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| {{Short description|American named railroad service}} | |||
| {{italic title}} | {{italic title}} | ||
| {{Infobox rail service | {{Infobox rail service | ||
| | box_width = | | box_width = | ||
| | name = |
| name = ''Overland Limited''<br />''Overland Flyer'' | ||
| * ''Overland Limited'' | |||
| * ''Overland Flyer'' | |||
| }} | |||
| | logo = UP Overland Limited.jpg | | logo = UP Overland Limited.jpg | ||
| | logo_width = 100px | | logo_width = 100px | ||
| Line 11: | Line 9: | ||
| | image_width = 300px | | image_width = 300px | ||
| | caption = The ''Overland Limited'' leaving 16th Street Station, Oakland, in 1906 | | caption = The ''Overland Limited'' leaving 16th Street Station, Oakland, in 1906 | ||
| | type = | | type = ] | ||
| | status = | | status = | ||
| | locale = | | locale = ] | ||
| | predecessor = | | predecessor = | ||
| | first = {{Start date|1887|11|13}} | | first = {{Start date|1887|11|13}} | ||
| Line 19: | Line 17: | ||
| | successor = | | successor = | ||
| | operator = | | operator = | ||
| | formeroperator = |
| formeroperator = <nowiki/> | ||
| * ] | * ] | ||
| * ] | * ] | ||
| * ] | * ] | ||
| *] | * ] | ||
| }} | |||
| | ridership = | | ridership = | ||
| | ridership2 = | | ridership2 = | ||
| | start = | | start = ] | ||
| | stops = | | stops = <nowiki/> | ||
| *27 (westbound) | |||
| ⚫ | | end = | ||
| *28 (eastbound) | |||
| | distance = | |||
| ⚫ | | end = ] | ||
| | journeytime = | |||
| | |
| distance = {{convert|2189|mi|km}} (1954) | ||
| | |
| journeytime = 63 hours | ||
| | |
| frequency = Daily | ||
| | trainnumber = <nowiki/> | |||
| *1 (Chicago - San Francisco) | |||
| *2 (San Francisco - Chicago) | |||
| | line_used = ] | |||
| | class = | | class = | ||
| | access = | | access = | ||
| | seating = | | seating = Reclining seat coaches | ||
| | sleeping = | | sleeping = Observation sleeping car | ||
| | autorack = | | autorack = | ||
| | catering = | | catering = Dining car | ||
| | observation = | | observation = Club lounge car | ||
| | entertainment = | | entertainment = | ||
| | baggage = | | baggage = | ||
| | otherfacilities = | | otherfacilities = <nowiki/> | ||
| *Club Buffet Car | |||
| *Valet and maid service | |||
| *Barber and bath | |||
| | stock = | | stock = | ||
| | gauge = | | gauge = {{track gauge|ussg}} | ||
| | el = | | el = | ||
| | speed = | | speed = 35.8 mph (average) | ||
| | owners = | | owners = | ||
| | routenumber = | | routenumber = | ||
| Line 54: | Line 58: | ||
| | map_state = | | map_state = | ||
| }} | }} | ||
| The '''''Overland Limited''''' |
The '''''Overland Limited''''' (also known at various times as the''' ''Overland Flyer'', ''San Francisco Overland Limited'', ''San Francisco Overland'' '''and often simply as the''' ''Overland''''') was an American named ] which for much of its history was jointly operated by three railroads on the ] between ] and ]. The ] handled the train west of ], the ] between Ogden and ]/], and east of the ] to Chicago it was operated by the ] as well as, for a few years starting in 1955, by the ] (the "Milwaukee Road"). | ||
| The named service on this route began on the UP first as the ''Overland Flyer'' (1887–96) and then ''Overland Limited'', and the SP began its own separate named ''Overland Limited'' train in 1899. The ''Overland'' name disappeared on C&NW's portion of the route on October 30, 1955, from the UP in 1956, and finally ended on the SP's portion as a separate year-round train on July 16, 1962 when that service was consolidated with the ] | |||
| ⚫ | == |
||
| ⚫ | ==History == | ||
| {{see also|Overland Route (Union Pacific Railroad)}} | {{see also|Overland Route (Union Pacific Railroad)}} | ||
| ]The first contiguous transcontinental rail service on ]<ref>∆ . London: Adams, Hamilton & Co. 1877. p. xvi. (Centpacrr.com)g</ref> between the eastern terminus of the Union Pacific on the Missouri River at ]<ref>• (38th Congress, 1st Session SENATE Ex. Doc. No. 27)</ref>/] via ] (])<ref>∆ ''The Picturesque Tourist'' 1877 p. 102. (Centpacrr.com)</ref> and ] (]/CPRR) to the San Francisco Bay at the Oakland Wharf<ref>''Information Concerning the Terminus of the Railroad System of the Pacific Coast''. Oakland, CA: Daily Transcript Book and Job Printing Office. 1871 pp. 1-2, 7-9</ref> was opened over its full length in late 1869.<ref>• ''Union Pacific Railroad vs. United States'' (99 U.S. 402), 1879. ''Acts and Joint Resolutions of Congress, and Decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States Relating to the Union Pacific, Central Pacific, and Western Pacific Railroads.'' WASHINGTON, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. 1897 pp. 116-137</ref> At that time just one daily passenger express train (and one slower ]) ran in each direction taking 102 hours to cover that 1,912 miles of the just completed ] route.<ref>Klink, William L. . University of Illinois, College of Commerce and Business Administration. 