The 20th Century Limited

By John D'Angelo

Courtesy of the collection of Werner Soelch.

The picture above, beautifully illustrating the New York Central S-1 Niagara 4-8-4 locomotive heading up the 20th Century Limited, is also depicting the last days of that famous train. Diesel Locomotives were already heading up the 20th Century Limited and the beautiful Niagara locomotive was totally replaced a short time later. The 20th Century Limited itself was eliminated in 1967, only five years from when this advertisement was published.

The 20th Century Limited had a run of 65 years before it was removed from the New York Central's active list. And what years they were! Glorious years of statesmen, millionaires and movie stars traveling between Grand Central Station in New York City, LaSalle Street Station in Chicago and South Station in Boston. It's a long story, but also a wonderful story, and it started in 1902 at the start of the 20th century.

Before I get into the locomotives of the 20th Century Limited, I would like to tell you about the stations. The 20th Century Limited connected New York, Chicago and Boston. On the trip from Chicago to New York, at Albany a section of the train was detached and connected to a Boston & Albany locomotive, which took that section to Boston. Grand Central Station was the terminal in New York City, LaSalle Street Station was the terminal in Chicago and South Station was the terminal in Boston.

When I was a child, during WWII, I had the pleasure of riding on the Pennsylvania Railroad's Broadway Limited, and at another time I had the pleasure of riding on the Central's 20th Century Limited. I remember clearly the change-over from steam power to electric power at Harmon, NY, and I also remember the switching activity in Albany when the Century Boston section was attached to the train. My travels on steam trains started when I was four years old and ended when I was eight years old.

I was very fortunate to have worked in Manhattan for a number of years (over 40) and at one point I commuted from Greenwich, Connecticut to Manhattan via the New Haven Railroad to Grand Central Station. After I moved to New York City, I still enjoyed walking through Grand Central Station whenever I passed by.

Google Earth has enabled me to visit the terminal again, and by using the 3D and Street View functions of the program, I can go right up to the doors!


Manhattan Island, Google Earth image.


Grand Central Station, Google Earth 3D image.

Note the MetLife building directly behind the station; it was originally the Pam Am Building. When the Pam Am Building was built, there was intense pressure to tear down the station building, but clearer heads prevailed and the station building was saved.


Google Earth Street View of the entrance at Vanderbilt Avenue and 42nd Street.


Google Earth Street View of the center facade of Grand Central Station.

There is just something so special about the architecture that gives me pleasure from seeing Grand Central Station whenever I look at it. It is one of the things that I miss now that I have moved away from the city.


Google Earth 3D View of the 97th Street tunnel entrance.

Originally the tracks were open, and steam engines ran up from and down to Grand Central Station. Because of complaints about the noise and smoke, the tracks were eventually covered and then electrified. The avenue that was created to run over the tracks is called Park Avenue. At the other ends of the route lay the LaSalle Street Station in Chicago and South Station in Boston. Unfortunately the LaSalle Street terminal building was torn down and a high rise office building is there now, although trains still arrive and leave from the station platforms.


The original terminal building in Chicago.


LaSalle Street Station today, Google Earth 3D View.


South Station in Boston, Google Earth 3D View.

Fortunately, the South Street Station in Boston has also been preserved and has kept its original design.

In order to understand the mystique of the 20th Century Limited, I am including two links for you to enjoy. The first link - “Flight of the Century” - is to a promotional movie made by the New York Central describing the operation of the 20th Century Limited in 1935.

The second link - Turner Classic Movies clip of the dining scene on the 20th Century Limited - is to a scene from the movie North by North West starring Cary Grant and Eva Marie-Saint. The scene is of them having dinner on the train on its way to Chicago. Pay attention to the background scene in the window as the 20th Century travels along the Hudson River heading north.

The 20th Century Limited was a first class, all-Pullman train. The 1935 promotional movie even advertised that all the cars were air conditioned.

In my research I found that the 20th Century Limited started operation in 1902 and at that time motive power was not very powerful. To give the train speed, the consist had to be short. The locomotive at that time, from one old photo I saw, seemed to have been a high speed 4-6-0 steam locomotive and the line's name at the time was the New York Central & Hudson River Railroad. This name was eventually changed to the New York Central.

The motive power changed as the years went by, and I want to thank Richard Leonard for allowing me to use the following photographs from his New York Central Collection. Most of the photos were taken by Richard or his father, the Rev. Dr. Richard D. Leonard. The picture of the 4-6-2 was taken by an unknown person. All of the pictures in Richard's collection come with extensive background information on the locomotives pictured. His website is of true value to anyone researching locomotives.


Courtesy of Richard Leonard.


4-6-2 Pacific. Photograph Courtesy of Richard Leonard.

Following the use of 4-6-0 locomotives, the New York Central & Hudson River Railroad used 4-6-2 Pacific locomotives starting in 1908.


4-6-4 Hudson. Photograph Courtesy of Richard Leonard.

In 1927 the New York Central built the famous 4-6-4 Hudson locomotive, named for the route of the 20th Century Limited. The four-wheeled trailing truck allowed the use of a larger firebox, which increased the power of the Hudson and allowed more cars to hauled. The trailing trucks on this locomotive were actually powered for better performance when pulling out of a station. More cars meant more customers and more profit to the railroad for each trip. The Hudsons were built in J series, J1, J2 and J3. The J3A Hudsons were numbered from 5405-5454.


4-6-4 Dreyfuss Hudson. Photograph Courtesy of Richard Leonard.

The locomotives numbered 5444 to 5454 had the famous Dreyfuss-designed streamlined shrouding. During WWII the shrouding was removed and returned to the steel mill for remaking into military hardware. The Hudsons ran without the streamlining from that point on.

In the 1950s the last steam engine used for first class passenger service was the giant and beautiful S-1 Class 4-8-4 Niagara. Unfortunately the Niagara did not have a long life span because it was quickly replaced by diesel power and downgraded to local train and freight operation before all the Niagaras were scrapped. There are no surviving Niagaras to be found, which is a pity.


4-8-4 Niagara. Photograph Courtesy of Richard Leonard.

The movie North by North West, which was in the theaters in 1959, depicted an EMD E8 diesel locomotive heading up the train, and only nine years later, in 1967, the 20th Century Limited was eliminated.


EMD E8. Photograph Courtesy of Richard Leonard.

As the 20th Century Limited left or came to Grand central Station, it needed to use an electric transfer locomotive in order to drive through the 97th Street tunnel. The line was electrified to Harmon, New york, and it was at Harmon that the change from Electric to steam or diesel power was made. This link will take you to a picture of an T-Motor electric transfer locomotive used by the New York Central. [See also Old Maude: America's first high-speed electric locomotive. - Ed.]

Continued

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Article and screen shots �2010 John D'Angelo. All rights reserved.

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