Union Pacific Heritage Trips

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If there is interest, I can post my experiences on four separate trips made in Texas using the Union Pacific Heritage Fleet. These were made when the E8s and 3985 Challenger were active during the 1990s. Sorry, no 4014 Big Boy, no FEF 844! The trips were organized by the Gulf Coast Chapter of the NRHS in conjunction with the Union Pacific Heritage team. As a member of the Gulf Coast Chapter I got to help on one trip so not many photos from that one, but for the others I was fortunate to have dome seats on the City of San Francisco (tail end car) and the Harriman (deluxe executive car).

The four trips were, Houston to Smithville on the MKT, Houston to Corpus Christi with overnight in CC, Houston to Hearne via College Station, return via Spring, TX (with 3985) and Houston to Bay City (also with 3985).

Only if there is interest and if any others would like to share their experiences with the UP Heritage trains (these would be most welcome!).

A simple like will be considered a vote in favour!

 

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First, an introduction. The prime movers on the Gulf Coast Chapter side were friends Jim Leuders and Bill Waldrop. For some reason Bill was always elusive when a camera was in sight but his voice was well known in Houston, the helicopter traffic guy, Chopper Bill. But many Chapter members helped out and they should not be forgotten. The general public was very supportive, even when one coach lost its air-conditioner - it was certainly hot in there!

Run by stops were organized, often more than one, while lunch was always arranged one way or another (no fancy on train dining, sorry to say).

All Union Pacific had to do was show up! But that in itself was not an easy task, given they came from Omaha. But Steve Lee and Co. always got there though some Texas ingenuity was needed to keep 3985 going. Yes, the timetable was not always kept but who minds an extra hour of the day spent traveling in such style.

The consist was huge, consisting of a crew car, a semi-open baggage car with shop, numerous chair coaches and several dome cars. The tail end parlour dome car was always City of San Francisco, with snack catering provided in the bar under the dome. I took several side on shots of the passenger cars and will show these. The rest room facilities were nicely fitted out with updated Corian surfaces.

The Heritage trains were mainly used by UP’s executives when touring the system and I am sure the make up of the consist would be different, no chair cars, for example, replaced by private sleeping and dining cars.

On designing the trips it was important to be able to turn the entire train, and so triple junctions were always a part of the action. The best view was at Smithville where the E9s backed around the far side of the wye, pushing the entire consist.

The diesel electric power consisted of three E9s in an A-B-A configuration. Steam power was the Challenger 4-6-6-4 articulated behemoth, capable of 70mph and recorded at 62mph one one trip back into Houston.

The FEF 844 was being renovated at this time and 4014 was still stuffed and mounted. All praise to Union Pacific for what they have done and continue to do!

 

[Big Train James]

I can contribute some content for various trips around the Denver area, I chased plenty of trains to and from Cheyenne for the Frontier Days Rodeo. I'll have to start digging around in my files and see what I can come up with.

I also may be able to come up with some slides from the 80's, from my dad's collection, of the 3985 just before restoration. Not sure if he ever shot 844 (most likely 8444 at the time). This should be an adventure, as I have a large box containing a lot of slides. The question is how best to review them and scan them into digital format.

Jim

 

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Trip 1. The Katy Flyer - November 1993

This was the last passenger train to run on the MKT west from Houston to Smithville and back. Now impossible to replicate as the track has been lifted between Eureka Junction and Katy. This to allow the Katy Freeway to be widened.

The plan was to start and end at the old MKT yard at Eureka. Parking was provided off T C Jester Boulevard and the entire train just fitted into the northern track of the yard. The three E9s faced west ready to set off down the Katy.


Eureka Yard, E9s in the distance

We had seats in the dome of the City of San Francisco. Very comfortable and with sun shades not too hot on a sunny November Saturday. My future lady wife was visiting Texas for the first time so a chance to see how she liked train journeys in America. She loved it!

I don’t remember passing across SP tracks at Eureka Junction but certainly do remember the sight of so many cars chasing the train as we sped alongside Interstate 10 (the Katy Freeway). We weren’t exactly speeding though with poor track and numerous grade crossings.

The Interstate skirts the town of Katy while the train went straight through. The Chapter commissioned a water colour of the train passing the Katy grain elevators. We have a framed copy hanging in the Railway Room, a great memory of the trip.


