Golden State (train) - History

History

The Golden State Limited was inaugurated on 2 October 1902 on a route that linked Chicago, Kansas City, El Paso, southern Arizona and Los Angeles. A disadvantage to this route was the lack of population centers compared with other transcontinental lines. Until 1910 the Golden State Limited was seasonal, generally operating from December to April or May; for the rest of the year the same schedules were known as the California Limited westbound and Chicago-St. Louis Limited eastbound. The Golden State Limited was for Pullman passengers only, while the California Limited also carried tourist (economy) sleeping cars and coaches. From 1902–1907, the Golden State Limited (or California Limited in the off season) was assigned train numbers 43 and 44. In mid-1907 the trains were assigned numbers 3 and 4, and these numbers continued to be associated with the Golden State until its last run departed Los Angeles on 4 April 1968. The seasonal operation continued until the December 1910 resumption of service, when the Golden State Limited became a year-round operation.

The train was known as a luxurious heavyweight train, although not particularly fast. During the 1920s and 1930s, when Florida became a popular winter destination, the Rock Island and Southern Pacific positioned the Golden State as an escape from the cold eastern and Midwestern winters, with some success. The proximity to Mexico also provided romance for the route.

For many years, the primary competition to Los Angeles was the Santa Fe's California Limited, which did almost twice the business. When the Santa Fe Chief was inaugurated in 1926, the Golden State sought to compete with this train, running on the same 63-hour schedule with the same $10 extra fare (until 1929). The only significant competition to the Santa Fe Super Chief was the Union Pacific/Chicago and North Western Railway City of Los Angeles introduced in 1936.

The Southern Pacific and Rock Island did not have as close a relationship as did the Overland Route and Union Pacific City streamliners, leading to a wide variety of mixed and mis-matched equipment over the years.

The Limited was dropped from the name on 18 May 1947 and the train was known merely as the Golden State.

After World War II, the Rock Island and Southern Pacific entered into discussions about a new 39¾ hour (the accepted fast schedule between Chicago and Los Angeles/San Francisco) streamliner to be named the Golden Rocket. This name was an extension of the use of the name Rocket that the Rock Island had introduced on other routes combined with the prefix “Golden” which had been used for many years as a prefix for car names. See also the Rocky Mountain Rocket, the Des Moines Rocket, the Peoria Rocket and others.

In the streamlined era the Burlington and other cooperating rail lines used the word Silver as a prefix for their car names, referring to the (mostly) Budd stainless steel construction and corrugated sides of these cars. The Rock Island and Southern Pacific emphasis on the word Golden was also good advertising for the California destination of the trains.

The Golden Rocket was to have two sets of equipment (one supplied by each railroad) and directly compete with the Santa Fe Super Chief, which was the most famous train in the west. The Rock Island ordered equipment, which was constructed with the red-and-silver color-scheme, and lettered for the Golden Rocket. The Southern Pacific was not as enthusiastic, primarily because of the upgrades needed on the El Paso – Kansas City portion of the route, which was single track and poorly signaled. After the Southern Pacific decided not to participate, the Rock Island's set of Golden Rocket equipment was re-lettered and integrated into the Golden State.

The Golden State became a full-fledged streamliner in January 1948, with a paint scheme of vermilion red on the upper body and pier panel and the lower bodies either natural corrugated stainless steel or silver or grey paint on the smooth-sided cars. The train ran with many different styles of equipment. Smooth-sided and corrugated stainless steel equipment were routinely mixed, and heavyweight baggage, Railway Post Office (RPO) and dormitory cars were common.

The Rock Island had excellent connections at Kansas City with other lines. A through sleeping car was run from Minneapolis - St. Paul to Los Angeles beginning after World War II. A through chair car was also added on this route in 1951. These cars were carried on the Twin Star Rocket but were discontinued in April 1964. The connections were made in Kansas City and cars were switched in and out of the train there.

A through St. Louis – Los Angeles sleeping car was also run for many years, routed on the Missouri Pacific from St. Louis to Kansas City. The Rock Island had their own rail line on the St. Louis – Kansas City route but it served few population centers. Passenger service was dropped on this line in the 1930s.

After World War II, both Phoenix and Tucson had their own streamlined set-out sleeping car lines as business to these sun-belt cities and the increasing population grew.

Transcontinental sleeping car service between New York and Los Angeles on alternate days via the New York Central and Pennsylvania was added after World War II but was discontinued in 1951.

Other through sleeping car routes on the Golden State included Chicago – Kansas City and Chicago – San Diego (via the Southern Pacific and their subsidiary, San Diego and Arizona, connecting at Yuma, Arizona).

The Golden State suffered the same declining passenger revenues as other trains in the 1950s and 1960s, although service was not downgraded as badly as on other trains. A sleeping car and full-service grill/lounge or dining car was always included in the consist. The train was combined with the Southern Pacific’s New Orleans – Los Angeles Sunset Limited west of El Paso beginning in April 1964. The last westbound Golden State left Chicago on Monday, February 19, 1968, and the last inbound Golden State pulled into Chicago's LaSalle Street station on Wednesday evening, February 21.

The Amtrak Sunset Limited train between Los Angeles and New Orleans operates on the same route from Los Angeles to Yuma as did the Golden State. Amtrak's Sunset runs three times weekly; Southern Pacific had reduced the Sunset Limited from daily to tri-weekly frequency several years before Amtrak's formation. Prior to Hurricane Katrina in August 2005, the Sunset Limited was extended east of New Orleans to Orlando, Florida, making it the only true coast to coast train in the United States. The line east of New Orleans has been restored by host railroad CSX Transportation, however Amtrak has been unable to secure state funding to restore the stations on the route.