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63-576: The General Pershing Zephyr was the ninth of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad 's Zephyr streamliners , and the last built as an integrated streamliner rather than a train hauled by an EMD E-unit diesel locomotive . It was constructed in 1939 with bodywork and passenger cars by Budd Company and diesel engine , electric transmission , power truck , and other locomotive equipment by General Motors Electro-Motive Corporation . Because its intended Kansas City to St Louis route passed near

126-471: A central role in bringing air brakes to freight service. The railroad had one of the first hump classification yards at its Cicero Avenue Yard in Chicago, allowing an operator in a tower to line switches remotely and allowing around-the-clock classification. The company also tested the twin cylinder car . Alton Railroad Main lines included Chicago to St. Louis and a branch to Kansas City. The former

189-579: A final freight train on the Leadville-Climax branch in Colorado. On July 1, 1965, Harry Murphy retired from his position as president of the CB&;Q (he remained on the railroad as a director until October), and former Frisco Railway president Louis W. Menk took over as president and CEO. During his presidency, Louis Menk explored ways to reduce costs for the CB&Q's passenger operations and to reshape

252-460: A light, powerful diesel engine that could stand the rigors of continuous, unattended daily service. The experiences of developing these engines can be summed up shortly by General Motors Research vice-president Charles Kettering : "I do not recall any trouble with the dip stick." Ralph Budd, accused of gambling on diesel power, chirped that "I knew that the GM people were going to see the program through to

315-466: A massive 6,000-pound flywheel), and it had issues with overheating (even with the best metals of the day, its cylinder heads and liners would warp and melt in a matter of minutes), so it was therefore deemed impractical. Diesel engines of that era were obese, stationary monsters and were best suited for low-speed, continuous operation. It was not reliable for a railroad locomotive; there was no diesel engine suitable for that purpose then. Always innovating,

378-487: A part of Chicago-St. Louis train consists until May 1, 1971, with the takeover of passenger service by Amtrak . In 1932 the Alton was the first Chicago-St. Louis Railroad to install air conditioning on its passenger trains. First entry of C&A passenger trains from Joliet into Chicago was over the Chicago & Rock Island to that railroad's depot (later La Salle Street Station ). Briefly, passenger trains were moved over to

441-463: A second set was added, the 9903, which had previously served as the Mark Twain Zephyr running between Burlington, Iowa and St Louis via Samuel Clemens ' birthplace of Hannibal, Missouri . The Ozark State service inaugurated operating out of Kansas City in the morning and St Louis in the afternoon, with the second trainset alternating. The new equipment took over the original schedule, while

504-710: A subsequent public outcry and protest over the program's cancellation, the No. 4960 locomotive pulled the railroad's final excursion train on July 17. The railroad operated a number of streamlined passenger trains known as the Zephyrs which were one of the most famous and largest fleets of streamliners in the United States. The Burlington Zephyr , the first American diesel -electric powered streamlined passenger train, made its noted "dawn-to-dusk" run from Denver, Colorado , to Chicago, Illinois , on May 26, 1934. On November 11, 1934,

567-736: Is now part of Union Pacific , with Metra Heritage Corridor commuter rail service north of Joliet (owned by the Canadian National Railway but used by UP). Today, the Kansas City line is part of the CPKC system. The earliest ancestor to the Alton Railroad was the Alton and Sangamon Railroad, chartered February 27, 1847, in Illinois to connect the Mississippi River town of Alton to

630-692: The Delmonico , named for the famous New York restaurant, was built by Pullman in the Aurora, Illinois , shops of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy . The car first appeared in regular service over the C&;A's Chicago-St. Louis mainline. Two other Pullman diners built at the same time, the Tremont , and the Southern , were leased, providing dining car service on all three principal C&A Chicago-St. Louis trains. Dining cars were

693-616: The Galena and Chicago Union Railroad would bypass their towns in favor of West Chicago on its route; at the time, that was the only line running west from Chicago. The Aurora Branch was built from Aurora, through Batavia, to Turner Junction in what is now West Chicago. The line was built with old strap rail and minimal, if any, grading. Using a leased locomotive and cars, the Aurora Branch ran passenger and freight trains from Aurora to Chicago via its own line from Aurora to Turner Junction and one of

