Dover Harbor (Pullman car)

*Dover Harbor*
6-bedroom buffet-lounge
Dover Harbor; 6-bedroom buffet-lounge
	Dover Harbor in transit
Manufacturer	Pullman
Order no.	Lot 4968
Constructed	1923
Refurbishment	1934
Diagram	Plan 4015
Capacity	12 in 6 bedrooms; 14-seat lounge
Specifications
Weight	87 short tons (79 t)
Auxiliaries	32 Volt
Train heating	Mechanical
Bogies	Type 2410A
Braking system(s)	Type UC
Track gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)

Last updated March 25, 2019

The Dover Harbor sleeper-buffet-lounge is among the oldest operating Pullman passenger cars in the United States. It is owned and operated by the non-profit National Railway Historical Society, Washington, D.C., Chapter, Inc. (DCNRHS).^[1]

A passenger car is a piece of railway rolling stock that is designed to carry passengers. The term passenger car can also be associated with a sleeping car, baggage, dining, railway post office and prisoner transport cars.

The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States or America, is a country composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. At 3.8 million square miles, the United States is the world's third or fourth largest country by total area and is slightly smaller than the entire continent of Europe's 3.9 million square miles. With a population of over 327 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous country. The capital is Washington, D.C., and the largest city by population is New York City. Forty-eight states and the capital's federal district are contiguous in North America between Canada and Mexico. The State of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east and across the Bering Strait from Russia to the west. The State of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U.S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, stretching across nine official time zones. The extremely diverse geography, climate, and wildlife of the United States make it one of the world's 17 megadiverse countries.

Construction and revenue use

The Pullman Company of Chicago built the heavyweight railroad car Maple Shade in July 1923.^[2] The car was originally configured as a combine-baggage-library car, with four sleeping sections, a lounge, a barber shop, and a baggage area. It operated on the Pennsylvania Railroad's name trains, including the Broadway Limited and the Spirit of St. Louis.

The Pullman Car Company, founded by George Pullman, manufactured railroad cars in the mid-to-late 19th century through the first half of the 20th century, during the boom of railroads in the United States. Through rapid late nineteenth century development of mass production, and takeover of rivals, the company developed a virtual monopoly on production and ownership of sleeper cars. At its peak in the early 20th century, its cars accommodated 26 million people a year, and it in effect operated "the largest hotel in the world". Its production workers initially lived in a planned worker community named Pullman, Chicago. Pullman developed the sleeping car, which carried his name into the 1980s. Pullman did not just manufacture the cars, it also operated them on most of the railroads in the United States, paying railroad companies to couple the cars to trains. The labor union associated with the company, the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, founded and organized by A. Philip Randolph, was one of the most powerful African-American political entities of the 20th century. The company also built thousands of streetcars and trolley buses for use in cities. Post World War II changes in automobile and airplane transport led to a steep decline in the company's fortunes. It folded in 1968.

The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was so named because it was established in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

The Broadway Limited was a passenger train operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) between New York City and Chicago. It operated from 1912 to 1995. It was the Pennsylvania's premier train, competing directly with the New York Central Railroad's 20th Century Limited. The Broadway Limited continued operating after the formation of Penn Central (PC) in February 1968, one of the few long-distance trains to do so. PC conveyed the train to Amtrak in 1971, who operated it until 1995. The train's name referred not to Broadway in Manhattan, but rather to the "broad way" of PRR's four-track right-of-way along the majority of its route.

In March 1934, Pullman recalled the Maple Shade to its shops, where the company rebuilt the car as a sleeper-buffet-lounge and renamed it Dover Harbor.^[3] The rebuild added six double bedrooms, a buffet kitchen, and a 14-seat lounge. With its newly installed air conditioning, Dover Harbor now weighed 87 tons.

Following the renovation, Dover Harbor operated in revenue and pool service for 31 years. It ran on trains including the New York Central's Cleveland Limited and Knickerbocker, and the Boston & Maine's Montrealer and Washingtonian. The Pullman Company retired Dover Harbor to its Calumet, Illinois, shops in 1965.

