TheScott Special, also known as theCoyote Special, theDeath Valley Coyote or theDeath Valley Scotty Special, was a one-time, record-breakingpassenger train operated by theAtchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (Santa Fe) fromLos Angeles, California, toChicago, Illinois, at the request ofWalter E. Scott, known as "Death Valley Scotty". At the time of its transit in 1905, theScott Special made the 2,265-mile (3,645 km) trip^[1] between the two cities at the fastest speed recorded to date; in doing so, it established the Santa Fe as the leader in high-speed travel between Chicago and the West Coast. TheScott Special made the trip in 44 hours and 54 minutes^[2] breaking the previous records, set in 1900 by thePeacock Special, by 13 hours and 2 minutes,^[3] and in 1903 by theLowe Special, by 7 hours and 55 minutes.^[4] Santa Fe's regular passenger service from Los Angeles to Chicago at the time was handled on a 2½-day schedule by theCalifornia Limited. It was not until the 1936 introduction of theSuper Chief that Santa Fe trains would regularly exceed the speeds seen on theScott Special.

Death Valley Scotty (September 20, 1872 – January 5, 1954) had used some ore samples that he collected nearCripple Creek,Colorado, as a ruse to convince some bankers in 1902 that he had a claim on a high-grade ore mine in Death Valley. By 1905 he had conned the banks out of nearly$10,000, equal to $349,963 today. Another con he ran in 1905 earned Scott an additional $4,000. It was then that he met E. Burdon Gaylord, the owner of the Big Bell mine. Gaylord needed a flashy way to promote his mine and Scott sought the money behind the mine; the two formed a partnership in which Gaylord would finance Scott and Scott would promote the mine like no other.

After a few high-priced and newsworthy train trips around thesouthwest, Scott met with the Santa Fe's General Passenger Agent, J. J. Byrne, at the railroad's office in Los Angeles on July 8, 1905. Once Scott (who had already travelled cross-country on the Santa Fe some thirty-two times) got in to talk to Byrne, the arrangements were made, thanks to a deposit from Scott of $5,500 in cash.^[5] The two agreed on a 46-hour schedule from Los Angeles to Chicago that would begin the following day.^[6][7]

The passenger list for the train was a mere four people: Scott himself, his wife, F. N. Holman, and Charles E. Van Loan, a writer for theLos Angeles Examiner (and one who was adept at helping Scotty create his "miner" persona, inflating the amounts Scotty really spent while "promoting" his "mine"). The schedule involved operating a threecar train across the system, led by no less than 19 different locomotives. The engineers of these locomotives came to be known as the "Nervy Nineteen".^[7]

The special train consisted of three passenger cars pulled by one locomotive. The three cars used werebaggage car #210,dining car #1407, andPullmanMuskegon. Altogether, the three cars weighed a total of 170 short tons (155 metric tons).^[8] While the three cars remained constant throughout the run of theScott Special, the locomotive did not. In order to prevent delays on the trip as the train would need to stop for water and fuel, nineteen locomotives were prepared along the route so that as one reached the end of its supplies, it would relay the three cars off to the next fully fueled and ready locomotive to continue the run. For the more strenuous grades overCajon Pass in California andRaton Pass inNew Mexico andColorado,helpers were added to get the train up and over the summits. At various points throughout the run, problems such ashotboxes did occur, or in one instance a complete mechanical failure of the locomotive, but in each case, the train's crew was able to get the train to the next relay point, and they usually arrived ahead of schedule.

The special departed from Santa Fe'sLa Grande Station in Los Angeles at 1:00 pmPacific Time on July 9, 1905. The locomotive and three cars left the station and the cheering crowds, estimated at 20,000 people,^[7] and began its run eastward. The number of people at La Grande Station is remarkable in itself since the train's schedule was planned only one day before the event; the Santa Fe used the train as an opportunity to publicize itself and got the word out to news agencies across the railroad's territory.

Inrail transport terminology, theScott Special operated as an "extra" train. Normally such trains are not allowed any special considerations for schedule and are switched intosidings to clear the main line for the railroad's regularly scheduled trains. For this run, however, the special was afforded rights over all of the railroad's regular trains; all other trains were required to clear the main line no less than one hour before the special was scheduled to pass. As most of the Santa Fe was still a single-track railroad, this meant that quite a few regular trains were put into sidings to wait for the special. This accommodation, along with the numerous locomotive changes en route helped to ensure that the train would arrive in Chicago within the 46-hour schedule.

The first locomotive and crew change occurred inBarstow after the train had passed throughCajon Pass. At one point after passing Cajon summit, the train was clocked at 96 mph (155 km/h). The locomotive and crew were again changed successively atNeedles,Seligman,Williams,Winslow andGallup before the train arrived inAlbuquerque, New Mexico, at 9:30 am on July 10.

