9
© 2012 Kalmbach Publishing Co. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher. www.ClassicTrainsMag.com
© 2012 Kalmbach Publishing Co. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher. www.ClassicTrainsMag.com
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solvency. In the midst of tlie' econom- H•ving left Chicago's Dearborn Station •
id sluinp, St6rey was succeeded by ·
Samuel.T. Bledsoe; a forward-looking Super Chief rolls into Pasadena, Calif.; on -
executive.' • •· Bledsoe was not'a railroad man in
thE traditidn of his predecessors · "'
Stor« Edward Payson Ripley, and
William Barstow Strong, all of whdni
had hands-on 9perating experience:
·befo're•being•namedpresident. Bled-
soe came to the presidency with a:strong backgrourid in law,-specializ-. - ejecton air-conditioning system in 66:. '
'ing in land and railroad 16gal matters. A cars:,18 club-lounges,·:4 cafe-observa- ,
Perhaps because'he had n-o direct op- tions, ·14 dining'cars, 13 Pullman room : L
erating experience, Bledsoe was never cars, and 17 Pullman observation cars.
reluctant to take Pri new'technology.
In hissix years leading.the Santa' Fe,
he demonstrated an enthusiasm 'for·'
it,- and for the required monetary: in-
vestment'in it. Notonly did lie direct:the acquoition:of.new; advanced loco- ,that would see Santa Fe bffering. one• '" ·: .. . • ..." lij)• · '.':• · : •• . ··•·,·4
motives (both steam and diesel); he
instituted neiv. high-speed; stream-lined Bassenger'service and spent :
large sums on impr6ving the physical vincedthe board to approve·the'air- : , " · ..1 '· .,·'· • •" ·-
plant and modernizing the tight of.
way to accommodate it.
The drastic reduction in busibiess
activity and personal travel br6ught
about by the Depression severely af-
fected freight and passenger. service.
Losses were exhcerbated by, three fac- sion:.$8000. ·
tors: the rapid rise in private auto· '.·
ownership, 'which pumrheled intra-state passenger patronage; the fledg- • .- HEAVYWEIGHT CARS
ling air-transport industry;.and the
expansion of the interstate trucking,
industry,.which·cut freight reveriues,. especially less-than-carlobd·business.
In 1929, Santa Fe's operating rev- · new diesel-electric derilori•tration 10-
enue r�042>as $267·2 million, yielding in-
c6me of $61 inillion. By.1932;,the fig- Electro-Motive Corp., whose'chief en-
-ures had dropped to $133 million and gineer, Richard Dilworth, had cgn-
$7.5 million, respectively. These is-
sues and numbers were the.focus of
attention for President Bledsoe and
W. K. Etter, vice president, operations. his untried idea df a diesel-powered .
They were adare of both.the need'for mainlihe locomotive with an enclosed 5973»Zi#WiP• .•..Iirr:. 2....advanced locomotive technologi for
. faster freight'schedules that would re- structural steel.. Dildorth was intent.·.1 39...:4 ..11'.:.:ty:-,sf.:7 6•N.TA....lI*. •7,;ii.' cover lost· traffic, as well as the need'
to boost passenger.patronage.
At the Santa.Fe directors:meeting • 900 h.p. Winton·201A diesel engines,.
of November 28, 1933, Bledsoe
brought up tlie first of his many sug-gestions for improving passenger ,
service. Since the railway's Chicago-
Los Angeles•route trdversed the hot·
desert Southwest, Bledsoe pushed the Though no more powerful than.the'One-
, idea of using air-conditicining.passen- Spots, the E's were miles ahead in styling.
two days earlier, the inaugural run of.the
May 14,1936. The boxy "One-Spot Twins" -1 1 r •13 6 111 1,3,1 . mr.head up the all-heavyweight consist.
i.2 ... ...
