California Zephyr

TheCalifornia Zephyr on theAltamont Pass in 1970
Overview
Service type	Inter-city rail
Locale	Western United States
Predecessor	Exposition Flyer
First service	March 20, 1949
Last service	March 22, 1970
Successor	Rio Grande Zephyr
Former operators	Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad Burlington Northern Railroad (during March 1970) Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad Western Pacific Railroad
Route
Termini	Chicago,Illinois Oakland,California Oakland Mole/Oakland Long Wharf (to 1958) Western Pacific Depot (after 1958)
Stops	33
Distance travelled	2,433 miles (3,916 km) (1954, Oakland Mole)[1]
Average journey time	481⁄4 hours (1954, Oakland Mole)[1]
Service frequency	Daily
Technical
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)
Route map Legend 0 mi 0 km Chicago 38 mi 61 km Aurora 83 mi 134 km Mendota 131 mi 211 km Kewanee 162 mi 261 km Galesburg Mississippi River IL IA 206 mi 332 km Burlington 233 mi 375 km Mount Pleasant 255 mi 410 km Fairfield 280 mi 451 km Ottumwa 393 mi 632 km Creston Missouri River IA NE 496 mi 798 km Omaha 551 mi 887 km Lincoln 648 mi 1043 km Hastings 779 mi 1254 km McCook NE CO 1034 mi 1664 km Denver CBQ DRGW 1219 mi 1962 km Glenwood Springs 1308 mi 2105 km Grand Junction CO UT 1387 mi 2232 km Thompson Springs 1485 mi 2390 km Helper 1560 mi 2511 km Provo 1604 mi 2581 km Salt Lake City DRGW WP 1726 mi 2778 km Wendover UT NV 1867 mi 3005 km Elko 2002 mi 3222 km Winnemucca 2094 mi 3370 km Gerlach NV CA 2160 mi 3476 km Herlong 2211 mi 3558 km Portola 2251 mi 3623 km Keddie 2327 mi 3745 km Oroville 2353 mi 3787 km Marysville 2393 mi 3851 km Sacramento 2438 mi 3924 km Stockton 2491 mi 4009 km Pleasanton 2502 mi 4027 km Fremont 2525 mi 4064 km Oakland motor coach transfer Oakland Pier until 1958 ferry transfer 2532 mi 4075 km San Francisco This diagram: view talk edit

TheCalifornia Zephyr was apassenger train that ran betweenChicago, Illinois, andOakland, California, viaOmaha,Denver,Salt Lake City,Winnemucca,Oroville andPleasanton in the United States. It was operated by theChicago, Burlington & Quincy (CB&Q),Denver & Rio Grande Western (D&RGW) andWestern Pacific (WP) railroads, all of which dubbed it "the most talked about train in America" on March 19, 1949, with the first departure the following day. The train was scheduled to pass through the most spectacular scenery on its route in the daylight. The original train ceased operation in 1970, though the D&RGW continued to operate its own passenger service, theRio Grande Zephyr, between Salt Lake City and Denver, using theoriginal equipment until 1983. In 1983 a second iteration of theCalifornia Zephyr, anAmtrak service, was formed. The current version of theCalifornia Zephyr operates partially over the route of the originalZephyr and partially over the route of its former rival, theCity of San Francisco.

In 1939, theGolden Gate International Exposition opened onTreasure Island inSan Francisco Bay. The CB&Q, D&RGW and WP decided to operate a train that could take passengers to the event. Service on theExposition Flyer began on June 10, 1939. In the beginning, the train used steam locomotives as motive power and consisted of heavyweightPullman standard cars. In later years, the train used diesel power and in the final months of service usedstreamlined passenger cars. Initially, the service was to be temporary, but its popularity made it a significant rival to theCity of San Francisco, the Chicago-Oakland train operated jointly by theChicago & North Western,Union Pacific andSouthern Pacific, and it remained in operation until 1949. The CB&Q, D&RGW and Western Pacific replaced theExposition Flyer in 1949 with the all-streamlinedCalifornia Zephyr, which used the same route.

