede Pass. In 1884, after the departure of Villard, the Northern Pacific began building toward Stampede Pass from Wallula in the east and the area of Wilkeson in the west. By the end of the year, rails had reached Yakima, Washington in the east. A 77 mile (124 km) gap remained in 1886. In January of that year, Nelson Bennett was given a contract to construct a 9,850 foot (3,002 metre) tunnel under Stampede Pass. The contract specified a short amount of time for completion, and a large penalty if the deadline were missed. While crews worked on the tunnel, the railroad built a temporary switchback route across the pass. With numerous timber trestles and grades which approached six percent, the temporary line required the two largest locomotives in the world (at that time) to handle a tiny five-car train. On May 3, 1888 crews holed through the tunnel, and on May 27 the first train direct to Puget Sound passed through.

Despite this success, the Northern Pacific, like many U.S. roads, was living on borrowed time. From 1887 until 1893 Henry Villard returned to the board of directors. Though offered the presidency, he refused. However, an associate of Villard dating back to his time on the Kansas Pacific, Thomas Fletcher Oakes, assumed the presidency on September 20, 1888. In an effort to garner business, the Villard regime pursued an aggressive policy of branch line expansion. In addition, the Northern Pacific experienced the first competition in the form of James Jerome Hill and his Great Northern Railway. The Great Northern, like the Northern Pacific before it, was pushing west from the Twin Cities towards Puget Sound, and would be completed in 1893. To combat the Great Northern, in a few instances Villard built branch line mileage simply to occupy a territory, regardless of whether the territory offered the railroad any business. Mismanagement, sparse traffic, and the Panic of 1893 sounded the death knell for the Northern Pacific and Villard's interest in railroading. The company slipped into its second bankruptcy on October 20, 1893. Oakes was named receiver and Brayton C. Ives, a former chairman of the New York Stock Exchange became president. For the next three years, the Villard-Oakes interests and the Ives interest feuded for control of the Northern Pacific. Oakes was eventually forced out as receiver, but not before three separate courts were claiming jurisdiction over the Northern Pacific's bankruptcy. Things came two a head in 1896, when first Edward D. Adams was appointed president, then less than two months later, Edwin Winter. Ultimately, the task of straightening out the muddle of the Northern Pacific was John Pierpont Morgan. Morganization of the Northern Pacific, a process which befell many U.S. roads in the wake of the Panic of 1893, was handed to Morgan lieutenant Charles Henry Coster. The new president beginning September 1, 1897, was Charles Sanger Mellen. Though James J. Hill had purchased an interest in the Northern Pacific during the troubled days of 1896, Coster and Mellen will advocate, and follow, a staunchly independent line for the Northern Pacific for the next four years. Only the early death of Coster from overwork, and the promotion of Mellen to head the Morgan controlled New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad in 1903 will bring the Northern Pacific closer to the orbit of James J. Hill.

In the late 1880s, the Villard regime, in another one of its costly missteps, attempted to stretch the Northern Pacific from the Twin Cities to the all-important rail hub of Chicago, Illinois. A costly project was begun in creating a union station and terminal facilities for a Northern Pacific which had yet to arrive. Rather than build directly down to Chicago, perhaps following the Mississippi River as the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy had done, Villard chose to lease the Wisconsin Central. Some backers of the Wisconsin Central had long associations with Villard, and an expensive lease was worked out between the two companies which was only undone by the Northern Pacific's second bankruptcy. The ultimate result was that the Northern Pacific was left without a direct connection to Chicago, the primary interchange point for most of the large U.S. railroads. Fortunately, the Northern Pacific was not alone. James J. Hill, controller of the Great Northern, which was completed between the Twin Cities and Puget Sound in 1893, also lacked a direct connection to Chicago. Hill went looking for a road with an existing route between the Twin Cities and Chicago which could be rolled into his holdings and give him a stable path to that important interchange. At the same time, Edward Henry Harriman, head of the Union Pacific Railroad, was also looking for a road which could connect his company to Chicago. The road both Harriman and Hill looked at was the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy. To Harriman, the Burlington was a road which paralleled much of his own, and offered tantalizing direct access to Chicago. For Hill as well there was the possibility of a high-speed link directly with Chicago. Though the Burlington did not parallel the Great Northern or the Northern Pacific, it would give them a powerful railroad in the central West. Harriman was the first to approach the Burlington's aging chieftain, the irascible Charles Elliott Perkins. The price for control of the Burlington, as set by Perkins, was $200 a share, more than Harriman was willing to pay. Hill, however, met the price, and control of the Burlington was divided equally at about 48.5 percent each between the Great Northern and the Northern Pacific. Not to be outdone, Harriman now came up with a crafty plan. Buy a controlling interest in the Northern Pacific and use its power on the Burlington to place friendly directors upon its board. On May 3, 1901, Harriman began his stock raid which would become known as the Northern Pacific Corner. By the end of the day he was short just 40,000 shares of common stock. Harriman placed an order to cover this, but was overriden by his broker, Jacob Schiff. Hill, on the other hand, reached the vacationing Morgan in Italy and managed to place an order for 150,000 shares of common stock. Though Harriman might be able to control the preferred stock, Hill knew the company bylaws allowed for the holders of the common stock to vote to retire the preferred. In three days, however, the Harriman-Hill imbroglio managed to wreak havoc on the stock market. Northern Pacific stock was quoted at $150 a share on May 6, and is reported to have traded as much as $1,000 a share behind the scenes. Harriman and Hill now worked to settle the issue for brokers avoid panic. Hill, for his part, attempted to avoid future stock raids by placing his holdings in the Northern Securities Company, a move which would be undone by the Supreme Court in 1904 under the auspices of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. Harriman not immune either; he was forced to break up his holdings in the Union Pacific and the Southern Pacific Railroad a few years later.

In 1903, Hill finally got his way with the House of Morgan. Howard Elliott, another veteran of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy, became president of the Northern Pacific on October 23. Elliott was a relative of the Burlington's crusty chieftain Charles Elliott Perkins, and more distantly the Burlington's great backer, John Murray Forbes. He had spent twenty years in the trenches of Midwest railroading, where rebates, pooling, expansion and rate wars had brought ruinous competition. Having seen the effects of having multiple railroads attempt to serve the same destination, he was very much in tune with James J. Hill's philosophy of "community of interest," a loose affiliation or collusion among roads in an attempt to avoid duplicating routes, rate wars, weak finances and ultimately bankruptcies and reorganizations. Elliott will be left to make peace with the the Hill controlled Great Northern, the Harriman controlled Union Pacific, and between 1907 and 1909, the last of the northern transcontinentals, the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad, more commonly known as the Milwaukee Road.

In later years, consolidation in American railroading brought the Northern Pacific together with the Burlington, the Great Northern, and the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway on March 2, 1970 to form the Burlington Northern Railroad. Ironically, the merger was allowed despite a challenge in the Supreme Court, essentially reversing the outcome of the 1904 Northern Securities ruling.

Company officers

Presidents of Northern Pacific Railway were:

• Josiah Perham, 1864-1866.
• John Gregory Smith, 1866-1872.
• George Washington Cass, 1872-1875.
• Charles Barstow Wright, 1875-1879.
• Frederick Billings, 1879-1881.
• Henry Villard, 1881-1884.
• Robert Harris, 1884-1888.
• Thomas Fletcher Oakes, 1888-1893.
• Brayton C. Ives, 1893-1897.
• Charles Sanger Mellen, 1897-1903.
• Howard Elliott, 1903-

Notable and preserved equipment

Northern Pacific was known for many firsts in locomotive history and was a leader in the development of modern supersteam locomotives. NP was one of the first railroads to use Mikado 2-8-2 locomotives in the USA The 4-8-4 knowen as a Northern on many railroads was first built by Alco in 1926 for NP and designated class A. The 2-8-8-4 called the Yellowstone was first built for the NP by Alco in 1928 and number 5000, class Z-5, with more built by Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1930. Much of this and later devopment was due to NP's need to burn low grade semibituminous coal strip-mined at Rosebud Montana. The coal called rosebud had a Btu 50% lower than eastern coal which meant that the fireboxes had to be bigger than most locomotives. The Wootten firebox was used which was also used by the anthracite railroads. Northern Pacific purchased Timken 1111 called the "four aces", the first locomotive built with roller bearings, in 1933. The Northern Pacific renumbered it 2626 and classified it as the sole member of locomotive Class A-1. It was used in passenger service in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana until 1957 when it was retired from active service despite attempts to preserve the locomotive. After Timken 1111, NP bought only roller bearing locomotives.

