Empire State Express
Encyclopedia
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
and onetime flagship of the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad (a predecessor of the modern New York Central Railroad
New York Central Railroad
The New York Central Railroad , known simply as the New York Central in its publicity, was a railroad operating in the Northeastern United States...
). It became the world's first high-speed passenger train on September 14, 1891, when it covered the 436 miles (702 kilometers) between New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and Buffalo
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
in just 7 hours and 6 minutes (including stops). The train averaged 61.4 miles-per-hour (98.8 km/h), a new world speed record in rail travel, with an officially recorded top speed of 82 mph (132 km/h), though observers claimed to have clocked the train at 112 mi/h.
History
In short order, the train would gain worldwide celebrity, and its route would later stretch to 620 miles (998 kilometers), with Cleveland, OhioCleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
as its western terminus. In addition to its other notable accomplishments, the Empire State was the first passenger train to maintain a regular schedule speed of over 52 mph (84 km/h), and the first to make runs of 142.88 miles (230 km) between stops (between New York City and Albany
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
: the longest scheduled nonstop run ever attempted).
4-6-4
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-6-4 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and four trailing wheels on two axles .Other equivalent classifications are:UIC classification:...
) steam locomotive. Passengers on the inaugural run, who had expected significant crowds to greet them en route, were very surprised at the low turnout at trackside, before they learned later that same day that Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
had just been bombed by the Japanese. As were many similar long haul express passenger trains through the mid 1960s, the "Empire State Express" carried a 60-foot stainless steel East Division (E.D.) Railway Post Office
Railway post office
In the United States a railway post office, commonly abbreviated as RPO, was a railroad car that was normally operated in passenger service as a means to sort mail en route, in order to speed delivery. The RPO was staffed by highly trained Railway Mail Service postal clerks, and was off-limits to...
(R.P.O.) car operated by the Railway Mail Service
Railway Mail Service
The United States Postal Service's Railway Mail Service was a significant mail transportation service in the US during the time period from the mid-19th century until the mid-20th century. The RMS, or its successor the Postal Transportation Service , carried the vast majority of letters and...
(RMS) of the United States Post Office Department
United States Post Office Department
The Post Office Department was the name of the United States Postal Service when it was a Cabinet department. It was headed by the Postmaster General....
which was staffed by USPOD clerks as a "fast mail" on each of its daily runs. The mails received by, postmarked, processed, sorted, and dispatched from the "Empire State's" RPOs were either canceled or backstamped (as appropriate) during the trip by hand applied circular date stamps (CDS) reading "N.Y. & CHICAGO R.P.O." and the train's number: "TR 50" (eastbound) or "TR 51" (westbound).
Amtrak
When AmtrakAmtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
took over operation of the nation's passenger service on May 1, 1971 it consolidated all services over the New York—Albany—Buffalo corridor into the umbrella "Empire Service
Empire Service (Amtrak)
The Empire Service is a train service operated by Amtrak within the state of New York in the United States. Trains on the line provide frequent daily service along the 460-mile Empire Corridor between New York City and Niagara Falls, New York...
". Amtrak revived the name, although not the route to match, on January 6, 1974 when it granted individual names to all Empire Service trains. The Empire State Express returned as a New York—Buffalo service with numbers 71 and 78. On October 31 that year Amtrak extended the train all the way to Detroit via southern Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. On April 25, 1976 Amtrak renamed this service the Niagara Rainbow
Niagara Rainbow
The Niagara Rainbow, known as the Empire State Express before 1976, was a daily passenger train operated by Amtrak between New York and Detroit via Buffalo and the Canadian province of Ontario...
. Amtrak brought the name back again in 1978 as a New York—Buffalo service, which in 1979 was extended to Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls, New York
Niagara Falls is a city in Niagara County, New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 50,193, down from the 55,593 recorded in the 2000 census. It is across the Niagara River from Niagara Falls, Ontario , both named after the famed Niagara Falls which they...
. The name dropped out of use when Amtrak ceased the practice of naming the individual trains on the Empire Corridor.
Empire State Express No. 999
The key to the Empire State's initial fame was a specially outfitted, 37 feet (11.3 m)-long American-type 4-4-04-4-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-4-0 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , four powered and coupled driving wheels on two axles, and no trailing wheels...
steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
that was built in West Albany, New York
West Albany, New York
West Albany is a hamlet in the town of Colonie, Albany County, New York. Parts of the neighboring city of Albany around Watervliet Avenue Extension and Industrial Park Road are also considered part of West Albany and includes the majority of the West Albany Rail Yard...
especially to haul the train. The handmade unit was mounted on 86" diameter driving wheels, and was the first of its kind to have brakes mounted to the front truck. The bands, pipes, and trim were highly polished; the boiler, smokestack, domes, cab, and tender were given a black satin finish, and "Empire State Express" was applied to the sides of the tender in high gold leaf lettering.
