History of the Lake Shore Limited

Amtrak's Lake Shore Limited can actually trace its history to long before Amtrak had ever even been a thought.  The New York Central Railroad, which came to be over a century before Amtrak, started running a train named the Lake Shore Limited in 1897.  Similar to today's train, there was a separate section to Boston.  Additionally, there was also another section to St. Louis, from Chicago.  The Lake Shore Limited was the New York Central's first luxury train, however it is often forgotten about.  It paved the way for a much more famous train, known as the 20th Century Limited, which is the more remembered train.  Under the New York Central, the Lake Shore Limited operated until October 1956.  It was eliminated as part of a system wide reorganization project.

The observation car on the 20th Century Limited, seen at Englewood, IL,
in 1962.  Photo from www.railpictures.net.

Before the New York Central ran the Lake Shore Limited, they ran a train called the Exposition Flyer.  This train ran between New York and Chicago during the Chicago World's Fair, also known as the World's Columbian Exposition, which was held in 1893.  The Exposition Flyer made the trip in 20 hours, a considerable speed for its time.  When it began service, it was actually the fastest train in the world, for the distance it covered.  This train followed a route known as the Lake Shore Route, or the Water Level Route.  The route of the New York Central earned this nickname because as it went west, it first followed the Hudson River, out of New York, then the Mohawk River, then the Erie Canal, and then it followed the shores of Lake Erie and Lake Michigan to Chicago.  For a route that crossed the Appalachian Mountains, it was a considerably flat route, allowing trains to operate at higher speeds.  The geography of this route, and the relatively flat profile, is what have made this route an important route to this day.

Several years after the Exposition Flyer, the New York Central introduced the Lake Shore Limited.  This was their first luxury train, and though the schedule was slower than the previous Exposition Limited, it proved to be successful.  It 1897, when the train was inaugurated, it boasted a 24 hour travel time between New York and Chicago, and 26 hours between Boston and Chicago.  This train, while often forgotten, was an important train for the New York Central, because it led the way for the extremely successful 20th Century Limited, which was inaugurated five years later, in 1902.

Passengers relax in the lounge on the 20th Century
Limited.  Image from www.answers.com.

The Lake Shore Limited began a race, with the rival Pennsylvania Railroad.  The race was never official, but there was a fierce competition between the two railroads to offer better, faster, and more reliable trains between New York and Chicago.  Other railroads also participated in this competition, but it was most fierce between the New York Central and the Pennsylvania Railroad.  When the New York Central inaugurated the 20th Century Limited, in 1902, the Pennsylvania responded by introducing the Broadway Limited, which also ran between New York and Chicago.  For decades, every time one railroad introduced a new train, or added new equipment, or shortened the schedule, the other railroad did the same.  The competition was incredible, and consequently by 1940, passengers had about 40 trains to choose from, on about a dozen railroads, all of which operated between New York and Chicago.

The 20th Century Limited was the last word in luxury and speed.  It was the most modern train on the New York Central system.  When it was introduced in 1902, it boasted a 20 hour schedule between New York and Chicago, which was four hours faster than the fastest train running at the time.  Just as with today's Lake Shore Limited, there was a connection to Boston.  The train was all first class, and it was such a big deal to travel on the train that celebrities traveled on the it just to be one of the people who did.  At Grand Central Terminal, in New York, the porters literally rolled out a red carpet for passengers boarding the train.  It featured a full service barber shop and secretary services.  It became one of the first trains to have a telephone on board, and when two way radios were made available, crews on that train were the first to get them.

A New York Central 4-6-4 Hudson steam locomotive, on display at the
New York World's Fair.  This locomotive would have pulled the 20th
Century Limited.  Photo from Wikipedia.

As time went on, the "Century" got faster.  That train always hat the newest, fastest locomotives available.  When new equipment was purchased, it was first assigned to the "Century."  The train was so fast, and so punctual, it was scheduled at some stations on the half minute.  It was said of the train that one could set their watch by the train passing through town.  Nothing was ever allowed to delay the 20th Century Limited.  Slower passenger trains, and freight trains were all out of the way well in advance of the "Century."  The fastest it regularly covered the mileage between New York and Chicago was 16 hours.  For a short time, it was scheduled as fast as 15:30, but that did not last long.  The "Century" grew so popular that it would sell out almost instantly.  To make it more available, the railroad began adding more sections to it.  That is, they would add another entire train, following on the same schedule, as a second part, or section, to the 20th Century Limited.  Even with a second section, the train sold out easily.  More sections were added as the demand was there, and consequently, the train ran with as many as seven sections at times, and still managed to sell out!  All the well known celebrities, politicians, and businessmen, who either already had made a name for themselves, or wanted to make one, traveled on the 20th Century Limited, because it was the chic, stylish way to go.  The train became so famous that it even played a central part in the Alfred Hitchcock film "North by Northwest," starring Cary Grant.

China used on the 20th Century Limited, after 1938.
Image from the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

By the late 1960s, passenger train ridership in the United States was declining.  While the 20th Century Limited was still a fast train, it was not fast enough to compete with jet airplanes.  Though the luxury never changed, most of the hype and fame associated with the train had faded into the past.  The train made its final run on 3 December 1967.  The Pennsylvania Railroad got the last hurrah, as their Broadway Limited, the primary competitor to the "Century," stayed in service until 1971, at which point, Amtrak took over its operation.  In 1999, the 20th Century Limited received some brief attention again when the US Postal Service issued a stamp commemorating the train.

New York Central's Lake Shore Limited stayed in service for more than half a century after the introduction of the 20th Century Limited.  At that time, one daily train to Chicago would not have been enough.  There were dozens of trains that operated the entire distance between New York and Chicago, and many more that operated on segments of that route.  When the "Century" was introduced, the Lake Shore Limited became secondary to it.  It continued to operate, but then the famous luxury train was the "Century."  It had led the way, as the premier train until 1902.  It was never as fast as the 20th Century Limited, operating at 21:30 between New York and Chicago, but it paved the way for the "Century."  Today Amtrak operates the train on much of the same route as the New York Central.  The most noticeable differences are at the ends.  The New York Central once used LaSalle Street Station, in Chicago, and Grand Central Terminal, in New York.  Today, Amtrak, rather ironically uses Union Station, in Chicago, and Penn Station, in New York.  Both are former terminals of the Pennsylvania Railroad, once the biggest competitor of the New York Central.  Today Amtrak operates the train between New York and Chicago in 21:30, and Boston and Chicago in 23 hours, which is similar to its predecessor's schedule.

Map of the New York Central Railroad.  Image from www.r2parks.net.

And lastly, I thought I would share this interesting promotional video.  It was made in 1935, by the New York Central, to promote the 20th Century Limited.  It has some very interesting historic footage of the train and the services offered, as well as some videos of the behind the scenes work that kept the train running.  I found the video one day while browsing YouTube.