The ''Pittsburgher'' was an overnight limited
passenger train
A passenger train is a train used to transport people along a railroad line. These trains may consist of unpowered passenger railroad cars (also known as coaches or carriages) hauled by one or more locomotives, or may be self-propelled; self pr ...
operated by the
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...
between
New York City and
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania over the Pennsylvania's
Main Line. It operated from 1924 to 1964 and one of the most prestigious trains operated by the Pennsylvania and perhaps the premier train between New York and Pittsburgh.
History
The ''Pittsburgher'' began operation on January 14, 1924.
The ''Pittsburgher'' was the premier Pennsylvania train operating between New York and Pittsburgh.
Although not streamlined in 1938 as part of the "
Fleet of Modernism", it was completely upgraded with streamlined equipment (but with no
observation car) at the express request of U.S. steel business clientele. Although the train was considered all-
Pullman, it frequently carried coaches on the end for day travelers going to Pittsburgh and back. In 1944, the ''Pittsburgher'' was discontinued as part of a government order that prohibited the use of
sleeping car
The sleeping car or sleeper (often ) is a railway passenger car (rail), passenger car that can accommodate all passengers in beds of one kind or another, for the purpose of sleeping. George Pullman was the American innovator of the sleeper car.
...
s between points less than apart so the government could free up sleeping cars for the war effort. The next day, it was reinstated as a day train between the two points. By late 1945, it was back to running as an overnight, all-Pullman train between New York and Pittsburgh. Service was discontinued in 1964, and its sleepers were transferred to the ''
Manhattan Limited''.
Equipment
During the 1940s, the ''Pittsburgher'' was assigned lightweight equipment from a pool of cars built by
Pullman-Standard
The Pullman Company, founded by George Pullman, was a manufacturer of 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-19th century ...
for the Pennsylvania Railroad immediately before World War II. These included City-series cars, with 18 roomettes; Brook-series cars, with 12 duplex single rooms and 5 double bedrooms; Imperial-series cars with four compartments, two drawing rooms, and four double bedrooms; and County-series cars, with 13 double bedrooms. The trains also carried a Colonial-series car with a drawing room, three double bedrooms, and a bar lounge. These were originally built in 1938 for use on the ''
Liberty Limited
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 '' Washingt ...
'', ''
General'', and ''
Spirit of St. Louis''. The trains also carried heavyweight
baggage car
A passenger railroad car or passenger car (United States), also called a passenger carriage, passenger coach (United Kingdom and International Union of Railways), or passenger bogie (India) is a railroad car that is designed to carry passen ...
s, a lightweight dining car, and westbound conveyed a
Boston sleeping car from the
New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad's ''William Penn''.
Notes
References
*
External links
''Pittsburgher'' brochure
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pittsburgher, The
Named passenger trains of the United States
Night trains of the United States
Passenger trains of the Pennsylvania Railroad
Railway services introduced in 1924
Transportation in Pittsburgh
Railway services discontinued in 1964