1918. p. 19</ref><ref>∆ , June, 1870 pp. 215-16. (Centpacrr.com)</ref> The first class fare between Council Bluffs/Omaha and Sacramento (the end of the Central Pacific Railroad proper) was $131.50. The additional fares on connecting trains east of Omaha/Council Bluffs on other lines were $20.00 to St. Louis, $22.00 to Chicago, $42.00 to New York, and $45.00 to Boston.<ref>∆ . The Salt Lake ''Daily Telegraph'', May 17, 1869</ref> Round trip first class 30-day excursion fares between Omaha and San Francisco in 1870 ranged from $170 per person for groups of 20 to 24 to $130 for groups of 50 or more plus $14 for each double sleeping berth.<ref>∆ (June 1870) p. x. (Centpacrr.com)</ref> During the decade of the 1870s the schedule was shortened by only 3 hours.<ref>Klink 1918 p. 19</ref> In 1881 the scheduled time for the by then 43 mile shorter trip from Council Bluffs to San Francisco was about 98 hours. The first class fare had dropped to $100 with the combined charges for sleeping car accommodations on the Pullman's (UP) and Silver (CP) Palace Cars totaling $14 for a double berth and $52 for a Drawing Room that slept four.<ref>• (with 11 Engraved Illustrations and the Rand, McNally & Co. "New Map of the American Overland Route"). Chicago: Rand, McNally & Co., February, 1881</ref> | |||
| The Union Pacific introduced the '''''Overland Flyer''''' on the ] on November 13, 1887. It operated as the UP's portion of daily service between Chicago and San Francisco from ], the "point of commencement" (MP 0.0) of the UP established by President Lincoln in 1864 and the principal crossroads of rail traffic west of Lake Michigan at the time, and ].<ref> CPRR.org</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Beebe|1963|p=26}}</ref> Service between Chicago and Council Bluffs/Omaha was provided by the ] with the exception of 1905 to 1907 when it operated east of Council Bluffs over the rails of the ]. At Ogden service interchanged with the ]'s portion of the Pacific Railroad grade, which was then operated under lease by the Southern Pacific,<ref>{{harvnb|Beebe|1963|p=28}}</ref> The ''Overland Flyer'' was one of the first ] passenger trains in the United States. | |||
| ]The first train on the route to include "Overland" in its name was the UP's ''Overland Flyer'' which went into service on November 13, 1887 connecting with the SP's ''Pacific Express'' (westbound) and ''Atlantic Express'' (eastbound) at Ogden. Between Chicago and Council Bluffs connecting service was provided by the Chicago and North Western.<ref>{{harvnb|Beebe|1963|p=28}}</ref> The ''Overland Limited''{{'}}s formal name varied during its long career although it was generally referred to colloquially as the ''Overland'' regardless of whatever other nouns might be attached.<ref>Solomon 2000 p. 74</ref> The Union Pacific introduced the ''Overland Flyer'' on November 13, 1887 and renamed it the ''Overland Limited'' on November 17, 1895.<ref>Beebe 1963 p. 13</ref><ref>∆ New York: National Railway Publication Co. 21st year, No. 8. January, 1889. p. 355. (Centpacrr.com)</ref> On December 5, 1888 the SP joined with the UP to introduce its first deluxe transcontinental service, the weekly ''Golden Gate Special'', between San Francisco/Oakland via Ogden to Council Bluffs where passengers connected with the C&NW's trains 1 and 2 to and from Chicago although that extravagant extra-fare train was dropped after just five months.<ref>∆ January, 1889. p. 328. (Centpacrr.com)</ref><ref>"The Golden Gate Special to be discontinued after the 12th of May", The Sacramento ''Daily Union'', Volume 61, Number 56, April 29, 1889, p. 1</ref><ref> Union Pacific Railway, Passenger Department (1888)</ref> The cost for travel between San Francisco and Council Bluffs on this train was $60 for the First Class passage and $40 in extra fare for sleeping accommodations and meals in the dining car.<ref>∆ , UP 8-panel folding brochure, December, 1888. (Centpacrr.com)</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | ]The name had its roots in the West. In 1868, |
||
| ⚫ | ]The name ''Overland'' had its roots in the West. In 1868, the chronicler of the ], ], had founded a monthly literary magazine based in San Francisco named the '']'' while previously various ] companies such as the '']'' had incorporated "Overland" into their names.<ref>{{harvnb|Beebe|1963|p=27}}</ref> The ''Overland'' was the subject of an early train documentary film short in 1901.<ref> and , however cf. John Huntley ''Railways in the cinema'' 1969 p.89 "THE SHORT FILM In addition to films like "Darlington Centenary" and "Night Mail" (see pages 47 and 52) the railways of the world have inspired countless documentary, instructional, factual, poetic, compilation and amateur films. ...Union Pacific Overland Limited (Edison, 1902)"</ref> For a period of a few years in the early Twentieth Century beginning in 1905, the ''Overland'' used the Milwaukee Road between Chicago and Council Bluffs. ] contends that a possible reason for this the Union Pacific always intended to coerce better performance from the Chicago and North Western, and in fact a section of the ''Overland'' continued to use the C&NW during the period.<ref>{{harvnb|Beebe|1963|p=31}}</ref> (The C&NW would retain its close partnership with the UP between Chicago and Council Bluffs/Omaha for its various through ''Overland'' and ''City'' trains for another half century until the Milwaukee Road finally took over all that service on October 30, 1955.<ref>. ''The Milwaukee Road Magazine'', Vol. 43, No. 7. October, 1955. pp. 4-6</ref>) | ||