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756-552: The General Pershing Zephyr to operate on tracks owned by the Alton Railroad , officially making them an operating partner. To symbolize this joint administration, the General Pershing Zephyr often sported an "Alton Burlington" nose herald instead of the standard "Burlington Route" seen on most Burlington locomotives. The diner-lounge-observation car Silver Star was sold to Amax Iron Ore Corporation in 1974 for use on

819-769: The Mississippi River at both Burlington and Quincy, giving the railroad through connections with the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad (B&MR) in Iowa and the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad (H&StJ) in Missouri. In 1860 the H&;SJ carried the mail to the Pony Express upon reaching the Missouri River at St. Joseph, Missouri . In 1862 The first Railway Post Office was inaugurated on

882-784: The Mount Newman railway in Western Australia and renamed Sundowner . It was used for many years as passenger accommodation on the fortnightly supply train to the mines. It was also used for VIP and inspection trains. Having last been used in 2003, it was sent to Perth for rebuilding as the nucleus of the Silver Star Cafe in Port Hedland . [REDACTED] Media related to General Pershing Zephyr at Wikimedia Commons Chicago, Burlington %26 Quincy Railroad The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad ( reporting mark CBQ )

945-619: The Trailways Transportation System , and still provides intercity service to this day as Burlington Trailways . 1940 was the final year the CB&Q added steam locomotives to their roster, having completed construction on their O-5A class locomotives at the West Burlington, Iowa shops. With their freight traffic weighing 31 million tons that year, the CB&Q saw no further necessity for any more steam or diesel locomotives to be added to their roster. In 1942, following

1008-641: The Twin Cities , the Burlington Route formed a natural connection between Hill's home town (and headquarters) of St. Paul, Minnesota , and the railroad hub of Chicago. Moreover, Hill was willing to meet Perkins' $ 200-a-share asking price for the Burlington's stock. By 1900, Hill's Great Northern, in conjunction with the Northern Pacific Railway , held nearly 100 percent of Burlington's stock. By 1899,

1071-420: The U.S. Supreme Court . The only major strike in the line's history came in 1888, the Burlington railway strike of 1888 . Unlike most strikes, which were based on unskilled workers, this one was based on the highly skilled well-paid engineers and firemen, a challenge to management prerogatives. A settlement would have been much cheaper, but President Perkins was determined to assert ownership rights and destroy

1134-640: The Burlington Railroad must be included into a powerful transcontinental system. Though the railroad stretched as far west as Denver and Billings, Montana , it had failed to reach the Pacific Coast during the 1880s and 1890s, when construction was less expensive. Though approached by E. H. Harriman of the Union Pacific Railroad , Perkins felt his railroad was a more natural fit with James J. Hill 's Great Northern Railway . With its river line to

1197-624: The Burlington Route was able to enter the trade markets in 1862. From that year to date, the railroad and its successors have paid dividends continuously, and never run into debt or defaulted on a loan—the only Class I U.S. railroad for which this is true. After extensive trackwork was planned, the Aurora Branch changed its name to the Chicago and Aurora Railroad in June 1852, and to Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railroad in 1856, and shortly reached its two other namesake cities, Burlington, Iowa , and Quincy, Illinois . In 1868 CB&Q completed bridges over

1260-665: The Burlington by GN and NP, expansion continued. In 1908, the CB&Q purchased both the Colorado and Southern Railway and the Fort Worth and Denver Railway , giving it access south to Dallas and the Gulf of Mexico ports in Houston and Galveston . It also extended its reach south in the Mississippi Valley region by opening up a new line from Concord, Illinois , south to Paducah, Kentucky . It

1323-661: The Burlington included: The California Zephyr is still operated daily by Amtrak as trains Five (westbound) and Six (eastbound). Another Amtrak train, the Illinois Zephyr , is a modern descendant of the Kansas City Zephyr and the American Royal Zephyr services. Multiple locomotives from the Burlington have been preserved, including two Zephyr power units, thirty-five steam locomotives , and thirty-four diesel locomotives . Originally, 5632 (O-5B 4-8-4)