New York Central Railroad defunct American Class I railroad

The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes region of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Midwest along with the intermediate cities of Albany, Buffalo, Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Detroit. New York Central was headquartered in New York City's New York Central Building, adjacent to its largest station, Grand Central Terminal.

Boston and Maine Corporation transport company

The Boston and Maine Corporation, known as the Boston and Maine Railroad (B&M), was a U.S. Class I railroad in northern New England. It became part of what is now the Pan Am Railways network in 1983.

The Montrealer was an overnight passenger train between Washington, D.C., United States, and Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The train was operated from 1924 to 1966, and again under Amtrak from 1972 to 1995, excepting two years in the 1980s. The train was discontinued in 1995 and replaced by the Vermonter, which provides daytime service as far north as St. Albans, Vermont.

Retirement and restoration

The Pullman Company sold Dover Harbor in 1968. After Dover Harbor passed through the hands of four private owners, the non-profit National Railway Historical Society, Washington, D.C., Chapter, Inc. (DCNRHS) purchased the car in November 1979.

DCNRHS volunteers and contractors restored the car to its 1934 appearance, with a Pullman green exterior and a period interior. After a series of safety upgrades, Dover Harbor became Amtrak certified in May 1986. DCNRHS operates Dover Harbor on public excursions and private charters from Washington Union Station.

The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak, is a passenger railroad service that provides medium- and long-distance intercity service in the contiguous United States and to nine Canadian cities.

Related Research Articles

The Super Chief was one of the named passenger trains and the flagship of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. It claimed to be "The Train of the Stars" because of the celebrities it carried between Chicago, Illinois, and Los Angeles, California.

<i>City of Los Angeles</i> (train) Union Pacific passenger train

The City of Los Angeles was a streamlined passenger train between Chicago, Illinois, and Los Angeles, California via Omaha, Nebraska, and Ogden, Utah. Between Omaha and Los Angeles it ran on the Union Pacific Railroad; east of Omaha it ran on the Chicago and North Western Railway until October 1955 and on the Milwaukee Road thereafter. The train had number 103 westbound and number 104 eastbound.

Dome car panoramic coach with en external dome

A dome car is a type of railway passenger car that has a glass dome on the top of the car where passengers can ride and see in all directions around the train. It also can include features of a coach, lounge car, dining car, sleeping car or observation. Beginning in 1945, dome cars were primarily used in the United States and Canada, though a small number were constructed in Europe for Trans Europ Express service, and similar panorama cars are in service on Alpine tourist railways like the Bernina Express.

The Sunset Limited is an Amtrak passenger train that for most of its history has run between New Orleans and Los Angeles, over the nation's second transcontinental route. However, up until Hurricane Katrina in 2005, it ran between Orlando and Los Angeles. It is the oldest named train in the United States; it was first introduced in 1894 by the Southern Pacific Railroad, and was handed to Amtrak upon its formation in 1971.

The North Coast Limited was a named passenger train operated by the Northern Pacific Railway between Chicago and Seattle via Bismarck, North Dakota. It started on April 29, 1900, and continued as a Burlington Northern Railroad train after the merger on March 2, 1970 with Great Northern Railway and the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. The next year, it ceased operations after the trains which left their originating stations on April 30, 1971, the day before Amtrak began service, arrived at their destinations.

The Chief was one of the named passenger trains of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. Its route ran from Chicago, Illinois to Los Angeles, California. The Chief was inaugurated as an all-Pullman limited train to supplement the road's California Limited, with a surcharge of USD $10.00 for an end-to-end trip. The heavyweight began its first run from both ends of the line, simultaneously, on November 14, 1926, scheduled 63 hours each way between Chicago and Los Angeles, five hours faster than the California Limited.

The Golden State was a named passenger train between Chicago and Los Angeles from 1902–1968 on the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad and the Southern Pacific Company (SP) and predecessors. It was named for California, the “Golden State”.

The Delaware–Lackawanna Railroad is a shortline railroad operating in Northeastern Pennsylvania, especially the Scranton area.

