Nostalgia & History > Interiors: B&O Observation Car "Washington"

S. Kip Farrington Jr. was known as an eloquent describer of passenger trains in his 1951 book: Railroading the Modern Way. One chapter was about B&O's new Columbian which began service in 1949. Most of the train ran between Washington DC and Chicago, but there were through coaches to Jersey City/New York on the Capitol Limited. The observation cars were "Washington" and "Chicago." Some of my fondest train riding memories are being at the rear of the round-end cars, watching the crossing gates rise after we'd passed.

"Washington" ended up at the B&O Museum, and in 1997 I was fortunate to once again be able to get aboard.

1) The front end of the lounge had a photo-mural of the cherry blossoms. 

2) The buffet was in the middle of the car. 

3) The end of the car was as I remembered, although the upholstery ws quite faded.

Today the car is nearing cosmetic restoration at the museum. I look forward to being aboard it again, in its pristine new state.

I know that it had suffered some of the rust maladies of pullman-standard steel cars, so I doubt it will ever be rstored to Amtrak Standards for operation, but it will be a good memory of the days of delux coach streamliners.

B&O Bill



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/04/24 06:03 by bandob.

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Very enjoyable glimpse into that car.  That pink, double sided, bench lounge settee is an interesting piece of furniture.  Is that original to the car manufacturer's design or was it an addition by the B&O shops later on?  

What was "modern" then and what is "Icky" today is interesting. Life before plastic everything!
Go

Hi B&O Bill:

Thanks for the remembrance of the Club/Observation Car "Washington" and the photos.  I too remember the car well.  I'm so happy that they are cosmetically restoring this beautiful car, depicting the later history of B&O Passenger Trains.  My only complaint about the B&O R.R. Museum, and not the present leaders, is that the other older Club/Observation Car, with so much history, and also the very last one of its' kind has been left in the front yard to collect rust, enough now that it is very possible that water may be getting into the car.  This would be so sad and a real loss to history.  You know what I am speaking about, B&O 3302 "Edward G. Hooper" the very last type of car to run on the famous "Royal Blue" Train.  Although it was not the regular observation on this train, many times when the regular car was in the shops for repairs, the 3302 took its' place.  And the rest of the history of this car is amazing, too long to tell on here once again, as I have written about it before.  I'm only hoping that somehow, some way the new leadership of the museum will realize that this historic car should be saved right now.  Trust me, with holes around the sides of the roof, it cannot survive too much longer before it will have to be sent down to the nearby scrap yard located about a mile from the museum in Baltimore.  This will be a real tragedy, the loss of this part of B&O history.
John in White Marsh, Maryland

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A true beauty!
Bob

"That pink, double sided, bench lounge settee is an interesting piece of furniture.  Is that original to the car manufacturer's design or was it an addition by the B&O shops later on? "  Farrington's Book has a photo of the car interior that shows the piece, so I believe it is original to the car's design.

B&O Bill

where are the ash trays?

Dan, I seem to remember seeing them stored in the North Car Shop. I suspect they will be put back in place when the refurbishing is complete. The photo in Farrington's book also shows curtains on the windows.

B&O Bill



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/04/24 09:45 by bandob.