Map used is SP’s 1920s system map. Other railroads are shown in lighter lines. The trip was entirely on MKT metals

Then picking up speed we ventured west across the plains, crossing the Brazos River, to the first run by at Cat Spring. This stop was west of the town of Sealy, famous for its mattress factory, and the Sealy Posturepedic Mattress. Yes we do have one and very comfortable it is too!

This was my first experience of an American run by. Well organized and in most cases possible to photograph the train as if you were alone trackside. At Cat Spring this was not possible due to close in fencing, but the power of three E9s accelerating past us was quite an experience. There will other opportunities for more typical run bys. Sadly few people took videos in those days.




And so to lunch. TBC

 

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Trip 1, continued

West of Cat Springs the scenery changes to what is possibly the most attractive of Texas’ many landscapes. Rolling wooded hills, small county towns and a deep south conservative tradition.

I walked up the train and took this shot out of an open vestibule window:



Then we approached La Grange, a typical county town with square and the usual administrative buildings. The MKT entered the town and soon blocked all the grade crossings. So everyone detrained as lunch would be served in the VA Hall and everyone was invited to explore the town. The train then reversed out to a storage siding:

I am not sure who the person is in the back of the City of San Francisco but he would be in radio contact with the engineer in the cab. The “steward” on the ground is Jim Leuders. Many Chapter members dressed the part for these trips.



The entire train then slowly reversed



I don’t remember what we had for lunch but I bet the choices included chicken fried steak with fries and gravy!

Then a short trip to Smithville through more Texas scenery and with good company in the dome.



TBC

 

[Focalplane]

Trip 1, conclusion

This trip was my first and I wasn't sure how many photo opportunities would be available. In fact I simply didn't have enough film!

The end of the journey was at Smithville, an MKT town, being the junction of three tracks and therefore the centre of MKT's main operation in passenger carrying days. The Wye pointed from Houston the way we had come, then to the right to Dallas and the left to San Antonio. The entire train would take the Dallas line, then reverse into the San Antonio Line and finally return to the small depot facing toward Houston.

Being a railway town, Smithville had a small museum and were most hospitable, clearly wishing we had more time to visit. But the leading E9 announced it arrival back at the depot and we boarded for the journey back to Houston. I took just two photos of the train on the wye:





And so, back to Houston. A good trip, no, a great trip! Just not many photos. But I have one more, my companion of the past 29 years enjoying the Texas sunshine in the City of San Francisco dome parlour car.



End of Trip! Next trip report to follow in a few days.

 

[Big Train James]

Some teasers.....

2008


The E9's, outside the shop in Cheyenne. I think they had been rebuilt to gp38-2 specs internally by this point.


A glimpse of 3985..........

 

[Focalplane]

Thanks, James

There’ll be more than a glimpse of 3985 later on! I think it a shame the Challenger has left Omaha but at least it will be back running excursions again. Personally I prefer the Challenger to the Big Boy, it was a more universal machine capable of passenger express speeds.

 

[Focalplane]

Trip 2 Teaser

This trip was a weekend long affair from Houston to Corpus Christi and back, with passengers staying in a hotel of their choice in downtown Corpus. The consist was very similar to that used in Trip 1, including the heritage E9s. Again we were lucky to secure seats in the tail end parlour/dome car, City of San Francisco.

I am busy scanning the photos so the actual trip report will begin soon. More photos this time and a simple 2 part (there and back) organization, Saturday and Sunday. Stay tuned!

 

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Trip 2 - Saturday - Houston to Corpus Christi

The weather was fine on the Saturday morning as we set off early from Houston, traveling on UP rails down to Corpus Christi. Union Pacific didn't lay any of the tracks, they bought them! The route taken is shown on the map below, with the main junctions highlighted with grey arrows:



Houston to Angleton
Angleton to Bay City
Bay City to Placedo
Placedo to Sinton
Sinton to Corpus Christi

A note on the SP route between the two cities through Victoria. This line was mothballed and used to store lines of old box cars, etc. back in the 1990s. I understand that KCS may re-open the line some day. They'll have a lot of clean up to do!

The journey was uneventful in that the time keeping was exemplary despite the several junctions along the way. The E9s kept up a good speed throughout. Only at Sinton did the train leave UP owned rails for the last stretch into Corpus.

The day's journey consisted of travel with boxed lunches provided. In addition, a run by stop was organized and that is where I took the next set of photos. To explain a run by in UP terms, the train stops at a predestined straight stretch, all those wishing to watch the run by leave the train, using simple steps to reach ground level. The train then backs up out of sight and the organizers make sure everyone is ready before the train returns, gathering speed as it reaches the run by zone. It then travels through and later reverses back to pick up the passengers. A well organized run by allows pictures to be taken as though the photographer is alone and you will see one of these on the Sunday run by.