The Federal Express was an overnight named passenger train run by the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad between Washington, DC's Union Station and Boston, Massachusetts's South Station from 1912 to 1971. Train numbers on both railroads were 172 northbound and 173 southbound. At different times, its route has taken it across the Hudson River via a car float between Port Morris and Jersey City, the Poughkeepsie Bridge, and finally the Pennsylvania Tunnel and Terminal Railroad. The final routing was identical to today's high-speed Northeast Corridor.

The City of San Francisco was a streamlined through passenger train which ran from 1936 to 1971 on the Overland Route between Chicago, Illinois and Oakland, California, with a ferry connection on to San Francisco. It was owned and operated jointly by the Chicago and North Western Railway (1936–55), Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (1955-71), the Union Pacific Railroad, and the Southern Pacific Railroad. It provided premium extra fare service from Chicago to San Francisco when introduced in 1936 of 39 hr 45 min each way.

The Columbian was a named passenger train operated by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. It was the all-coach supplemental train of the all-Pullman Capitol Limited. It operated from 1931 to 1964. The train's initial route was between Jersey City, New Jersey and Washington, D.C., but in 1941 the Columbian route was lengthened to Jersey City – Chicago, Illinois. It was the first air-conditioned train in the United States.

The New Hope Valley Railway is a heritage railroad in Bonsal, North Carolina operated by the North Carolina Railway Museum, Inc., an all-volunteer, nonprofit, and tax exempt educational and historical organization.

The George Washington was a named passenger train of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway running between Cincinnati, Ohio and Washington, D.C. A section divided from the main train at Charlottesville, Virginia and operated through Richmond to Newport News. It began service in 1932 to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of the first president of the United States.

The Golden Rocket was a proposed named passenger train of the Rock Island (CRIP) and Southern Pacific (SP) railroads.

The Texas Special was a named passenger train operated jointly by the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad and the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway. It was the flagship of both these lines, operating between St. Louis, Missouri, and San Antonio, Texas, from 1915 until 1959, after which time the Katy changed the northern destination from St Louis to Kansas City after the Frisco discontinued service from St. Louis.

The Los Angeles Limited was a named passenger train in the United States. It was operated by the Union Pacific Railroad from 1905 to 1954.

The View series was a fleet of six sleeper-observation lounges built by Pullman-Standard for use on the Pennsylvania Railroad's passenger trains. Pullman built four in 1938 and another two in 1949, after World War II. Their most prominent assignment was on the Broadway Limited, the Pennsylvania's flagship New York–Chicago train, but they were also assigned to the General and the Liberty Limited. Several of the cars have been preserved.

The Liberty Limited was a named train on the Pennsylvania Railroad. It ran from Washington D.C. to Chicago, Illinois, through Baltimore, Harrisburg and Pittsburgh. It began running on September 27, 1925, as a replacement for the Washington–Broadway Limited, which had been introduced in 1923. It originally was scheduled to complete its route in 19 hours.

References

↑ "The History of The Classic Pullman Rail Car DOVER HARBOR". DoverHarbor.com. The National Railway Historical Society, Washington, D.C., Chapter, Inc. January 1997.
↑ Neubauer, Eric. "Pullman and Pullman Standard Passenger Car Production" (PDF). Eric's Railroad Car History. Retrieved 12 December 2018.
↑ Madden, Tom. "Pullman Car Construction Record Database". THE PULLMAN PROJECT. Retrieved 12 December 2018.

External links

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[dcnrhs-1] "The History of The Classic Pullman Rail Car DOVER HARBOR". DoverHarbor.com. The National Railway Historical Society, Washington, D.C., Chapter, Inc. January 1997.

[2] Neubauer, Eric. "Pullman and Pullman Standard Passenger Car Production" (PDF). Eric's Railroad Car History. Retrieved 12 December 2018.

[3] Madden, Tom. "Pullman Car Construction Record Database". THE PULLMAN PROJECT. Retrieved 12 December 2018.