| Between 1905–1907 the ''The Overland'' used the Milwaukee Road between Chicago and Council Bluffs. ] wrote that the Union Pacific intended this as a temporary measure to coerce better performance from the Chicago and North Western, and a section of ''The Overland'' continued to use the C&NW during the period.<ref>{{harvnb|Beebe|1963|p=31}}</ref> | |||
| ] (San Francisco), c. 1890.]] | |||
| The introduction of the originally thrice monthly dieselized streamliner '']'' in 1936 (later increased to ten times a month in 1941 and daily in 1947) began to reduce the daily ''Overland'' to secondary status.<ref>{{harvnb|Beebe|1963|p=50}}</ref> In 1955 ''The Overland'' became an Omaha-Oakland train, with no named Chicago connection, and after summer 1956 it was coach-only east of Ogden/Green River—no sleepers, no diner, and no name other than being listed as TR#27 westbound and TR#28 eastbound. In 1960 even that remnant ceased running between Ogden and Laramie. After almost seven decades of continuous operation, ''The Overland'' officially came to an end as a daily train on July 16, 1962, when the Interstate Commerce Commission approved termination of the service with the ''City of San Francisco'' handling what through traffic remained. While the train continued to run until Labor Day (with some additional holiday runs from Christmas to the New Year), what had been ''The Overland'' (TR27/28) did not appear in the schedules of the UP or SP again after its last run on January 2, 1963.<ref>Cooper 2010, p. 45</ref><ref>Signor (1985) p. 213</ref><ref name="Beebe 1963 51">{{harvnb|Beebe|1963|p=51}}</ref><ref name="fb19640308" /> The SP declined to revive the train in 1964 amid some controversy.<ref name="dij19640722" /> | |||
| For the next decade the ''Overland's'' connection at Ogden to and from San Francisco was with the eastbound ''Atlantic Express'' and westbound ''Pacific Express'' until October 15, 1899 when the SP inaugurated its own new ''Overland Limited'' (TR1&2) which became the UP's identically named Ogden to Omaha/Council Bluffs train providing 71-hour through service. The SP described its new first class train as "An Elegant Solid Vestibuled Train of Composite Car, with library, Smoking Parlor, Buffet, etc. Luxurious Double Drawing-room Sleeping Cars, Dining Car. The Fastest Overland service in the history of transcontinental railroading."<ref>∆ The San Francisco ''Call'', November, 1899. (Centpacrr.com)</ref> On January 1, 1913 the ''Overland Limited'' became an extra-fare ($10) train when it further cut its running time from 68 to 64 hours and added amenities such as a barber, manicurist, stenographer, bath, etc.<ref>∆ The ''Straits Times'', November 19, 1912, p. 9. (Centpacrr.com)</ref> Known variously as both the ''Overland Limited'' and ''San Francisco Overland Limited'' for the next 32 years, on May 31, 1931 the service again became the ''San Francisco Overland Limited'' when its train numbers changed from "1 and 2" to "27 and 28", and on July 10, 1947 the designation "Limited" was dropped from the name altogether.<ref name="Signor 1985 p. 276"/> | |||
| ] | |||
| ==Schedule== | |||
| ]In February, 1901 the ''Overland'' took 74 hours and 15 minutes from Chicago to San Francisco,{{fact|date=February 2015}} and by 1920 this was down to 72 hours each way, leaving San Francisco eastbound at 9AM and Chicago westbound at 7:10PM.{{fact|date=February 2015}} By the summer of 1922, travel time was down by another four hours to about 68 with a one-way fare of $103.47 including the ] charge for a lower berth.{{fact|date=February 2015}} In November, 1926 the ''Overland'' dropped to 63 hours each way charging $10 extra fare for the full trip.In June, 1929 the ''Overland'' run dropped to 58 hours each way leaving San Francisco daily at 9:40PM and Chicago at 11:50AM.{{fact|date=February 2015}} In 1931 the ''Overland'' was combined with a slower train and its schedule was around 60 hours with no extra fare until 1946.{{fact|date=February 2015}} That June it dropped to 49 hr 20 min westward leaving Chicago 3PM, and 48 hr 30 min eastward departing San Francisco at 11:30AM.{{fact|date=February 2015}} | |||
| == |
==Demise== | ||
| ] | |||