References

• Northern Pacific Railway Historical Association
• Teriffic! It's Northern Pacific!
• The Tell Tale! Ten years of NP news!
• Armbruster, Kurt E. Orphan Road: The Railroad Comes to Seattle, 1853-1911. Pullman [Wash.]: Washington State University Press, 1999.
• Asay, Jeff. Union Pacific Northwest; The Oregon-Washington Railroad and Navigation Company. Edmonds [Wash.]: Pacific Fast Mail, 1991.
• Bryant, Keith L., Jr., Editor. Encyclopedia of American Business History and Biography, Railroads in the Twentieth Century. New York: Facts on File, 1990.
• Budd, Ralph, and Howard Elliott. Great Northern and Northern Pacific Review of Operations from 1916 to 1923. New York: Wood, Struthers and Company, 1927.
• Campbell, Edward G. Reorganization of the American Railroad System, 1893-1900. New York: Columbia University Press, 1938.
• Campbell, Marius Robinson. Guidebook of the Western United States; Part A. The Northern Pacific Route, with a side trip to Yellowstone Park. Washington [D.C.]: Government Printing Office, 1915.
• Donnelly, Charles. Facts About the Northern Pacific Land Grant. Saint Paul [Minn.]: Northern Pacific Railway, 1924.
• Fredrickson, James Merlin. Railroad Shutterbug; Jim Fredrickson’s Northern Pacific. Pullman [Wash.]: Washington State University Press, 2000.
• Fredrickson, James Merlin. Washington State History Train. Tacoma [Wash.]: Washington State Historical Society, 1995.
• Frey, Robert L., Schrenk, Lorenz P. Northern Pacific Railway Supersteam Era 1925-1945. Golden West Books 1985
• Frey, Robert L., Editor. Encyclopedia of American Business History and Biography, Railroads in the Nineteenth Century. New York: Facts on File, 1988.
• Hedges, James Blaine. Henry Villard and the Railways of the Northwest. New Haven [Conn.]: Yale University Press, 1930.
• Hidy, Ralph W., et al. The Great Northern Railway, A History. Boston [Mass.]: Harvard Business School Press, 1988.
• Lewty, Peter J. Across the Columbia Plain; Railroad Expansion in the Interior Northwest, 1885-1893. Pullman [Wash.]: Washington State University Press, 1995.
• Lewty, Peter J. To the Columbia Gateway; The Oregon Railway and the Northern Pacific, 1879-1884. Pullman [Wash.]: Washington State University Press, 1987.
• Macfarlane, Robert Stetson. Henry Villard and the Northern Pacific. New York: Newcomen Society in North America, 1954.
• Martin, Albro. James J. Hill and the Opening of the Northwest. New York: Oxford University Press, 1976.
• Oberholtzer, Ellis P. Jay Cooke. New York: Augustus M. Kelley, 1968.
• Schrenk, Lorenz P., and Robert L. Frey. Northern Pacific Classic Steam Era. Mukilteo [Wash.]: Hundman Publishing, 1997.
• Smalley, Eugene V. History of the Northern Pacific Railroad. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1883.
• Villard, Henry. Memoirs of Henry Villard. New York: Houghton, Mifflin, 1904.
• Ward, James A. That Man Haupt. Baton Rouge [La.]: Louisiana Sate University Press, 1973.
• Winks, Robin W. Frederick Billings: A Life. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991.


Used with permission from: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Formatting differences made necessary due to Forums requirements. Some heralds from other sources.


***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** *****

Enjoy!

Tom [4:-)] [oX)]

Did you miss the previous seven[?] Click the URL:

#1: Baltimore & Ohio (B&O
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=233&TOPIC_ID=35270
#2: Chesapeake & Ohio (C&O)
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=234&TOPIC_ID=35270
#3: Pennsylvania (PRR)
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=237&TOPIC_ID=35270
#4: New York Central (NYC)
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=240&TOPIC_ID=35270
#5: New Haven (NYNH&H)
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=242&TOPIC_ID=35270
#6: Santa Fe (ATSF) (Two Parts)
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=246&TOPIC_ID=35270
#7: Southern Pacific (SP)
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=253&TOPIC_ID=35270

[siberianmo]

We open at 6 AM (all times zones!). (Don’t ask how we do that!)[swg]

TUESDAY’s INFO & SUMMARY of POSTS

Tuesday has arrived! Check out the freshly brewed hot coffee and the pastries from The Mentor Village Bakery! Then take a look at our Menu Board with some great selections for our <light> and <traditional> breakfasts!


Daily Wisdom

When pushing the chocolate drink Yoo –Hoo, he was asked, “Is Yoo-Hoo hyphenated?” He said, “No ma’am , it isn’t even carbonated!”[swg]
(yogi-ism)


Info for the Day:

Railroads from Yesteryear: Northern Pacific (NP) arrives TODAY! This will be the THEME for the DAY!

Canadian Railways of the Past: British Columbia Railways (BCR) arrives Thursday in two parts! Watch for it!

* Weekly Calendar:

Wednesday: Pike Perspective’s Day!
Thursday: Fish ‘n Chips Nite!
Friday: Pizza Nite! & Steak ‘n Fries Nite!
Saturday: Steak ‘n Trimmin’s Nite! – and – ENCORE! Saturday


SUMMARY

Name …..…………… Date/Time …..…..………. (Page#) .. Remarks

(1) barndad Doug Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 05:11:11 (258) Milwaukee Super Domes & Joke, etc.

(2) siberianmo Tom Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 05:23:50 (258) Monday’s Info & Summary

(3) Theodorebear Ted Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 06:42:26 (258) Ted Speak!

(4) passengerfan Al Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 07:18:42 (258) Streamliner #68 – ATSF – SFran Chief

(5) siberianmo Tom Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 07:28:43 (258) Brief Acknowledgments

(6) coalminer3 CM3 Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 08:56:09 (258) CM3 Speaks!

(7) nickinwestwales Nick Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 09:02:16 (258) Nick Speaks!

(8) siberianmo Tom Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 12:08:05 (258) Acknowledgments, etc.

(9) siberianmo Tom Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 14:48:38 (258) NOSTALGIA #71 L M S and L N E R

(10) siberianmo Tom Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 16:13:22 (258) RRs from Yesteryear! Ad

(11) pwolfe Pete Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 16:18:12 (258) Inclusive Post, etc.

(12) West Coast S Dave Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 16:52:39 (258) Inclusive & Informative Post!

(13) barndad Doug Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 17:29:08 (258) RR-Animal Quiz & joke!

(14) passengerfan Al Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 18:15:43 (259) Sun Lounge car info, etc.

(15) West Coast S Dave Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 19:02:08 (259) etc.

(16) pwolfe Pete Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 19:09:12 (259) L M S and L N E R, etc.

(17) siberianmo Tom Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 20:08:40 (259) Acknowledgments & Commentary

(18) barndad Doug Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 20:24:29 (259) more! & joke

(19) nickinwestwales Nick Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 20:30:03 (259) Nick at Night!

(20) siberianmo Tom Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 20:51:32 (259) Quiz answers

(21) trolleyboy Rob Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 21:38:40 (259) Inclusive Post, etc.

(22) trolleyboy Rob Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 22:00:42 (259) Classic Diesels #4

NOW SHOWING:

The Mentor Village Emporium Theatre
. . . . . Double Features, all of the time . . . . .

. . . Sunday, February 26th thru March 4th: Fours a Crowd (1938) starring: Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland & Rosalind Russell – and – Holiday Affair (1949) starring: Robert Mitchum, Janet Leigh & Wendell Corey.


That’s it! [tup][;)]

Tom [4:-)] [oX)]
Proprietor of “Our” Place, an adult eating & drinking establishment!

[Anonymous]

Good morning Tom and friends! I'll have a light breakfast please. I guess I shouldn't be surprised that my little quiz was answered 100% correctly so soon! [bow] As for myself, I didn't find the logos on 5 of them, so I guess that's an "F" for me. By the way, the quiz actually came from the latest Railroad Press magazine, though I believe I stated it came from somewhere else. Oops.

Nice series you have going with the diesel shops Rob. Good stuff!

I know today's subject is the Northern Pacific, and I actually have something! I just have to type it up. Which I will do right now. But first ......