In its original run, theCalifornia Zephyr operated over theChicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad (Burlington Route) from Chicago toDenver, Colorado, theDenver and Rio Grande Western Railroad between Denver andSalt Lake City, Utah, and theWestern Pacific Railroad from Salt Lake City to Oakland, California. Cars owned by different railroads ran together; cars cycled in and out for service, repairs, and varying passenger loads with the seasons.

The first train was named in San Francisco byEleanor Parker, but the WP entered it in the same way that others entered New York City: by ferry, and not by rail.California Lieutenant GovernorGoodwin Knight, mayor of San FranciscoElmer Robinson, and WP PresidentHarry A. Mitchell looked on. For the inaugural run in 1949, every woman on the train was given silver and orangeorchids flown fromHilo, Hawaii. The car hostesses were known asZephyrettes.^[2]

In May 1954, the scheduled run for the 2,537 miles from Chicago to San Francisco was 50 hours and 50 minutes.^[1] An eastboundCalifornia Zephyr throughRuby Canyon saw the train's first birth on March 1, 1955, when Reed Zars was born on board.

Knowing that they could not begin to compete with the faster and less-rugged route used by theCity of San Francisco, the Burlington Route, Rio Grande and Western Pacific billed theCalifornia Zephyr as a scenic "rail cruise" through the Rockies.

• Route portions:
• 
  The Western Pacific operated the western portion of the route betweenOakland andSalt Lake City. This image shows the train in Altamont, California, prior to the train's first run in 1949.
• 
  The Rio Grande operated the middle portion of the route betweenSalt Lake City andDenver. This image shows locomotive #5771, which began operating the California Zephyr route in 1955, and would later operate on the subsequentRio Grande Zephyr, as it sits restored at theColorado Railroad Museum.
• 
  The Burlington Route operated the eastern portion of the route, betweenDenver andChicago. This postcard from the early 1950s shows the train passingGalesburg, Illinois.

The brainchild of Velma McPeek, the Burlington's Supervisor of Passenger Train Services, the Zephyrettes were train hostesses who performed a wide variety of roles, from tour guide to first-aid responder to babysitter. After debuting on theDenver Zephyr in 1936, they served on theCalifornia Zephyr from 1949 until it was discontinued in 1970.^[3] Described by former Zephyrette Julie Ann Lyman as "the railroad's answer to theair line stewardess",^[4] the various duties of the position included welcoming passengers, making announcements, sending telegrams, making dinner reservations, and generally serving as a liaison between the train's passengers and its crew. At any one time, there were 10 or 11 Zephyrettes who were actively employed.^[3] When Amtrak revived theCalifornia Zephyr in 1983, it invited a former Zephyrette, Beulah Bauman, to christen the train.^[5]

A pair of the Western Pacific'sBudd Rail Diesel Cars (RDCs), replacements for theRoyal Gorge (trains No. 1 and 2), also used the nameZephyrette.^[6]: 26 From September 15, 1950, to October 2, 1960, they were in service betweenOakland, California, andSalt Lake City, a distance of 924 miles (1,487 km),^[7] which made the route the longest RDC service in the United States.^[8][9][10]

The last portion of route using the bay ferries ended in 1958 and replaced by bus service.

The opening of theSan Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge andSan Francisco Transbay Terminal in 1930s offered alternative rail connections directly into San Francisco until the 1950s. Declining rail ridership prompted ending rail connection and even the Transbay Terminal became a bus depot.

