Railroad System Timetables
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 Last Update: 09.05.02

These timetables represent the heyday of railroads in their traditional sense. That is, moving people from one glorious destination to another, all in the plush and luxurious streamlined passenger cars glistening with stainless steel. In order to keep competitive with the ever-growing car and flight markets, RR companies put out attractive timetables that not only told what time to be where, but also slid in some clever yet subtle advertising. It is these that remind us of days gone by when names like Seaboard Coast Line and The Milwaukee Road were just as commonplace as Packard, Hudson, or even American Airlines, Pan Am, and the like (not that I am old enough to remember if such RR names were household names!). Sure, we have Amtrak now, but it is a far cry from what passenger rail service used to be.

You might notice that unlike my maps page, where each thumbnail image is a link to a larger one, this page does not have links associated with the thumbnails. Instead of using valuable disk space to store the larger images, I have chosen to bring to these pages a sampling of advertising from the timetables below. I think that will be a much better use of cyberspace; in addition, this plan is closer to my original intent of preserving this fast disappearing form of transportation.

Finally, a note about the changes these timetables make apparent. Looking at some of the earlier tables, we see lots of color on the covers, and plenty of advertising inside with a healthy dose of the RR's name splashed around. And they had adequate room to do it, too, for there were more than enough pages to go around. The examples from the later periods, like the Penn Central timetable, featured very little color, practically no advertisements, and a mere 12 pages. I envision that rail passenger service may return to the resplendent state it once revelled in. But only if Amtrak gets it in gear...but that's for another website.

These timetables are presented in chrological order.

New York Central
This is the first timetable in my collection. I've been keeping my eye out for timetables for a while, but then I saw this classy New York Central timetable from 1955, and I was hooked. Plus, I'm glad it was a NYC, because to me, the scenic Water Level Route embodied the romance and power that was northeastern railroading.

NYC | timetable (01/26/68) | Rules of the Operating Department

This timetable lists the below offices in the Dallas area. No zip code was given. It's interesting to point out the phone number given. Following the old format, you would dial the first two letters of the area (hence both letters are capitalized) then the following four number, for a total of six numbers.

New York Central DFW Offices:
1407 Kirby Building
Dallas, TX
Phone: RIverside 9138

Illinois Central
This timetable is dated April 29, 1962. I've always associated the Illinois Central with one of their most famous passenger trains, "City of New Orleans", which also brings to mind Willie Nelson's rendition of this old standard. This timetable claims a 28 hour jaunt for the City of New Orleans, which ran from Chicago to its namesake city.

IC | timetable (12/15/67)

This timetable lists the below offices in the Dallas area. No zip code was given. Here, we see another example of the old phone number format, but this time there is a "1" behind the area name, "RIverside." This means that after dialing the first two number of the area name, you would dial a "1", then the following four digits, and thus started the seven digit system that we are familiar with today.

Illinois Central DFW Offices:
1509 Main Street
1306 Kirby Building
Dallas, TX
Phone: RIverside 1-1184

Seaboard Air Line
No, this is not an airline company. This timetable is dated October 28, 1962, and advertises a complete package from New York to Florida for a 6 night 7 day stay for "As Little As $94.21". My, how times have changed...

SAL

No Dallas offices are listed in this timetable.

Erie Lackawanna
"The Friendly Service Route" is proudly scrawled on the front of this timetable, effective October 30, 1966. That's at 2:01 am, mind you. Something interesting about this timetable is a note at the end of the listing proper: "Trains 1 and 2 are subject to discontinuance. Application now pending before Interstate Commerce Commission. Consult Ticket Agent prior to date of travel."

EL | map

No Dallas offices are listed in this timetable.

New York, New Haven & Hartford
"Train yourself to Relax!" is plastered all over this April 30, 1967 timetable. Apparently, training for relaxation was fairly cheap, as a round trip between New York and New Haven is a mere $4.32.

NYNH&H

No Dallas offices are listed in this timetable.

Chicago, Burlington & Quincy
According to this timetable, snow skiing in 1967 was as popular as it is now. "Ski Colorado this winter and go Burlington" is printed on the back of this timetable. And to top it off, they feature a picture of a snow skier flying down the slopes. I wonder where that guy is now? Effective October 29, 1967.

CB&Q

This timetable lists the below offices in the Dallas area. This is particularly interesting, because not only does it give the area name, but it also gives an area code!

Chicago, Burlington & Quincy DFW Offices:
204 Union Station
Dallas, TX 75202
Phone: RIverside 8-9666 (Area 214)

Canadian National
Nothing too fancy about this CN timetable, effective October 29, 1967 to April 27, 1968. It does feature Grand Trunk Western times as well, since this was printed well after their 1920 merger.

CN

No Dallas offices are listed in this timetable.

Great Northern
The most famous Great Northern passenger train was the Empire Builder, and boy are they proud of it! And it is something to harp on, as the Empire Builder name lives on, thanks to Amtrak. Thie timetable is dated October 29, 1967.