[:I] The teacher gave her fifth grade class an assignment. Get their parents to tell them a story with a moral at the end of it. The next day the kids came back and one by one began to tell their stories. Ashley said, "My father's a farmer and we have a lot of egg-laying hens. One time we were taking our eggs to market in a basket on the front seat of the car when we hit a big bump in the road and all the eggs went flying and broke and made a mess."
"What's the moral of the story?" asked the teacher. Don't put all your eggs in one basket!" "Very good," said the teacher.
Next little Sarah raised her hand and said, "Our family are farmers too. But we raise chickens for the meat market. We had a dozen eggs one time, but when they hatched we only got ten chicks, and the moral to this story is, don't count your chickens before they're hatched." "That was a fine story Sarah. Michael, do you have a story to share?"
"Yes, my daddy told me this story about my Aunt Judy. Aunt Judy was a flight engineer in the Gulf War and her plane got hit. She had to bail out over enemy territory and all she had was a bottle of whiskey, a machine gun and a machete. She drank the whiskey on the way down so it wouldn't break and then she landed right in the middle of 100 enemy troops. She killed seventy of them with the machine gun until she ran out of bullets. Then she killed twenty more with the machete until the blade broke. And then she killed the last ten with her bare hands."
"Good heavens," said the horrified teacher, "what kind of moral did your daddy tell you from that horrible story?"
"Stay the hell away from Aunt Judy when she's been drinking." [:I]

[trolleyboy]

CLASSIC DIESELS # 4 DIESEL MAKERS PART 3
This part will deal with the small companaies the railroads themselves and the rebuilders.

ATSF

Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe RY's shops at Cleburne TX has been a major locomotive re-manufacturer over the years. Performing the chopping of the GP 7"s & 9's and the rebuilding of the railways aging fleet of HH SD24's to SD26's. Their most famous and most lasting with some alive and well on shortlines today was the CF7 rebuilt from the aging F3's &'s and b units that the ATSF didn't want to part with,but whose classic bodies were becoming hard to maintain,and were less road switcher crew friendly.

ICG

The Illinois Central Gulf's shops at Paducah KY are well know for it's massive locomotive remanufacturing over the years. CP7's and ('s and some GP18's amny bouhgt second hand from other railroads became the classic frog eyed Paducah Geeps GP 8 GP 10 rebuilds. Also SD24's were bought up and remanufactuerd with short hoods and new electricals as SD20's many SD7's and ('s were alsio rebuilt here over the years.Mnay of these units like the ATSF's CF7's have found new homes on the various shortlines and regional railroads

MK

Morrison-Knudson of Boise Idaho now Boise Locomotive. Is a major contract rebuilder.Making new -3 and -4 locomotives out of old tired and in some case wrecked locomotives from all over. Many of theseunits are leased back to the class ones and regionals. MK also owns and runs a lease pool of compnay owned locomotives./
They have been the industry leader in the new Green goat locomotives and they have produced several 1500 amd 2000hp examples as well as the three MK5000 5000hp road diesels.

RLW

Republic Locomotive Works of Greenville SC. Were established in 1980 as a midsize locomotive rebuilder.Their most recent production was the rebuilding of FL9's for Metro North and the LIRR commuter services. I beleive thet MK/Boise has aquired them.

Vulcan ( without the pointed ears )

Vulcan Iron Works of Wilkes-Barre PA was abuilder of small internal combustion and industrial steam locomotives.Production ran from 1920 till 1954.

Rob

[trolleyboy]

Good evening Leon,I'll nab a CR and leave a bit in the Lars box for a round tomorrow.

Great pictures yesterday everyone[tup][:D]I took yesterday off as a mental health day ( seeing as Tom refused a raise last week )[:0][B)][;)]

Ted Again the layout pictures are quite good mate [tup] You must have discovered H&H's frozen food locker,I was forced to bring them in to run the souop kitchen while Sir Nick was laid up with his montezoma's revenge.

Tom The europics are quite nice, Loved the LNR/LNER add and the photo's of the Brit steam. the swiss "lectrics" were quite beautiful units as well. All those juice jack's rais e the common denomonator around here LOL[;)]

I suppose the kitchen and bath fixtures are the only things left to name round these parts now ( I'm not sure that we want to go down that route however.[:0][}:)]I'm sorry to hear about your on going dental woes, not quite as bad as Lars's basement but it's right up there ( i've had my share of the novacane pushers this year as well ).

I'm glad you posted that warning of the AH's landing in our forum- I concur no point feeding them, the less gratification of "hit numbers" they recieve may send them back packing to their usual haunts.

Lars Great shots on the ARR.Lovely landscape,and a truly amazing RR up there.I remeber seeing their SD70's and 75's lurking about southern ontario on both the CN and CP. With the London On assembly plant so far removed from their home rails. The ARR demanded that the loco's be properly run in before they took delivery of them.

Doug Neat pictures and a couple real good articles today. I too await the final answer, I caught the major ones but a few have left me stumped as well.I won;'t coment on the latest jokes- I've had enough dental woes this year. BTW loved the captain hook one though no groans for that one just grins [tup]

Dave Thanks for the extra info on the SDP35's and 45's. Gonna to the SDP40's next ? I love those odd ball diesels, some of which are still with us, at least in some form, having been rebuilt into other types.


Rob

[siberianmo]

Hey Doug

How's this for Quiz answers[?]
Match the railroads with the animals that appear on their logos and/or rolling stock

1.Algoma Central.......................... A. Alligator..... B

2. California Western..................... B. Bear...... M

3. Canadian Pacific......................... C. Bee..... D

4. Chessie System......................... D. Beaver...... E

5. Chicago & North Western............ E. Cat...... G

6. Fort Worth & Indiana.................... F. Eagle...... N

7. Grand Rapids & Indiana................ G. Falcon...... H

8. Great Northern............................ H. Fish...... I

9. Illinois Central............................. I. Goat...... L

10.Missouri Pacific........................ J Goose..... F

11.Norfolk Southern...................... K. Horse..... K

12.M.O.L. (Containers)................... L. Pig..... A

13.Reading................................... M. Skunk...... C

14.Wisconsin Southern.................... N. Tarantula..... J

Tom[4:-)] [oX)]

[nickinwestwales]

Well howdy fellow tipplers,[4:-)][oX)]TOM,lower order menials & assorted fauna.
Since the phrase " drinks for the house" (does our mother tongue permit of a sweeter grouping of words [^]) has been much bandied about of late,I`ll try a Staropramen,by the neck & as cold as can be managed with a wee nip of the Jamaican sunshine juice to keep it company if you please good sir.
Right,since jokes seem to be en vogue of late-What goes clip clop clip clop clip clop BANG clip clop clip clop clip clop--------an Amish drive-by shooting .............Why wasn`t Jesus born in Wales---------they couldn`t find three wise men & a virgin................Why do dogs lick their own genitals-------------because they can.....................Why do Welsh men marry Welsh women----------because sheep can`t cook......
O.K then,having dragged things down to my own comfort level,time to get with the programme-PIX-another fine selection this week,so,in no particular order:-
LARS-always had a soft spot for the Alaska road colours,that combination of blue and yellow shades just looks right somehow,especially against the `big white`background-compare it to the O.N.R blue & `pumpkin` orange,much as I love the O.N,it just don`t work for me.........
AL-don`t sweat the name ol buddy--generally when folk get my name wrong they end up calling me Chris,for no good reason that I can pin down-one of lifes little mysteries...
DOUG-a splendid mixed bag from you my friend,that German machine definately has a place in the freaks,weirdos,ex-wives & other monsters hall of fame-for a similar shot of a milw. dome as delivered to the O.N.R via B.C.Rail and others ( one for you here AL ) check nicks pix pg2 #28-that Baldwin has something of the look of the So Pac/D&RGW Krauss/Maffei units to my (somewhat bloodshot) eye,perhaps just the angular shape of the carbody nose.....-that quiz is going to take me WEEKS to get on top of---nice one [tup][^][tup]
SIR THEODORE-layout looking mighty fine dear boy-having trains on the tracks really brings the whole thing to life,whilst the open garage door really adds depth to the `longwise` shots-you are putting me to shame here,must find some more hours in the day from somewhere.....
CM3-Appreciate the interest & support, but the `mountain stage` reference somewhat lost in translation.....care to enlarge,ageing beatniks need to know [swg]
DAVE-nice stuff on the `45`s & `35`s-always interested in the obscure by-ways and also-rans [^] --Don`t quote me on this but believe `Scotsman` tour plagued by `indigestion` re American coal-if I have the right of it,the loss of projected revenue from the cancelled part of the tour caused Alan Pegler to go bankrupt and forced the eventual sale of the engine--I`m sure PETE will put me right here,speking of whom...
PETE-Agree to differ on the deltics,but yes,the type 4`s & 2`s were MADE for the 2-tone green-I have some pix somewhere about of `47`s in post-office red,working out of Landore shed and on the dump roads between Bridgend & Cardiff-not right at all-but then again given my fondness for Ska,Bluebeat & Jamaican music generally,anything `2-Tone` is cool with me [swg]--R.E. the R+H shunter,I havn`t seen anything from Trix for many a long year but I suspect Tri-Ang/Hornby may have aquired the original moulds about the same time as they took over the MiniTrix `N` gauge range-they have had an R/H shunter fitted on the standard "Nellie"0-4-0 chassis since the early `70`s-indeed it is in the current catalogue as part of the train set range with,would you believe, a crane,match truck & tool van---nothing new under the sun.................
So,finally to the host of this fine house-[4:-)][oX)]TOM.
Hope the gums are not too worrysome-as someone who was forced into extensive ortho-dontic treatment as a child ( leaving me phobic to the point where I havn`t sat in a dentists chair for 30 years and perform any necessary work myself with pliers and narcotics) believe me-your pain is my pain-they are all escaped nazi war criminals and should be hunted down and prosecuted with the full powers of the law-you want gas-I`ll give you f****n` gas *&*%^$£!¬£%&^$£0-------
Right,starting again-Nice pix of the black 5 & royal scot-of additional interest is the Cravens (?) single unit railcar in the bay platform and what looks like a B.R mk1 version of a gresley full-panelled full brake behind the the loco in the first pic ( PETE-any info on this one ?)-note also the difference in finish between the smokebox and boiler barrel-this loco may be `in captivity` but she is still working hard for her living -by comparison ,those Swiss units are straight out of the box--nice contrast [tup][^][tup]
Onto more general matters-Yogi-ism-we have a phone like that,you cant hear it ring from 6 feet but the `beep` from the ansaphone can be heard 3 fields away-----coastguard clip-double plus funny,missisnicks mother is German and I can`t help but hear it in her voice-full (Deutsch)marks!!!
Book review tomorrow-too pi**ed to do it justice tonight ( a week of enforced abstinance tells its tale )
Gazette-throw me a topic and I`ll run with it ( safest) or leave me to ruminate ( always risky)........
H/C band looks set to make debut this fri. ( 3 song showcase during interval at my regular bands gig in town-mostly as a photo shoot -will forward a couple with the sunday selection for the amusement of the troops)
O.K,thats me done-I think I can dispense with any further medication tonight or small Hannah`s school may inform the social services (not a morning person at the best of times)--take care one and all,see you tomorrow,nick [C=:-)]

