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Atlantic Coast Line Passenger Service The Postwar Years by Larry Goolsby Hardcov
Atlantic Coast Line Passenger Service The Postwar Years by Larry Goolsby Hard Cover
Copyright 1999 142 pages
Contents
Foreword2
Chapter 1Historical Overview6
Chapter 2Peace and Modernization18
Chapter 3Stability, Then Evolution34
Chapter 4The Final ACL Years46
Chapter 5Postscript: SCL and Amtrak62
Chapter 6Local, Connecting, and Mixed Service76
Chapter 7Special Passenger Train Service98
Chapter 8Consists104
Chapter 9Passenger Locomotives & Equipment110
Chapter 10 Colorful Coast Line136
It will soon be 30 years since Amtrak took over nearly all private passenger rail operations in the United States on May 1, 1971. But memories are still strong of the great fleets of trains fielded by what we now call the "freight railroads." The pre-1971 passenger trains left a broad legacy ranging from railroading's images in popular culture to the shape and scope of trains that Amtrak runs today.
Among the passenger trains included in the transfer to Amtrak were those of the Seaboard Coast Line, a railroad formed by the merger of the Atlantic Coast Line and Seaboard Air Line railroads only four years earlier.
For well over a century the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Company and its predecessors provided freight and passenger rail service between the Northeast and Southeast, and for nearly that long, between the Midwest and Southeast. While its freight trains were the economic lifeblood of the railroad, ACL's passenger trains loomed far larger in popular awareness. For many decades ACL's seasonal Florida Special set the standard for luxurious travel between New York and the increasingly popular resorts of Florida. It led a large fleet of other trains which if not as famous, were heavily used and well liked. ACL's direct, nearly level coastal mainline route from Richmond south through Charleston, Savannah, and Jacksonville gave the company a fast, easy route between the populous Northeast and Florida's vacation attractions. The railroad's fortuitous location and geography, coupled with sound management and strong finances, made ACL's passenger service a natural choice for uncounted travelers up and down the east coast.
In addition to the legendary Special, the railroad fielded an extensive fleet of other well-known through trains. Certainly its streamlined Champions were famous examples of the fast, glamorous, and thoroughly modern trains that captured the public's fancy in midcentury. The Miamian, the Havana Special, and the Vacationer were other noted members of ACL's eastern fleet that provided fast and dignified service to large followings from the early 1900s until well into the streamliner era.
The Atlantic Coast Line also had a significant role in forwarding Florida passenger trains that originated in the Midwest. While ACL's "western" trains, as it called them, played second to the road's eastern lineup in earnings and visibility, the western fleet certainly held its own when it came to service and cachet. The Pennsylvania's South Wind, the Illinois Central's City of Miami, and the many members of the Dixie fleet all completed their southward journey over the Coast Line.
ACL cemented its position as a premier passenger carrier through its creative marketing efforts and strong emphasis on top-quality passenger service. Even after much of the industry turned sour on passengers in the 1950s, this firm company support kept ACL among the best passenger train operators in the business. ACL's positive passenger attitude carried over into successor Seaboard Coast Line, where the merged company retained the best passenger services from both predecessors and operated a fine fleet of mainline trains right up to the advent of Amtrak.
ACL's strong passenger tradition can still be seen in today's Amtrak operations. Despite Amtrak's fluctuating fortunes, its New York-to-Florida service continues as the only long-distance corridor with multiple daily service. The Florida trains operate largely over former ACL trackage south of Richmond, and Amtrak recently began calling its Northeast-to-Florida trains its "Atlantic Coast Service."
Comparing the ACL to its competitors, particularly on the passenger service scale, remains a touchy subject more than three decades after its July 1, 1967, merger with the Seaboard. ACL's only real competition was the Seaboard, which closely paralleled the ACL in routes and passenger services offered. Both railroads had their fiercely loyal patrons and enthusiasts, and either group will bristle at any intimation that its favorite road was somehow secondary. But it is not necessary to claim that one railroad was "better" in some respect or other to acknowledge that the Coast Line unquestionably had a large, successful, and popular fleet of passenger trains with remarkable staying power.
This volume records some of the history and details of those trains and their equipment. It focuses on highlights of the post-World War II era, when ACL's streamliners reached their zenith yet still shared the rails with an extensive fleet of conventional through trains, connecting locals, and even branch-line mixed trains. My hope is that both the historian and the casual enthusiast will gain a greater understanding of this significant chapter of rail passenger transport in the middle decades of the twentieth century.
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