City of Mexico

[benjamintickell53]

THE CITY OF MEXICO (Originally posted July 4, 2009 to the MPHS forum then maintained by Elvin Klepzig)

The first trip of the fabled City of Mexico, weekly deluxe service between St. Louis and Mexico City, departed St. Louis Union Station at 530pm Sunday July 4, 1937. The train operated on an expedited schedule of 47 hours 30 minutes from endpoint to endpoint. This once-weekly service returned from Mexico City on Thursday, arriving back in St. Louis 11:35am Saturday. Service was over 5 hours faster than the Sunshine Special’s through Pullman service to Mexico City.

Regular equipment included two 12 section-drawing room Pullmans, two 8 section – 2 compartment – 1 drawing room Pullmans, and one 6 compartment – 3 drawing room Pullman. A Missouri Pacific dining car and a “sunroom lounge car” with radio, soda fountain, shower bath and other features completed the consist. The on board crew was reportedly fluent in both English and Spanish.

As explained in MP advertising, “Establishment of this new, De Luxe train is made necessary by the demands of thousands of Mexico visitors for a fast, luxurious service between St. Louis and the Mexico capital. This new service is in addition to the regular daily through service provided by the Sunshine Special.”

At least initially, this weekly tourist special was operated as a passenger extra, no train numbers appearing in the initial public timetable issue of June 27. The City of Mexico and train #1 (Texas-Mexico section of Sunshine Special) both departed St. Louis at 5:30pm. The City was operated nonstop (except for crew change and water) to Little Rock, while the Sunshine had a regular stop at Tower Grove and a conditional stop at Broadway, with intermediate stops at Bismark, Poplar Bluff and Newport before reaching Little Rock 30 minutes behind the City.

By the time of the March 10, 1940 timetable, the all Pullman consist of the City of Mexico had been expanded(Pullman loading numbers also shown).

Spanish lounge observation car (showers, valet, fountain bar, lounge, radio)
6 cpt-3DR M-501
8 sec-1DR-2cpt M-502
8 sec-1DR-2cpt M-503
12 sec-1DR M-504
12 sec-1DR M-505
13 sec Tourist (N.A.C.) M-601
12 sec-1DR M-515 (Memphis-Mexico City, #201/226 Memphis-LRK)
Missouri Pacific dining car

The March 10, 1940 timetable shows the City of Mexico and Sunshine both still departing St. Louis at 5:30pm on Sunday afternoon, with the City arriving in Mexico City 7pm Tuesday evening and the Sunshine through cars arriving 7:35am Wednesday morning.

The April 28, 1940 timetable carried the notation “During the Summer of 1940, sections of the Sunshine Special will be operated in lieu of the City of Mexico to comply with popular demand for morning arrival in Mexico City”. A similar notation for fall/winter appeared through the December 15, 1940 timetable; later issues made no mention of the City of Mexico.

Was this Missouri Pacific’s only all-Pullman train?

Bill Pollard

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St Louis-Mexico City service restored in 1962

On April 8, 1962, a through St. Louis-Mexico City Pullman service was started, replacing the prior San Antonio-Mexico City Pullman service. A number of MP and NdeM sleepers were used on this assignment, and NdeM sleepers were frequently seen in the Texas Eagle consists to St. Louis. The NdeM cars were operated by the Pullman Company, but were noteworthy inside the cars because all of the standard “Pullman” signs (Quiet, Dining Car in Opposite Direction, Have you Forgotten any Personal Property?) were in Spanish.

Among the MP cars operating on this line in August 1965 were Canyon River, Elk River, Roaring River and Crystal River. NdeM cars included Finlandia, Hungria, Islandia, Polonia, and Rumania. All cars were of 10-roomette, 6-double bedroom configuration.

The operation of this sleeping car line ended with the demise of Pullman Company operations, with last sleepers crossing the border on December 31, 1968. The last San Antonio-Nuevo Laredo coaches crossed the border on January 15, 1969. Thereafter, according to MP passenger department circular, “passengers will make their own arrangements for crossing the border between Missouri Pacific’s Laredo, TX passenger station, the highway bridge (where customs and immigration inspections will be performed) and the National Railways of Mexico Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, passenger station.”

Bill Pollard

[Reed Hartford]

Bill, it’s interesting, and somewhat puzzling, that the Mopac initiated the St. Louis-Mexico City sleeping car in 1962, an era time when the railroads, including the MoP, were turning negative regarding passenger service. It was about the time, I believe, that the MoP discontinued the Texas Eagle through sleeping car arrangements at St. Louis with the Eastern railroads PRR & B&O (with the possible exception of the Slumbercoach interchanged with the latter road). Perhaps there was a brisk market to and from Mexico that they tapped.

As a sidelight on this — I grew up in Ohio, where my high school (1960’s) Spanish teacher, an older widow, would periodically travel to Mexico during summer vacations utilizing the Eagle sleeping car, using the Pennsy to and from St. Louis. Of course I was insanely jealous.

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