It was in the Winter of either 1942 or 1943 and my Uncle drove my Aunt and I the 30 odd miles from Bradenton, Fla. to the Union Station in Tampa. I was 10 or maybe 11 years old and very excited because this was to be my first ever trip on a long distance train and in a Pullman sleeper no less! As I recall the Tampa section of the Southland consisted of four Pullmans and four or five coaches plus a number of head end cars. All were heavy weights.
Our porter took our luggage on board and showed my Aunt and I to our open section seats. I can’t remember exactly but think our car had 14 sections with one compartment and possible two bedrooms. We pulled out of Tampa at dusk behind an Atlantic Coast Line 4-8-2 which was one of several the ACL had purchased from the Lackawanna expressly for service on the Southland. Our first stop was at Trilby and I accompanied out porter to one of the car’s vestibules where he opened the top half of the door and invited me to look out with him to watch the coaches and Pullmans from the St. Petersburg section being added to our train.
Not long after leaving Trilby our porter made up our berths and my Aunt took the lower while I climbed the ladder and bedded down in the upper. I was a little disappointed that my Aunt had the window while I had to be content with listening to the clickety clack of the rail joints and the occasional deep chime whistle of that big mountain engine as she rolled through the sparsely populated (at that time) upper Gulf coast.
The Southland ran over the ACL’s Perry cutoff which by passed Jacksonville and ran through such metropolises as Gulf Hammock, Shamrock, Chiefland, and Perry (it’s namesake). For years I was of the belief that the Southland was limited to 30 mph over this route because of its big engine and the lightly built roadbed. The Perry cutoff was laid with 90 lb. rail much of which was only cinder ballasted. Needless to say it was “dark” territory with timetable and train order operations. Recently R
I want to thank you for an excellent memory and an excellent way of informing us of your trip. It is delightful reading of your story. Interesting that such high standards of service were upheld right in the middle of WWII, and this checks with my own experiences when traveling as a youngster.
I’m reading Day of Trinity. On page 150, it talks about a trip some uranium made from Oak Ridge to Los Alamos on the “Southland” from Cincinatti to Chicago, where they boarded the Santa Fe “Chief” at 12:01PM. I believe the Pennsylvania went through our town, Winamac, IN, from 1944 for many years. I would like to verify that and perhaps the days and times it did–going north. My parents lived in Winamac. Nobody from town, that I know of, ever knew uranium for the atomic bomb passed through Winamac.
Yes, the Southland did pass through Winamac on its run over the Pennsy between Chicago and Cincy. It did not stop there however and Logansport was the closest station stop. In the early 50’s the Southland’s scheduled times at Logansport were 1:10 am southbound and 4:20 am northbound. Wartime schedules were somewhat different but as I recall were within an hour of those in the 50’s.
Thanks, also, for the account of your trip from Tampa to Gary. From my first knowing of the route, I wanted to travel it, but was not able to do so. With your account, I have now traveled it vicariously.