-A S *
21· iti/9/ .isillihijillillili..4341"UbbiZREit 1 .Ad'llimu..........Li;,£3:•iftligils;63';1-460*kid#*ffl*•Z•.•
13 , .... PA )-ADE N AI= . •7-1 : 2 • 71:.PhRAL/t
• 1 �036 n 111 1'.1 k , ,* li Fr 5 ,. i�036 0
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ger cars. Th6 board agreed And ap-
proved the expenditure.,
And spend he did. During 1934,
Santa ·Fe.installed the new steam-
Couiiting the 23 dining cars Santa Fe 39&
previously had air-donditioneditherailway.was operating 89 air-condi-, '•." ·· ' -A'·' " /' CS;r · -
ti6ned cars .by the end of'1934. This .was the first ofaseriesof decisions •·• ., " ' ·' .· o ..:·
of tlid finest and fastest long-distance :. 2, . L'O,Ni·j�254*:,.,Ob,1 -:i« • •
-passenger-train fleets onthe continent. ·-" .· . :·Z·'·S·:.70., '33·'· ,-' t':'-'i·-5On Mdy 29,1934, Bledsoe con- • ·, . -, · ':�042 , -.'*·) '• , . •••• _ ':26: .42.·,r.K=
conditioning of 30.Pullman sleeping " 7 .i:. -. -'-•'-::..: ",-1.• :S:".... '-,.C. I ........... I
cars; The following year Santa Fe.' .· .::...·.(�042,2.·;.·'.:i':.1.-:·: -:ri......:...." -'added even more air-conditioned ·· '/-·,"·'ie.•e:F....1..... .;....7I••.·.·•·1,·...
standard Pullman sleepers,·club-: - .'':'. '2,'A....:' �042-*•,ST·. '-.. ,�042 '.- .,·*,·'tElounges,· and diners to its Beat. The «: :-,·" . -�036•• ', ·' . '·· ·::3 •:,I....2.
· estimated cost ofeach cars conver- :' ·· ··· - i' '. ..:; '•I.·'.-'.·i ...:':.·'y · .·'.., f.. ..'):..'... -....:.'..
': 1 ·......1i /...: ··..1 :I...i..9...1: i :t ; ..., :p ·-· • ·· :�042 ·,..&:.·3' 1 .'l·�042k:.�042 ''. · •• . •· " -, ..:. '
·4394«1·)!�042't '.'·ij-'•..:, M:·F .·-FVp·4%0:18*·., �042'··.. A.·
. . . . .. I. A....'.;....:...,t:t''l•-'.:.9'.:. ':':. i:,i,1:':........•'.:........;.BOX-CAB DIESELS AND
Having introduced air conditioned
comfort for first-class passengers be-
yond dining cars, Bledsoe then -tutned
to motive,powen Hewas aware of the
comotive in the planning stagesat
ceived and was working'on the con-
cept of a multiple-unit locombtive.4 . : 5, /2 ..:*32#• 1 1-l . . . . . ..M,This'machide w6uld incorporate ·
body, and main frame fabricated from • •
00, creating a 3600 h.p. multiple-unit.locomotife poweifd·by foui of the new •· " •:·'.:1.4.27,•U I ..
The Super's box-cabs and heavyweights
gave way to streamlined El diesels and
stainless-steel cars in May and June 1937.,
St ./< . r'
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Passengers knew the Acoma (t6p) as a
bar-lounge car, but it also had bunks for
the dining-car,crew. Diner Cochiti sat 36
at tables for four and two; the car is now
at the California State Railroad Museum,
its tables set with china from many roads. ditional standard of luxurious service
two per unit, each driving a generator and the existing flagship, the all-Pull-
that would furnish electric power to
truck-mounted traction motors. On
the Santa Fe, the result would be Nos. Pullman, extra-fare, to be known as
lA and lB, the "One-Spot Twins," the
fourth and fifth such 1800 h.p. box-
cab units built by Electro-Motive, in
September 1935.-
Bledsoe conceived the idea of mar- 39% hoiirs, an average of almost 56
rying EMC/Winton's new technology
,,· On September 11,1934, the Santa
Fe board, after hearing Bledsoe's
presentation of his revolutipnary pro-
posal, authorized the purchase of a
3600 h.p. diesdllocomotive at a cost
.not'to exceed $400,000. In ihe short
term, the new locomotive would pull
·a Super Chiefequipp-ed with heavy-.1. ah-weighi dats, but Bledsoe believed that .
lightwdi•ht. equipment.was the.future.
ofpassenger service. .
·. .·He was also well aware of the 'sud-cess of Chicago, Burlington & Quin-
cy's lightweight, stainless-steel, diesel-
powered Zephyr, completed earlier infi-6'•'.-6.7/2/lill'll'll'll//ill"//i1934 by the EdWard G. Budd Co. of
........... .Philadelphia. Tlie Zephyrk construe-- tion wastbased on the new manufac-
turing technique known as Shotweld-ANTA F ing,"aT'system,perfected and Ditented
by Budd's chief engineer, E.J.W. Rags-
dale. This allowed stainless steel to be, assembled withoiit compromising its '
inherent strdngth and without mar-
ring the surface of the material.,Budd,. lightweight cars.employed a basic
stainless-steel truss structure and
stainless corrugated exterior sheeting,
which increased stiffness.
