Any information on this HW passenger car

[peggyrothschild]

Any information on this heavyweight passenger car? Looks to be a car in the 102000 series. At least one was ‘Eagle-Ized’ with thermopane windows and the observation platform remained. [attachment=0:2u3i1apm]001.jpg[/attachment:2u3i1apm]

[benjamintickell53]

This looks similar to the car that was used on 219-220 into the mid-1950s or later. Any idea where the photograph was taken?

[peggyrothschild]

Bill
I wish I knew the location and date. I donated my passenger car diagrams this year to the MPHS or else I’d try and determine the car number(s) from the window arrangement.

Charlie

[kenris]

Bill and Charlie –
The car is 10203 a dining-parlor car.

The note I have on this photo indicates the photo was taken in Omaha in 1956. If that is correct the photo was probably taken near 16th and Nicholas Sts. as hte train is being pulled from the MoPac yards to Union Station via the UP line adjacent to their shops. The puzzling point, though, is that secondary train # 119/110 running opposite the Eagle was a coach-only train with a grill-coach between Omaha and Kansas City. Trains 119/110 did not carry a dining-parlor. So this is either the “Eagle” with a substitute Parlor or 119 with a substitute for the grill-coach. Being it’s a cloudy day without shadows either case may be true. But given the Eagle departed at 8 a.m., my guess is that this is likely train 119.

[peggyrothschild]

Dick
I think we agreed this was a Lou Schmitz photo too.

[benjamintickell53]

In this time period, MP was eager to accommodate larger groups by supplementing the existing food service on “grill coach” trains, so the presence of this car on train 119 could be the result of a group move.

Its a great photo, in any event. A good project for some future Eagle article would be to track the usage of this class of diner-parlor-observation cars on different trains during the time they were used.

Bill Pollard

[mopac]

I am with Bill PoLLard on this. An article and more pictures would be great.

Bill Basden Delta Models

[mopac]

In the early fifties, (1951-1955), I saw a car similar to this on the steam powered 119/120 between Memphis and Little Rock. I have heard it described as a Cafe Lounge car. After 60 years my memory plays tricks on me and I can’t swear the car I saw was painted in Eagle colors. I distinctly remember the observation platform as I wanted desperately to ride back there. I never had the money to buy a ticket.

[benjamintickell53]

The September 2007 issue of the Arkansas Railroader contained an article by the late John Mills on MP parlor car service. (See attachment below.)

John had an encyclopedic memory and this parlor car article came out of a lengthy discussion that he and I had earlier that year on Amtrak’s Capitol Limited en route to or from Washington DC. John was spouting numbers faster than I could write them down, and I really encouraged him to get the information written down where it could be published. Fortunately, he produced this document later that year. The Arkansas Railroader publication is defunct, but I feel certain that John’s son would be happy to approve republication of this article in the Eagle. It could be easily expanded with additional information and car assignments to fill in additional data from other parts of the system.

According to the John Mills article, the usual car on Memphis-Hot Springs trains 219-220 was 10613, with 10612 held in stand-by service. Both cars were indeed in Eagle colors.

Bill Pollard

[attachment=0:1oa8yo9e]parlor-cars-Mills-Ark-RRer-9-2007.pdf[/attachment:1oa8yo9e]

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