This page is devoted to the magic and romance of the fabulous Streamlined Trains of the 1930s. The advent of aviation and the graceful shapes of airplanes spread into every aspect of life. Soon, all kinds of objects were streamlined, even those that remained stationary such as toasters, ice crushers, mimeograph machines and the like.

  
Just in Case Your Pencil Was Doing 200 mph
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The owners of railroads were not oblivious to this fact and a period of widespread innovation in the design of trains began. It should be noted that the experimentation never went beyond luxury passenger trains. There is a small technical rationale for this-- the bulky form of the traditional steam locomotive creates a lot of "parasitic drag" (upper left in our examples above.) the end of the train also can create turbulence that affects speed and handling (upper right.) There is a deeper reason that the railroads began to ezxperiment with streamlining: the diesel engine. Most railroads had extensive investment in coal - mines, long term contracts, etc, etc. Diesel powered trains would hit them two ways: (1)they would have to invest massive amounts of money to replace steam engines; and (2) the value of their coal properties would drop considerably. So, you will find that most of these experiments in streamlining were devoted to making steam trains faster - and most important -- attractive to upscale passengers.

We begin this page with the Burlington Zephyr and The Union Pacific M-10000, the diesel powered trains that started the competition. The Zephyr was cheap, fast and dazzled crowds wherever it went. It was even the star of a movie. The M-10000 was the inspiration for science fiction writers the world over.

We'll next move to the experiments in shrouding in which aerodynamic covers were placed over an existing steam engine. The early ones (the Hiawatha look like an inverted bathtub has been placed over the engine. Later versions (The 20th Century Limited and the C&O #490 are exampes of modified shrouding, both applied to the workhorse Hudson locomotive.

As time progressed, strealined locomotives were designed from the ground up, including the Pennsylvania Railroads S-1, GG-1, and T-1 as well as the C&O's M-1. (The GG-1 is an electric locomotive that served for more than 40 years -- the others were beautiful but dismal failures).

Diesel powered trains like The Super Chief became the norm until the end of the passenger train era. Don't look for any of this outside museums -- today's AMTRAK trains are just transportation, not travel.

This Website shows all the streamlined trains of the 1930s and gives more details.

The age of streamlining begins with an experimental gasoline-powered unit called the Pullman Railplane, designed by Stout Engineering Laboratories, Inc. Dearborne, Michigan and built by Pullman-Standard in 1933. The self-propelled car had an aluminum body, 60' in length, and was powered by two Wankesha 160 h.p. gasoline engines, reaching speeds of 90 m.p.h. It was exhibited at the Chicago World's fair 1934 and then leased to the Gulf, Mobile & Northern in 1935 for service between Tylertown and Jackson, Mississippi. The railplane is principally known as a test vehicle although it saw some small commercial service.

The Pullman Railplane

Feeling the effects of the Depression and declining business, America's railroads (in the 1930s) were looking for ways to reinvigorate passenger travel. As Ralph Budd, president of the Chicago Burlington & Quincy, later explained, railroads had to continue running trains on short routs to handle mail and baggage "whether or not anyone rides the trains." After seeing GM's powerful diesel engines, Budd concluded that what the railroads needed was a new kind of train that was fast, convenient, ultramodern and luxurious enough to fire the public imagination. The Union Pacific Railroad also saw the two exhibits and came to similar conclusions. A race was on to see which of the two railroads would be the first to develop an ultramodern diesel passenger train.

With the engine technology of the day, the new trains had to be lightweight. To get the most out of the available power, the trains were streamlined. The Union Pacific selected the University of Michigan to find the best aerodynamic shape while CB&Q turned to M.I.T.. The new designs looked like nothing else that had ridden the rails. They looked more like Buck Rogers's space ship than a train. People were tired of living in the Depression, they were ready for a change and these drastic new body designs, no doubt, capitalized on it.