This construction had been proven
to be safe·and·effective in the Zephyr,
and Bledsoe rvas.convinted this.ap-
proach was the solution to the chal-
lenge of reducing car weight. Wisely,
thqugh, Bledsoe wanted no part of
the comfort or operational limitations• imposed by the Zephyr's smaller-than-
standard; articulated cars.
On June 25,1935, Bledsoe received
board approval for a maximum;ex-
penditure of $200,000 for "diesel en-RAEGERGEORGE A. T gines and light passenger cars."The
diesels.would be switchers, not a new
concept, but the cars would be thewith existing standard Pullman equi•-.
first of a Reet of non-articulated, stan-ment to begin a high-spdail,'first-class
dard-size, lightw6ight rolling stock.
In·January 1936, Budd delivered to..Santa Fe for testing.onelight'weight .
stainless-steel 52-seat coach,·No. 3070.
. It was the builder's fitst non-afticdlat-Limited of 1892; the de-Luxe of 1911,
ed, fulllsize, stainless-steel passenger
car, •and would be the prototype for
many hundreds of siblings to follow.
Fully equipped and ready for service,
it weighed 83,500 lbs., about half that
of a standard 160,000-lb. chair can
Santa Fe's experience with 3070 later
in the year led the company to ordertually would operate on a schedule of
from Budd the first lightweight Super
Chieftrainset.
Chicago-Los Angeles passenger train.
Bledsoe intended to maintain the tra-
provided by the original Califor,lia
man, extra-fare chief; introduced in
1926. The new train-high-speed,· all-
the Super Chief-would operate on a
40-hour schedule, beating the Chiefs
time by 15 h6urs. The Super Chiefac-
mph for its 2224-mile route.
te.
.:
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24 STREAMLINER PIONEERS 1 2005
Thiswasn't the only project
spawned by coach 3070. Three years
before, Lawrence J. Brasher, a ma-
chinist and the author's father, sub-
mitted a detailed ,•proposal for a dedi-
cated Chicago-Los Angeles train.
offering all chair-car service. The ex- .
perien'ce with the·3070 led Charles T.
Ripley, SantifFe's chief mechanical
engineer to suggest a lightweight ver-
sion of a high-speed, but lower-fare,
Chicago-L.A. train. This resulted in
the all-coach El Capitan of 1938.
Eleven months after Budd deliv-.
ered the 3070, Santa Fe accepted an-
other lightweight chair car, 98,000-lb.
smooth-side 3071, constructed of Cor-
Ten steel by St. Louis Car Co. This car
did nbt, however, influence the design
of the Super Chief already under con-
struction in Philadelphia.
BLEDSOE'S AUDACIOUSPROPOSAL
Despite a major fire on one of the
EMC "One-Spot Twins" during a No-
veniber 1935 preliminary run of the
heavyweight Super Chief, an undaunt-
ed Bledsoe presented his board with
an audacious proposal on February 25,
1936-to equip six trainsets for Chi-
cago-Los Angeles service, each with·a
diesellocomotive. The board approved
a $5.5 million expenditure for this.
One lightweight sleeping car, For-
ward, Pullman's first, had been put in
test,use.in the heavyweight Super Chief
in November 1936. Fonvard was due.
to be returned to Pullman in January
1937, but it was so successful thatSiirit• Fe never let, it go, purchasing it ·
outright later in 1937. Forivard served
in revenue service until it was desig-
nated as a dormitory car in 1963.
Launched'on May·12, 1936;.the
heavyweight Super Chief didn't last
long-Lit was less than a year old when house Air Brake equipment was suc-
Santa«Fe·received,the first lightweight cessfully adapted to this high-speed
set, of nine cars, from.Budd in April ·
1937. The cars were tested extensively
before entering scheduled service.
This trainset was initially equipped Office car 3400 did.not enter. ser\,ice
with American Steel Foundries slack-
control couplers, but during the first
movement of the coupled train at
Budd, accidental uncouplings oc-
curred, so necessary. adjustments ·re-
sulted in a delivery delay. The air-con- was tested as part of the nine-car set,
ditioning was of the steam ejector
type as made by Vapor and Safety Car
-(.fA= (ii, ®p [4•««'.41••1••t'Ll.N-Nf tti,=3-
Heating Co. All the trucks were four-
wheel with.individual brake cylindersi tion, 2-compartment, 1-difawing room
and clasp brakes; standard Westing-
operation.