[Anonymous]

Good evening again Tom and friends. I'll have another bottomless draught please. Yes, I know the jokes are awful. Can't say when for sure when that might change! As for the duration of the logo "animal quiz", howabout I post the answers Wednesday night?

Just got me 4 copies of Locomotive Quarterly from E-Bay. I guess they're discontinuing the publication. I haven't owned any of these until now. Can't wait to see them!

Just received four copies of Locomotive Engineers Journal from 1959 today, and am looking for items of possible interest to this group. You'll definitely be seeing something from these publications.

And now ...for something you really don't want to see!

[:I] Oprah, interviewing the infamous Captain Hook, inquired as to the loss of his leg, supplanted by the obvious peg leg. The pirate said it was caught between two ships at sea during a battle and had to be amputated. Asked the genesis of the famous steel hook instead of a left hand, Hook said he'd lost his hand in a fierce sword fight years earlier. Finally, stirred by the adventurous tale, Oprah asked how he lost his right eye, now covered by a coal black eye-patch. Hook said "I glanced up and a passing seagull's poop fell right into my eye". Astonished, Oprah said "How in the world could that cause the loss of your eye"? The pirate replied, "It was my first day with the hook". [:I]

[siberianmo]

Good Evening Gents!

[wow] Quite a flurry of activity after one of the most booooooooooooring days in quite awhile - well just a few days ago, actually!![swg]

In no particular order:

barndad Doug I got about 2/3rds of your quiz finished in a "flash" - but then got hung up. Will be interesting to see the answers. How long are you giving us[?]

Getting a bit sensitive about those awful jokes, are we[?][swg] Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah - sticks 'n stones, etc.!<grin> So, it would appear that I owe YOU a root canal, eh[?] This should prove interesting . . . .

Thanx for the round and of course the Michigan quarters![tup]

West Coast S Dave No need for penance, Mate! But we'll take the drinks and of course the lunch![swg] Good seeing you "out and about" on a Monday and appreciate your business![tup]

passengerfan Al Still hangin' in there, eh[?] Must be a "slack" day at the office![swg] Always informative stuff coming from the left coast . . . thanx for the round(s)![tup]

pwolfe Pete Figured you'd pick right up on that last Nostalgia that I Posted![swg] Ah, the good old days, eh[?] So, when are we going to KCity[?] Sounds like you've gotten the "bug" again![tup]

COMMENTARY: This is from the "For what it's worth department."

It seems to me that our Forum (Classic Trains - General Discussion) has been inundated with more and more of the inane type Posts - surveys, questions about virtually anything, etc. To respond to these type Posts is to enable the author to continue on with more and more and more. Why do it[?] I have checked the Profiles of about 2 dozen of these people over the last week and found that three quarters of 'em don't have anything in their Profiles worth looking at, along with no email communications. So what does that tell ya[?] At least check the Profiles BEFORE responding .... AND should you come across someone who is "legit," by all means INVITE that person to the bar! We surely can use "a few (more) good men!"

Leon the Night Man takes the bar at 9 PM!

Later![tup]

Tom[4:-)] [oX)]

[pwolfe]

Hi Tom and all.

A pint of the usual please.

Had to rush off before I could comment on the LMS&LNER ad.
It still surprises me how the two companies were so co-operative at that time. I wonder if that extended to having joint tickets like the present day Brit-Rail pass [?].
Some of the places mentioned were served by both companies like York and Keighley for the Brontes. I know that it was possible to travel on a direct train in the 50s and the early 60s from Birmingham to Great Yarmouth by LMS metals through Rugby toPeterborough(East) then on LNER lines through March ,Thetford and Norwich to Yarmouth. This line brought a considerable amount of freight traffic to Rugby, as well as some EX LNER steam locos. Sadly the Rugby to Peterborough section of the route closed in 1966.

DOUG Good idea the quiz[tup]. I cant wait to see which one had the skunk.

DAVE Glad you was able to see Scotsman while it was over here. It is now at York being stripped down ready for a major overhaul. PETE.

[West Coast S]

Al, thanks, now I know i've too ridden in one as well, thanks for the ownership correction and specifications , strange what comes to ones mind in the wee hours of the morning, recalling a trip from so long ago when I was but a young lad..I also recall the purple Auto Train with it's "far out" 70's color fad gone terribly wrong, what nerve!!!

Drinks extended until 1830 tonight, enjoy, see you on the morrow Tom.

Dave

[passengerfan]

Good Afternoon Tom and the rest of the gang. Time for a CR and a round for the house.
I believe this is the information Dave was seeking. Actually it was the Seaboard Air Line that owned the Sun Lounge cars.

Pullman Standard delivered the final three new feature cars to the SAL in December 1956 for assignment to the SILVER METEOR. These three cars were unlike any other feature cars ever built. They were 5-Double Bedroom Buffet 21-seat Sun Lounges. They featured five large windows on each side of the lounge area and five windows in the roof down each side. These large lounge area windows were found on these cars only and they were an immediate hit with the sleeping car passengers of the SILVER METEOR.

5-DOUBLE BEDROOM BUFFET 21-SEAT SUN LOUNGE CARS Pullman Standard January 1956 Plan: 4202 Lot: 6968 (Built for and assigned to SILVER METEOR)

18 – MIAMI BEACH

19 – PALM BEACH

20 – HOLLYWOOD BEACH

Personally traveled in one of these cars when owned by Amtrak but soon as we left Washington the top glass got a good coating of diesel exhaust from the old E units and couldn't see much out of them after that. They were fine under the wire between New York and Washington.

TTFN Al

[Anonymous]

Good evening Tom and gents! I'll have a bottomless draught please, and here's some Michigan quarters and money for a round. Ya know ....God punishes those who make fun of my jokes ...with route canals and flooding. Just thought you should know. Nice add for the LMS Tom, and brother Al is to be complimented on his fine streamliner on the San Franciso Chief!

