Burlington Route – Video
By Angela Cotey | February 7, 2014
| Last updated on November 3, 2020
Watch portions of a Burlington Route film promoting the 1956 Denver Zephyr, from the Sunday River Productions program Burlington Zephyrs.
I remember, back in the 1950s, admiring the brilliant sun lit silver cars of the Burlington Zephyr as they speed along the Wisconsin bank of Lake Pepin on their way to Chicago.
My grandmother, who lived outside of Chicago, took my cousin and I out of school for a week to travel to California on the Burlington CA Zephyr when we were kids in the early 50’s. We had our picture taken with one of the train porters when we switched engines somewhere after Denver. The car’s name was the “Silver Feather” which I have since learned was one of the Western Pacific’s Dome Car #812. My cousin and I would sneak away (after our grandma fell asleep) and make it to a dome car where we watched distant lights and engine sparks fly into the night sky. It was one of my most memorable trips ever and I was so fortunate to have taken that ride on the rails in the 50’s; I am going to model a part of that route in my HO train layout! Loved this video…brought back many wonderful memories…and my favorite meal on the train was the deep fried French Toast; had it every single morning! lol
I’ve only done a long train once, Silver Star and Meteor too and from Florida / Penn New York, probably early 1980’s or so. I didn’t cough up for a room of any sort, but overnight wasn’t bad in a seat with blanket and pillow. And the food was an absolute pleasure. Nice memories. Watching this video, though, shows me what else there at least was!
I remember the Denver Zephyr well. I rode the Westbound Zephyr from Chicago to
Denver in October 1956. I was returning home to California from a 2+ year Air Force
duty in Germany. While enroute from New York on the Pennsylvania RR, the train blew a break line hose. The train went into emergency and there we sat while the crew
was trying to figure out how to make the repair. I asked the Brakeman as he walked
through the car “What was the problem?” He told me what happened. The train was
about 100 miles East of Chicago (the closest shop). The Brakeman said it was going
to take 2 hours to get a new hose to the train. I remembered what a Sacramento
Northern employee told me. I told the Brakeman to take the end of train hose and
put in place of the blown hose. He did just that and off we went.
Arrived in Chicago 2 hours late. I and several Sailors were enroute home to California.
Went to the Burlington Route ticket counter and found that our California Zephyr
had already left Chicago an hour before. I figured that I would have to lay over in
Chicago until the next afternoon. About 20 minute later an employee of the CB&Q
came over to talk to the group. He said, “See that door, pointing? Go through it
and you will find a new silver train on your right. Go to the first open door and get
on the train. O.K. Off we went headed for Denver. We had no idea what was going
to happen. We ran through the night at over 100 MPH. Arrived Denver about dawn.
The Conductor told all of us to stand in the door. When the train stopped he
told us go down the stair way in front of our door, turn right and go up the stairs. At the top was the California Zephyr. The CZ Conductor said get on
the train. Another fast run West. The CZ sat in Denver for at least an
hour waiting for the Denver Zephyr. Got to Oakland about 30 minutes
late.
I must have thanked the CB&Q crew and ticket people a hundred times. I thanked
the CZ crew about a 1000 times for getting me home.
A grand trip across America except for the Pennsylvania RR train. A hard riding
car.
My 14th birthday present from my aunt and uncle was a trip,on the FW&D Sam Houston Zephyr from Houston to Dallas in July 1960. What Europe had with it’s celebrated Orient Express the Burlington Zephyr fleet more than made up with stainless steel and beautiful scenery only America could provide. From the corn fields of the midwest to Rocky Mountain vistas and via Colorado & Southern and Ft. Worth & Denver from Montana to the Texas Gulf Coast, the Burlington more than lived up to it’s slogan “Everywhere West”, which also included forwarding the great trains operated by Great Northern and Northern Pacific with Spokane Portland & Seattle connections to the Pacific Northwest as well! Gone but not forgotten with a train full of memories to those who were fortunate enough to have ridden the polished rails from reality to dreamland. Amtrak should take lessons!
Venetian blinds and curtains in coach? WOW!
I was able to ride the CZ in August of 1969, from Emeryville to Chicago, just a short time before it ceased service. It was a marvelous route; I remember stopping at Glenwood Springs, where the dining car picked up a fresh catch of Rocky Mountain trout, which I then enjoyed for dinner several hours later, just after exiting the Moffat tunnel and seeing the lights of Denver in the distance! I also enjoyed sitting in one of the five Vistadome cars while crossing Nevada at night, with the canopy of stars overhead and the locomotive’s headlight arcing across the lonely desert. The present-day Amtrak CZ is almost as nice, but I preferred the WP’s Feather River Canyon route over the SP Donner pass route that is used nowadays – it was more scenic!