| The introduction of the then five-times-a-month dieselized streamliner '']'' in 1936 began the relegation of the ''Overland'' to secondary status on the Overland Route.<ref>{{harvnb|Beebe|1963|p=50}}</ref> By January, 1955 the train carried only two Chicago–Oakland through cars and ceased operation on the C&NW altogether on October 30, 1955.<ref>''The Milwaukee Road Magazine'', October, 1955, pp. 4-6</ref> While the UP the dropped any ''Overland'' designation from its service in 1956, the SP held out for another six years retaining the name ''San Francisco Overland'' for trains 27 and 28 between San Francisco and Ogden until that last vestige of the line's original 1899 ''Overland Limited'' as a separate named train providing year-round daily service<ref>∆ , May, 1962, 94th year, No. 12, p. 658. (Centpacrr.com)</ref> ended on July 16, 1962.<ref name="Signor 1985 p. 276">Signor 1985 p. 276</ref><ref>Beebe 1963 p. 51</ref><ref>Solomon 2001 p. 71</ref> On that date the ] recent order (Docket #21946) approving of its discontinuation and consolidation with the ''City of San Francisco'' went into effect and new ''Overland Route'' schedules were instituted.<ref>ICC Financial Docket No. 21946 (Filed February 5, 1962, decided July 6, 1962, served July 16, 1962)</ref><ref>∆ ), July 16, 1962. (Centpacrr.com)</ref> The ''Overland'' continued only as titular seasonal summer and holiday service consolidated with the ''City of San Francisco'' except when run as an occasional second ] if heavy seasonal traffic warranted until January 2, 1964 after which the ''Overland'' name disappeared forever from the route.<ref>∆ , October 28, 1962, p. 6, Table 17. (Centpacrr.com)</ref><ref>∆ , October, 1962, 95th year, No. 5, p. 654. (Centpacrr.com)</ref> The SP declined to revive the train's name in 1964 amid some controversy.<ref name="dij19640722" /><ref>{{Dead link|date=October 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Public Utilities Commission of the State of California, Case #7955 (Filed July 21, 1964), Decision #70568 and Order, April 12, 1966</ref> | |||
| ]The name “Overland” was not formally adopted for any part of the Council Bluffs/Omaha to Ogden portion of the original CPRR/UPRR built ] until almost two decades after it had opened in 1869 when the UP inaugurated service of its ''Overland Flyer'' on November 13, 1887 to Ogden where passengers and through cars interchanged with the Southern Pacific which had acquired the CPRR’s operations on that line to San Francisco in 1885 under a 99-year lease. For the first dozen years that the SP met the UP’s ''Overland'' trains, however, it dubbed its service ''The Ogden Gateway Route'' with its connecting westbound trains operating as ''The Pacific Express'' and eastbound trains as the ''The Atlantic Express'' before finally adopting the name ''Overland Limited'' on October 15, 1899 for its portion of the run as well. The UP changed its designation to the ''Overland Limited'' on November 17, 1895, and service continued as a daily train under one form or another of the "Overland" name for almost seven decades. Other names used for the service over time also included the ''San Francisco Overland Limited'', ''S.F. Overland Limited'', and the ''San Francisco Overland''. The UP and SP officially dropped "Limited" from the name in July, 1947 when enough dieselized streamline train sets had been built to provide that level of premium daily service on the Overland Route by ''The City of San Francisco''.<ref name="fb19640308" /><ref>Cooper 2010, p. 44</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Welsh|2008|p=31}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Solomon|2000|p=74}}</ref> | |||
| ] | |||
| == Equipment == | == Equipment == | ||
| ] | ]] | ||
| With the ] raging, the previously all-Pullman ''Overland'' began to carry chair cars in 1931, a service which lasted through much of the rest of that decade.<ref name="Signor 1985 p. 276"/> In 1941–42 the ] Company built two groups (60 "6-6-4" and 18 "4-1-4") of streamlined light-weight sleeping cars for the UP (54), SP (13) and C&NW (11) and three groups totaling 70 similar style head-end and chair cars for the UP for use on all their trains servicing their ''Overland Routes'' to the west coast from Los Angeles to Seattle.<ref>Wayner 1972 pp. 156-7</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Welsh|2008|p=85}}</ref> | |||
| In 1941–42 the train was re-equipped with lightweight streamlined cars built by ].<ref>{{harvnb|Welsh|2008|p=85}}</ref> In March 1952, toward the end of its existence as a through train, the ''San Francisco Overland'' carried Chicago–San Francisco sleepers, a New York–San Francisco sleeper conveyed on alternating days by the ]'s '']'' and the ]'s '']'', and a summer-only sleeper for ] conveyed to the '']'' at ].<ref>{{harvnb|Maiken|1989|p=339}}</ref> | |||
| To meet the 366% increase by mid-1943 from pre-war levels in WWII related military and civilian passenger traffic,<ref>Holtgren, Thor ''Our Economy at War, Paper No. 15'', February, 1944. New York: National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc., Table 7, p. 17</ref> the consists on the again all-Pullman ''San Francisco Overland Limited'' ballooned to as many as 20 cars with service that also often ran in multiple daily sections.<ref>{{harvnb|Beebe|1963|p=138}}</ref><ref>∆ September 15, 1945. (Centpacrr.com)</ref> Chair car service returned to the ''Overland'' in 1946 and the consist became all lightweight streamlined cars by 1951. A dome-lounge car was also added by the SP on the train west of Ogden by 1955.<ref> #14 (June 2, 1946); #15 (February 1, 1955)</ref><ref>Solomon 2007 p. 67</ref> In March 1952, toward the end of its existence as an independent through train, the ''San Francisco Overland'' carried Chicago–San Francisco sleepers, a New York–San Francisco sleeper conveyed on alternating days by the ]'s '']'' and the ]'s ''Pennsylvania Limited'', and a summer-only sleeper for ] conveyed to the ''Idahoan'' at ].<ref>{{harvnb|Maiken|1989|p=339}}</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | The Southern Pacific introduced a "Hamburger Grill" car between Oakland and Ogden on October 24, 1954. The SP |