Here's something for ya'll to play with tonight, from the pages of June 1953 BLF&E magazine:

Take the Railroad Animal Quiz

Match the railroads with the animals that appear on their logos and/or rolling stock

1.Algoma Central.......................... A. Alligator

2. California Western..................... B. Bear

3. Canadian Pacific......................... C. Bee

4. Chessie System......................... D. Beaver

5. Chicago & North Western............ E. Cat

6. Fort Worth & Indiana.................... F. Eagle

7. Grand Rapids & Indiana................ G. Falcon

8. Great Northern............................ H. Fish

9. Illinois Central............................. I. Goat

10.Missouri Pacific........................ J Goose

11.Norfolk Southern...................... K. Horse

12.M.O.L. (Containers)................... L. Pig

13.Reading................................... M. Skunk

14.Wisconsin Southern.................... N. Tarantula

[:I] A duck walks into a bar one day at lunch time. He orders a beer and a ham sandwich. After several days of the same lunch order the bartender says "Never saw a duck eat lunch in here before." The duck replies, "Well get use to it. I'm working on the construction job across the street."
A few days later the circus comes to town and the ringmaster comes into the bar for lunch. The bartender tells him about the talking duck that drinks beer and eats sandwiches. The ringmaster asks the bartender to send the duck down to the circus for a job.
The next day the duck comes in and the bartender tells him about the job offer. The duck looks surprised and asks "The circus is where animals do tricks inside a big tent right?" The bartender agrees. The duck asks, "What the hell would they need with a drywaller?" [:I]

[West Coast S]

Afternoon Tom and the gang, personally, i'd rather take the responsbility of a second wife then endure a trip to the dentist, I don't know about yours, but mine ALWAYS has to find something wrong, useually at great expense...just goes that way sometimes..

Great photo Sunday. Perhaps someone (PassAL maybe?) can educate me as to the existence of such a design, so here's my question: Didn't ACL have a certain car, coach perhaps, with a portion of glass ceiling, can't explain why I remember such a car, but the thought just keeps repeating itself.

Nick/Tom.. The Flying Scottsman was considered for inclusion into the Southern Steam program, perhaps it's foreign status caused the plan to die still bourne, never the less nothing came of the idea. I had the oppertunity to view it up close and personal during display at Fisherman's Warf, about a billion years ago it seems!!! That was a memorable event, the Bicentenial diesels from the WP,BN,SP,SCL were just the icing on the cake.

CM3, glad you enjoyed the SDP45 piece, correct you are, SCL did purchase SDP35, not surprised they ended up on freight duty, it was a flawed design from the beginning, the 35 series was the last to use the 567C engines and D276 traction motors and on the 35 series they exceeding design specifications with the results of exploding traction motors and broken crankshafts when pushed hard in service, many have wondered why EMD would risk it's reputation with a limited production nich model, perhaps they feared a GE return into the passenger locomotive market.

UP was immediently displeased with the eleven SDP35's it purchased, they never turned a wheel in revenue passenger service, but were great in low speed branch service without much demanding conditions, they were always the first into storage during business downturns and the last restored to service as business improved. After UP purged its E unit fleet in the late seventies, they could be found in the trailing position with GP40X's that were the standard power for all special passenger movements during this era, once declared surplus by the mid 80's, they couldn't ship them back to EMD fast enough as trade in fodder..

Unlike UP, SCL found the SDP35 an excellent performer as long as it was used as intended, they too upgraded the traction motors on their fleet within a year of delivery, but never suffered the crankshaft failures experienced by others, perhaps operating conditions were a major contributer, as no two roads could be more dissimilar in operating profiles and needs.

Odd, that SP hosted trials and rejected the passenger version of the 35, while amassing two dozen of the freight versions, they too failed in over the road service, but made exceptional hump and transfer power after much needed electrical improvements were conducted.

Ok Tom , lunch on me this afternoon, drinks as well until 1600..this should atone for my failure to heed encore saturday


Dave

[pwolfe]

Hi Tom and all.

A pint of Bathams and around for the great photos yesterday please.

DOUG Thanks for the Super Dome Details. It seems as though no expense was spared on the heating and cooling systems.

AL Great info on the San Francisco Chief.

CM3 Looking forward to the NP info tomorrow.

TED Always good to see you looks like that Nick will be keeping a close eye on the kitchen after the frozen waffles.

Nick Great to see you back hope you are over the bug that had you and you are back to full health. Can you let me know when the BBC are going to broadcast the band ?hopefully I sould be able to hear it over the net.

I had a 3-rail Trix to start, then a 2-rail. Perhaps you could help, the loco on the breakdown train was a Ruston & Hornsby 0-4-0 diesel shunter, I was wondering if you had heard of any of the these models are still about.? TRIX also done a Britannia loco at about the same time.

Glad you liked the Deltic post. I didnt think the 2 tone green suited them as well as it did the Bru***ype 4s (Class 47) and the Sulzer type 2s (class25s). They were great machines though.

TOM Thanks for the Switzerland pics and the film plots.

NEWS Southern Pacific Steamer #745 has been towed to Union Station in Kansas City for display. For more info
http://www.lasta.org/
I believe it is on display Tuesdays to Saturdays at the Rail Experience. I only hope Amtrak can give us enough time to see it.

I'll give some ca***o Tilla for another Bathams if I may PETE>

[siberianmo]

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RAILROADS from YESTERYEAR – Northern Pacific (NP) - arrives on Track #1 tomorrow. Watch for it!


Tom[4:-)] [oX)]


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[siberianmo]

G’day All!

PASSENGER TRAIN NOSTALGIA #71

Here’s something to enjoy regarding Great Britain’s L M S and L*N*E*R in a 1933 advertisement from my private collection:

Shut your books and open your eyes

You remember how Mr. Pickwick, when he was after jingle, got into a mess about rescuing a schoolgirl and was locked up in a cupboard – well, that happened at Bury St. Edmunds, near Ipswich.

Wouldn’t you like to see the quaint old town of Great Yarmouth where Peggotty’s boat was beached? From there step back three hundred years to Stratford and the house where Shakespeare was born.

See the Bronte Country and famous York itself. A little further and you’re in the Lake District with its memories of Wordsworth, Coleridge, Ruskin.

Then over the Border to the land of glens and woods and waterfalls, where Burns wrote his songs and Scott his romances.

A wonderful schedule! An unforgettable trip! Fast, luxurious trains take you everywhere.

Illustrated Pamphlet from T. R. Dexter –
Vice-President, Passenger Traffic, (Dept. A 34)
L M S Corporation, 200 Fifth Avenue, New York City.
H. J. Kitchgin, General Agent, (Dept. A 34)
L N E R Railway, 11 West 42nd Street, New York City,
or from your own ticket agent.

L M S
LONDON MIDLAND & SCOTTISH RAILWAY OF GREAT BRITAIN

LONDON & NORTH EASTERN RAILWAY OF GREAT BRITAIN
L*N*E*R


Enjoy! [tup]

Tom [4:-)][oX)]

[siberianmo]

G’day!

Returned from El Dentisto, and things most probably will begin to ache once the numbness subsides. This has got to be the “Root Canal That Just Won’t Quit!” for it was “done” two years ago – never was quite “right” – finally wound up with a “Specialist” who does nothing but these things – he found a third canal, which most teeth do not have – we’ve just finished session #3 – at a price tag that would gag a healthy maggot! Fortunately, the “plan” will pick up 80% of the tab, but the balance is disturbing when one considers that I paid for this a coupe of years ago! I definitely went the wrong way in my career insofar as making money was concerned! <Geesh!>

Okay, looks like I have some catch up to take care of, for I surely wouldn’t want to “slight” some of the guys who keep us going ‘round here. So let’s see – beginning with Saturday late afternoon:

West Coast S Dave Posted: 25 Feb 2006, 17:44:19

Thanx for the elaboration on the “Overland Route.” Your dissertation on those loco’s is a most interesting Post. Highly recommend that you use it for an ENCORE! Saturday – or some other day of the week. Hate to see anyone’s hard work just languish in cyber space . . . .

Your round ultimately was served, but much later into the evening – thanx![tup]

nickinwestwales Nick Posted: 25 Feb 2006, 20:14:58

The return of Sir Nick! Just what we needed ‘round here, a Nick-Post! Just like old times and very good to hear from you. You’ll have to drop that URL here once the band’s website is to your liking – we’d all appreciate checking it out. BBC, eh[?] Well, don’t let on that you are hanging ‘round with North Americans, they may decide to go off on a tangent about that these days! The BBC of today, ain’t what it was in Grandpa’s days, eh[?][swg]

The trains of childhood are undoubtedly better in the mind than anywhere else. But why not[?] Women we’ve known and toy trains, they all get better as we reminisce about ‘em![swg]

I’d say your comments to Lars about being an “Honorary Brit” also apply to a few others ‘round here if you’ve been able to pick up on some comments made lately! As someone “coined,” aint no love lost![swg] Loved that story, by the by, when you were in Ireland. So did she phone the local Constabularly about you[?] The things that happen to us . . .