GN

This timetable lists the below offices in the Dallas area. It seems to me that a lot of railroads set up camp in the Kirby Building. If I ever find out where it is (if it still exists), I'll be heading there with a smile on my face.

Great Northern DFW Offices:
1525 Kirby Bldg.
Dallas, TX 75201
Phone: RIverside 8-3276

Norfolk & Western
This rather plain time table is dated October 29, 1967, like so many others in my collection. This was printed just three years after N&W acquired the Wabash and others.

NW

This timetable lists the below offices in the Dallas area. Yet another listing for the popular Kirby Building. Also note the lack of area name, with just an area code given.

Norfolk & Western DFW Offices:
1208 Kirby Bldg.
Dallas, TX 75201
Phone: 214 747-2421

Union Pacific
This timetable (again, dated October 29, 1967) has aged yellow pages and a musty smell. While the other smaller railroad's timetables seemed to age fairly well, this one did not so much. Surprising, since UP was one of the largest (and still is!) RRs operating back then. You'd think they would have money pouring out of their pockets--at least enough to put out a decent timetable. Nonetheless, it is this aged beauty which gives it its charm, more so than the others. "Whenever you ship or travel, be specific--say Union Pacific!"

UP | map

This timetable lists the below offices in the Dallas area. Another interesting phone number format from UP. This time, the area code is combined with the area name.

Norfolk & Western DFW Offices:
2108 Mercantile Bank Bldg.
Dallas, TX 75201
Phone: (214)RIverside 1-3915

Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific
This rather small timetable was an unfortunate result of the dwindling number of rail passengers and their accompanying services. For example, the New York Central timetable from 1955 sports 96 pages of sheer bulk. This Milwaukee Road timetable has a paltry total of 8 pages. Of course, everybody knows of the famous Hiawatha trains and their streamlined 4-4-0s chugging away at upwards of 90 MPH. What a sight that must have been.

CMStP&P | map

This timetable lists no offices in the DFW area (due to its size, I'm sure).

Illinois Central
Here we have another Illinois Central timetable, dated December 15, 1967. I don't have too much to say about it.

IC | timetable (04/29/62)

This timetable lists no offices in the DFW area (due to its size, I'm sure).

Seaboard Coast Line
Effective December 15, 1967. This gives a good indication of inflation. Whereas the Seaboard Air Line's timetable from 1962 which gave a round-trip price between New York and Florida, including 7 days, 6 nights at a hotel, for $94.21, this timetable claims the same trip, minus the week-long hotel stay, for $88.28. These were the good old days when prices didn't end in "99" cents.

SCL

Unlike its SAL counterpart, this timetable lists the following offices in the DFW area. Plus, it's a little refreshing to have a listing other than the Kirby building.

Seaboard Coast Line DFW Offices:
Stemmons Tower West
Suite 701
Dallas, TX 75207

New York Central
Another sad sign of changing times. This January 26, 1968 timetable makes no mention of the famous 20th Century Limited. Also, it lists changeover to other railraods (the Delaware & Hudson, for example) in order to complete service. The other NYC timetable lists NYC service all the way between your origin and destination. This timetable is a special one, because it was effective 5 days before the NYC/PRR merger to form Penn Central, after which this mighty railroad spiraled downward into oblivion.

NYC | timetable (10/30/55) | Rules of the Operating Department

This timetable lists no offices in the DFW area. Of course, there isn't any room to list offices on its 12 pages.

Chesapeake & Ohio/Baltimore & Ohio
Ah, the Chessie System. One of my first model train locomotives was adorned with the famous kitten, Chessie. This February 7, 1968 timetable promises a "delicious meal in a modern C&O/B&O food bar coach for less than $1.00." Can't beat that. It also displays a picture of St. Louis' "new addition", the Gateway Arch.

CO | map | autoferry schedule

This timetable lists no offices in the DFW area.

Lousville & Nashville
Timetable effective April 28, 1968. It claims "computer telecommunications" for its rail services. I wonder what that means?

LN

This timetable lists no offices in the DFW area.

Penn Central
To me, Penn Central has always been the black sheep. Here they had two mighty RRs, the New York Central system and the Pennsylvania Railroad, and they mashed them together to make a dysfunctional company that took it on the chin. Oh well, and so it goes. This April 28, 1968 timetable was printed almost 3 months after the ill-fated merger.

PC

This timetable lists no offices in the DFW area.

Western Pacific
The famed Feather River route, "The best way of all to see the best of the west!" This timetable from April 28, 1968, features live color photos of people having fun in WP's Vista-Dome cars, a rarity in timetables from this time (the photos, not the cars). It is almost laughable, because you can tell that the pictures were not taken in front of the panoramic views they depict. Rather, they were taken in front of matte paintings. If I get some time, I'll post them to my website.

WP

This timetable lists no offices in the DFW area.

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