||
| ⚫ | The Southern Pacific introduced a "Hamburger Grill" car between Oakland and Ogden on October 24, 1954. The SP said the burgers were among "the finest meat products of Southern Pacific territory", whether or not this was true isn't really known."<ref name="nsj19541024" /> ] was unimpressed, noting the car, and the coffee-shop car which replaced it, as part of the decline of the train.<ref>{{harvnb|Beebe|1963|p=51}}</ref> | ||
| ==Route diagrams== | |||
| ⚫ | ]]] | ||
| ==In popular culture== | |||
| Under the name '''''Overland Flyer''''' this is the train robbed by the outlaw gang in the film '']'', as well as in real life by the gang of the actual outlaw ], forming the events on which the film is based. On screen, the train was represented by ] equipment from the ], including a ]. | |||
| ==See also== | ==See also== | ||
| ⚫ | ] | ||
| * '']'' of the ] | * '']'' of the ] | ||
| * ] on the Union Pacific Railroad | * ] on the Union Pacific Railroad | ||
| ==Notes== | ==Notes== | ||
| {{reflist|refs= | {{reflist|22em|refs= | ||
| <ref name="dij19640722">{{cite news|title=Railroad Dispute |url= |
<ref name="dij19640722">{{cite news|title=Railroad Dispute |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/940578/1964_san_francisco_overland/|newspaper=Daily Independent Journal|date=July 22, 1964|page=2|via = ]|access-date = August 30, 2014 }} {{Open access}}</ref> | ||
| <ref name=" |
<ref name="nsj19541024">{{cite news|title=S.P. Glorifying Hamburger With New-Style Car |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/940524/overland_hamburger_grill/|newspaper=]|date=October 24, 1954|page=9|via = ]|access-date = August 30, 2014 }} {{Open access}}</ref> | ||
| <ref name="nsj19541024">{{cite news|title=S.P. Glorifying Hamburger With New-Style Car |url=http://www.newspapers.com/clip/940524/overland_hamburger_grill/|newspaper=]|date=October 24, 1954|page=9|via = ]|accessdate = August 30, 2014 }} {{Open access}}</ref> | |||
| }} | }} | ||
| ==References== | ==References== | ||
| {{commons category|Overland Route (Union Pacific Railroad)}} | {{commons category|Overland Route (Union Pacific Railroad)}} | ||
| ⚫ | * {{cite book|last = Beebe|first = Lucius Morris|author-link =Lucius Beebe|title = The Overland Limited|url = https://archive.org/details/overlandlimited00beeb|url-access = registration|publisher = Howell-North Books|year = 1963|isbn = 0831070382}} | ||
| * Cooper, Bruce C. (Ed) (2010) ''The Classic Western American Railroad Routes''. New York: Chartwell Books, Inc. ISBN 978-0-7858-2573-9 | |||
| ⚫ | * {{Maiken-Night Trains}} | ||
| ⚫ | * {{cite book|last = Beebe|first = Lucius Morris| |
||
| ⚫ | * Signor, John (1985) ''DONNER PASS Southern Pacific's Sierra Crossing''. San Marino, CA: Golden West Books | ||
| ⚫ | * {{Maiken-Night Trains |
||
| * {{Solomon-UP}} | |||
| ⚫ | * Signor, John (1985) |
||
| * {{Solomon- |
* {{Solomon-SP}} | ||
| * {{Welsh-Pullman |
* {{Welsh-Pullman}} | ||
| * {{Welsh-UP |
* {{Welsh-UP}} | ||
| {{UP Passenger}} | {{UP Passenger}} | ||
| {{SP named trains}} | {{SP named trains}} | ||
| {{CNW named trains}} | |||
| ] | ] | ||
| Line 113: | Line 126: | ||
| ] | ] | ||
| ] | ] | ||
| ] | |||
Latest revision as of 11:11, 21 October 2024
American named railroad service
 | |
 The Overland Limited leaving 16th Street Station, Oakland, in 1906 | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Service type | Inter-city rail |
| Locale | Western United States |
| First service | November 13, 1887 (1887-11-13) |
| Last service | 1963 (1963) |
| Former operator(s) | |
| Route | |
| Termini | Chicago, Illinois San Francisco, California |
| Stops |
|
| Distance travelled | 2,189 miles (3,523 km) (1954) |
| Average journey time | 63 hours |
| Service frequency | Daily |
| Train number(s) |
|
| Line(s) used | Overland Route |
| On-board services | |
| Seating arrangements | Reclining seat coaches |
| Sleeping arrangements | Observation sleeping car |
| Catering facilities | Dining car |
| Observation facilities | Club lounge car |
| Other facilities |
|
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) |
| Operating speed | 35.8 mph (average) |
The Overland Limited (also known at various times as the Overland Flyer, San Francisco Overland Limited, San Francisco Overland and often simply as the Overland) was an American named passenger train which for much of its history was jointly operated by three railroads on the Overland Route between San Francisco and Chicago. The Southern Pacific Railroad handled the train west of Ogden, Utah, the Union Pacific Railroad between Ogden and Omaha, Nebraska/Council Bluffs, Iowa, and east of the Missouri River to Chicago it was operated by the Chicago and North Western Railway as well as, for a few years starting in 1955, by the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (the "Milwaukee Road").
