I’m about half way through The Fallen Colossus, a book about the failure of The PennCentral. The author, Robert Sobel, said that after WW II, PRR was trying to discourage people from riding their passenger trains. The idea being, to cut passenger train losses. Sobel said the only place PRR didn’t do this, was on the Philadelphia Mainline, where most PRR executives lived, and rode the train to work.
I realize that when a Commodore Vanderbilt, or a Mr. Harriman, and a lot of other important or well to do travelers went on long distance train trips, they probably had their own cars. What about commuting? Did the PRR execs, and other well to do commuters enjoy any perks on their way to and from work? Or, were they just another rider on a crowded commuter train?
In Alvin Stauffer’s Pennsy Power III, he says that “in 1940 Pennsy had 25 Z class business cars” with the emphasis on business. The interiors, he says, were utilitarian and efficient, nothing like a palace on wheels. Perhaps some of the 19th century execs (Thomson, Scott, Cassatt, etc.), who lived in a more exuberant age, had more elaborate personal cars.
the mainline ran through Haverford, Lower Merion out to Paoli. IT is my understanding that they rode the MP54’s along with other well to do businessmen from the area. It should also be noted that those trains were always on time and there were no excuses for lateness.
In the New York area, nearly all commuter operations, and well into the Metro North area and public operation of the LIRR, there were special commuter club cars, outwardly like any other car, including multiple unit electric cars, but with interiors fitted more like parlor cars and with an attendant who provide rolls and cofffee in the morning and drinks and pretzels in the evening. These were run be clubs who paid the railroad a large fee every month. Except on the Long Island, where these were run more like railroad operated parlor cars. But this innovation never made it to Philadelphia as far as I know. And it is wrong to say that the Pennsy discouraged passenger service after WWII. (1) The bought and built themselves more postwar lightweight passenger cars than any other railroad anywhere. (2) Generally these cars were of a very high standard, including 44 passenger leg rest reclining seat coaches, built in Juniata, with interiors configured like the Sante Fe 44 passenger cars. The Creek sleeping cars with transverse single roomettes up and down, were an innovation and confortable. (3) As late as 1965 they were advertizing the superb service and confort on the still all-Pullman Broadway as a good alternative to jet-plane fatigue, including in the New Yorker Magazine. (4) When the NYC (who occasionally did show real meanness to passengers on certain runs they wished to drop) added coaches to the 20th Century, the Broadway was kept all Pullman for a while longer, and did not become what was really the renamed General, with coaches and sleepers and lacking the observation, until the 20th Century was discontinued altogether replaced by one combined train from New York and Boston to Toronto, Chicago via Detroit, Chicago via Cleveland and Toledo, St. Louis, and Cincinnatti. But even as the renamed General, the Broadway still provided a high standard of service with excellent dining car meals. All
The execs rode the same MP 54 cars as everyone else because just about everybody who lived along the Main Line and rode into Philly was himself (or herself, I guess) in an executive position. Overbrook, Merion, Narbeth, Wynwood, Ardmore (Old maids never marry and …). These communities were mostly white collar and business oriented so the execs felt comfortable with this kind of fellow passenger.
When I was a rookie inside sales associate in NYC back in the early 1970’s I rode the Harlem line from Tuckahoe, NY to GCT and recall vividly the “rich people” who also populated the MU cars on my daily commutes. Also, it was very funny (and also very sad) to see one “bag lady” who stood on our inbound track platform every morning hitting people randomly on their heads with a rolled up newspaper (nobody was hurt by this and everybody seemed to take it in stride). I left New York for Wisconsin in 1974 never to return (other than on visits), but my memories of my commuter experience on the Harlem line are still with me today.
One thing you need to know is the area about which we are talking, “THE MAIN LINE” is an area were only the wealthy of Philadelphia live. A small starter home probably goes for $1-2 million, so the commuter won’t be sitting next to someone working for minimum wage.
Your Right about that one! I guess the area along Septa’s R5 to Thorndale commonlly reffered to as the mainline got it’s name from the olf PRR Philadelphia Mainline. That is intresting. I am a native born Philadelphian and have lived there for 20 years, I should of figured that one out a lont time ago. lol
That would make since because back in the day the Mainline was an area for Philadelphia’s Ellite, and it still is. There is a lot of wealthy people there today. Most of them are what I like to call old money. The Mainline is a very expensive area.
I guess PRR also didn’t want to get rid of the now Septa Chestnut Hill East and West lines, due to the fact that Philadelphia’s Wealthest lived there. On the west side of Chestnut Hill there is a lot of people with old money. There are very old mannors, and victorian homes there. The same is on the East but, the east side of Chestnut Hill isn’t as wealthy as the West. Chestnut Hill is also a very expesive area to live in, and it is a part of the city. I grew up in Chestnut Hill, and have lived there all my life, it truely is a very nice area, and does have a lot of history.
What about other big city commuter lines of old. Were the upper crust commuters of big cities 50 years ago treated any different than your average Joe?
During WWII, the Big Red Cars of the Pacific Electric still did a great commuter job into Los Angeles. Even though an SP subidiary, it had its own President, and an official car, with multiple unit capability, a typical interurban electric car on the outside, but with large windows, was still on the property. All during WWII there was one trip into the downtown elevated PE Terminal in the morning and out in the evening for commuters on the otherwise freight-only line. The official car was used because the President lived on the line, and the other commuters benefited by the additional parlor-car-like comfort! I think this was the Catalina Dock branch, but my memory may not be correct on that point.
A photo in the March trains shows a K4 and some Pennsy P70 coaches on the Jersey Shore commuter run meeting a diesel CRRofNJ train on the New York and Long Branch. Note how clean the P-70’s look! And the interiors were kept clean, and I rode both the Jersey Central and the PRR trains during my Fort Monmouth days, ROTC summer camp and second post on active duty between Fort Dix and Fort Bragg, NC.
In my experience the dirtiest commuter coaches in the 50’s were the Chicago and Northwestern’s, still then mostly steam-hauled. Benn Heineman changed that of course.
I think the PRR continued to do a good job on the Valporiso locals up to Penn Central.
Actually the term “Main Line” refers to more than a water line. It actually refers to the state of Pa. trying to compete with NY’s Erie Canal by building a series of rail lines, canals and inclined planes to get commerce from the Delaware River to the Ohio River in Western Pa. it was a collassal flop but the right of way became the road bed of the PRR and the older name of “Main Line of Public Works” stuck with the railroad.