NICK – I do request a huge favor: please ship me off an Email with something for the next issue of the Gazette – one will be coming out in about 2 weeks, I think . . . THANX!

trolleyboy Rob Posted: 26 Feb 2006, 00:52:49 - 26 Feb 2006, 01:00:33 - 01:04:40

Good show with one of the names for our cash registers! [tup] With Pete’s Tilla the Hun and your The Cashinator, we’ll have to figure out what’s left to “name” ‘round this place![swg]

Nice work with those Encore! Classics – they take work and it’s most appropriate to Post ‘em again, especially with the turnover at the bar along with the reality that so much of what’s “out there” simply gets missed. Thanx![tup]

barndad Doug ‘n LoveDomes Lars Once again, THANX for the Pix and comments![tup][tup][tup]

passengerfan Al ‘n pwolfe Pete Thanx for the comments! The elaborations from Pete are always a PLUS and are most helpful![tup][tup][tup]

barndad Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 05:11:11

To reiterate from my earlier Post, that’s quite a Post regarding the Milwaukee Super Domes and my guess is that it won’t be just Lars who picks up on it! Guess who[?][swg] Appreciate it – but the joke must go![tdn][swg]

Theodorebear Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 06:42:26

Although I made comment earlier – good to see ya ‘round here a bit more often. So, are you contributing “something” for deposit into our Coal Scuttle[?] Wasn’t quite sure with the phrasing . . . Clever devil that you are![swg]

coalminer3 CM3 Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 08:56:09

A return to “normalcy” always is evident when we see you come through the door! Appreciate the quarters – was beginning to wonder – and of course the round![tup][swg]

Glad you liked the ENCORE’s and Sunday Photo Posting Day! efforts.[tup] Still waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaiting for those Pix from you! Yeah, I know, “the check’s in the mail.”[swg]

nickinwestwales Nick Posted: 27 Feb 2006, 09:02:16

Happy to see that you picked up on the “frozen food” reference! <ugh!> Not in our bar, eh[?] Methinks Ted has been “cheating” on us and most probably has been sneaking off to one of the more classless roadside establishments on the outskirts of the village. What say you[?][swg]

Dentists and Proctologists have something in common: both rather hemorrhoidal in their own right![swg]

Always appreciate your visits and sharp sense of wit!

By the by: Any “public” comments you’d like to share with us about the RR Book Relay![?] The more we get involved with it, the better, so whadyathink about the book[?]


Later![tup]


Tom[4:-)] [oX)]


Stick around a few minutes AFTER POSTING - The information you MISS may be for YOU!

Those who acknowledge the other guy, get acknowledged!

[nickinwestwales]

Hi guys,just a quick "in thru the out door"kind of a thing-Seems the galley is in need of some major shaking up-FROZEN FOOD,not whilst I have any say in the matter !!
Freezers should only ever be used for two things--vodka and concealing dismembered body parts ( Ted Bundy`s guide to home economics-$9.99 from all good secure unit bookstalls) Will be back later to catch up on pix etc..
Hey CM3-I see you there,take a breakfast on me ole buddy.
[4:-)][oX)]TOM-good luck with the "painless Pole"-wretched teeth-a nuisance when they arrive,the same when they depart and not much better in-between.
Right,Boris-first up, go wash--twice--then prepare for a day of brutally hard labour,Monday,monday indeed !!!
later gents,have a good one,nick [C=:-)]

[coalminer3]

Good Morning Barkeep and All Present; coffee, please, round the the house and $ for the jukebox. Following is not in any order.

Thanks for rerunning the FM ad.

Lars- Just like an insurance co. They love you til you file a claim; abt. three yrs ago we had pour furnace to fail (westher was well below zero). So off to local motel for awhile - temp in the living room was abt 35 degrees. As I said earlier, don't let 'em off the mat.

A trip on the Empire Builder/Starlight and Zephyr. Excellent.

The SDP 45 material was right interesting. SCL and L&N had SDP35s which were truly hybrid units; think of an SD 35 on steroids. The SCL used theirs in passenger service, but I don't think the L&N did that much with theirs as I they were buried 2 or 3 deep in freight consists when I saw them.

Nick returns - Fabulous Thunderbirds/George Thorogood - sounds interesting - maybe you should try and get a booking here on Mountain Stage.

Barndad - Thanks for the IC picture. Bet those cars are what my neighbor used to call "'nanner cars."

New movies look good - maybe we can include Three Stooges "Pain in the Pullman" as a short subject?

And Theordorebear continues on his layout. I wish I had the time to do much of anything other than build structures and accumulate equipment.

Also many thanks for British steam picture and SF Chief info.

Gotts to go. I'll try and get back later - will definitely have NP information for tomorrow.

work safe

[siberianmo]

Good Morning Gents!

Hope all is well with you as we begin another week (work for some, volunteering for others, and just plain retirement for one or two!).[tup]

Thanx Doug for starting off our day - rather early, eh[?][swg] But, always appreciated![tup][tup] The joke on the other hand .... [tdn][swg]

A quick acknowledgment to all who Posted from Saturday evening on . . . thanx![tup] Good to see Nick back with us and of course we hope this is the resumption of his activities with us.[tup]

Much appreciation to Doug 'n Lars for taking the time to Post some Pix for us yesterday![tup] More comments contained in today's SUMMARY.

Pete 'n Al Thanx for the comments made yesterday![tup] Good to know the Pix were appreciated![tup]

I noted that Ted has made a brief Monday AM appearance - appreciate it![tup] One thing though - I think you have us confused with that "other place" on the Forums - for we don't serve anything frozen for our breakfast <light> or <traditional> breakfasts. UNLESS of course you found something left over from the days when we had some rather "odd" deliveries signed for by Boris![:O]

Gotta run, have yet another appointment with the Dentist Specialist this early AM - nothing profound, just wants to check his "handiwork" to ascertain whether or not I should continue living with the discomfort, or perhaps he can make it worse![swg]

Ooooooops, I see Al has deposited one of his rather lengthy "Streamliners" for us - ATSF - hmmmmmmmm, didn't we just have a "Theme Day!" for that line[?] Nevertheless, always good sutff and appreciated![tup][tup]

Later!

Tom[4:-)] [oX)]

REMINDER! Check the SUMMARIES! Next best way I know to keep up with what's going on at the bar!

[passengerfan]

Good Morning Tom and the rest of the gang. Time for a coffee and a crumpet from the Mentor Village Bakery.

PASSENGERFAN AL'S STREAMLINER CORNER #68

SAN FRANCISCO CHIEF AT&SF Trains 1-2 June 6, 1954 Chicago – San Francisco daily each direction 2,547 miles each way 47 hours 30 minutes

The Santa Fe introduced the last new long distance streamliner passenger route in the United States prior to Amtrak on June 6, 1954. The new SAN FRANCISCO CHIEF was the first through streamliner on the Santa Fe to operate between Chicago and San Francisco. The SAN FRANCISCO CHIEF became the first Santa Fe CHIEF to operate by the Southern district mainline through Amarillo, Texas and Clovis, New Mexico and as it would turn out the only Santa Fe CHIEF to ever operate via this route. The SAN FRANCISCO CHIEF was not as fast as the CITY OF SAN FRANCISCO between Chicago and San Francisco, its route being considerably longer but it did beat the time keeping of the CALIFORNIA ZEPHYR and matched the SAN FRANCISCO OVERLAND.
The SAN FRANCISCO CHIEF received only new 48 seat Leg – Rest Coaches and a single new Santa Fe Big Dome from Budd in the 550-555 series. These cars featured a 21 Crew Dormitory with Bar and 10 seat Lounge on the lower level beneath the dome. The upper level or Dome Level of these cars featured 57 seats arranged for viewing, with a lounge at the rear of the dome level with seating for eighteen passengers. The sleeping cars and feature cars such as Dining and Lunch Counter cars assigned to the SAN FRANCISCO CHIEFS were older cars passed down from the SUPER CHIEF, EL CAPITAN, and CHIEF. Power for the new trains was pooled with the SUPER CHIEF and EL CAPITAN using the latest A-B-B-A sets of EMD F7s. The SAN FRANCISCO CHIEF became one of the Santa Fe Railways most popular trains. It also carried through sleeping cars between Texas points and California points.