We positioned ourselves not far from the rear of the train, adjacent to a grade crossing. I'll let the pictures tell their story:













When the train reversed I was able to take a photo of Chapter member George Porter, dressed as a conductor in one of the cars.



And then we rejoined the City of San Francisco



The onward journey was unventful and soon we were turning left at Sinton and running past oil storage tanks into Corpus Christi. Buses took us into the city centre and our hotel. That evening a group of us went to a local seafood restaurant and the heavens decided to open a deluge upon us.

To be continued the next day. . .

 

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Sunday morning came without sunshine after the previous evening's downpour, but at least it was dry as we joined buses to have breakfast on the hangar deck of USS Lexington, permanently berthed near Corpus Christi. This was all part of the trip so was well attended. A tour of the aircraft carrier was most interesting and to be highly recommended.





I have many more photos "somewhere".

Then back to the station where the excursion was ready to take us back to Houston, having been turned on the inevitable wye at Gregory.

Once again the E9s and crew did a flawless job, giving us time for another run by.















I feel sure I took more photos on this trip but the two run bys will have to do.

A long, fruitful and enjoyable weekend!

(Next, the Challenger!)

 

[Focalplane]

Trip 3 - College Station

6 weeks have passed but I have now scanned about 30 photographs and can start on the Challenger Trip to College Station. This was a Saturday outing and I decided not to volunteer to crew the train as I knew if I did I would not take any photos. I did volunteer on the Sunday trip to Bay City and sure enough did not take any photos.

The Challenger 4-6-6-4 #3985 has left Omaha as the Big Boy 4014 has basically taken its place. Hopefully Challenger will see use of excursions again from its new base in Illinois. Funding is in place to restore it back into operating conditions.

At the time of the trip Challenger was the largest operational steam locomotive in the world and when standing close up it dwarfed anything I had seen before.

So, as a teaser, here is a photo at an ex-Rock Island yard in north Houston the night before. Those vehicles mostly belong to volunteers. We were all givn bright blue t-shirts with the Missouri Pacific Logo in red. This was to be largely an excursion on MoPac rails (another of the original companies swallowed up by UP).



Challenger and its two yellow water carriers are at the far end, so I wandered over:



Next morning we set off west and headed for College Station, an important stop for passengers heading to Texas A&M University. Now I am not completely sure of which route we left Houston. But we ended up in College Station on T&NO rails.

There was time for a run by (the first of two) before we arrived at College Station:

 

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And so to College Station. I decided to leave the train and explore Texas A&M University. The A and M stand for Agricultural and Mechanical and all graduates are happy/proud to be known as Aggies. Aggie jokes abound but we won't go there!

Alumni like to fly in and see where their latest additions to the campus are set out on a regular plan - it is a well endowed place of education. The railway line essentially pre-dated much of the site. A single platform remains, no longer used since the Texas Eagle 2 coaches stopped running to Houston many years ago. Followers of my Eureka Heights project will know that the Sunbeam made a scheduled stop on its mile a minute timetable.

After lunch we assembled back at the platform to welcome Challenger back from turning the train at Hearne. What an impressive sight!







The first two photos show Kyle Field, the Football Stadium.

 

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I bought my ticket early for this trip and secured a seat in the Harriman dome. This is the pride of the executive fleet with its loud check upholstery.



Friends Willa Jepson and Jim Leuders enjoying the ride. Jim was one of the two principal organizers, along with Bill Waldrop. He's sporting the MoPac shirt!

The Harriman is fitted with a speedometer so that executives can monitor progress. We reached 62 mph while running down to Houston from Spring. We later learned that one of the four cylinders had a fault and had been disconnected, so that may be why we didn't go any faster. The problem was welded overnight for th Sunday trip.



The return journey used an old MoPac West to East line which joined the main North South line at Spring. This line passes the site of a Medieval Festival and the second run by was set up here - somebody even mowed the grass!

Various shots of the locomotive with lots of bunker oil added for effect.

 

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Back in Houston the fans gathered around to admire the train.

My first thought was to take photos of several of the coaches - it was starting to get dark:

City of Portland:



City of San Francisco:



And Harriman:

 

[Focalplane]

Next, the star of the show, already getting attention for the next day.











That's it!