Both companies turned to General Motors to supply the power plant, but, they selected different car builders. Union Pacific used to the established Pullman Company to build their cars. Like the Railplane, the UP train was constructed out of aluminum. In the other corner, CB&Q looked to a new comer on the railcar scene, Edward G. Budd Manufacturing Company (no relationship to Ralph Budd). Budd had been producing auto-bodies before the Great Depression; however, with business down, they decided diversify and construct a light weight, stainless steel railcar. They finished their first coach in 1932. The stainless steel coach was made possible because the Budd Manufacturing Co. had developed the first successful method of welding stainless steel only a few years earlier. Prior to Budd's innovation, stainless steel was used only for cutlery and surgical instruments. Here is an article from Popular Science that illustrates how these new trains were built.

  
Building the Streamliners With Advanced Technology
From the February 1947 Issue of Popular Science
Read the whole article
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Pullman was able to accelerate the construction of the UP train, however, General Motors was unable to deliver a diesel power plant at an earlier date. So, to win the race against the CB&Q, the Union Pacific decided to use a distillate (gasoline) engine instead. The M10000 was delivered to the UP on February 25, 1934. General Motors was able to complete a diesel electric power plant for CB&Q's later delivery date. CB&Q received the Zephyr in April, 1934. Both trains were actually three car articulated motorcars, but that hardly mattered to the public. The new trains were immensely popular.

My Model of the Zephyr

On our way home from the Reading Air Show, I was very fortunate to find this little lithographed tin train:

The M-10003 Mail Train, "City of Salinas" [or "Little Zip"]
by the Louis H. Marx Toy Company c. 1934-1935

This is a wind-up model of the first "streamliner" ever made, the Union Pacific M-10000 "City of Salinas." This is a very lovely and historic toy that is the brainchild of Louis H. Marx, the man who kept kids happy for generations:

Louis H. Marx
With Santa Claus on the Cover of TIME Magazine, December 12, 1955

This is a nice toy for a child between 6 and 10 because it is virtually indestructible. For a lithographed tin toy, it has a surprising amount of detail and is in approximately the correct proportions as the original. However, as little boys get older than 10, they start to notice that the toy does not have the amount of versimilitude that they would expect, especially if they could go down to the railyard and see the thing "in the flesh" as it were.

Details enough to please the "big boys" from ages 10-75 may be found in a precision die cast "O-Scale" model offered by a German Company (for only $1,000 US), as shown below:

 
"O" Scale Model of the Union Pacific M-10000 from Sunset Models
Is This Enough Detail For You Older Boys?

Formally known as "The City of Salinas", this train quickly became known as "Little Zip" because it could be seen whizzing along at over 100 mph powered by a 600 hp spark ignition power plant (similar to an auto engine, but much bigger...) It represented the pinnacle of aerodynamic design for 1934. As shown in the Marx toy model, this was originally a 3 car train. While on display at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1934 a sleeper Overland Trail was added. All the cars werre permanently attached to each other and gap between the cars was covered by an insulated leather and rubber "diaphragm" -- from inside the train, it appeared to be one long room from the Head Car to the streamlined "Beavertail" -- all of the cars had motors, so there was no "locomotive" -- only a front car where the engineer steered the train.

Both railroads embarked on a massive publicity campaign, sending their trains to newsworthy sites. Here is the M-10000 at the site of Boulder Dam, actually using the construction railway and not the regular commercial right of way. VIPs were carried directly to the site of the dam construction and even into the gigantic penstock tunnels. This was posssible because the train was small and light. Much of the right-of-way covered in this boulder Dam visit is now underwater. The CB&Q Zephyr also traversed this route as it starred in the film "Silver Streak."

The M-10000 "City of Salinas" at Boulder Dam
c. 1934-1935

Both railroads were unsure of what the new trains could do or how reliable they were. After the initial fanfare died down, the high speed trains were put into service on relatively flat, lightly traveled, short distance runs that could easily be completed in a single day. In such a fashion the trains were given the opportunity to prove themselves, but if they were to fail, it would not be a catastrophic disaster. The M10000 was a mild success, but the Zephyr was a huge success. Before the end of 1934, eight major railroads had ordered high speed diesel powered trains.

