I could use a little cheering up. Judging from some of the recent flair-ups on some threads, maybe we all could use some.
Locally, BNSF and The Ellis & Eastern Railroad run a little Christmas special through town every year. While I appreciate what they do, I wonder what railroads did in the past around Christmas time.
Any of you old-timers want to tell us youngsters (I’m 45) about Christmas trains back in the “good old days”?
I’m all ears. Thank you.
Back around 1960 the Erie had a Christmas train.A couple coaches packed with kids on a 30 mile trip out of Decatur Indiana.Plus a jolly old St. Nick.I also wonder how many other railroads ran them. Cheers Joe
A Rock Island E unit brought Santa into Peoria for the Christmas parade every year.
He left the “train” (he rode a baggage-express car behind the E), and got on his float at the station to bring up the end of the parade.
Well, I’m no old timer being 30 years old and all, but here in Los Angeles we have the Metrolink commuter service. I haven’t seen it yet but they have a Christmas train that runs on the weekend and stops at each station to have Santa pass out gifts to all the children. My two year old son loves trains and I am hoping to catch that last possible station closeist to my town since I missed the closer ones not knowing about this train. Here is the link:
http://www.metrolinktrains.com/
Also my buddy just got back from Durrango, Co where he was looking to buy land. He said that he took the family on the Durrango, Silverton RR which has a wonderful Christmas train with the theme of the Polar Express. Here it their website:
I think that these trains and others that are Christmas Trains are a wonderful thing. BNSF also has a small train that runs out to Monrovia, CA which take the Cancer Children for a ride out of the city of Hope Hospital. That to me is top notch.
By the term “Christmas” trains , do you now mean “holiday” trains ( we must offend no one), As a child 400 years ago in a railway town I don’t recall any sort of “Christmas” trains, this seems to be a newer celebration, and a good one too, The only railway related holiday item I remember are midnight New Years Eve, when a LOT of steam locomotives blew their whistles and could be heard all over town and a long way in the country, I wonder if the still do it with diesels???
Do not despair, Murphy Siding. Currently, or in a few days, Canadian Pacific will have three such trains on the tracks: Midwest U.S., Northeastern U.S. and Canada. I believe the Midwestern one departed from Gurnee, waaay north of Chicago the evening of Saturday, December 9; and its first scheduled stop was at the new depot in Sturtevant, Wisconsin. Then it heads off on CP-controlled tracks thru Wisconsin, Minnesota and up to the Canadian border.
All three of the CP Christmas trains collect food for the poor, are strung up front-to-end with colored Christmas lights, and feature musical entertainers (usually country or folk) who ride aboard the train between stops / performances. (Of course, there are numerous musical “crew changes” along such a long routing.)
Also, CSX cost-cutting has not eliminated the Santa Claus Train, a heritage that goes back to the Clinchfield RR and its path into and through many of the Cumberlands’ remote “coal hollers.” The train originates in Kingsport, TN, I believe. As in the Clinchfield days, it keeps up the tradition of giving (or tossing) toys and treats to the kids along the route. It usually runs a weekend or two after Thanksgiving.
CN had a ‘holiday train’ on the old IC Saturday. It started in Gibson City, IL and went to Gilman, IL. I met it in Gibson City and was surprised by the lack of fanfare or railfans. It was pulled by IC101 F unit. It was a nice consist. But other than the kids lined up for Santa, there didn’t seem to be any interest. There was no TV coverage. No newspaper. And I was one of two people with a camera. Taking shots of the train, that is. And hardly anyone driving by seemed to take notice of anything out of the ordinary.
We dress our BUDD RDC1 up in so many lights, we needed a second generator. Its only a shuttle, but still, looks great!
This just in, a friend of mine has a 30% chance of getting the CP Christmas Train off the extra board!