TheCalifornia Zephyr was not immune to falling passenger travel in the 1960s; moreover, it began to lose money even when sold out. The Western Pacific applied to discontinue its portion in 1966, but theInterstate Commerce Commission (ICC) refused after public outcry. The D&RGW made the same request in 1969 and in 1970 the ICC permitted Western Pacific to end its portion, provided the D&RGW andBurlington Northern Railroad provide "some semblance of [service]" between Chicago andOgden, Utah. The last westboundCalifornia Zephyr to the west coast left Chicago on March 22, 1970, and arrived in Oakland two days later. The originalCalifornia Zephyr had operated for 21 years and 2 days. East of Salt Lake City the train was reduced to a tri-weekly schedule, operating asCalifornia Service on the Burlington Northern and as theRio Grande Zephyr on the Rio Grande. The Rio Grande portion of the train was extended beyond Salt Lake toOgden, Utah, allowing Nevada and California passengers to connect to theSouthern Pacific Railroad'sCity of San Francisco. This continued until the creation of Amtrak on May 1, 1971.^[11]

Amtrak intended to revive theCalifornia Zephyr as part its original route network in 1971, using the Burlington Northern east of Denver, the Rio Grande between Denver and Ogden, and theSouthern Pacific west ofOgden, Utah. At the last minute, the Rio Grande refused to join Amtrak, fearing the new company's passenger trains would interfere with profitable freight traffic. This forced Amtrak to use the Union Pacific'sOverland Route through southern Wyoming instead of going across Colorado. Between the spring of 1971 and the summer of 1972, passengers traveling between Chicago and Oakland would have to travel on two different trains: theDenver Zephyr, which operated daily between Chicago and Denver, and theCity of San Francisco, which operated three times a week between Denver and the San Francisco Bay Area. Eventually, however, after several false starts, Amtrak consolidated the two trains into one, dubbed theSan Francisco Zephyr in homage to both theCalifornia Zephyr and theSan Francisco Chief between Chicago and Oakland. The Rio Grande continued to operate theRio Grande Zephyr between Denver and Ogden.^[12]

In 1983 the D&RGW elected to join Amtrak, citing increasing losses in passenger operations. Amtrak re-routed theSan Francisco Zephyr over the D&RGW'sMoffat Subdivision between Denver and Salt Lake City, its original preference from 1971. The change was scheduled for April 25, but amudslide atThistle, Utah, closed the line and delayed the change until July 16. With the change of route, Amtrak renamed the train as theCalifornia Zephyr.^[13][14] The modernCalifornia Zephyr uses mostly the same route as the original east ofWinnemucca, Nevada. The train uses the route of the formerCity of San Francisco, along theOverland Route (First transcontinental railroad), betweenElko, Nevada, and Sacramento. Across central Nevada, the two rail lines have been combined under owner Union Pacific to usedirectional running. As such, the exact spot the train switches lines depend on the direction of travel.^[15]

Both the current and original iterations of theCalifornia Zephyr operate onChicago, Burlington and Quincy (today part ofBNSF Railway) between Chicago and Denver, and the formerDenver and Rio Grande Western main line from Denver to Salt Lake City, following the famousMoffat TunnelRoute until the Dotsero cutoff. (Today part ofUnion Pacific Railroad'sCentral Corridor). West of Salt Lake City both iterations departed Salt Lake on theShafter Subdivision of the formerWestern Pacific Railroad and crossed much of Nevada using theElko Subdivision.

The routes of the two iterations of the California Zephyr diverge at the rail junction ofWeso, Nevada (nearWinnemucca). The current iteration uses theOverland Route from this point west, the route used by theCity of San Francisco. The originalCalifornia Zephyr used theFeather River Route as its path through the Sierra Nevada. Instead of passing through Reno, the originalZephyr was routed viaGerlach, Nevada, and in California passed throughPortola,Oroville,Sacramento,Stockton andPleasanton before arriving at the Oakland depot.^[16] The Feather River Route is still in use for freight; however, no longer hosts a regularly scheduled passenger service. This portion of the route mostly parallelsState Route 70.

