The

Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad (CRI&P RW, sometimes called ''Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway'') was an American Class I railroad. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, The Rock. At the end ...

''Rockets'' were lightweight,

streamlined Streamlines, streaklines and pathlines are field lines in a fluid flow. They differ only when the flow changes with time, that is, when the flow is not steady. Considering a velocity vector field in three-dimensional space in the framework of ...

diesel-electric passenger trains built by the

Budd Company The Budd Company was a 20th-century metal fabricator, a major supplier of body components to the automobile industry, and a manufacturer of stainless steel passenger rail cars, airframes, missile and space vehicles, and various defense products ...

. These six trains were the first streamlined equipment purchased by the Rock Island, as well as being its first diesel-powered passenger trains. Four of the trains consisted of three cars each, the other two each had four cars. The

stainless steel Stainless steel is an alloy of iron that is resistant to rusting and corrosion. It contains at least 11% chromium and may contain elements such as carbon, other nonmetals and metals to obtain other desired properties. Stainless steel's corros ...

trains were each powered by an

Electro-Motive Corporation Progress Rail Locomotives, doing business as Electro-Motive Diesel (EMD), is an American manufacturer of diesel-electric locomotives, locomotive products and diesel engines for the rail industry. The company is owned by Caterpillar through its sub ...

model TA

locomotive A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the Power (physics), motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, Motor coach (rail), motor ...

. Unlike many other early streamlined trains, the locomotives were not permanently attached to the trains. The trains were

articulated An articulated vehicle is a vehicle which has a permanent or semi-permanent pivot joint in its construction, allowing it to turn more sharply. There are many kinds, from heavy equipment to buses, trams and trains. Steam locomotives were someti ...

except for the

observation car An observation car/carriage/coach (in US English, often abbreviated to simply observation or obs) is a type of railroad passenger car, generally operated in a passenger train as the rearmost carriage, with windows or a platform on the rear of th ...

s. Later, as the railroad streamlined more trains on more routes, the list of "Rocket" trains grew. The six trains as originally assigned were: *''The Peoria Rocket'',

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and the largest city on the Illinois River. As of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census, the city had a population of 113,150. It is the principal city of the Peoria ...

** Articulated 3 car set: *** 32 seat Baggage-dinette-coach #400 ''Joliet'' *** 60 seat coach #306 ''Ottawa'' *** 76 seat coach #300 ''La Salle'' ** 32 seat, 1 drawing room, parlor, buffet, observation car #450 ''Peoria'' *''The Des Moines Rocket'',

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...

** Articulated 3 car set: *** 32 seat Baggage-dinette-coach #401 ''Norman Judd'' *** 60 seat coach #307 ''Grenville Dodge'' *** 76 seat coach #301 ''Henry Farnum'' ** 32 seat, 1 drawing room, parlor, buffet, observation car #451 ''L M Allen'' Rock Island Rocket circa 1937

*''The Texas Rocket'',

Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. According ...

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, offering an alternate schedule on the route of the

Sam Houston Zephyr The ''Sam Houston Zephyr'' was a named passenger train operated by the Burlington-Rock Island Railroad, a subsidiary of both the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad and the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad. It was the first streamli ...

** Articulated 2 car set: *** 32 seat Baggage-dinette-coach #402 ''Dream Lake'' *** 76 seat coach #302 ''Mesa Verde'' ** 28 seat coach, lounge, observation car #452 ''Centennial'' *''The Denver Rocket'',

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 ...

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

for less than a year, then ''The Rocket'' from Kansas City to

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, and ...

from March, 1938 ** Articulated 2 car set: *** 32 seat Baggage-dinette-coach #403 ''Bear Lake'' *** 76 seat coach #303 ''Mount Evans'' ** 28 seat coach, lounge, observation car #453 ''Pikes Peak'' Kansas City Rocket 1940

*''The Kansas City Rocket'',

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

(2 trainsets) ** Articulated 2 car set: *** 18 seat Baggage-dinette-coach #404 ''Arrow Head'' *** 76 seat coach #304 ''Chippewa'' ** 28 seat coach, lounge, observation car #454 ''Minnesota'' ** Articulated 2 car set: *** 18 seat Baggage-dinette-coach #405 ''Mesabi'' *** 76 seat coach #305 ''Ioway'' ** 28 seat coach, lounge, observation car #455 ''Missouri''

References

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External links

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The ''Peoria Rocket''/The ''Des Moines Rocket'' - September, 1938 timetables and consists - from Streamliner Schedules
North American streamliner trains Articulated passenger trains Named passenger trains of the United States Rockets (1937) Diesel-electric vehicles Railway services introduced in 1937 Budd Company {{US-train-stub