The ''James Whitcomb Riley'' was a passenger train that operated between

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

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

, and

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wi ...

, via

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...

. Originally operated by the

New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Mid ...

, it was taken over by

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...

in 1971. Under Amtrak, it merged with the

Chesapeake & Ohio Railway The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway was a Class I railroad formed in 1869 in Virginia from several smaller Virginia railroads begun in the 19th century. Led by industrialist Collis P. Huntington, it reached from Virginia's capital city of Richmond t ...

's ''

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

'' to become a Chicago-

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

Newport News Newport News () is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the 5th most populous city in Virginia and 140th most populous city in the Uni ...

train. In 1977, it was renamed the '' Cardinal'', which remains in operation.

History

The ''James Whitcomb Riley'' was introduced by the New York Central on April 28, 1941, as a daytime, all-coach train between Chicago and Cincinnati by way of Indianapolis. It was named after the

Hoosier Hoosier is the official demonym for the people of the U.S. state of Indiana. The origin of the term remains a matter of debate, but "Hoosier" was in general use by the 1840s, having been popularized by Richmond resident John Finley's 1833 poem " ...

poet

James Whitcomb Riley James Whitcomb Riley (October 7, 1849 – July 22, 1916) was an American writer, poet, and best-selling author. During his lifetime he was known as the "Hoosier Poet" and "Children's Poet" for his dialect works and his children's poetry. His ...

, known for his celebration of

Americana Americana may refer to: *Americana (music), a genre or style of American music *Americana (culture), artifacts of the culture of the United States Film, radio and television * ''Americana'' (1992 TV series), a documentary series presented by J ...

. The ''Riley'' was a companion to the '' Mercury'' streamliners which operated on the Chicago-Detroit and Chicago–Cleveland routes. The ''Riley'' was retained by the

Penn Central The Penn Central Transportation Company, commonly abbreviated to Penn Central, was an American class I railroad that operated from 1968 to 1976. Penn Central combined three traditional corporate rivals (the Pennsylvania, New York Central and the ...

(as trains 303 and 304) after its formation from the merger of the New York Central and Pennsylvania Railroad, but in 1968 it petitioned the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) for permission to abandon the service, citing the loss of a mail contract and the

's termination of through sleepers on the Chicago–Newport News route. The ICC refused, and the ''Riley'' survived until the formation of

Amtrak

James Whitcomb Riley and Mountaineer 1975 map

James Whitcomb Riley in Charlottesville, March 1977

Amtrak, upon its 1971 commencement of operations, kept the ''Riley'' intact. During the summer, it began integrating the ''Riley'' with the ''

'', an old C&O sleeper running from Cincinnati to Washington, with a section splitting off at Charlottesville, Virginia to continue to

. The ''George'' began exchanging Washington-Chicago and Newport News-Chicago through

coaches Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

with the ''Riley'' at Cincinnati on July 12, and a through sleeping car began September 8. Earlier, the ''George'' had handed its sleepers to the ''Riley'' for most of the 1950s. With the November 14, 1971, schedule, the ''Riley'' and ''George Washington'' merged into a single long-distance Chicago-Washington/Newport News train. The merged train was known as the ''George Washington'' eastbound and the ''James Whitcomb Riley'' westbound. At the same time the route was extended from Washington to Boston, Massachusetts, and was assigned train numbers 50 eastbound and 51 westbound. On March 6, 1972, the train was rerouted from Chicago's

Central Station Central stations or central railway stations emerged in the second half of the nineteenth century as railway stations that had initially been built on the edge of city centres were enveloped by urban expansion and became an integral part of the ...

into

Union Station A union station (also known as a union terminal, a joint station in Europe, and a joint-use station in Japan) is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway companies, allowing passengers to ...

. On April 30, the northern terminus was truncated back to Washington. A broadcast by

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

's '' 60 Minutes'' in 1973 revealed that the ''Riley'' was limited to in Indiana due to deteriorating Penn Central track. In 1974 the ''Riley'' was re-routed off Penn Central trackage altogether along with the '' Floridian''. On May 19, 1974, the ''Washington'' and ''Riley'' were fully merged, with the ''Riley'' name now used in both directions. A new train, the ''

Mountaineer Mountaineering or alpinism, is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending tall mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, an ...

'' began service between Norfolk, Virginia (Lambert's Point Station), and Chicago (Union Station), in March 1975. It ran combined with the ''Riley'' between Russell Yard, the former C&O freight yard near Ashland, Kentucky, and Chicago. In October 1975, Main Street Station in Richmond, Virginia, closed and the ''Riley'' moved to the C&O depot at Ellerson, on the outskirts of Richmond. A bus connected passengers to Broad Street Station, which itself was soon replaced by Staples Mill Road Station. The section between Newport News and Charlottesville was discontinued on June 14, 1976. The ''

Colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

'' began running over its former route between Newport News and Richmond, continuing northward to Washington and New York. The ''Riley'' ran between Chicago and Washington, via Charlottesville. In 1977 the ''Mountaineer'' was replaced by the '' Hilltopper'', which ran between Washington and Cattlettsburg, where it connected with the ''Riley'' for Chicago. A connecting bus via Petersburg, Virginia, served Norfolk. The ''James Whitcomb Riley'' was renamed the ''Cardinal'' on October 30, 1977, as the cardinal was the state bird of all six states through which it ran. It was discontinued September 30, 1981 (by then having been extended to New York from Washington) and brought back by Congressional mandate on January 8, 1982.

References

External links

1971 Amtrak timetable

1975 Amtrak timetable
{{DEFAULTSORT:James Whitcomb Riley (Train) Named passenger trains of the United States Former Amtrak routes Passenger trains of the New York Central Railroad Night trains of the United States Railway services introduced in 1941 Railway services discontinued in 1977 Former long distance Amtrak routes