The Oakland terminal was originally theSouthern Pacific Mole,^[17] where a ferry service was available to San Francisco.^[16] After July 1958, trains terminated at theWestern Pacific Depot.^[17]

TheBudd Company manufactured six ten-car trainsets; three went to the Burlington, two to the Western Pacific and one to the Rio Grande. In line with the train's sightseeing schedule, each set included five of the new "Vista-Domes" (three coaches, a dormitory-lounge, and a sleeper-observation car). TheCalifornia Zephyr was the first long-distance train to carry domes in regular service.^[2] In addition, each consist included a baggage car, a dining car, a 16-section sleeping car and three 10-roomette 6-double bedroom sleeping cars. ThePennsylvania Railroad owned a single 10-roomette 6-double bedroom sleeping car, theSilver Rapids, which was used for through service toNew York City.^[19]

Each car was named: all names began with "Silver…" with each type of car having a different theme; the baggage cars were named after animals, the dome coaches had a western theme, the lounge and dining cars had a catering theme, the 16-section cars were named after trees, the 10-6 cars carried names associated with the suffixes used for types of Pullman sleeping cars, while the observation cars' names emphasized their domes.

The forward section of the first Vista-Dome car was partitioned off and reserved for women and children. A door was located in the corridor under the dome just behind the women's restroom to allow access to the reserved section. Early on, this reserved section was opened up to all passengers and the door and partitions were removed. Ownership of the cars was split between the three railroads almost evenly across all car types. Each car was owned by one railroad, but the ownership of the cars in any one day's train depended more on what was available at the terminals than whose railroad the train was operating over.

Generally positioned as the second Vista-Dome coach was the car referred to as the "Conductor's Car". This car was like the other Vista-Dome coaches, except a small booth with a bench seat and desk for the conductor was located in the B end.

In 1952 another type of Pullman sleeper (6-double bedrooms 5-compartments) was added to eachconsist; they ran as the leading sleeping car as line CZ16 and carried the names of birds as their "Silver…" theme. In addition, the Burlington bought another observation car, another 16-section car, and two 10-6 cars. With the new cars delivered that year, cars arriving in Chicago on theCalifornia Zephyr were made available for use on theAk-Sar-Ben Zephyr for an overnight round trip toLincoln, Nebraska. When the cars returned from Lincoln the next day, they were placed back in the westboundCalifornia Zephyr's consist for the next train out of Chicago that afternoon.^[20][21]

The Pennsylvania Railroad's transcontinental sleeping car to and from New York was eliminated in October 1957, owing to declining ridership.^[22]

During the winter 1963–1964 season, all seven 16-section cars were withdrawn and rebuilt as 48-seat (non-dome) coaches. They went back into service carrying the same names and were placed between the baggage car and the dome coaches as line CZ23. The Burlington renumbered their cars but the Rio Grande and Western Pacific retained the existing fleet numbers on their cars.

The high-quality Budd-built cars of theCalifornia Zephyr have proven to be popular with private car owners. Several operate in private charter service on Amtrak, including dome-observation carSilver Solarium,^[23] dome-coachSilver Lariat, sleepersSilver Rapids andSilver Quail and adome lounge now known as theSierra Hotel. In 2018, theSilver Lariat,Silver Solarium,Silver Rapids and the baggage carSilver Peak were sold to theCuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad outside Cleveland, Ohio and entered service there in September 2018.^[24]

Seven museums currently hold equipment once used on theCalifornia Zephyr:

• The largest collection of preserved equipment can be found inPortola, California, at theWestern Pacific Railroad Museum. One locomotive and four cars are currently preserved there as part of the museum's "Zephyr Project" restoration program.Western Pacific 805-A is the last intact locomotive built specifically for theCalifornia Zephyr. The cars include dome-loungeSilver Hostel, dome coachesSilver Lodge andSilver Rifle (on long-term loan from theGolden Gate Railroad Museum) and the dinerSilver Plate.
• TheHeart of Dixie Railroad Museum inCalera,Alabama, owns^[25] theSilver Maple (ex-CB&Q 400 [sleeper], rebuilt 1963 to chair car configuration, CB&Q 4742) now numbered 4741. TheSilver Maple is used in regular excursion service.
• TheIllinois Railway Museum owns several Burlington locomotives that were used to pull the train on occasion, Rio Grande dome coachSilver Pony, and WP baggage carSilver Beaver.
• TheColorado Railroad Museum has two Rio Grande locomotives that also sawCalifornia Zephyr and laterRio Grande Zephyr service.
• TheGold Coast Railroad Museum inFlorida owns two formerWestern Pacific RailroadCalifornia Zephyr cars: baggage carSilver Stag and dome-observation carSilver Crescent.
• TheAvon Park Depot Museum inFlorida owns one former Western PacificCalifornia Zephyr car: theSilver Palm, originally a sleeper car, is now a buffet dining car used by the museum for dinner parties. The car was converted to its buffet car state by theAuto-Train Corporation when it bought the car.^[26]
• The Austin Steam Train Association, which operates the Austin & Texas Central Railroad in the Hill Country between Cedar Park and Burnet, has completed its restoration of theSilver Pine. Originally a 16-section sleeper manufactured in 1948 by theBudd Company, the coach car re-entered revenue service in 2011 for the first time since its Denver & Rio Grande Western days.

