# Finally, Some New Schedules....



## ehbowen (Nov 18, 2014)

Rumors of my demise, while not groundless, are premature. I've finally got around to doing some more work on the web site, and I have three brand new schedules for your viewing pleasure:

The 1951 _Super Chief_

The March 1951 (Cotton Belt) _Lone Star_

and, the 1949-50 _Florida Special_

Enjoy!


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## Swadian Hardcore (Nov 18, 2014)

Yay!


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## greatcats (Nov 19, 2014)

I see that Flagstaff was not a stop for the Super Chief. Was this town considered not important at the time? It did stop at Seligman, a much smaller place, which is no longer a station stop.


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## ehbowen (Nov 19, 2014)

Seligman was an operating stop for the 1951 _Super Chief_, not a passenger stop. I believe it was a division point for the Santa Fe, and that crews were changed there and possibly some vital supplies (like ice and water) replenished. If you wanted to visit the Grand Canyon or send your kid to Northern Arizona University (Flagstaff), Santa Fe would happily sell you a ticket on the _Grand Canyon_, the _California Limited,_ or (with restrictions) the original _Chief._


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## greatcats (Nov 19, 2014)

Thanks for the informative reply.


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## Swadian Hardcore (Nov 19, 2014)

What happened to the Navajo?


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## ehbowen (Nov 19, 2014)

Santa Fe's _Navajo_ was on the southern Transcon route (Amarillo/Belen) in May 1936 when the new _Scout_ was introduced; shifted to the Raton Pass route along with the _California Limited_ by September of 1938, and was gone from the time card by December of 1940. Sorry but I don't have the information to pin it down any more precisely than that.


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## Swadian Hardcore (Nov 19, 2014)

What about the Scout? What happened to that one?


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## ehbowen (Nov 20, 2014)

Swadian Hardcore said:


> What about the Scout? What happened to that one?


Wikipedia says May 1948 but they're wrong; my December 1948 guide shows the train and if you look on the talk page some people report seeing it as late as 1950. Regardless, it was still (largely) a heavyweight train and once lightweight streamlined equipment filtered its way down to the secondary trains, its days were numbered. Basically the _Grand Canyon_ picked up the slack for it as a secondary train once it (the _GC_) went to both a northern (Raton Pass) and southern (Belen Cutoff) section, while the 1954 _San Francisco Chief_ picked up whatever first-class business there was on the Belen Cutoff route.


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## Swadian Hardcore (Nov 20, 2014)

Did the Grand Canyon have streamlined equipment? Or the California Limited?


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## ehbowen (Nov 20, 2014)

The _Grand Canyon_ eventually picked up mostly streamlined equipment, albeit secondhand as premium trains were re-equipped. The _California Limited, _AFAIK, remained a heavyweight train to the end of its days, namely 1954 as it was pulled when the new, streamlined _San Francisco Chief_ made its debut that year.


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## Anderson (Nov 20, 2014)

I've wanted to ask...

I know there was passenger service to Virginia Beach at one point (I've seen photos of the trains and on some level I'm quite sad that the ex-NS line was picked for light rail service instead of being rehabbed for commuter service and/or Amtrak service to the oceanfront), but I have no idea how long ago this went away. Do you know where/when I might look?


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## ehbowen (Nov 20, 2014)

I'm away from my timetables right now, but I just checked the _Official Guide_ which Timetable World has on-line. It still shows Virginia Beach as being on an active line 17.1 miles from Norfolk, but for freight service only. In fact, the entire railroad (the original Norfolk Southern) was freight-only. That was August 1952, so you'd have to look before then.


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## ehbowen (Nov 20, 2014)

And now I've had time to check but I'm no closer to an answer (re: Virginia Beach). Both the August 1944 and June 1947 timetables show a frequent service, but it is listed as "Rail-Bus Service". I'm not entirely sure if this means a coordinated rail and bus service a la the Santa Fe's _Golden Gates_ (unlikely, since we're talking less than 18 miles), a bus which operated on the railroad as did Rio Grande Southern's "Galloping Goose" (again unlikely, as the timetable shows stops at bus terminals and hotels which would not likely be adjacent to a rail line), or, most likely, a standard highway motor bus which just happened to be operated by a railroad. I haven't done the digging, but I think it's likely you will have to go deep into the prewar depression years before you will find a true rail passenger service to Virginia Beach.


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## railiner (Nov 20, 2014)

I believe Carolina Coach Company provide bus transfers. I am not sure if it was their regular schedules or a dedicated RR transfer without comparing the timetables...


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## ehbowen (Dec 22, 2014)

I've been a busy boy....

New timetables since the last notice:


The 1941 _Morning Star_, Cotton Belt service between St. Louis/Memphis and Dallas.
The 1938 _City of San Francisco_...about time!
The 1966 _Grand Canyon_, Santa Fe's red-headed stepchild between Chicago and Los Angeles.
The 1971 _Rio Grande Zephyr_, remnant of the original _California Zephyr._

A major update to the 1971 _City of Los Angeles_ page; it now includes all of the various sections which made it known as the _"City of Everywhere."_

An update to the 1950 _Sam Houston Zephyr_ page; it now includes the _Twin Star Rocket_ service between Fort Worth and Houston as well as Burlington-Rock Islands local between Houston and Waxahachie.
And, finally, a Missouri Pacific motor car local service which my grandmother used to ride, known informally as _"The Chippy"_.
Enjoy!


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