Designed andbuilt as part of the
original set, lightweight Railway Post
on the Super chiefbecause the Post
Office Department required operation tire train was serviced and turned at
of mail-service equipment·only on
daily scheduled routes,· and the Super run. This -pattern, already established
ran only once a week. Although 3400
it was then assigned to'pool service.The first lightweight Super'Chief ·
consisted of a bakgage car; two 8-sec-
sleepers;'a bar-lounge-dormitory; a
dining cari tivo 6-bedrooril, 2-com-,
partment, 2-drawing, room sleepers;
and an observation-lounge 3-compart-
ment, 2-dra•ing rdom, 1-bedroom. 'sleepen .
This consist was assigned to trains-
17 arid ·18 throughout 1937. The en- -
Chicago and Los Angeles after each ·
with.the heavyweight Super Chiefin
1936 and which allowed for the addi-
tion of equipment to handle increased
passenger loads; would last substan-
ST w: - .
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•1116, It,ReRSHO,SRK-ht..:. 11% CRE\fQUARTERS · ET•.A : . 1
97_ ·-Club Lounge Car
Name/No. Car type Weight (lbs.)*
3430 . 2 Beggage 75,060
Isleta Sleeper (8-section, 2-compartment, 1-drawing room) 104,900
Laguna . Sleeper (8-section, 2-compartment, 1-drawing room) 104,900
Acoma/1370 Bar lounge-dormitory 96,940
Cochiti/1474 Diner 110,200
Oraibi Sleeper (6-bedroom, 2-compartment, 2-drawing room) 107,500
Taos. Sleeper (6-bedroom, 2-compartment, 2-drawing room) 107,500
Navajo. . ' Observation lounge-sleeper 102,260
(3-compartment,· 2-drawing room, 1-bedroom)
* Weights do not include fuel, interior sup•lies, or people. Weights do includd ice and water. -
CLASSICTRAINSMAG.COM I STREAMLINER PIONEERS 25
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Inside the Super: The section accommo-
dations (above) in /s/eta and Laguna indi-',
cate that the 1 937 train just predated th6
all-private-room era. A view in Navajo
(right) looks forward fr6rn the 8bservation
lounge toward the Pullman rooms. Two
photos of 16unge-dorm Acoma (opposite
page) look toward and away from the bar.
tially unchanged for the Super Chiefand El Capitan until the Super's fake- • · any imperfection in,track structure
over of the Chiefs transcontinental.
sleepers in 1954.
Naturally, the riding qualities of
the new cars were of great impor-
tance. During testing in·1936, noise
and vibration:levels inside carsiwere
carefully monitored. Structural vibra- percent faster with lightweightcars as
tidn was also'a concern, and was.
recorded by specially installed equip-
ment. Some harmonic vibration was
noted and considered to be "possibly
a function of this type construction."
The data was also compared to earlier have to be powered initially by steam
information from lightweight German locomotives.·The test data indicatedrailway equipment.
Equally important, high-speed
braking tests were conducted. Stop-
ping distance was a critical factor. As
part of the big Santa Fe physical-
plant modernization begun in 1935,
Signals had been adjusted for the high WARBONNETAND
speed of the original heavyweight
Super Chief. Brakeshoe wear was
monitored, and brake-line and brake-
cylinder pressure adjusted to allow
maximum braking efficiency without
sliding the wheels, a significant dan-
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gen especially at'high speed, because
encountered bya non-rotating wheel
could result in a derailment.
Cdal-fired Padific 3420 was used in wear. the far)hous ,Warbonnet" paint
testinion the Illinois Division, which· scheme of red, yellow.'and silver, with
. confirmed that fuel consumption rvas black accents, designed by EMC illus-
8 percent less and running time.12
compared with heavyweight cars. .
Steam performance was of great in-
terest because several new trainsbeing contemplated for introduction •
in 1938 with lightweight·cars would
that all aspects of steam performance mlih. Each rodeon two AlA·trucks,
and economy benefited significantly
from lightweight cars. The hine-car
train as tested weighed: 45 percent .
less than a similar heavyweight train.
STAINLESS STEEL
The first run of the streamlined,
stainless-steel Super Chiefwith its in-
tended motive power occurred on
June 15, 1937. Heading the train were One-Spot Twins handled the special
Electro-Motive's first El diesels, a
brand-new A-B duo numbered Santa
Fe 2A and 28.-No.:2A was dn ElA,
with a control cab; 2B was a cabless
ElB. They w6re the first dieselsto
"
trator Leland A. Knickerbocker.
