These three menus are all undated, but I suspect this cover was originally used in the early 1920s. One of the menus advertises that Great Northern is the “route of the Oriental Limited, and since it doesn’t apply the word “new,” it must be from before the 1924 introduction of the new, all-steel train. The cover painting was “reproduced through the courtesy of the Portland Garden Club of Portland. Oregon, whose campaign to protect the wild flowers of the Northwest is deserving of high praise.”
Click image to download a 502-KB PDF of this menu.
This a la carte menu offers Great Northern chicken pie, “our leader,” for 65 cents. Since all of the 1924-1929 menus I have price the pie at 75 cents, this also suggests that this menu was from before 1924.
Click image to download a 426-KB PDF of this menu.
This menu — the one that advertises the Oriental Limited — was not used on a train but for a lunch meeting of the Women’s Guild of St. Paul’s Church. That church — really a cathedral — was (and is) located about a block from James J. Hill’s home, and Hill’s wife, Mary Hill, was an active member and may even have attended this luncheon if it took place before she died in 1922.
Click image to download a 292-KB PDF of this menu.
Finally, this dinner menu, which was used on a train, includes table d’hôte meals for $1 with a choice of five different entrées: fish, ham, beef ribs, cold cuts, and fig omelet. The a la carte side offers 22 “specials” including lamb chops for 45 cents and a tenderloin steak for $1.50 as well as salads, soups, eggs & omelets, desserts, and beverages. Assuming this menu is from the early 1920s, multiply prices by about 14 to get today’s dollars.