Three diner cars were in revenue service with Amtrak as of 2015, but are now retired.

A non-functional replica of theCalifornia Zephyr was displayed atDisney California Adventure Park inAnaheim, California. It housed Baker's Field Bakery and Bur-r-r Bank ice cream counter cafes at theSunshine Plaza main entrance. The exhibit closed on July 31, 2011, as part of the park's $1.1 billion overhaul. Disney gave the replica to theWestern Pacific Railroad Museum inPortola, California.^[27]

Hank Williams' 1956 single "California Zephyr" is likely his take on the traditional "Wabash Cannonball," made famous by his heroRoy Acuff; the melody and references to American cities and towns are strikingly similar.^{[citation needed]}

Jack Kerouac's 1962 novelBig Sur opens with a trip to California on the train:^[28]

...I had sneaked into San Francisco as I say, coming 3,000 miles from my home in Long Island (Northport) in a pleasant roomette on the California Zephyr train watching American roll by outside my private picture window, really happy for the first time in three years, staying in the roomette all three days and three nights with my instant coffee and sandwiches...

Ben Gibbard andJay Farrar’s 2009 music albumOne Fast Move or I'm Gone and the associated documentary of the same name are based on Kerouac's novelBig Sur. The record opens with a song called “California Zephyr.”^[29]

Grant Hart (ofHüsker Dü fame) wrote a song called "California Zephyr" for his 2009 albumHot Wax. The song may be a paean togay liberation, especially following theAIDS epidemic.^[30]

• Kisor, Henry (1995).Zephyr: Tracking A Dream Across America. HarperCollins Publishers, New York, NY.ISBN 978-1-55850-477-6.
• Kelly, John (2017).The California Zephyr: An Entertaining History of America's Most Celebrated Train Route. Hudson, WI: Enthusiast Books.ISBN 9781583883471.
• "The Zephyrettes".California Zephyr Virtual Museum. RetrievedMay 28, 2006.
• Sanders, Craig (2006).Amtrak in the Heartland. Bloomington, Indiana:Indiana University Press.ISBN 978-0-253-34705-3.
• Schafer, Mike; Welsh, Joe (1997).Classic American Streamliners. Osceola, Wisconsin:MotorBooks International.ISBN 978-0-7603-0377-1.
• Wayner, Robert J., ed. (1972).Car Names, Numbers and Consists. New York: Wayner Publications.OCLC 8848690.
• Zimmermann, Karl (2004).Burlington's Zephyrs. Saint Paul, Minnesota:MBI Publishing Company.ISBN 978-0-7603-1856-0.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toCalifornia Zephyr.

• California Zephyr Museum Online
• TheCalifornia Zephyr, Legendary Passenger Train of the West

• Passenger trains of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
• Passenger trains of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
• Passenger trains of the Western Pacific Railroad
• Union Pacific Railroad
• Passenger rail transportation in Illinois
• Passenger rail transportation in Iowa
• Passenger rail transportation in Nebraska
• Passenger rail transportation in Colorado
• Passenger rail transportation in Utah
• Passenger rail transportation in Nevada
• Passenger rail transportation in California
• Named passenger trains of the United States
• Night trains of the United States
• Railway services introduced in 1949
• Railway services discontinued in 1970
• North American streamliner trains

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