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1386-544: The CB&Q created a subsidiary, the Burlington Transportation Company , to operate intercity buses in tandem with its railway network. On January 1, 1932, the CB&Q received a new president; former Great Northern Railroad president Ralph Budd . By which time, the CB&Q was facing a decline in passenger ridership from the Depression, and U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was exploring ways to help

1449-749: The CB&Q merged with the Great Northern, Northern Pacific, and the Spokane, Portland and Seattle (SP&S) railroads on March 2, 1970, to form the Burlington Northern Railroad (BN), with Louis Menk serving as the company's first president and CEO (twenty-six years later, the BN and Santa Fe Railroads merged to become the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway (BNSF)). Most passenger operations would be assumed in 1971 by Amtrak . Beginning in

1512-741: The CB&Q's commercial passenger operations was completed on September 26, 1952, when the last of the 4-6-2 locomotives that operated for the Chicago-Aurora suburban service were retired; the remaining steam locomotives on the CB&Q were primarily reassigned as freight haulers and yard switchers. The first division on the CB&Q to be fully dieselized was the Casper Division in Wyoming, where EMD GP7 road switchers were delivered in 1951. In 1955, regular performance on class 3 overhauls on steam locomotives were discontinued, and Harry C. Murphy opted for

1575-408: The CB&Q's new steam excursion program, only two of which remained operational by 1961: 2-8-2 No. 4960 and 4-8-4 No. 5632. In 1962, the CB&Q's passenger department began sponsoring the excursion runs by offering ticket discounts to paying customers, and the Burlington began to host several school trains for school students. In 1964, steam excursion operations on the railroad had dwindled, in

1638-505: The CB&Q, completed in 1922. Burlington's rapid expansion after the American Civil War was based upon sound financial management, dominated by John Murray Forbes of Boston and assisted by Charles Elliott Perkins . Perkins was a powerful administrator who eventually forged a system out of previously loosely held affiliates, virtually tripling Burlington's size during his presidency from 1881 to 1901. Ultimately, Perkins believed

1701-546: The Colorado Springs section of the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad Rocky Mountain Rocket , though the latter had a carbody and E-3/ E-6 styling by EMD . The "Silver Charger" was the last power unit built by Budd with the unique "Zephyr"/"Flying Yankee" shovelnose styling. It also carried sleeping cars. The train was number 32 when eastbound and number 33 when traveling west. The train ran its assigned route until

1764-475: The G&;CU's two tracks east from there to Chicago. The G&CU required the Aurora Branch to turn over 70 percent of their revenue per ton-mile handled on that railroad; as a result, in the mid-1850s, surveys were ordered to determine the best route for a railroad line to Chicago. The line from Aurora to Chicago was built through the fledgling towns of Naperville , Lisle , Downers Grove , Hinsdale , Berwyn , and

1827-457: The H&StJ to sort mail on the trains way across Missouri. The B&MR continued building west into Nebraska as a separate company, the Burlington & Missouri River Rail Road , founded in 1869. During the summer of 1870 it reached Lincoln , the newly designated capital of Nebraska and by 1872 it reached Kearney, Nebraska . That same year the B&;MR across Iowa was absorbed by the CB&Q. By

1890-590: The Illinois Central depot. On December 28, 1863, the leased J&C and Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne and Chicago Railway came to an agreement where the J&;C would use the PFW&;C's terminal at Madison Street , later becoming a tenant of Union Station, which opened in 1881. In 1924, with the completion of a new Union Station between Adams and Jackson streets, C&A became a tenant and its successors used Union Station until

1953-562: The United States entered World War II , during which time the trainset ran on many different routes. As 9908 Silver Charger could be detached from its trainset, it continued in service hauling other trains after the rest of the streamlined trainset was withdrawn. In this form it lasted in service until 1966, following which it was donated to the National Museum of Transportation in St Louis. Traveling between Kansas City and St Louis required

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2016-461: The United States' entrance into World War II , the railroad's freight traffic increased to 49 million tons, with Ralph Budd (now named President Roosevelt's federal transportation commissioner) poised to ensure his company would help the war effort. In 1943, the War Production Board authorized EMC (now reincorporated as EMD) to construct sixteen FT locomotives for delivery to the CB&Q