CONSIST ONE

3531 Baggage Car

2818 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2820 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2822 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2824 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

1571 13- Seat Lunch Counter 8- Seat Dining 6- Crew Dormitory Car

550 Big Dome 57-View seats 18-Seat Lounge Upper Level 12-Crew Dormitory Bar 8- Seat Lounge Lower Level

1477 36- Seat Dining Car

INDIAN FLUTE 24-Duplex Roomette Sleeping Car (Chicago – Oakland)

PINE RING 10-Roomette 6-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Oakland)

BLUE BAY 10-Roomette 2-Compartment 3-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (New Orleans – Oakland via MP to and from Houston via ATISF to and from Clovis)

REGAL CROWN 4-Compartment 2-Drawing Room 4-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Phoenix via AT&SF to and from Ash Fork))

SALAHKAI 8-Section 2-Compartment 2-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Lubbock – Los Angeles via AT&SF CHIEF Barstow – Los Angeles)

CONSIST TWO

3537 Baggage Car

2819 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2821 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2823 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2825 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

1573 13- Seat Lunch Counter 8- Seat Dining 6-Crew Dormitory Car

551 Big Dome 57-View Seats 18- Seat Lounge Upper Level 12-Crew Dormitory Stewardess Room Bar 8- Seat Lounge Lower Level

1481 36- Seat Dining Car

INDIAN CANOE 24-Duplex Roomette Sleeping Car (Chicago – Oakland)

PINE FERN 10-Roomette 6-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Oakland)

BLUE MOTT 10-Roomette 2-Compartment 3-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (New Orleans – Oakland via MP to and from Houston AT&SF to and from Houston to Clovis)

REGAL RIVER 4-Compartment 2-Drawing Room 4-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Phoenix via AT&SF to and from Ash Fork)

TOLANI 8-Section 2-Compartment 2-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Lubbock via AT&SF to and from Clovis – Los Angeles via AT&SF CHIEF to and from Barstow)

CONSIST THREE

3530 Baggage Car

2840 48-Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2837 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2833 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2858 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

1575 13-seat Lunch Counter 8-seat Dining 6-Crew Dormitory Car

552 Big Dome 57-View seats 18-seat Lounge Upper Level 12-Crew Dormitory Stewardess Room Bar 8-Seat Lounge Car

1483 36-seat Dining Car

INDIAN MESA 24-Duplex Roomette Sleeping Car (Chicago – Oakland)

PALM STAR 10-Roomette 6-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Oakland)

BLUEHEART 10-Roomette 2-Compartment 3-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (New Orleans – Oakland via MP to and from Houston Via AT&SF to and from Clovis)

REGAL TEMPLE 4-Compartment 2-Drawing Room 4-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Phoenix via AT&SF to and from Ash Fork)

TOREVA 8-Section 2-Compartment 2-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Lubbock to and from Clovis via AT&SF CALIFORNIA LIMITED – Los Angeles via AT&SF CHIEF to and from Barstow)

CONSIST FOUR

3521 Baggage Car

2842 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2838 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2829 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2843 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

1577 13- Seat Lunch Counter 8- Seat Dining 6-Crew Dormitory Car

553 Big Dome 57-View seats 18- Seat Lounge Upper Level 12-Crew Dormitory Stewardess Room Bar 8- Seat Lounge Car Lower Level

1484 36- Seat Dining Car

INDIAN SONG 24-Duplex Roomette Sleeping Car (Chicago – Oakland)

PALM VIEW 10-Roomette 6-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Oakland)

BLUE GROVE 10-Roomette 2-Compartment 3-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (New Orleans – Oakland via MP to and from Houston via AT&SF CALIFORNIA LIMITED to and from Clovis)

REGAL GORGE 4-Compartment 2-Drawing Room 4-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Phoenix via AT&SF to and from Ash Fork)

TYENDE 8-Section 2-Compartment 2-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Lubbock – Los Angeles via AT&SF CHIEF Barstow to and from Los Angeles)

CONSIST FIVE

3526 Baggage Car

2847 48-Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2853 48-Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2859 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2841 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

1572 13-Seat Lunch Counter 8-Seat Dining 6-Crew Dormitory Car

554 Big Dome 57-View Seats 18-Seat Lounge Upper Level 12-Crew Dormitory Stewardess Room Bar 8-Seat Lounge Lower Level

1482 36-seat Dining Car

INDIAN SQUAW 24-Duplex Roomette Sleeping Car (Chicago – Oakland)

PINE ISLAND 10-Roomette 6-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Oakland)

BLUE ISLAND 10-Roomette 2-Compartment 3-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (New Orleans – Oakland)

REGAL CREEK 4-Compartment 2-Drawing Room 4-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Phoenix)

WUPATKI 8-Section 2-Compartment 2-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Lubbock – Los Angeles)

CONSIST SIX

3511 Baggage Car

2860 48-Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2817 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2826 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

2830 48- Revenue Seat Leg-Rest Coach

1574 13-Seat Lunch Counter 8-Seat Dining 6-Crew Dormitory Car

555 Big Dome 57-View Seats 18-Seat Lounge Upper Level 12-Crew Dormitory Stewardess Room Bar 8-Seat Lounge Lower Level

1479 36-Seat Dining Car

INDIAN FALLS 24-Duplex Roomette Sleeping Car (Chicago – Oakland)

PINE MESA 10-Roomette 6-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Oakland)

BLUE RIDGE 10-Roomette 2-Compartment 3-double Bedroom Sleeping Car (New Orleans – Oakland)

REGAL STREAM 4-Compartment 2-Drawing Room 4-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Chicago – Phoenix)

YAMPAI 8-Section 2-Compartment 2-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car (Lubbock – Los Angeles)

Almost immediately the Santa Fe added rebuilt square ended sleeper lounge observations to the SAN FRANCISCO CHIEF for the use of sleeping car passengers. These cars were fitted with diaphragms for mid train use’ which is exactly where the Santa Fe operated these cars.

In March 1964 the Santa Fe added Hi-Level Coaches to the SAN FRANCISCO CHIEF replacing the 48-seat single level coaches.

The SAN FRANCISCO CHIEF in spite of being one of that railroads most successful passenger trains, it was discontinued in 1971 with the coming of Amtrak.

TTFN AL

[Anonymous]

Top of the mornin' to all you Barry Fitzgerald fans. Tom, its early but I can probably handle a couple of those frozen Eggo waffles and a drizzle of Mrs. Butterworth's Maple Syrup oozing atop. Sorry [C=:-)] Nick but the lack of your culinary expertise has driven some of us to drastic alternatives. Say, another Sunday Photo Posting success story, eh? If nothing else, my Pike pix may serve as a graphic guide illustrating- - "what not to do"- - for any aspiring "wanna, coulda, mighta, been" modelers in our midst. As always, my gratitude to Captain Tom for his unselfish labo(u)rs on the behalf of Pete, Nick, myslef and others, which Doug, Lars "and others" honor as well.[swg]

Its Monday and the start of a long 25 hour day hereabouts. Can't stay long but I must forward kadoos for the copius data, scholarship and comradship only to be found at "Our" Place. The Coal Scuttle will need a special stipend for this musical selection that I believe is approriate, if not fully apreciated: Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme Suite, (Richard Strauss comp.) Okay Boris, put that scrub brush away...an Arturo Toscanni you're not![:(!] Happy (t)rails good folks.[:D]

[siberianmo]

We open at 6 AM (all times zones!). (Don’t ask how we do that!)[swg]

MONDAY’s INFO & SUMMARY of POSTS

Monday, Monday, can’t trust that day …. (Mamas & the Papas)! Well around here you can – check out the freshly brewed hot coffee and the pastries from The Mentor Village Bakery! Then take a look at our Menu Board with some great selections for our <light> and <traditional> breakfasts! Monday, Monday, so good to me …. (Mamas & the Papas!)


Thanx go to Doug ‘n Lars for supporting me in our Sunday Photo Posting Day! Also, continuing appreciation to Ted for the Pix sent by mail![tup][tup][tup]


Repeat Wanna laugh[?] Turn up your speaker volume, then Click this URL!
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6930391059883546024&q=german


Daily Wisdom

The voice on the other end said, “I hope I didn’t wake you.” The reply: “Nah, I had to get up to answer the phone anyway.”[swg]
(yogi-ism)


Info for the Day:

Railroads from Yesteryear: Northern Pacific (NP) arrives TOMORROW! This will be the THEME for the DAY!

Canadian Railways of the Past: British Columbia Railways (BCR) arrives Thursday in two parts! Watch for it!

* Weekly Calendar:

Wednesday: Pike Perspective’s Day!
Thursday: Fish ‘n Chips Nite!
Friday: Pizza Nite! & Steak ‘n Fries Nite!
Saturday: Steak ‘n Trimmin’s Nite! – and – ENCORE! Saturday


SUMMARY

Name …..…………… Date/Time …..…..………. (Page#) .. Remarks

(1) barndad Doug Posted: 26 Feb 2006, 04:55:23 (257) 6 Pix & joke!