To crossRaton Pass, locomotives and crews were changed atLas Vegas,Raton andLa Junta. From La Junta, the train was powered by a succession of4-4-2 type locomotives that were swapped across the plains in theKansas cities ofSyracuse,Dodge City,Newton,Emporia, andArgentine andMarceline,Missouri, to theMississippi River crossing at Shopton,Iowa, nearFort Madison. Locomotive 530 was scheduled to take the train completely between Dodge City and Newton, but a burstcylinder head in Kent, Kansas, necessitated adding locomotive 1095 for the 26 miles (42 km) between Kent and Newton.^[10]

En route, Scott and his guests enjoyed the finest meals that theFred Harvey Company had to offer. Menu selections included such luxurious offerings ascaviar, icedconsommé, and Porterhouse steakà la Coyote.^[12]

One more locomotive and crew took the train toChillicothe where it made its final locomotive change for the last leg intoChicago. Engineer Charles Losee piloted the train for its entire run acrossIllinois, at an average speed of 60 mph (97 km/h),^[13] staying aboard the train during the locomotive change in Chillicothe. The train officially arrived atDearborn Station at 11:54 amCentral Time on July 11.^[14][15]

The speed record set by theScott Special stood for many years and was not beaten in regular service until the introduction of theSuper Chief in 1936. What makes theScott Special especially remarkable is that it was run under normal operating conditions:

[The] run was made under normal conditions of track, motive power, and equipment, and practically on a moment's notice. No racing machines were used. The locomotives were the plain, everyday kind, taken from regular runs and manned by employees taking their regular turn. To be sure, the main line was kept clear, and even the exclusiveCalifornia Limited put on the side track. TheScott Special had the right-of-way. That was the only favor shown it, though the engineers understood they had permission to 'let her out a few notches', and they did so, when they could with safety.

^[16]

In 1955, on the 50th anniversary of theScott Special's 1905 run, the event was re-enacted for thesyndicated televisionanthology series,Death Valley Days, hosted byStanley Andrews. The production crew reused Santa Fe locomotive number1010, the2-6-2 locomotive that was used in the original run betweenNeedles, California, andSeligman,Arizona (and the only unit still on Santa Fe's active roster). Robert Hinze, a fireman on the originalScott Special, was on hand to aid in the recreation as the replica train worked overCajon Pass in California.^[17] In October 1984, the Santa Fe donated locomotive 1010 to theCalifornia State Railroad Museum, where it remains on static display.^[18][19]In October 2023, CSRM announced that 1010 will undergo restoration to operating condition, although the locomotive is still on display as fundraising is underway.^[20]

The 100th anniversary of theScott Special was commemorated with localized events and interpretive displays along the train's route sponsored by various historical organizations. One such display was shown atJoliet,Illinois, by the Blackhawk Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society; theScott Special passed Joliet just after 11:00 am on July 11, 1905.^[21]

Amtrak's dailySouthwest Chief follows nearly the same route as theScott Special. As of 2006, theSouthwest Chief makes the journey in just under 43 hours, departing Los AngelesUnion Station at 6:45 pm Pacific Time, and scheduled to arrive at ChicagoUnion Station at 3:20 pm Central Time on the second day of the trip.^[22]

Other thanSanta Fe 1010, at least one of the cars from the Scott Special train it pulled survives today. Santa Fe dining car #1407 now resides at Stevinson, California in the San Joaquin Valley along with other antique passenger cars from the 1910s. It was reunited with 1010 briefly during the 1955 recreation of the special forDeath Valley Days, and has since been converted into a business observation car (also used as a radio testing car).^[23]

• Passenger train service on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
• Scotty's Castle

• Abbey, Wallace W. (February 5, 1953)."The Wild Ride of Death Valley Scotty"(Reprinted fromTrains & Travel magazine, February 1953).Needles, California:Needles Desert Star. p. 2. RetrievedApril 5, 2023.
• Armitage, Merle (1986) [1973].Homage to the Santa Fe. Hawthorne, California: Omni Publications. pp. 87–92.
• Bryant, Keith L. Jr. (1974).History of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. Trans-Anglo Books, Glendale, CA.ISBN 0-8032-6066-0.
• Duke, Donald (1997).Santa Fe...The Railroad Gateway to the American West, Volume 2.San Marino, CA:Golden West Books.ISBN 0-87095-110-6.
• Signor, John R., compiler (2006). "Death Valley Scotty's 'Coyote Special'".The Warbonnet.12 (1):17–29.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
• "The Record Breaking Run of theScott Special: Los Angeles to Chicago in 44 hours & 54 minutes".Central Pacific Railroad Museum. RetrievedMarch 20, 2006.
• Waters, Leslie L. (1950).Steel Trails to Santa Fe.Lawrence, Kansas:University of Kansas Press. pp. 389–392.

• Miller, Harry I. (1980).The Mad 2265 Mile Dash of the Scott Special. Black Cat Press. ASIN B0006XPI44.

• Death Valley Scotty's Mine (1912) atIMDb.
• Death Valley Days: Death Valley Scotty (1955) atIMDb.

• Passenger trains of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
• High-speed rail in the United States
• Named passenger trains of the United States
• 1905 in rail transport
• Death Valley

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