  

  
Kuhler's Patents for Cars Like the Observation Car of the Hiawatha
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During his lifetime, Kuhler was awarded a large number of patents. Here is his patent D-148,308 that looks a whole lot like the outside of the observation car on the Hiawatha during the 1940s, and his Patent 2,595,858 looks a lot like the inside.

My Model of the Hiawatha

My Model of the Reading Crusader

My Model of the Amazing Dreyfuss Hudson

Raymond Loewy was an influential designer of the 1920s through the 1970s. He may have coined the term "Industrial Design" -- he certainly was successful, because his mark is all over our society today. He even got his picture on the cover of TIME Magazine, surrounded by images of all the wonderful things that he created. Actually, Loewy created the oustide of most of these wonderful things; the inside was created by more plebeian engineers.

THE Industrial Designer

The Roanoke Visitors Center is located in the old N&W passenger station that was re-styled by Raymond Loewy in 1949. Here are some photos:

The Former N&W Passenger Station, Styled by Loewy in 1949


Entrance to the Loewy Gallery


Floorto ceiling Portrait of Mr. Loewy


Informative Exhibits

Loewy must have been a great talker as well -- he began his relationship with the Pennsylvania Railroad designing trash containers for Penn Station. He eventually wound up designing multi-million dollar locomotives. His first foray into streamlining engines came with the K-4. This is strictly a cover put on an existing steam engine. Loewy was awrded patent D106,143 for his effort.

Mr. Loewy's Patent D 106,143


My Model of the K-4 Locomotive

In general, efforts at shrouding produced nenorable images, but went nowhere. A steam locomotive is a complicated mass of valves, rods, gears and wheels, all of which tend to break down or need adjustment regularly. The steam engine also emits a LOT of smoke. The shroud interfered with maintenance and that nice smooth laminar flow (top figure, bottom right) kept the smoke hugging the exterior of the train. Most shrouded locomotives ran with the sheet metal for photo ops but the same glorious exterior was slowly dismantled by the maintenance staff. They never really solved the smoke problem.

Raymond Loewy leads off this section because he was the only "designer" to be involved in ground-up streamlining. Other efforts were done by the engineering staff of the various railroads. First up is the S-1, a beautifl but flawed lady. The PRR S1 class steam locomotive (nicknamed "The Big Engine") was an experimental locomotive that was the largest rigid frame passenger locomotive ever built. In 1937, Pennsylvania Railroad officials decided to build a new passenger locomotive to replace its aging K4s locomotive. In a collaborative effort, the Pennsylvania Railroad, Baldwin Locomotive Works, the Lima Locomotive Works and the American Locomotive Company contributed to the experimental S1 design. The streamlined Art Deco styled shell of the locomotive was designed by Raymond Loewy.

Mr. Loewy's Patent 2,128,490 for the S-1 Locomotive

Mr. Loewy with the S-1 at the World's Fair

The image of the S-1 was featured in calendars and brochures, and it even appeared in an advertisement in LIFE Magazine:

The S1 Engineer Bears a Heavy Responsibility
From the April 14, 1947
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The original intent was to have the S-1 haul the Broadway Limited, the Pennsylvania Railroad's crack New York to Chicago train. Mr. Loewy even designed railcars for the Broadway. The dining car was especially elegant, and made its way into an advertisement in LIFE Magazine:

The Lady Seems Fascinated that the Man is Smoking a Stinky Cheap Cigar...
From the April 14, 1947 Issue
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Read a Brochure Given to Passengers on the Broadway Limited

It was hoped that the locomotive could haul 1,000 tons at 100 miles per hour, but this goal was not reached. There are apocryphal stories of the S1 reaching or exceeding 140 miles per hour, but there is no documentation of this and it is considered unlikely by experts.The locomotive's extreme length (140 feet 2 1/2 inches) limited its usefulness as it was incapable of negotiating curves on most of the PRR track system. Wheel slippage was another problem with the S1. No further S1 models were built and the last run for the S1 was in December 1945 and the engine was scrapped in 1949.

