Olympian Hiawatha

The Olympian Hiawatha was the luxury train of the U.S. railway company Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (short: Milwaukee Road), who drove 1947-1961 from Chicago to Seattle / Tacoma ( Washington State ) to the north-west coast of the Pacific. He distinguished himself particularly by its Brooks Stevens -designed pulpit cars and in 1952 introduced the Observation Car " Super Domes ".

Appearance

In its relatively short operating time of the train had four different finishes. The first was probably the most complicated, the orange car bodies were in the passenger area brown ribbon windows with a narrow trim. In the car ends of the trim strip waved from over by under the windows. This paint was very expensive and was replaced after only one year. The roofs were gray, the bodies orange, the bands of windows throughout brown and also below the roof was a narrow strip, wearing the gold-colored lettering "The Milwaukee Road ". The early fifties, the schema has been simplified even further, the roofs were now black, the upper narrow trim fell off and the lettering was now brown with an orange background. With the acquisition of through trains of the Union Pacific between Chicago and Omaha, the Milwaukee introduced the yellow- gray color scheme of the UP, and turned this also depends on the Hiawatha cars. This scheme they wore until the end of passenger transport.

The train was bred originally from a triple unit streamlined diesel locomotives from Fairbanks - Morse, called the Erie -built. However, these locomotives were detailed in the Chicago area and the Twin Cities, as there was a strike of coal workers. They did not return. The trains were Henceforth drawn from the standard passenger locomotives on electrified sections of electric locomotives.

Special figurehead of the train was the combined sleep Salon lookout sweeper car, called " Skytop ": There were unique car whose entire semi-circular end was glazed and thus a very good view of the countryside enabled, which ran through the train. Such cars were used only in the Milwaukee Road, otherwise with any other railway company in the United States. The partly oval window or the doors and the chrome emblem on end and be Zuganfang circular porthole window ( the diesel ) made ​​the train is a rare event.

In 1952, the " Milwaukee Road " an innovation, which had previously exist when no train in the United States: a wagon whose transparent pulpit extended over the entire car length and thus 60 to 70 passengers served as observation car. These so-called " Super Dome" cars were six axes and the heaviest streamliner cars ever built. On the lower floor there was also a cocktail lounge. Unique were the combined " Touralux " - Schlaf-/Sitzwagen that were reserved for women and children - a special feature of the Olympian Hiawatha. However, this combined interior was not very successful; the Touralux wagons were rebuilt after a short time either to each whole sleeper seat or car.

The Olympian Hiawatha was an immediate success with the public, and he quickly became one of the most famous luxury long-distance passenger trains in the United States. Connoisseurs call the train as original Streamlinerzug the United States, because in comparison to other trains, he had an unusual and exotic appearance.

Use

The Olympian Hiawatha sailed under this name for the first time on 29 June 1947, was not continued after 1961 in this form. Previously, the best train of the " Milwaukee Road " of the " Olympian " was, which consisted of six-axis heavy cars and was pulled by steam locomotives. 1947, the new streamlined cars were purchased, which had four axles and air-conditioned. By 1949, however, the Olympian Hiawatha drove with the old six-axle sleeper car (except the Touralux sleeping car ), because Pullman, the maker of sleeping and observation car, was first utilized with other orders. 1952 purchased the Milwaukee Road as the first railway company in North America, so-called full-dome cars, so observation car, where stretched the viewing platform over the whole car length. When these so-called Super Domes been delivered, the Olympian Hiawatha was complete. One of the six cars derailed in 1953 on a test drive in Montana and burned by contact with the overhead line from. From parts of the old car, a new car was then built.

From 1953 to about 1957, the train was in its heyday. The train went through one of the most beautiful American landscapes: first from Chicago through the Mississippi River Valley to St. Paul and then on the prairies of South Dakota, North Dakota and Montana. In western Montana, the most spectacular section began: the crossing of the Rocky Mountains, a highlight of the trip, which the " Milwaukee Road " as so important einschätzte that they laid the roadmap that this part of the journey was always utilized during the day, not at night.

