What was the usual consist of heavyweight coaches on Nickel Plate’s Blue Arrow from Cleveland to St. Louis in the 1930’s hauled by a Hudson?
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Heavy weight baggage car, coaches and 12/ 1 sleeper. In later years a 10/6 sleeper.
Prior to 1956 it was an unnamed train. It made connections in Cleveland with another nkp train and had a through buffola to Lima cafe parlor car. The train became the blue dart ( nkp # 9 )and blue arrow ( nkp # 10 ) in 1956. It was quietly discontinued in 1959. The last stl- cle train was pulled by nkp’s gp 9.
Goggle it for more information.
Nickel Plate Cleveland - St Louis passenger service trains #9 & 10 Began service Feb 19, 1928, and were not named until October 28, 1956 when the westbound #9 was named “Blue Arrow” and the eastbound #10 named the “Blue Dart”.
This was the only Nickel Plate passenger train to operate over all three predecessor (NKP, Lake Erie & Western, Cloverleaf) railroads …running on the NKP from Cleveland to Arcadia OH, on the LE&W from Arcadia to Frankfort IN, and on the Cloverleaf from Frankfort IN. to St Louis.
Originally, the #9 dropped off a parlor-café car in Lima Oh to be picked up by the #10, which had dropped it’s diner off at Charleston to be picked up by the #9. These trains were (typically) pulled by Pacifics east of Frankfort, and by Baldwins west of Frankfort.
In Sept 1930 the #9 began running Buffalo to St Louis, but the #10 eastbound was never extended to Buffa
The explanation by Convicted One reaffirms my understanding that the Hudsons were used on the Buffalo - Chicago trains, and not on the St. Louis line. I am confused by the comment that 9 & 10 was handled “by Baldwins west of Frankfort.”
Tom
I thought the pa’s were assigned to the city trains. But stand corrected.
I don’t know “why” that was, I was merely quoting a published source.
I could speculate that since Frankfort was a transition point from former LE&W lines to former Cloverleaf lines, that the infrastructure differed west of Frankfort, but I must be honest and admit that is pure speculation on my part.
No’s 9 & 10 used one PA per consist; the Buffalo-Chicago trains used two.
Tom
If you like, you can read my source here, scrolling down fom the section specific to the commercial traveler, down to “Cleveland-St Louis” service
In one of Lucius Beebe’s books he noted that the Nickel Plate used Hudsons to Chicago, Pacifics to St. Louis, and 10-wheelers to Peoria.