Does anyone know if Union Pacific had any beaver-tail passenger cars (you know the type: the ones with the rounded end which would be run at the end of passenger trains, particularly on flagship trains)? These are also called observation cars in general, but I have only seen pictures of blunt-end observation cars, like the Pennsy used. I have seen round-end type cars of the Union Pacific in models, but that’s no assurance that they ever existed in real life.
Your help is greatly appreciated,
Daniel
Beaver Tail refers to the observation cars of the prewar Hiawathas on MILW, which were unique to that road. The same applies to the postwar Skytop cars.
What you are probably thinking of are often described as boat-tail obs, and the UP had some on their prewar Streamliners. They also had some flat-end obs, such as the dome-obs-lounges for the City of Los Angeles.
Flat-end obs could be found on PRR, B&O and CB&Q (Denver Zephyr) and possibly other roads.
Dear CSSHEGEWISCH,
Thank you very much for the informtion, it is most appreciated.
-Daniel
Some MILW passenger equipment and locomotives were painted in UP colors for trains run jointly with the UP. I don’t know if any of the beavertails were.
If you want to see some of the unusual variety of UP observation cars in the streamliner era, go to your public library and get a copy of “The Trains We Rode” - Volume 2 by Beebe & Clegg. Check out pages 854 - 859.
MILW eventually painted all of its intercity passenger equipment and locomotives in UP colors, including the Skytops. The beavertails may have already been retired by that time. About the only passenger equipment that wasn’t repainted was some suburban coaches that pre-dated the bi-levels (which were stainless steel).
Dear DSchmitt, XAXINV, and CSSHEGEWISCH,
Thank you very much for all of the information[:)].