, United States (USA) (American Colonies)
1936 - May 12 – The Santa Fe railroad in the United States inaugurates the all-Pullman Super Chief passenger train between Chicago, Illinois and Los Angeles, California.

NEW SANTA FE DIESEL 'CHIEF' TO START RUN

Limited Begins 39-Hour Dash to Los Angeles From Chicago On Trip Tonight

Operating on a schedule of 39 hours and 45 minutes, the Santa Fe's new Super Chief, powered with the Diesel locomotive, will leave Chicago tonight on its first run to the coast, arriving in San Bernadino at 7:30 a.m. Thursday.

Effective Sunday, the Chief, drawn by steam locomotives, went on a 50 hour and 25 minute schedule for the Los Angeles to Chicago run.

The Chief, for years the fastest train between Los Angeles and Chicago, has been covering the 2,225 miles eastbound in 55 hours. The new schedule cuts four hours and 35 minutes off the run to Chicago, and nine hours and 45 minutes to New York, according to James B. Duffy, assistant passenger traffic manager.

BIRTHDAY PARTY
A triple birthday party will mark the departure of the Super Chief from Chicago tonight. The occasion will not only mark the birth of a new train which will make railroad history in its dash across the continent, but May 12, is the birthday anniversary of both Samuel T. Bledsoe, president of the Santa Fe, and his daughter, Mrs. Bartlett Cormack of Beverly Hills.

Just before the train pulls out in the Dearborn station, it will be christened by Mrs. Cormack, and she and Mr. and Mrs. Bledsoe will be among the passengers on its maiden trip. More than 70 passengers will be on board, including notables of the motion picture and business worlds. Outstanding in the Hollywood contingent, will be Eleanor Powell, famous dancer, and Mrs. Eddie Cantor and two daughters.

The Super Chief, drawn by a 3,600-horsepower Diesel locomotive, will make weekly round trips between Chicago and Los Angeles, leaving Chicago each Tuesday at 7:15 p.m. and arriving Los Angeles each Thursday at 9 a.m. Eastbound, it will leave Los Angeles each Friday at 8 p.m. and arrive Chicago each Sunday at 1:45 p.m. With quick connections in Chicago, passengers may make the trip from Los Angeles to New York with the loss of only one short business day, Saturday.

LOCOMOTIVE TESTED
The Diesel locomotive, which has been tested for several months in service on the Chief and other trains, is a multiple-unit "power house" of two identical sections. It is arranged for double end operation with operators' cabs at each end of the unit, and each unit contains two 900-horsepower oil electric power plants. The complete locomotive is 127 feet long, and weighs 250 tons.

For the present, the Super Chief will consist of standard Pullman equipment of the finest type, which later in the year, Mr. Duffy says, will be replaced by an entirely new train of lightweight stainless steel cars, recently ordered from the Rudd Manufacturing Co. of Philadelphia. Present equipment, as well as the new lightweight cars, will be air-conditioned throughout.

The Super Chief will operate on a schedule five hours and nine minutes faster than the time made by Death Valley Scotty's famous special train in 1905. That record stood for 30 years until shattered by Diesel powered trains of the Santa Fe and other roads in test runs last year.

The San Bernadino County Sun
San Bernadino, California
May 12, 1936

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