The named service on this route began on the UP first as the Overland Flyer (1887–96) and then Overland Limited, and the SP began its own separate named Overland Limited train in 1899. The Overland name disappeared on C&NW's portion of the route on October 30, 1955, from the UP in 1956, and finally ended on the SP's portion as a separate year-round train on July 16, 1962 when that service was consolidated with the City of San Francisco.
History
See also: Overland Route (Union Pacific Railroad)
The first contiguous transcontinental rail service on "The Great American Over-land Route" between the eastern terminus of the Union Pacific on the Missouri River at Council Bluffs, Iowa/Omaha, Nebraska via Ogden, Utah (CPRR) and Sacramento (WPRR/CPRR) to the San Francisco Bay at the Oakland Wharf was opened over its full length in late 1869. At that time just one daily passenger express train (and one slower mixed train) ran in each direction taking 102 hours to cover that 1,912 miles of the just completed Pacific Railroad route. The first class fare between Council Bluffs/Omaha and Sacramento (the end of the Central Pacific Railroad proper) was $131.50. The additional fares on connecting trains east of Omaha/Council Bluffs on other lines were $20.00 to St. Louis, $22.00 to Chicago, $42.00 to New York, and $45.00 to Boston. Round trip first class 30-day excursion fares between Omaha and San Francisco in 1870 ranged from $170 per person for groups of 20 to 24 to $130 for groups of 50 or more plus $14 for each double sleeping berth. During the decade of the 1870s the schedule was shortened by only 3 hours. In 1881 the scheduled time for the by then 43 mile shorter trip from Council Bluffs to San Francisco was about 98 hours. The first class fare had dropped to $100 with the combined charges for sleeping car accommodations on the Pullman's (UP) and Silver (CP) Palace Cars totaling $14 for a double berth and $52 for a Drawing Room that slept four.
The first train on the route to include "Overland" in its name was the UP's Overland Flyer which went into service on November 13, 1887 connecting with the SP's Pacific Express (westbound) and Atlantic Express (eastbound) at Ogden. Between Chicago and Council Bluffs connecting service was provided by the Chicago and North Western. The Overland Limited's formal name varied during its long career although it was generally referred to colloquially as the Overland regardless of whatever other nouns might be attached. The Union Pacific introduced the Overland Flyer on November 13, 1887 and renamed it the Overland Limited on November 17, 1895. On December 5, 1888 the SP joined with the UP to introduce its first deluxe transcontinental service, the weekly Golden Gate Special, between San Francisco/Oakland via Ogden to Council Bluffs where passengers connected with the C&NW's trains 1 and 2 to and from Chicago although that extravagant extra-fare train was dropped after just five months. The cost for travel between San Francisco and Council Bluffs on this train was $60 for the First Class passage and $40 in extra fare for sleeping accommodations and meals in the dining car.
The name Overland had its roots in the West. In 1868, the chronicler of the California Gold Rush, Bret Harte, had founded a monthly literary magazine based in San Francisco named the Overland Monthly while previously various stagecoach companies such as the Butterfield Overland Mail had incorporated "Overland" into their names. The Overland was the subject of an early train documentary film short in 1901. For a period of a few years in the early Twentieth Century beginning in 1905, the Overland used the Milwaukee Road between Chicago and Council Bluffs. Lucius Beebe contends that a possible reason for this the Union Pacific always intended to coerce better performance from the Chicago and North Western, and in fact a section of the Overland continued to use the C&NW during the period. (The C&NW would retain its close partnership with the UP between Chicago and Council Bluffs/Omaha for its various through Overland and City trains for another half century until the Milwaukee Road finally took over all that service on October 30, 1955.)
For the next decade the Overland's connection at Ogden to and from San Francisco was with the eastbound Atlantic Express and westbound Pacific Express until October 15, 1899 when the SP inaugurated its own new Overland Limited (TR1&2) which became the UP's identically named Ogden to Omaha/Council Bluffs train providing 71-hour through service. The SP described its new first class train as "An Elegant Solid Vestibuled Train of Composite Car, with library, Smoking Parlor, Buffet, etc. Luxurious Double Drawing-room Sleeping Cars, Dining Car. The Fastest Overland service in the history of transcontinental railroading." On January 1, 1913 the Overland Limited became an extra-fare ($10) train when it further cut its running time from 68 to 64 hours and added amenities such as a barber, manicurist, stenographer, bath, etc. Known variously as both the Overland Limited and San Francisco Overland Limited for the next 32 years, on May 31, 1931 the service again became the San Francisco Overland Limited when its train numbers changed from "1 and 2" to "27 and 28", and on July 10, 1947 the designation "Limited" was dropped from the name altogether.
