continued from page 4
between east and west terminals, and
the Sunset was by then 42 hours. But
even this slower train offered sleeping-
car arrangements and a full diner. The
Argonaut made a flag stop in Marathon
and a regular stop in Alpine and Marfa.
The Sunset survived the Depression
and World Wars I and II. During the
second war, the famous train was per-
manently forced to add chair cars to its
consist. After World War II, the train
was completely modernized again with
the glamorous newly styled stainless steel
coaches. Diners and lounges became
stylish and gave the train once again an
image of grandness. The steam locomo-
tives where replaced starting in 1953.
With the new power, diesels were
changed only twice during the entire
route.
The Sunset now was the picture of
streamlined beauty, and thus it became
a true streamliner. One of the diners was
named the “Audubon Diner,” a lounge
car was named “The French Quarter”
and a coffee lounge was “The Pride of
Texas.” The 1950s proved to be the
high point of this train and the pride of
the company. The Sunset Limited at
this time could easily have four power
diesels, a baggage car and as many as 15
passenger cars. In stainless steel, it was a
glistering and stunning sight, peaking 90
miles per hour in flat, straight terrain.
But times were to change. Along
came the jet airliners and the inter-
state highway system, and in the late
50s and early 60s passenger head-
count began to drop. At mid-point in
the 60s, railroads were discontinuing
trains regularly. The Southern Pacific
was losing money on the once “crack”
train. They tried to discontinue the
train and were not allowed to do so by
the Texas Railroad Commission.
This marked the lowest point in the
train’s history, as the Southern Pacific
deliberately tried to discourage rider-
ship. The diner was taken off as well
as the sleeping cars, and by 1970 the
train was no longer daily. Now the
train was down to an engine and three
cars: a car featuring vending
machines with junk food and two
chair cars. Public outrage forced the
rail line to bring back the sleepers and
diner.
By 1970, the American passenger
train had all but disappeared. Gone
were such great trains as the Santa Fe
Chief, the California Zephyr and the
Golden State Limited. The Texas &
Pacific saw its last Texas Eagle in 1967.
The few trains left were not operated
with pride but with an eye to getting rid
of passenger service in favor of freight
service. The answer to the problem
came with Amtrak, created by a bill
signed by Richard Nixon on May 1,
1971. And at last the Southern Pacific
gladly gave away its famous but tattered
train.
Amtrak’s first need was to establish
the routes for its trains. The Sunset
Route was needed to connect New
Orleans and Houston with the West
Coast, and that meant that the Sunset
would be kept. The second need was for
equipment to run the trains. Amtrak
bought the best of the old equipment
and started service. This meant all the
passenger trains had a menagerie of cars
of differing colors. Popular among
continued from page 23
Stedman’s outlook for the art and craft of let-
ter-press printing is sunny: in the past five years
or so, she says, art schools and universities have
taken up the gauntlet, teaching typography and
printing as a legitimate and valued part of an art
education.
Her own future is equally exciting. She’s put-
ting down roots; building a house in Terlingua
and looking to expand her clientele to cover Fort
Davis and Alpine and planning collaborative
projects with local artists and writers.
She hopes to expand her work into posters,
broadsides, chapbooks, and larger print jobs.
Like a hardy desert bloom, Menagerie Press
Amtrak’s purchases were the double-
level chair cars built by the Santa Fe for
the famous El Capitan train which oper-
ated between Chicago and Los Angeles.
So, these double levels now appeared as
the chair cars on the Sunset. These cars,
called “Viewliners,” proved to be so
popular and efficient that they became
the standard for what Amtrak built for
its long distance trains. Ultimately, the
entire train became double-level.
In 1993, Amtrak experimented mak-
ing Miami the eastern terminus of the
train. This simply did not work, due to
the train having to yield constantly to
freight trains, which made the train
ridiculously late at times. Hurricane
Katrina ended the Miami route by
destroying a tremendous amount of
track east of New Orleans. Now the
train operates as far as New Orleans
with a connection in San Antonio with
the Texas Eagle, which runs north to
Chicago.
Amtrak
wants
to
make the
train, or sec-
tions of the
From out
route, a daily
operation.
of town?
However,
the “cooper-
ating” Union
Pacific has
put a steep
price tag on
that notion:
no less than
$750 mil-
lion! Amtrak
has always
been at the
mercy of “cooperating” railroads, which
still do not want the passenger train(s) on
their tracks.
Currently the train averages about
300 passengers per run. The complete
run from New Orleans to Los Angeles
requires 48 hours if it’s on time. Last
year the train carried over 90,000 pas-
sengers total. This train usually consists
of the locomotive, a baggage car, two or
three chair cars, a diner, a lounge car
and two sleeping cars.
The Sunset Limited has had its share
of ups and downs, but the public can still
hope that the existing service will
become more dependable and that
someday it can be a daily train.
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209 NE 1st St. / Hwy 90
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432-386-4184
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SHOP ONLINE:
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adds color and texture to the perennially fasci-
nating palette of the Big Bend.
AYN FOUNDATION
(DAS MAXIMUM)
“Why Terlingua: Adventure on the Edge of Texas” is
available at Terlingua Trading Co., Front
Street Books, and other area bookshops and
stores. Menagerie Press is located in the
Terlingua Ghost Town. 432-371-331, or e-
mail: [email protected].
ANDY WARHOL MARIA ZERRES
“The Last Supper” “September Eleven”
Brite Building 107-109 N Highland, Marfa
Open Thurs. - Sun. noon to 5 pm or by appointment.
Please call 432.729.3315 or go to
www.aynfoundation.com for more information.
Cenizo
Second Quarter 2013
27