My Model of the S-1 -- also the largest locomotive that Lionel Ever Built

The Pennsylvania Railroad's 52 T1 class duplex-drive 4-4-4-4 steam locomotives, introduced in 1942 (2 prototypes) and 1946 (50 production) were their last-built steam locomotives, and their most controversial. They were ambitious, technologically sophisticated, powerful, fast, and uniquely streamlined by Raymond Loewy.

Mr. Loewy's Patent D 134,260 for the T-1

However, they were also prone to violent wheelslip both when starting and at speed, complicated to maintain, and expensive to run. In 1948, the PRR vowed to place diesel locomotives on all express passenger trains, leaving unanswered whether the T1's flaws were solvable.

The T-1 Locomotive as it rolled out of the yard


My Model of the T-1 Locomotive

My Model of the M-1 Locomotive

  
Another Daylight Postcard and the Observation Car of the Model

The Builder's Plate for the N&W Locomotive 611

  
My Model of the N&W Locomotive 611

I had such a fun time at the Virginia Museum of Transportation crawling all over the 611. Click Here for a slideshow of my photographs of the lovely Number 611

The Pennsylvania Railroad's GG1 class of electric locomotives were built between 1934 to 1943 at the PRR shops in Altoona, Pennsylvania, with a total of 139 units constructed. They remained in service with the PRR's successors until the early 1980s. The GG1 became one of the most recognized and famous classes of locomotive worldwide.

The GG-1 in Tuscan Red, ready to haul the Congressional Limited

The GG1s were large locomotives, 79 ft 6 in (24.23 m) long and weighing 477,000 lb. The double-ended main body was a single unit formed as a bridge-truss framework and clad in welded steel plate. The cabs were set up high about a third of the way along the locomotive from each end for greater crew safety in the event of an accident. A narrower section of nose in front of the cab windows was lowered to improve the view forward, although the central part of the nose remained full height to carry the current-collection pantographs. The bodywork as a whole was smoothly rounded, with an appearance that suggested immense power and speed.

This was mounted upon two great cast steel locomotive frames linked by a hinge at the locomotive's middle which allowed side-to-side movement. Six driving wheels (three axles) were fitted towards the center of the locomotive on each truck (twelve in total) and a four-wheeled, unpowered guiding truck was mounted toward each end. In the Whyte notation for steam locomotives, each frame comprised a 4-6-0 locomotive; in the PRR's classification system, 4-6-0s were class "G". The GG1 consisted of two such locomotive frames mounted back to back, so it was classified GG—4-6-0+0-6-4. This arrangement is called 2-C+C-2 in AAR wheel arrangement notation. Each driven axle was powered by two 385 hp (305 kW) GEA-627-A1 traction motors mounted above and to either side of the axle. Drive was through a reduction gear and a quill drive assembly.

While the famous industrial designer Raymond Loewy did not design the shape of the GG1 electric locomotives, he did improve their looks by recommending the use of a smooth, welded construction instead of riveted assembly, along with a pinstriped paint scheme to highlight their smoothly rounded forms; the "streamline" style, evoking speedy travel, was popular at the time. The real design behind the GG1 came from the New Haven Railroad EP3 electric. The New Haven allowed the PRR to borrow a pair of EP3s for testing, and the PRR was quite impressed with their performance and decided to base the design of its electric locomotive on the EP3. A yet-to-be-restored GG-1 may be seen at close range at the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke, Virginia.

The Unrestored GG1 at the Virginia Museum of Transportation
Dressed up in Mr. Loewy's "Six-Stripe" Design


My Model of the GG1 Locomotive

  
The "Boxcab" Units for Super Chief 1 - Great Colors!

If you'd like to see more on the operation of high speed diesel locomotives, here is an article on the Twin Cities Rocket, the fastest train in the world (in 1951), as reported by Popular Science.

Click the Photo to Read the Article
From the August, 1951 Issue of Popular Science

On August 26, 1999: The United States Postal Service issued 33-cent All Aboard! 20th Century American Trains commemorative stamps featuring five celebrated American passenger trains from the 1930s and 1940s. I am thrilled to have models of the five locomotives pictured on the stamps.

The USPS "All Aboard!" Commemorative Stamps

  
My Model of the Blue Comet with Original Boxes...