Nostalgia & History > The Empire Builder Coming and Going, 1967

The Empire Builder on August 27, 1967 in Lisle, IL.

Enjoy,
Marty Bernard

---

Nice one , Marty. We could have used a bigger size image.  This is not one for the BSB haters, but I like it.

Always liked the super-elevation on the 'race-track' curves. Someone said years ago that the right-of-way and the signal bridges were constructed wide enough for a fourth track but I can't remember why that was or why the fourth track was never built. Do you recall anything about that? Thanks for all your recent posts.

Tom

Informative photos.  I did not realise there were solid consists of BSB on the Builder other than the famous publicity shot which I think was on a Lyman E Cox postcard.  I am discounting the Budd cars in saying that.

Would that second last car be an ex-MKT coach?  I know all of the western Hill Roads bought some of them.  I am not familiar with the conssit location of the Coaches on the EB.

Rick

UP3806 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Always liked the super-elevation on the
> 'race-track' curves. Someone said years ago that
> the right-of-way and the signal bridges were
> constructed wide enough for a fourth track but I
> can't remember why that was or why the fourth
> track was never built. Do you recall anything
> about that? Thanks for all your recent posts.
>
> Tom

Tom, I don't remember anything about a fourth track.  From Downers Grove east to Clyde there are many places where the width of the RoW and structures would be make a fourth track difficult.

Marty

I agree about the ROW east of Downer's Grove but the signal bridges west of DG, as seen in your going-away shot, are definitely wide enough for a fourth track. I believe the reference was in a Trains magazine back in the '60s. I'll have to do some reference work!

Tom

cars on the end TCZ parlors?

rschonfelder Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Informative photos.  I did not realise there were
> solid consists of BSB on the Builder other than
> the famous publicity shot which I think was on a
> Lyman E Cox postcard.  I am discounting the Budd
> cars in saying that.
>
> Would that second last car be an ex-MKT coach?  I
> know all of the western Hill Roads bought some of
> them.  I am not familiar with the conssit
> location of the Coaches on the EB.
>
> Rick

It is kind of an urban legend that the only BSB Empire Builder was the one in the Hedrich-Blessing publicity photos.  I have seen pix of two Seattle sections of the Builder entirely in BSB, but they're not my shots.

If you look closely at the pic you can see the last car is an SP sleeper.  The two others are, of course, a CB&Q dome coach likely operating as the Afternoon Zephyr portion of the train, and a CB&Q sleeper ahead of the SP car.  GN could only muster at best four sleepers for each Builder with enclosed toilets in the bedrooms, and usually only three, so they borrowed a lot of foreign sleepers in the summer.

Needless to say, but I'll say it anyway, awesome shot Mr. Bernard!    BSB 

Nice arrangement Marty, thanks for sharing.

Kent in CArmel Valley

Wow.  Seven coaches with ranch car, including three dome coaches; five sleepers, including a slumber coach, dining car and great dome!

MEKoch Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Wow.  Seven coaches with ranch car, including
> three dome coaches; five sleepers, including a
> slumber coach, dining car and great dome!

And Amtrak made the trains worth traveling again.  That still sticks in my craw.

No slumbercoach in the train. I am not aware that any slumbercoaches were ever used in GN trains.

MEKoch Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Wow.  Seven coaches with ranch car, including
> three dome coaches; five sleepers, including a
> slumber coach, dining car and great dome!

BSB rules-amazing BSB ever came into being with Burlington ready to turning green 

there is a sleeper with staggered windows but it is not a slumbercoach

Burlington Route conductors and brakemen on that train were based out of LaCrosse, WI and Aurora, IL  and worked between Chicago and Lacrosse, WI.   Aurora based engine crews workied between Chicago and Savanna, IL.

Sweet!! I like BSB:)