After passing through several mountain ranges in the train finally came over Idaho in the state of Washington, where a passage of the semi-desert joined the overcoming of forested Cascade Mountains. After a long tunnel, the train finally reached the Pacific and ended his trip in Seattle. From there he drove back to Tacoma, because there was no turning opportunities in Seattle. They told the Olympian Hiawatha after, to use the best and most varied distance from all moving to the northwest trains.

Setting

However, these all reasons were not convincing ultimately. The Olympian Hiawatha was in strong competition with the " North Coast Limited" of the Northern Pacific Railway and the " Empire Builder " of the Great Northern Railway. Their trains offered at least as much comfort and luxury were also even faster on their way from Chicago to Seattle as the Olympian Hiawatha. In addition, they had more than the Olympian Hiawatha Observation Car, and the "Super Dome" whole- roof dome car also had problems with the air conditioning, which made it unbearable especially in the summer from heat, to sit in the glassed-in viewing platform. Finally, there was the " Milwaukee Road " in greater financial difficulties than their competition Railway Lines " Northern Pacific " and " Great Northern ". But the last blow to the train flight and automobile traffic, which had been increasing since the late 1950s in the U.S., so that had to suffer the traditional long-haul transcontinental luxury trains strong trait and decreased passenger numbers drastically.

Normally, the train consisted of up to 15 cars, but it was 1959 already shrunk to only 9 passenger coaches and also had no observation car. Thus, the Olympian Hiawatha drove on May 22, 1961, the last time under that name. A day later, the use of the " successor ", train number 15 and 16, between Minneapolis and Deer Lodge began. This train route was to Aberdeen ( South Dakota) reduced in 1964 and completely set in 1969.

After setting the majority of rolling stock was delivered to the jointly operated by the Milwaukee Road and the Union Pacific trains. The six Skytop pulpit cars and six of the Superdome were henceforth used in these trains. In 1964 she was sold to the Canadian National Railway, where they came primarily for use between Montreal and Halifax, but also in the Super Continental from Toronto to Vancouver. The pulpit cars were put on the routes Gaspé -Montreal and Jasper -Prince Rupert in September 1971 after the last missions out of service. For fire safety reasons ( no door at the end of the car and only one access ) they found in Canada no longer use; two specimens have been scrapped, returned the other four in the United States. The Super Dome came over the CN nor Via Rail. Today they are - if still operational - used by tourists and excursion trains.

1971-1979 operating Amtrak 's North Coast Hiawatha, a three times a week, trains running express train, which of the Northern Pacific Railway used between Chicago and the Twin Cities the tracks of the Milwaukee Road and west. The name was a blend of the North Coast Limited of the Northern Pacific and the Olympian Hiawatha.

Lack of maintenance and electrical equipment was out of business considerations set to 1974. Any bankruptcy weakened, put the Milwaukee Road in 1980 their " Puget Sound Extension" and thus most of the former railway line still. Parts of the track were converted into the scenic sections in bicycle lanes. In the Bitterroot Mountains emerged as the " Route of the Hiawatha Trail " and on Snoqualmie Pass in Washington State, the " Iron Horse State Park ".

Train composition

Here is a typical string of vehicles from the year 1953:

Diesel 3 Series unit and FM Erie electric locomotive "Little Joe" ( the electric locomotives were used on the electrified two mountain ranges ) with 15 cars: 1 mail car # 1208; 2nd baggage car # 1336; 3 Luggage sleeping car # 1309 (for the train crew ); 4 seat car # 480; 5 seat car # 481; 6 seat car # 482; 7 Snack -Bar-Lounge Car " Tip Top Grill" # 164; 8 dining car # 122; 9 Toralux sleeper "Mount St. Helens "; 10 Toralux sleeper "Mount Tacoma "; 11 sleeper " Lake Coeur d' Alene "; 12 sleeper " Lake Pend Oreille "; 13 double bunk sleeper " Yellowstone River"; 14 All-roof dome car with cocktail lounge " Superdome " # 53; 15 " Skytop " -Schlaf-/Salon-/Aussichts-Schlußwagen " Gold Creek ".