(2) barndad Doug Posted: 26 Feb 2006, 05:17:13 (257) 4 Pix & 2 jokes!

(3) siberianmo Tom Posted: 26 Feb 2006, 07:31:17 (257) Sunday’s Info & Summary

(4) siberianmo Tom Posted: 26 Feb 2006, 09:36:32 (257) Now Playing at the Gazette!

(5) siberianmo Tom Posted: 26 Feb 2006, 10:43:35 (257) 4 Pix from Ted!

(6) LoveDomes Lars Posted: 26 Feb 2006, 11:34:44 (258) 4 Pix, etc.!

(7) passengerfan Al Posted: 26 Feb 2006, 13:06:54 (258) Comments!

(8) siberianmo Tom Posted: 26 Feb 2006, 13:16:01 (258) 4 Pix for Pete ‘n Nick

(9) pwolfe Pete Posted: 26 Feb 2006, 15:18:03 (258) Comments!

(10) siberianmo Tom Posted: 26 Feb 2006, 17:26:55 (258) 4 Pix!

(11) passengerfan Al Posted: 26 Feb 2006, 18:33:35 (258) Comments!

(12) siberianmo Tom Posted: Today, 21:14:17 (258) Jan-Feb Pix Index

NOW SHOWING:

The Mentor Village Emporium Theatre
. . . . . Double Features, all of the time . . . . .

. . . Sunday, February 26th thru March 4th: Fours a Crowd (1938) starring: Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland & Rosalind Russell – and – Holiday Affair (1949) starring: Robert Mitchum, Janet Leigh & Wendell Corey.


That’s it! [tup][;)]

Tom [4:-)] [oX)]
Proprietor of “Our” Place, an adult eating & drinking establishment!

[Anonymous]

Good morning Tom and all! I'll have two light breakfasts, and some purple Peeps. It's almost Easter candy eating time, so I want to get ready! Thanks for the many great pix yeserday Tom and Lars. I really need to get back to IRM for some serious photo shooting to replenish my supply. And now .... here's something for Lars and y'all.

Milwaukee Super Domes from the Feb. 1953 BLF&EM magazine



America’s first all-dome railroad cars, built for the Milwaukee Road by Pullman-Standard Car Manufacturing Company, were placed into service on the Olympian Hiawatha January 1. They are the first dome cars of any kind to operate through the Northwest. Six of the ten Super Dome cars are assigned to the Olympian Hiawatha, the Milwaukee, St. Paul, Minneapolis, Seattle and Tacoma, while four more will go into service on the Morning Hiawatha and the Afternoon Hiawatha, daytime streamliners between Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Minneapolis.

The Super Domes are operated in conjunction with the Milwaukee Road’s famed Sky Top lounge-observation cars and permit more passengers to view the scenic wonders of the Pacific Northwest. The full-length observation-dome section provides foam rubber cushioned seats for 68 passengers and were built to provide unobstructed view through curved glass window sections measuring more than three feet wide and five feet high. Glass in the dome section covers 625 square feet, more then 3 ½ times the glass found in the conventional dome car.

In the lower level, there is a dining and lounge section seating 28 persons where beverages and light snacks may be ordered from the all-electric stainless steel kitchen. To provide adequate headroom the dining and lounge section had been sunk below the usual floor level of standard type passenger cars. Passageways have been installed on the lower level to permit passengers to walk the entire length of the car without having to go through the dining-lounge section to reach other cars in the train. Stairways have been provided at both ends of the car which also enable passengers to walk the full length of the car through the dome section.

Engineering-wise the new Super Dome cars are unique in many respects, for with the dining and lounge section sunk below the usual floor level of standard passenger cars, ad the top of the dome 15 ½ feet above the rails, it was necessary to make an important departure in the location of all air conditioning and power equipment. This equipment is located in two compact compartments, above the trucks, at each end of the car. Equipment compartments are accessible from the outside, for maintenance at regular division stops, or from the inside for inspection en route. Compartment doors outside the car are large enough so that power plants can be rolled out for servicing and maintenance.

Fuel tanks, water tanks, steam traps, air line equipment and other fittings are carried on the underside of the depressed center portion of the car in the compact arrangement. Revolutionary air conditioning systems, with double the cooling capacity of present day passenger cars, also were designed for the Super Domes. Each of the double-decked, glass-roofed cars has refrigeration equipment that could produce twenty tons of ice a day. This compares with seven to eight tons of cooling capacity for standard sleepers and coaches.

One of the most interesting new features of the heating and cooling system is two Solar Discs, located outside the dome section on the car’s roof. These small gadgets supplement the regular thermostatic controls to offset the greater susceptibility of the car’s interior to changes in outside temperatures due to the large expanse of glass in the dome section. These interesting devices lower the temperature setting of the thermostats automatically to offset the heat from the sun, and when a cloud blacks out the sun the Solar Discs immediately call for more heat to keep the car comfortable. Steam from the locomotive is used to heat the cars.

Overhead air ducts provide heat in the dome and lounge sections on cool days and, when the temperatures drop, heat is supplied by floor unit-fin radiators. In the dome section this heat radiates upward through wall panels and through wall panels and through openings in the window ledge to provide protection against the cold wall effect of car sides and windows. With the upper level of the car floored eight feet, eight inches above the rail combined with a lower level nestled in between the front and rear trucks only 23 inches above the rail, an entirely new approach to underframe construction was necessary, and rugged one-piece cast steel underframe ends over 24 feet in length were used.



A new six-wheel truck also was developed, the largest ever built for a railroad passenger car. A unique feature of this truck is its outside spring suspension whereby the large combination truck center bolster is supported on outside bolster coil springs. The trucks were designed for high speed passenger train service. Each car contains radio loud speakers, both in the dome and lounge sections, and a public address system to be used for making train announcements.

The color scheme of the interior, lighting, carpeting, upholstery, and all conveniences of the Super Dome cars were designed by Milwaukee Road officials working in collaboration with Pullman-Standard’s color and design studios in keeping with the territory to be served by the equipment. The exteriors carry the familiar Milwaukee Road standard colors – harvest orange and royal maroon.

[:I] The LAPD, The FBI, and the CIA are all trying to prove that they are the best at apprehending criminals. The President decides to give them a test. He releases a rabbit into a forest and has each of them try to catch it. The CIA goes in. They place animal informants throughout the forest. They question all plant and mineral witnesses. After three months of extensive investigations they conclude that rabbits do not exist. Then the FBI goes in. After two weeks with no leads they burn the forest, killing everything in it, including the rabbit, and they make no apologies. The rabbit had it coming. Finally, the LAPD goes in. They come out two hours later with a badly beaten raccoon. The raccoon is yelling: "Okay! Okay! I'm a rabbit! I'm a rabbit!" [:I]

[siberianmo]

Gentlemen,

Ever wonder about those fine pix that have been Posted during past Sunday Photo Posting Days! [?] The guys who took the time and made the effort to provide one and all with some enjoyable pix deserve to have their work preserved. So, here’s something you may want to “bookmark” for future use:

INDEX: January & February 2006 Sunday Photo Posting Days!

Begins on: . . . . . click on the URL

(1) Page 214, 08 Jan 2006
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=214&TOPIC_ID=35270

(2) Page 220, 15 Jan 2006
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=220&TOPIC_ID=35270

(3) Page 227, 22 Jan 2006
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=227&TOPIC_ID=35270

(4) Page 232, 29 Jan 2006
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=232&TOPIC_ID=35270

(5) Page 238, 05 Feb 2006
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=238&TOPIC_ID=35270

(6) Page 244, 12 Feb 2006
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=244&TOPIC_ID=35270

(7) Page 251, 19 Feb 2006
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=251&TOPIC_ID=35270

(8) Page 257, 26 Feb 2006
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=257&TOPIC_ID=35270


With my compliments![tup]

Tom [4:-)] [oX)]

[passengerfan]

Tom Those photos of the Crystal Panoramic kind of remind me of the old Milwaukee Road Skytops?

Ted enjoyed the layout photos.

TTFN Al

[siberianmo]

Even though ”Our” Place is CLOSED on SUNDAY’s we do observe Sunday Photo Posting Day!

Check out these trains from Switzerland!


(1) Switzerland: ICN (GNU Free Documentation)



(2) Crystal Panoramic Express (courtesy: www.trainweb.org)



(3) Crystal Panoramic Express (courtesy: www.trainweb.org)



(4) Swiss Federal Railways ICN (GNU Free Documentation)


That's it for me .... see ya in the AM![tup]


If you are browsing, how about letting the guys know that you’ve enjoyed their efforts!


Tom [4:-)] [oX)]


REMINDER! Read the SUMMARY!