The ''Rocky Mountain Rocket'' was a
streamlined passenger train of the
Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad. Rock Island's train numbers 7 and 8 ran between
Chicago's
LaSalle Street Station
LaSalle Street Station is a commuter rail terminal at 414 South LaSalle Street in downtown Chicago. First used as a rail terminal in 1852, it was a major intercity rail terminal for the New York Central Railroad until 1968, and for the Chicago, R ...
and
Denver's Union Station and
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...
. The ''Rocky Mountain Rocket'' ran from 1939 to 1966; the train was discontinued prior to the creation of
Amtrak in 1971.
History
The Rock Island was one of several railroads competing in the Chicago–Denver passenger market. The
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illin ...
started the streamliner era in the United States in 1934 when its ''
Pioneer Zephyr'' made its special "Dawn-to-Dusk" run from Denver to Chicago in 13 hours 5 minutes. By 1936 both the Burlington's ''
Denver Zephyr'' and the
Union Pacific Railroad's ''
City of Denver
Denver () is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States#State capital, capital, and List of municipalities in Colorado#, most populous city of th ...
'' were locked in head-to-head competition, each with new equipment and a 16-hour schedule. The Rock Island's offering was the ''
Rocky Mountain Limited
The ''Rocky Mountain Rocket'' was a Streamliner, streamlined passenger train of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad. Rock Island's train numbers 7 and 8 ran between Chicago's LaSalle Street Station and Denver, CO, Denver's Union Station ...
'', operating traditional heavyweight cars on a 27-hour schedule.
Although mired in bankruptcy, the Rock Island introduced six new streamlined trainsets, known as "
Rockets", in 1936. Pleased with the results, the Rock Island bought two new sets of streamlined equipment for Chicago–Denver train. The new train, christened, the ''Rocky Mountain Rocket'', entered service on November 12, 1939. In contrast to the ''Rocky Mountain Limited'', the ''Rocket'' required only twenty hours.
A section split off at
Limon, Colorado to serve
Colorado Springs. At the time the ''Rocket'' was the only train that offered a one-seat ride between Chicago and Colorado Springs. The new train was profitable, despite the slower running time compared to the Burlington and UP streamliners. Further competition arrived in 1942, when the
Missouri Pacific Railroad and
Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad introduced the ''
Colorado Eagle'' between
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...
, and Denver.
Facing steep competition from airlines and improved highways, the ''Rocky Mountain Rocket'' lost its sleeping and dining cars in July 1965. Snack cars were added to replace the diners and remained in service until the train was discontinued 15 months later. The last train ran on October 16, 1966. Among its final passengers was the railfan and photographer
Otto Perry
Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants ''Audo'', ''Odo'', ''Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity".
The name is recorded fro ...
. Unnamed train numbers 7 and 8 continued to operate between Chicago and Omaha, but the name was gone, along with all Rock Island passenger service west of Omaha. After a year without a name, it was renamed ''The Cornhusker.'' In 1970, the train was renamed the ''
Quad Cities Rocket
The ''Quad Cities Rocket'' was a named passenger train of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad. It operated on a route between Chicago and Rock Island, Illinois. It was a remnant of one of the Rock Island's premier trains, the ''Rocky ...
'' after its western terminus was cut all the way back to
Rock Island, Illinois
Rock Island is a city in and the county seat of Rock Island County, Illinois, Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. The original Rock Island, from which the city name is derived, is now called Rock Island Arsenal, Arsenal Island. The popul ...
. The train continued in this truncated form alongside the once-proud Rock Island's other remaining passenger train, the ''Peoria Rocket,'' after the formation of Amtrak. From 1971 onward, Illinois provided subsidies for the train. By this time, it was down to just two coaches. What remained of the train made its last run on December 31, 1978.
Route
In 1942 the ''Rocky Mountain Rocket'' ran on a 19.5 hour schedule from Denver to Chicago. An extra quarter-hour was required for the Colorado Springs Section. At
Limon, Colorado, the Rocket was split on its westbound run. The bulk of the train went northwest to Denver on the Union Pacific's main line (ex-
Kansas Pacific
The Kansas Pacific Railway (KP) was a historic railroad company that operated in the western United States in the late 19th century. It was a federally chartered railroad, backed with government land grants. At a time when the first transcontin ...
) to Denver, while the rest of the train continued on Rock Island tracks southwest to
Colorado Springs. Eastbound, the train was combined at Limon and split in
Belleville, Kansas
Belleville is a city in and the county seat of Republic County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 2,007.
History
Belleville was founded in 1869, and incorporated as a city in 1878. It was named for A ...
, with one
section continuing to
Union Station,
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...
, while the other section went to Chicago.
Equipment
Both
Budd and
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 ...
contributed cars to the inaugural equipment sets used by the ''Rocky Mountain Rocket''. Each of the two equipment sets comprised a
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 ...
, 44-seat post office-coach, 52-seat coach,
diner-lounge, two
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, and a sleeper-
observation car. Budd built the baggage cars, coaches, and dining cars. The diner-lounge could seat 32 patrons in the main dining, plus 14 in a cocktail lounge. The car included a kitchen and pantry. Pullman-Standard built the sleeping cars and sleeper-observation car. The first sleeping car contained eight sections, two compartments, and two double bedrooms. The second contained ten sections and four
roomette
A roomette is a type of sleeping car compartment in a railroad passenger train. The term was first used in North America, and was later carried over into Australia and New Zealand. Roomette rooms are relatively small, and were originally gener ...
s. The sleeper-observation contained five bedrooms toward the front of the car, followed by a small lounge and round-end observation area.
The motive power for the ''Rocket'' was unusual. The Rock Island assigned an
EMC E6
The EMD E6 was a , A1A-A1A, streamlined passenger train locomotive manufactured by Electro-Motive Corporation, and its corporate successor, General Motors Electro-Motive Division, of La Grange, Illinois. The cab version, E6A, was manufactured f ...
and
EMC AB6 to haul the train. The AB6s, unique to the Rock Island and this route, were flat-fronted, similar to a
B unit
B, or b, is the second letter of the Latin-script alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' bee'' (pronounced ), plural ''bees''. It re ...
, but with a cab and capable of independent operation. It could operate behind an
A unit
A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes'' ...
without ruining the streamlined profile of the train, but then pull the Colorado Springs section after the separation in Limon.
Notes
References
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Further reading
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External links
''Rocky Mountain Rocket Consists''(archive link), Rock Island Technical Society
{{CRIP named trains
Railway services introduced in 1939
Named passenger trains of the United States
Passenger trains of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad
Night trains of the United States
Railway services discontinued in 1966