In late 1905, a new competitor entered the market for premium Chicago-Los Angeles trains: the Los Angeles Limited. This route was made possible when the San Pedro, Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad completed its line between Salt Lake City … Continue reading
Tag Archives: Postcard
In late 1901, Rock Island completed a 264-mile extension from Liberal, Kansas to Santa Rosa, New Mexico. Its goal was to reach coal mines that were opening up in the territory, which wouldn’t become a state until 1912. To that … Continue reading
We’ve previously seen booklets for the 1900-1901, 1904-1905, and 1906-1907 winter seasons. The one here, for the 1908-1909 season, says it is the “Fourteenth Season.” That suggests that the train didn’t operate for three seasons between 1892 and 1904 (which … Continue reading
For nearly 70 years — roughly 1902 through 1971 — the competition for passenger business between Chicago and Los Angeles was nearly as intense as that in the New York-Chicago corridor. When Santa Fe arrived in southern California in 1887, … Continue reading
In 1905, the Pennsylvania Railroad used 4-4-2 Atlantic-type locomotives to power the 18-hour Pennsylvania Special. With 80″ driving wheels and about 21,000 pounds of tractive effort, these locomotives weren’t as powerful as the newer 4-6-2 locomotives, but the Special didn’t … Continue reading
My recent post about all-steel passenger cars raises the question: what was the first all-steel intercity train? The first all-steel train of any kind was undoubtedly an IRT subway train. The first all-steel intercity train was also clearly a Pennsylvania … Continue reading
The end of the World’s Columbian Exposition also saw the end of the Exposition Flyer‘s 20-hour schedule. Initially, New York-Chicago passengers had to be content with journeys of at least 26 hours. In September 1894, the Central speeded up its … Continue reading
In 1901, the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) was created by merging eight locomotive manufacturers to better compete with Baldwin, the nation’s largest locomotive maker. The next year, ALCO delivered to the Missouri Pacific the first 4-6-2 built for an American … Continue reading
Before 1900, the average passenger train in America consisted of four wooden cars weighing a total of about 160 tons. By 1930, the average passenger train had eight steel cars weighing a total of 450 tons. The all-steel revolution clearly … Continue reading
In 1900, every streetcar, rapid transit car, and intercity rail passenger car in America was made primarily out of wood. The wheels, trucks, and couplers were metal, of course, but the frame, body, roof, floor, and other components were wood. … Continue reading