2079-403: The alternate timing was renamed the Mark Twain Zephyr (despite not operating through Hannibal). Unlike previous Zephyrs , the General Pershing Zephyr was completely non-articulated; each car was self-contained and joined to the next by couplers , rather than shared trucks. The inflexibility of the articulated layout had been recognised; it was hard to lengthen, shorten, or replace parts of

2142-496: The birthplace and boyhood home of famous World War I General John J. Pershing , the train was named after him. The power car was named Silver Charger , after Pershing's horse Charger , while the passenger cars were named after United States Army badges of rank— Silver Leaf , Silver Eagle , and Silver Star . The train replaced the Ozark State Zephyr , which had been inaugurated three years earlier. In September, 1938,

2205-615: The company had rostered 1,205 locomotives, 936 passenger cars and 40,720 freight cars. In 1901, a rebuffed Harriman tried to gain an indirect influence over the Burlington by launching a stock raid on the Northern Pacific. Though Hill managed to fend off this attack on his nascent system, it led to the creation of the Northern Securities Company , and later, the Northern Securities Co. v. United States ruling by

2268-507: The following year, by which time, the road's freight traffic peaked 57 million tons. After World War II ended, the CB&Q began ordering additional diesel locomotives from EMD, as part of a $ 140-million program to dieselize their roster. August 31, 1949, was Ralph Budd's final day as president of the railroad before he would retire during that year's Chicago Railroad Fair , and Harry C. Murphy succeeded him in September. Dieselisation of

2331-643: The former Burlington-Rock Island Railroad ). In 1970, it merged with the Northern Pacific Railway and the Great Northern Railway to form the Burlington Northern Railroad . The earliest predecessor of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy, the Aurora Branch Railroad , was chartered by act of the Illinois General Assembly on October 2, 1848. The charter was obtained by citizens of Aurora and Batavia, Illinois , who were concerned that

2394-534: The last commercial steam assignment for the railroad at Herrin Junction on January 27, 1959 (the only major U.S. railroads to operate revenue steam after this date were Union Pacific, Illinois Central , Nickel Plate Road , Norfolk and Western , Grand Trunk Western , Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range , and Lake Superior and Ishpeming ). CB&Q subsidiary Colorado and Southern eventually ended their commercial steam operations on October 11, 1962, when 2-8-0 No. 641 pulled

2457-476: The midwest and mountain states, the railroad used the advertising slogans "Everywhere West", "Way of the Zephyrs ", and "The Way West". In 1967, it reported 19,565 million net ton-miles of revenue freight and 723 million passenger miles; corresponding totals for C&S were 1,100 and 10 and for FW&D were 1,466 and 13. At the end of the year, CB&Q operated 8,538 route-miles, C&S operated 708, and FW&D operated 1,362 (these totals may or may not include

2520-471: The pair used in the contemporary EMC E3 . It had one Martin Blomberg -designed E-unit A1A passenger truck at the front, with powered outer axles and a center idler axle, and an unpowered trailing truck, giving it the unusual wheel arrangement of A1A-2. This made it mechanically half of an E3. The back half of the power car was a baggage area. This made it similar to special power-baggage units built by EMD for

2583-490: The peak of operations in the 1920s the shops employed 2,000 people. In 1925 Chicago and Alton carried 2,143 million revenue ton-miles of freight and 202 million revenue passenger-miles on (at year-end) 1,056 miles of road and 1,863 miles of track. Same numbers for 1944 were 2596, 483, 959 and 1717. By 1950, all of the Alton's steam locomotives were replaced by diesel locomotives. Springfield-Kansas City and Godfrey-Roodhouse The first sleeping car designed by George Pullman

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2646-465: The rail industry improve. Ralph Budd subsequently asked for a streamlined stainless-steel train to be built, and this resulted in the railroad introducing the famous Zephyrs . As early as 1897, the railroad invested in alternatives to steam power, namely, internal-combustion engines. The railroad's shops in Aurora had built a three-horsepower distillate motor in that year, but it was not reliable (requiring