Direct descendants of the box-cab
One-Spot Twinh of September 1935,
the 2A and 2B together weighed 287
tons and had a combined length of
141 feet, 4 inches. Tractive power of
each unit was approximately 91;000
lbs. at starting..The units were geared
foran astonishing top speed of 116
meaningthe center aide of three on
each,truck wils not powered. The El
cab unit shared the sloped nose intro-
duced several weeks earlier on sixsimilar EA's for Baltimore & Ohio.
EMC was late in delivering the
El's, as the lightweight train itself had
actually debuted a month earlier. Its
first exhibition run, to Santa Fe,
N.Mex., was behind steam, while the
introductory run from Chicago to Los
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26 STREAMLINER PIONEERS 1 2005
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Ankeles and return, as well as the reg-
ularly scheduled :runs: from May 18,.
1937, into mid-June.
The L.A.-Chicago return leg of the
introductory special-:powered. most
of the way by the short-lived trio of
box-cabs IA," 18, and,1(-:was made
in 36 hours, 20 minutes, setting Sarita
Fe's all-time passenger speed record.
At the time, Santa Fe press releases
and magazine articles ignoredtthis
fact; which led to later historical.con-
fusion; as the record· run attributed to2A and 2B were in reality,the work of , Roger W Birdseye, Santa Fe's.general - . equipped with small doublewindows.
the Twins and 1 C.·(In July 1936, one
of the original 1800 h.p. demonstrator villages 02 Native American tribes:
units;'EMC No. 512, was leased from
Electro-Motive for.use as a relief. unit, Laguna, and Navajo. The cars' interior two 6-b6droom; 2-compartment, 2-on the Super Chief: Carried as No. 1 C
while on the,Santa Fe, and closely re- Mc,Donald, was inspired by the Native area was treated with a different Flex-
lated to ATSF lA and 18, she took
part in early experiments in the oper-
ation, of three units in multiple.)
LUXURY INTERIORS WITH
NATIVE AMERICAN FLAVOR
The lightweight Super Chiefwas
the-epitome of luxurious design and. service. The car names, chosen' by
*4=
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advertising manager, honored Pueblo
Isleta, Taos, Aco,iza,•Cochiti, Oraibi, •: each room of Oraibi and Laguna, the
Elecoration, by.designer Sterling ·B:
American culture of the land through wood veneer: bubinga, white hare-.
whicli the.train passed.
The two 8-section cars, Isteka and
Taos, had rugs and window drapes of
Native American design. Eachopen
section achieved·a semblance of pri-.
vacy by the use of floor-to-ceiling aisle in a·diff6rent pattern, which.mdde
panels partially enclosing the seats.
Upper berths in the sections were
· A striking interior feature was the
rare and valuable. wood paneling,' in
, drawing·room·cars. Eacli sleeping ·
wood, avodire,· macassar ebony, •'· '•.prima vera;.zebrawood, Brazilian . .
rosewood, eboriized maple, American
holly, redwood burl, teak, aspen, and :
satinwood. Each room was.finished
them pleasant, attractive, and unique.
Bar lounge-dormitory. 1370·Aconia,
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FOUR PHOTOS: SANTA FE, DAVID LUSTIG COLLECTION
CLASSICTRAINSMAG.COM I STREAMLINER PIONEERS 27
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The 1937 Super Chiefwas the first in an .
illustrious line of Santa Fe streamliners.Ata February.1938 photo session in Chi- • · ed by thil quiet and·smootli ride,· no-
cago, 6bservation cars marI(od for the E/ :table·for the absence of side sway. or.
Capitan, Super Chidf, Chief, Super Chief, - ·slackilction. : : '. ."; ,· 2, :
and E(-Capitan form an impressive line-
up. Today, the Super's Navajo (far right)
restsat the Colorado Railroad Museum.
featziring zebrawood *eneer, had a
typjc'al sadd painting of Navajo de-.
sign in the pahel behind the full-serv- . the new all-coitch, extra-fare El,Capi- . 'El'Cap" operatud,on the same 39%-.· ice bar. The'dormitory section was de- tan. Ten more lightweiBht dindrs, six . hour schedule..In · 19.46, the. two trains '
signed to accomm•odate the'12-man - club-lounge cars, and six club-bakgage increased thdd frequdncy.to every '·dining-car crew. ·:·-·.