Advances in locomotive design, particularly the advent of diesel-electric power, eventually rendered No. 999 obsolete. After touring the nation and making appearances at numerous expositions including the Chicago Railroad Fair
Chicago Railroad Fair
The Chicago Railroad Fair was an event organized to celebrate and commemorate 100 years of railroad history west of Chicago, Illinois. It was held in Chicago in 1948 and 1949 along the shore of Lake Michigan, and is often referred to as "the last great railroad fair" with 39 railroad companies...
, the unit was retired from service in May, 1952, at which time it was relegated to yard
Classification yard
A classification yard or marshalling yard is a railroad yard found at some freight train stations, used to separate railroad cars on to one of several tracks. First the cars are taken to a track, sometimes called a lead or a drill...
switching
Switcher
A switcher or shunter is a small railroad locomotive intended not for moving trains over long distances but rather for assembling trains ready for a road locomotive to take over, disassembling a train that has been...
service in western New York shuttling express service milk cars. The New York Central donated the locomotive to the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry
Museum of Science and Industry (Chicago)
The Museum of Science and Industry is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA in Jackson Park, in the Hyde Park neighborhood adjacent to Lake Michigan. It is housed in the former Palace of Fine Arts from the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition...
in 1962, where it has been preserved and placed on static display. The unit as displayed lacks its original 86" drivers, which were removed sometime after the historic speed run and replaced with smaller diameter driving wheels.
Equipment used
An early (circa 1905) heavyweight consist:- BuffetDining carA dining car or restaurant carriage , also diner, is a railroad passenger car that serves meals in the manner of a full-service, sit-down restaurant....
- Coach (2)
- SleeperSleeping carThe sleeping car or sleeper is a railway/railroad passenger car that can accommodate all its passengers in beds of one kind or another, primarily for the purpose of making nighttime travel more restful. The first such cars saw sporadic use on American railroads in the 1830s and could be configured...
(drawing room car)
Note: The Vice President's private car was often attached to the end of the train for special excursions.
In 1941, the New York Central ordered new lightweight stainless steel cars for the ESE trains from Budd
Budd Company
The Budd Company is a metal fabricator and major supplier of body components to the automobile industry, and was formerly a manufacturer of stainless steel passenger rail cars during the 20th century....
. Initially, when the new equipment ran, a Hudson
NYC Hudson
Hudson was the name given to the 4-6-4 steam locomotive wheel arrangement by the New York Central Railroad which was the first to use locomotives of this type in North America.-History:...
with matched streamlined stainless steel panels was used. The NYC planned their first day of operation with the new fluted equipment as December 7, 1941, but drew little fanfare as the US was focused on the attack of Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
. A set of the these 1941 cars is owned by the Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad Museum
Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad Museum
The Rochester and Genesee Valley Railroad Museum is an operating railroad museum located in Industry, New York. The museum started in 1971 with the leasing of a former Erie Railroad Depot from the Erie Lackawanna Railroad...
.
In song and on film
In 1896, the Empire State Express was the subject of a short documentary film, which was described by the critics of the day as "The greatest train view ever taken."In 1965, blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
singer and guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
Eddie James "Son" House, Jr.
Son House
Eddie James "Son" House, Jr. was an American blues singer and guitarist. House pioneered an innovative style featuring strong, repetitive rhythms, often played with the aid of slide guitar, and his singing often incorporated elements of southern gospel and spiritual music...
, at the time a New York Central employee, recorded "Empire State Express" at the New York Folk Festival:
- Went down to the station,
- Leaned against the door.
- Went down to the station,
- I...leaned against the door.
- I knew it was the Empire State,
- Can tell by the way she blows.
- Asked the depot agent,
- "Please let me ride the blinds."
- Asked the depot agent,
- "Please let me ride the blinds."
- He said, "Son, I like to help you...you know,
- But the Empire State ain't mine".
- The Empire State...you know she,
- Rides on Eastern time.
- The Empire State,
- She rides on Eastern time,
- She's the "rollingest" baby,
- On the New York Central line.
-
- excerpt from "Empire State Express" by Son House
No. 999 was the inspiration for the eponymous steam engined-shaped space vehicle in the Galaxy Express 999
Galaxy Express 999
is a manga written and drawn by Leiji Matsumoto, as well as various anime films and TV series based on it. It is set in a space-faring, high-tech future in which humans have learned how to transfer their minds into mechanical bodies, thus achieving practical immortality.The manga won the...
series of manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
and animated films.
The 2007 Lyle Lovett song "This Traveling Around" includes the verse:
- And that 999,
- It's so fast you cannot see.
- And that 999,
- It's so fast you cannot see.
Members of the Chicago band, Empire State Express (ESE), drew inspiration in naming their project from both the Son House song (a staple of ESE's live performances) and the No. 999's static display at the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry. The band's 2009 debut EP was titled "Land Speed Record" in honor of the train's legacy.
External links
- New York Central Sleeping and Parlor Car Equipment and Assignment of Space for the Empire State Express, Part I.
- New York Central Sleeping and Parlor Car Equipment and Assignment of Space for the Empire State Express, Part II..
- The Empire State Express & Webb C. Ball contains various vintage images and trivia.
