# New Orleans station history



## Bill Haithcoat (Nov 3, 2010)

The winter 2010 "Classic Trains" magazine came out yesterday 11/02. Has a nice article beginning on page 58 showing that the present station was built to replace five stations.

Notes that being built in 1954 it was the last big city joint rail depot to be built in the country.


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## jimhudson (Nov 3, 2010)

Bill Haithcoat said:


> The winter 2010 "Classic Trains" magazine came out yesterday 11/02. Has a nice article beginning on page 58 showing that the present station was built to replace five stations.
> 
> Notes that being built in 1954 it was the last big city joint rail depot to be built in the country.


Saw that one Bill, thanks for the heads up!  Wonder if the New Stations in Ft. Worth and St. Louis might not qualify for the title of the last joint (intermodel)stations built in Big Cities?


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## Eric S (Nov 3, 2010)

I believe "joint" station (in reference to New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal) refers to multiple intercity passenger railroads, rather than the more modern concept of intermodalism (intercity rail [Amtrak], intercity bus, local transit).


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## Bill Haithcoat (Nov 3, 2010)

jimhudson said:


> Bill Haithcoat said:
> 
> 
> > The winter 2010 "Classic Trains" magazine came out yesterday 11/02. Has a nice article beginning on page 58 showing that the present station was built to replace five stations.
> ...



I think not Jim. I believe Eric has the right idea.


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## Shawn Ryu (Nov 13, 2010)

What is joint rail depot?


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## JAChooChoo (Nov 13, 2010)

What is joint rail depot?

A union station


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## Bill Haithcoat (Nov 13, 2010)

JAChooChoo said:


> What is joint rail depot?
> 
> A union station



To me, I think it refers to the fact that several different railroad companies served NOL, thus "joint".

That may be the same thing you mean,JAChoChoo, not sure.

Amtrak is the first national passenger operator we have ever had. Before Amtrak, May 1, 1971, there were railoads all over the country operating both passenger and freight. This was before all the massive freight mergers we have today.


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## George Harris (Nov 14, 2010)

This is from memory, so there may be some errors, when New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal opened, it hosted the following:

2 or 3 trains to Kansas City via Baton Rouge LA, Alexandria LA, Shreveport, etc., on the Kansas City Southern / Louisiana and Arkansas - RR is still KCS.

4 to Chicago via Jackson MS, Memphis TN, with 3 having cars to St. Louis on the Illinois Central - RR is now part of Canadian National. One of these trains is the Panama Limited, at that time all sleepers. Another the "daytime" City of New Orleans, both of these 16.5 hours to Chicago.

2 or 3 trains on the Southern, now part of NS, with 2 carrying through cars to New York. The Southerner via B'han and Atlanta. The Pelican via B'ham, East Tennessee, Roanoke. The third, if operating was a local to B,ham.

5 or 6 trains on the Louisville and Nashville, one a commuter local to Pass Christian MS, 2 to Mobile, Montgomery, Atlanta, and on northeast on the Southern Rwy, one the Crescent, the other the Piedmont Limited. The Piedmont Ltd also carried the cars of the Gulf Wind (to Jacksonville) as far as Flomaton AL. The others ran north from to B'ham, Nashville, Louisville, and Cincinatti. One, the Humming Bird also ran through to Chicago.

3 west on the Southern Pacific, now part of UP. 2 to Los Angeles, one of them the Sunset Limited via Beaumont TX, Houston, San Antonio, El Paso, Phoenix AZ, the other as far as either Houston or San Antonio

2 west on the Missouri Pacific's Gulf Coast Lines to Baton Rouge, Beaumont, Houston, one carrying through cars to LA on the ATSF out of Houston. This line is now part of UP.

2 trains west on the Texas and Pacific to Alexandria LA, Shreveport LA, Dallas TX, and Ft. Worth. There were through cars or connections to El Paso out of Ft. Worth. The T&P is now part of UP.

By the time Amtrak came into being, the only trains left were:

2 on the ICRR,

1, the Southerner on the Southern that ran three days a week.

1 on the L&N which had cars to both Jacksonville and Cincinatti, as the combined Gulf Wind and Pan American

1, the Sunset Limited on the SP that ran three days a week.

Bill Haithcoat, any corrections would be appreciated. did I miss anything on the end of pre-Amtrak service?


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## Eric S (Nov 14, 2010)

A Chicago transit railfan has compiled a list of passenger trains serving major stations in the years 1942, 1956, and 1971 (pre-Amtrak).

http://web.me.com/willvdv/chirailfan/stbeyond.html


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## Bill Haithcoat (Nov 14, 2010)

George Harris said:


> This is from memory, so there may be some errors, when New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal opened, it hosted the following:
> 
> 2 or 3 trains to Kansas City via Baton Rouge LA, Alexandria LA, Shreveport, etc., on the Kansas City Southern / Louisiana and Arkansas - RR is still KCS.
> 
> ...



Looks good to me, George.

That Southern local you referred to was just going from Birmingham to Meridian by that time.That train has an intersting history as it was the remnant of the once grand "Queen and Crescent Limited". That was a Southern train which went from Cincinnati, the Queen City, via Lexingon,Chattanoga,Birmingham,Meridian to NOL, the Crescent City.

Somehow it lost business early on and it's name was gone from the public timetables by the late 40's.

My impression is that in the 20's and 30's it was almost as popular as the Crescent Limited which went from NYC to NOL

If you google Queen and Crescent you wlll find it is a name for many, many things.


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