• The dining ciir; Coclliti, finished
with walli of bubinga wood�036 featured: daily Chiefto be fully streamlified.
silver service and tlie later-fanious
Minibreno china pattern, bdth de-
signed.by artist Mary E. Coulter. The. - periniebtal car Fonvard, each con-
diner, staffed 'and.operated by the
longtime Santa Fe commissary part-
ner firmi of Fred Harvey,-served the" •: roomette cars with 18 individually en- separate traih lasted fpr only 10 years,
finest cuisine, upholding the tradition·.. closed. rooms, each for use by one. : .. though, as a decline in patronage and
that·began in Harvey-dperated Santa "·. passengerin complete privacy, with a
Fe dining cars in.1888:and dated to
1876 jn station dining fooinsall along. and wardrobe.
the system: .
Observation lounge-sleeper Navajo
did not featurewoodveneer in the
18unge section but had characteristic
Native American decoration in the
colors of the rugs and drapes. The
furniture coverings were genuine Na-
vajo'blankets, yielding an atmosphere a model forthe entire railroad indus-
of genuine Native American and
Southwestern decorative art.
.N6t tobe. overlooked was the
abundance of space for passengers on ing far into the.future of the Santa'Fe. Santa Fe management withdrew per-
this extra-fare train. Designed by
Budd architects at the direction of the SUCCESS BEYOND
railway, the passenger areas were
larger than standard, with a sem-
blance of. privacy even in the open-
section cars. Berths were larger, and
compartments, bedrooms, and draw-
ing rooms were designed for maxi-
mum comfort and convenience. All
this 'attention to detail.was augment-
•• · Additional lightweight cars,.ordered ·•
bg Bledsoe in' 1937 an'd delivered in.
'38, includdd 30 Budd chair-tars that ) twice weekly in eai'ly 1938, accompa-
. introduced air-condition,Ed service to.; nied by. the twice-rveekly, all-coach •
the coach-and-tourist Pullman consist streamliner El Capitan.
'of the economy-class Scout,· This pur-chase also allowed the:introduction.of ception of Amtrak, the "Super':' and .
'ciirs from Budd, plus 45 lightweight,.
sleepers from Pullman, allowed ihe ·:.. though many of the subsequent cars
.Th6 45 sleepers built by Pullman were• . Car &Foundr•.theluxuri, and service
of improved designi based on the ex-
taining new feature• akid more rooin:
Included in this order were new, ··· .
fold-down ·berth, washstand, toilet,
Samuel T. Bledsoe died unexpect-
edly in•·1939. In six dynamic years, he , tions during peak traffic periods such
h-ad presided over the modernizatioh
of Santa Fe's steam locomotives, the
introduction of diesel power, and thecreation of a first-class, high-speed .
passenger service that·would serve as
try. Bledsoe's' foi·esight, coupled rvith
his daring expenditure of scarce De-
pression-era dollars, left a legacy last- but when service began to deteriorate
FONDEST HOPES
Once in service, the streamlined
Super Chief enjoyed a success begond
the designers' or Bledsoe's fondest
hopes. Seldom operated at less than
maximum booking, the train became
a favorite of show-business notables,
in Holl»vood and elsewhere.,.i' ; .; • "• The acquisitiod'of more.El diesels -
(Santa Fe wound up with eight:ElA's
and three E 18's,:all delivered.by April1938) and lightweight cars allowdd ·.expansion of Supdr. Chiefservice.to ·- •
Throughout their'lives until the in- ·
other day, and went daily in 1948. Al-
'dame·from-Pullnlan and American ·
standards first established on the first
Budd train was never compromised
while under Santa Fe operation.
The Sit,per's daily scheduld,As'a
an increase in 'operating costs. forced
change. In January 1958, the Suj,er
and El Cap began operating as a com-
biried consist,·with occasional excep-
as in summer Ahd around wintertime
holidays. The combined train held onuntil.1971·,.when·after 36.years of ,
Super Chief operation Santa'Fe reluc-
tantly gaye up direct operation of pas-
senger trains to.Amtrak.... · ...
The new national passenger. carrier
retainedthd train name Supet Chief,
mission for Aintrak to continue using
the famous title. The Chicago-L.A.
train became the Southwest Linzited,
later modified to Southwest Chief. Al-
though the Super Chiefname disap-
peared from the timetable, it remains
in memory as the shining example of
passenger railroading at the peak of
perfection. 11
& S-. -liwi
28 STREAMLINER PIONEERS I. 9005
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