2709-497: The railroad purchased "doodlebug" gas-electric combine cars from Electro-Motive Corporation (EMC) and built their own, sending them out to do the jobs of a steam locomotive and a single car. After the positive results the doodlebug cars created, and after having purchased and used three General Electric steeple-cab switchers powered by distillate engines, Ralph Budd requested the Winton Engine Company to design and construct

2772-566: The railroad's remaining steam fleet to use up their previously-restored mileage throughout the next year. By which time, the majority of the Burlington's steam fleet were relegated to operate east of Lincoln, Nebraska, with only two steam locomotives held for back-up service west of Lincoln. The final division on the CB&Q to be fully dieselized was the Beardstown Division in Southern Illinois, where 2-8-2 locomotive No. 4997 worked

2835-407: The road's freight operations. Passenger service was markedly reduced, as people had shifted to using private automobiles for transportation. In late 1966, Louis Menk became president of the Northern Pacific, leaving William John Quinn in charge of the CB&Q. As the financial situation of American railroading continued to decline throughout the 1960s, forcing restructuring across the country,

2898-558: The state capital at Springfield in Sangamon County . The line was finished in 1852 with the first locomotive trip from Alton to Springfield on September 9, 1852. The Chicago and Mississippi Railroad extended to Bloomington in 1854 and Joliet in 1855. Initially trains ran over the completed Chicago and Rock Island Railroad to Chicago. The Joliet and Chicago Railroad was chartered February 15, 1855, and opened in 1856, continuing north and northeast from Joliet to downtown Chicago. It

2961-490: The summer of 1955, the CB&Q hosted a series of occasional steam excursion trains per request of railfan clubs, such as the Illinois Railroad Club. Harry C. Murphy was a steam fan who recognized the popularity in steam locomotives, and he authorized additional steam excursion trains to take place on the railroad throughout the late 1950s and early 1960s. Twenty-one steam locomotives of varying classes took part in

3024-908: The system grew. By the early 1900s, the shops at Aurora served the Chicago Division, the shops in Galesburg, Illinois served the Galesburg Division, the shops in Hannibal, Missouri served the St. Louis Division, the shops in West Burlington, Iowa and in Creston, Iowa served the Iowa Division, and the shops in Denver, Colorado served the McCook and Red Cloud Divisions. The latter were the final steam era shops built for

3087-584: The time the Missouri River bridge at Plattsmouth, Nebraska , was completed the B&MR in Nebraska was well on its way to Denver . That same year, the Nebraska B&MR was purchased by the CB&Q, which completed the line to Denver by 1882. Early repair shops for rolling stock were built by the Aurora Branch Railroad in Chicago, but the first true shop site was established at Aurora, Illinois in 1855. These were capable of repairing and building locomotives, freight cars, and passenger cars. Other shop sites were established or inherited from predecessor lines as

3150-486: The train was put into regularly scheduled service between Lincoln, Nebraska , and Kansas City, Missouri . Although the distinctive, articulated stainless steel trains were well known, and the railroad adopted the "Way of the Zephyrs " advertising slogan, they did not attract passengers back to the rails en masse , and the last one was retired from revenue service with the advent of Amtrak . The Zephyr fleet included: Other named passenger trains which operated on

3213-458: The train. The route did not require a high-capacity train nor a powerful locomotive, so the General Pershing Zephyr returned to the pattern of the first Pioneer Zephyr , being a power/baggage car and three trailers. Budd also fitted disc brakes , the first such practical installation to railroad passenger cars. The power car, 9908 Silver Charger , was unique. It utilised a single new EMC 567 V-12 engine developing 1,000 hp, rather than

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3276-404: The union threat. The fight dragged on 10 months before the financially and emotionally exhausted strikers finally gave up, and Perkins declared a total victory. However, he had spent heavily on strikebreakers, lawsuits, and police protection, hurting the balance sheets and putting the railroad in a poor position to face the nationwide depression of the Panic of 1893 . Following the purchase of