Demise
The introduction of the then five-times-a-month dieselized streamliner City of San Francisco in 1936 began the relegation of the Overland to secondary status on the Overland Route. By January, 1955 the train carried only two Chicago–Oakland through cars and ceased operation on the C&NW altogether on October 30, 1955. While the UP the dropped any Overland designation from its service in 1956, the SP held out for another six years retaining the name San Francisco Overland for trains 27 and 28 between San Francisco and Ogden until that last vestige of the line's original 1899 Overland Limited as a separate named train providing year-round daily service ended on July 16, 1962. On that date the ICC's recent order (Docket #21946) approving of its discontinuation and consolidation with the City of San Francisco went into effect and new Overland Route schedules were instituted. The Overland continued only as titular seasonal summer and holiday service consolidated with the City of San Francisco except when run as an occasional second section if heavy seasonal traffic warranted until January 2, 1964 after which the Overland name disappeared forever from the route. The SP declined to revive the train's name in 1964 amid some controversy.
Equipment
With the Depression raging, the previously all-Pullman Overland began to carry chair cars in 1931, a service which lasted through much of the rest of that decade. In 1941–42 the Pullman-Standard Company built two groups (60 "6-6-4" and 18 "4-1-4") of streamlined light-weight sleeping cars for the UP (54), SP (13) and C&NW (11) and three groups totaling 70 similar style head-end and chair cars for the UP for use on all their trains servicing their Overland Routes to the west coast from Los Angeles to Seattle.
To meet the 366% increase by mid-1943 from pre-war levels in WWII related military and civilian passenger traffic, the consists on the again all-Pullman San Francisco Overland Limited ballooned to as many as 20 cars with service that also often ran in multiple daily sections. Chair car service returned to the Overland in 1946 and the consist became all lightweight streamlined cars by 1951. A dome-lounge car was also added by the SP on the train west of Ogden by 1955. In March 1952, toward the end of its existence as an independent through train, the San Francisco Overland carried Chicago–San Francisco sleepers, a New York–San Francisco sleeper conveyed on alternating days by the New York Central Railroad's Wolverine and the Pennsylvania Railroad's Pennsylvania Limited, and a summer-only sleeper for Yellowstone Park conveyed to the Idahoan at Green River, Wyoming.
The Southern Pacific introduced a "Hamburger Grill" car between Oakland and Ogden on October 24, 1954. The SP said the burgers were among "the finest meat products of Southern Pacific territory", whether or not this was true isn't really known." Lucius Beebe was unimpressed, noting the car, and the coffee-shop car which replaced it, as part of the decline of the train.
Route diagrams
In popular culture
Under the name Overland Flyer this is the train robbed by the outlaw gang in the film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, as well as in real life by the gang of the actual outlaw Butch Cassidy, forming the events on which the film is based. On screen, the train was represented by narrow gauge equipment from the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad, including a K-28 class locomotive.
See also
- Overland Limited of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
- Passenger train service on the Union Pacific Railroad
Notes
- ∆ The Picturesque Tourist, A Handy Guide Round The World. London: Adams, Hamilton & Co. 1877. p. xvi. (Centpacrr.com)g
- • Executive Order of Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, Fixing the Point of Commencement of the Pacific Railroad at Council Bluffs, Iowa. dated March 7, 1864. (38th Congress, 1st Session SENATE Ex. Doc. No. 27)
- ∆ Map of UP/CP connection at Ogden, U.T. The Picturesque Tourist 1877 p. 102. (Centpacrr.com)
- Information Concerning the Terminus of the Railroad System of the Pacific Coast. Oakland, CA: Daily Transcript Book and Job Printing Office. 1871 pp. 1-2, 7-9
- • "The Official Date of Completion of the Transcontinental Railroad under the Provisions of the Pacific Railroad Act of 1862, et seq., as Established by the Supreme Court of the United States to be November 6, 1869" Union Pacific Railroad vs. United States (99 U.S. 402), 1879. Acts and Joint Resolutions of Congress, and Decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States Relating to the Union Pacific, Central Pacific, and Western Pacific Railroads. WASHINGTON, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. 1897 pp. 116-137
- Klink, William L. "Modern Passenger Schedules and Their Development" (in Railway Transportation). University of Illinois, College of Commerce and Business Administration. 1918. p. 19
