Dave,
There was no Halifax section of the Dominion, but you stumbled on a clue - one of the endpoints is in Canada.
Good try, but one of the trains I’m looking for was a short-lived Amtrak train. See my reply to Dave’s latest try for another clue.
Did Amtrak ever have a train names the Continental or Continental Limited? Even briefly?
Nope…
This is a WAG, How about Olympian? All I could think of. Thx IGN
One other thing while I was net surfing trying to find something that fit, I see that Grand Trunk Western ran a Pacific Limited from Toronto to Chicago at some point. I did not see any dates. Maybe someone else can look. Thx IGN
But can Toronto be considered an East Coast port?
The Olympian would not be it. Also, I would steer away from Toronto.
More clues -
The non-Amtrak summer season train that used this name was originally handled by two railroads, but eventually was partially rerouted via a third railroad. Eventually, this train’s route was shortened, which would have disqualifyed it from this question, but for a few years through cars would be handled by other trains of the third road. In the last few years of its existance, this trains through cars would mostly be handled by other trains.
As for the Amtrak train using this name: even though the existance of this train and the heavyweight train of the same name were separated by several decades, for some reason Amtrak used the name graphic from the heavyweight train in its timetables during this trains existance.
The Norfolk-Chicago “Mountaineer” ran under Amtrak from 1975-1977 before getting truncated, combined or whatever and renamed the “Hilltopper”.
The Soo-CPR summer-only “Mountaineer” ran from Chicago to Vancouver B.C. via Portal ND from the mid-1920’s to 1960. The Chicago-St.Paul section was usually operated over Soo’s own Wisconsin Central line, but sometimes cars were carried on C&NW’s “Viking”. The “Mountaineer” often ran with a wild collection of cars borrowed from other trains, the main reason (aside from an interline car CHI-Sault Ste Marie with the CMStP&P) Soo Line had a contract with Pullman. Other Soo trains operated with Soo Line (or CPR) owned sleepers.
BINGO! You got it!
Initially, the Mountaineer initially ran as a separate train on the Soo and by the early 1930’s C&NW operated the train between Chicago and St. Paul. During its time on the C&NW the train sometimes ran indepdently and other times as part of another C&NW train. Post WW2, it became primarily a St. Paul-Vancouver operation with a few Chicago cars via C&NW, but as time went on, the train was merged with CP trains (I think the Dominion), becoming a St. Paul-Portal-Moose Jaw operation.
As for the Amtrak version, as I mentioned earlier, when it’s Mountaineer was running, for some reason Amtrak used the same name graphic that Soo/CP used in the mid-1920’s. Why this train was allowed to be visually different in its schedules I have no idea.
The next question is yours…
In the last several years of operation The Mountaineer and the Soo-Dominion were the Summer and rest-of-year versions of the same train, usually but not always combined with CP’s Dominion west of Moose Jaw. After 1960 summer-only through cars went via Winnipeg until 1963, without either of the old train names.
New question:
When this train was given new equipment after 20 years of operation, its publicity photos were posed with 15 year old locomotives (rarely used on the train in regular operation) and against a backdrop that should have belonged to another train jointly operated by its owner.
Possibly the Denver Zephyr posed with an E5 against a CZ background?
I’ll accept that. The widely distributed shot had an E5-powered 1956 DZ posed in front of a background shot of Marias Pass, really more appropriate for the Empire Builder. Despite its western endpoint, the DZ did not have a very scenic run - at least as far as mountains. The DZ was usually assigned a three unit set of E7-E9 series engines.
The crossing of the Mississippi was scenic but occured at night when passengers were asleep on the DZ, and there was some drama seeing the Front Range in the morning approaching Denver. But nothing like the EB or CZ, of course.
An interurban line that was a subsidiary of a Class I railroad that ended its passenger service after conversion to diesel for frieght with an ACF-Brill or Fageol diesel bus mounted on flanged wheels. If you know the answer, tell me if the track still exists for freight? I would imagine it does because of the industry that the line penetrated.
The major city had at least one other interurban line as well as an extensive local streetcar system, both converted to bus before WWII.
It has light rail or modern streetcar, depending on your definition, today, but it does not go where the interurban of the question went.
The MoPac’s Houston North Shore? I believe UP is still operating the track involved (MoPac ran it with steam and diesels) which went to a huge Humble Oil (Exxon) refinery. Houston’s other major interurban was the Galveston-Houston Electric. HNS was part of the Beaumont, Sour Lake and Western susidiary of the New Orleans Texas and Mexico, part of the Missouri Pacific Lines. NOT&M became part of the MP proper in 1956. Interurbans ran on the Houston streetcar system until 1931, were replaced by railbusses in 1948, and ran until 1960.
Fast, thorough, and accurate answer. Glad to know the track is still in freight service. And look forward to your question.
This Canadian-owned interurban was entirely within the U.S.
I believe this was the interurban part of whose RoW now is used by the Seashore Trolley Museum at Kennebunkport. ME.
Have to look this up. Atlantic Shore RR?
Atlantic Shore Line Railroad
If this is not right, then Niagra Junction, which for most of its life was a freight switching electric railroad, but did once have a passenger service to Buffalo.