3339-421: The very end. Actually, I wasn't taking a gamble at all." The manifestation of this gamble was the eight-cylinder Winton 8-201A engine that powered the Burlington Zephyr (built 1934) on its record-breaking run, and it opened the door for developing the long line of diesel engines that has powered Electro-Motive locomotives for the next seventy years. In 1936, the CB&Q would become one of the founding members of

3402-421: The wake of rising operation and maintenance costs and a loss of experienced steam locomotive mechanics; the only factors that kept the CB&Q's steam program going were public demand and Harry Murphy's passion for steam. In the process of reducing operating costs for the railroad, Harry Murphy's successor, Louis Menk, ordered for the CB&Q's steam excursion program to be shut down by August 1, 1966. Despite

3465-438: The west side of Chicago. It was opened in 1864, and passenger and freight service began. Regular commuter train service started in 1864 and remains operational to this day, making it the oldest surviving regular passenger service in Chicago. Both the original Chicago line, and to a much lesser extent, the old Aurora Branch right of way, are still in regular use today by the Burlington's present successor BNSF Railway . The company

3528-585: Was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States . Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route , the Burlington , CB&Q , or as the Q , it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado , Illinois , Iowa , Missouri , Nebraska , Wisconsin , Wyoming , and also in Texas through subsidiaries Colorado and Southern Railway , Fort Worth and Denver Railway , and Burlington-Rock Island Railroad . Its primary connections included Chicago , Minneapolis–Saint Paul , St. Louis , Kansas City , and Denver . Because of this extensive trackage in

3591-435: Was built in the C&A's Bloomington shops and introduced on September 1, 1859, on the Chicago-St. Louis route. Sleeping cars were operated over most routes between Chicago, Peoria, Bloomington, St. Louis and Kansas City in principal train consists. Successor Gulf, Mobile & Ohio operated Chicago-St. Louis sleeping car service until December 31, 1969, the last railroad to do so between the two cities. The first dining car ,

3654-434: Was during this period that the Burlington was at its largest, exceeding just over 12,000 route miles in 14 states by the 1920s. With the First World War having the same effect on the railroad as on all other railroads, during the 1920s, the Burlington Route had an increasingly heavy amount of equipment flooding the yards. With the advent of the Great Depression , the CB&Q held a good portion of this for scrap. In 1929,

3717-466: Was leased by the Chicago and Mississippi, providing a continuous railroad from Alton to Chicago. In 1857 the C&M was reorganized as the St. Louis, Alton and Chicago Railroad, and another reorganization on October 10, 1862, produced the Chicago and Alton Railroad. The C&A chartered the Alton and St. Louis Railroad to extend the line to East St. Louis , opened in 1864, giving it a line from Chicago to East St. Louis. The city of Bloomington, Illinois

3780-427: Was never acted upon, and was repealed by an act of February 14, 1855, which instead reorganized the line as the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. The new railroad was formed by the consolidation of the Chicago and Aurora Railroad, the Central Military Tract, the west end of the Peoria & Oquawka, and the Northern Cross Railroad companies. With a steady acquisition of locomotives, cars, equipment, and trackage,

3843-423: Was preserved, but later scrapped. The Burlington was a leader in innovation; among its firsts were use of the printing telegraph (1910), train radio communications (1915), streamlined passenger diesel power (1934) and vista-dome coaches (1945). In 1927, the railroad was one of the first to use Centralized Traffic Control (CTC) and by the end of 1957 had equipped 1,500 miles (2,400 km) of its line. It played

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3906-406: Was renamed Chicago and Aurora Railroad on June 22, 1852, and given expanded powers to extend from Aurora to a point north of LaSalle ; this extension, to Mendota, was completed on October 20, 1853. Another amendment, passed February 28, 1854, authorized the company to build east from Aurora to Chicago via Naperville , and changed its name to Chicago and Southwestern Railroad. The latter provision

3969-491: Was the headquarters and primary repair site beginning in the 1850s. The repair shops for locomotives and rolling stock were located on the west side of the city between Seminary and Chestnut Streets. These were made of wood and burned in 1867. In 1883 the shops were substantially rebuilt on 40 acres of new land with 15 stone buildings. At that time the shops concentrated mainly on car repairs, but in 1905 they were expanded to accommodate major repairs and rebuilding of locomotives. At

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