- ∆ Travellers' Official Guide of Railways and Steam Navigation Lines in the United States and Canada, June, 1870 pp. 215-16. (Centpacrr.com)
- ∆ Central Pacific Railroad & Union Pacific Railroad display advertisements. The Salt Lake Daily Telegraph, May 17, 1869
- ∆ Travellers' Official Guide (June 1870) p. x. (Centpacrr.com)
- Klink 1918 p. 19
- • Union & Central Pacific Railroad Line Timetable, Schedule of Fares, Connections, Information for Travelers (with 11 Engraved Illustrations and the Rand, McNally & Co. "New Map of the American Overland Route"). Chicago: Rand, McNally & Co., February, 1881
- Beebe 1963, p. 28
- Solomon 2000 p. 74
- Beebe 1963 p. 13
- ∆ THE OFFICIAL GUIDE of the RAILWAY and STEAM NAVIGATION LINES of the UNITED STATES and CANADA New York: National Railway Publication Co. 21st year, No. 8. January, 1889. p. 355. (Centpacrr.com)
- ∆ THE OFFICIAL GUIDE January, 1889. p. 328. (Centpacrr.com)
- "The Golden Gate Special to be discontinued after the 12th of May", The Sacramento Daily Union, Volume 61, Number 56, April 29, 1889, p. 1
- "The Finest Train in the World: The Golden Gate Special." Union Pacific Railway, Passenger Department (1888)
- ∆ "The Golden Gate Special", UP 8-panel folding brochure, December, 1888. (Centpacrr.com)
- Beebe 1963, p. 27
- IMDB has "1901" and another short 1901, however cf. John Huntley Railways in the cinema 1969 p.89 "THE SHORT FILM In addition to films like "Darlington Centenary" and "Night Mail" (see pages 47 and 52) the railways of the world have inspired countless documentary, instructional, factual, poetic, compilation and amateur films. ...Union Pacific Overland Limited (Edison, 1902)"
- Beebe 1963, p. 31
- "Now ... Service to all the West". The Milwaukee Road Magazine, Vol. 43, No. 7. October, 1955. pp. 4-6
- ∆ SP Overland Limited Advertisement The San Francisco Call, November, 1899. (Centpacrr.com)
- ∆ "SOUTHERN PACIFIC. Company to Run A New De Luxe Train." The Straits Times, November 19, 1912, p. 9. (Centpacrr.com)
- ^ Signor 1985 p. 276
- Beebe 1963, p. 50
- The Milwaukee Road Magazine, October, 1955, pp. 4-6
- ∆ THE OFFICIAL GUIDE of RAILWAYS of the UNITED STATES, May, 1962, 94th year, No. 12, p. 658. (Centpacrr.com)
- Beebe 1963 p. 51
- Solomon 2001 p. 71
- ICC Financial Docket No. 21946 (Filed February 5, 1962, decided July 6, 1962, served July 16, 1962)
- ∆ Southern Pacific Overland Route Time Tables (Form 4), July 16, 1962. (Centpacrr.com)
- ∆ Southern Pacific Passenger Train Schedules, October 28, 1962, p. 6, Table 17. (Centpacrr.com)
- ∆ THE OFFICIAL GUIDE of RAILWAYS of the UNITED STATES, October, 1962, 95th year, No. 5, p. 654. (Centpacrr.com)
- "Railroad Dispute". Daily Independent Journal. July 22, 1964. p. 2. Retrieved August 30, 2014 – via Newspapers.com.
- "In the Matter of the Unauthorized Discontinuance by SOUTHERN PACIFIC COMPANY of passenger Trains Nos. 27 and 28, the "Overland" Public Utilities Commission of the State of California, Case #7955 (Filed July 21, 1964), Decision #70568 and Order, April 12, 1966
- Wayner 1972 pp. 156-7
- Welsh 2008, p. 85
- Holtgren, Thor "Railway Traffic Expansion and Use of Resources in World Wat II" Our Economy at War, Paper No. 15, February, 1944. New York: National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc., Table 7, p. 17
- Beebe 1963, p. 138
- ∆ San Francisco Overland Limited Consists September 15, 1945. (Centpacrr.com)
- "Southern Pacific Equipment Registers" #14 (June 2, 1946); #15 (February 1, 1955)
- Solomon 2007 p. 67
- Maiken 1989, p. 339
- "S.P. Glorifying Hamburger With New-Style Car". Nevada State Journal. October 24, 1954. p. 9. Retrieved August 30, 2014 – via Newspapers.com.
- Beebe 1963, p. 51
References
- Beebe, Lucius Morris (1963). The Overland Limited. Howell-North Books. ISBN 0831070382.
- Maiken, Peter T. (1989). Night Trains: The Pullman System in the Golden Years of American Rail Travel. Chicago: Lakme Press. ISBN 0-9621-480-0-8. OCLC 20461978.
- Signor, John (1985) DONNER PASS Southern Pacific's Sierra Crossing. San Marino, CA: Golden West Books
- Solomon, Brian (2000). Union Pacific Railroad. Osceola, Wisconsin: MBI. ISBN 0-7603-0756-3.
- Solomon, Brian (2007). Southern Pacific Railroad. St. Paul, MN: Voyageur Press. ISBN 978-0-7603-2931-3. OCLC 145431795.
- Welsh, Joe; Bill Howes (2004). Travel by Pullman: a century of service. Saint Paul, MN: MBI. ISBN 0760318573. OCLC 56634363.
- Welsh, Joe (2008). Union Pacific's Streamliners. Minneapolis, Minnesota: Voyageur Press. ISBN 978-0-7603-2534-6.
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| Overland Route | ||
- Named passenger trains of the United States
- Passenger trains of the Chicago and North Western Railway
- Passenger trains of the Milwaukee Road
- Passenger trains of the Southern Pacific Transportation Company
- Passenger trains of the Union Pacific Railroad
- Railway services discontinued in 1963
- Railway services introduced in 1887