Chief (passenger train)

The Chief was one of the named passenger trains of the Santa Fe railroad. Its route ran from Chicago to Los Angeles, CA. The Chief was inaugurated as an all-Pullman limited train to supplement the road's California Limited , with an extra surcharge of $10.00 for an end-to-end fare. The heavyweight began its inaugural run from both ends of the line, simultaneously, on November 14, 1926, making the cross-country trip in the advertised 63 hours, a speed that brought the East and West one business day closer. The Chief became an instant success, gaining the slogan "Extra Fast-Extra Fine-Extra Fare" though it failed to relieve traffic on the California Limited. The Chief quickly became famous as a "rolling boudoir" for film stars and Hollywood executives alike. In time, the Chief would reduce its schedule to equal that of its cousins, the Super Chief and El Capitan, and would ultimately drop the extra fare requirement as well.

The Chief would have been the "crown jewel" of most railroads' passenger fleet. But it did not survive the national decline in passenger demand, and ended operations on May 15, 1968.

Equipment used

Timeline

• 1926: In order to supplement the California Limited, Santa Fe inaugurates the all-Pullman, extra-fare limited heavyweight Chief, running between Chicago and Los Angeles.
• November 14, 1926: The Chief makes its initial run from both ends of the line, simultaneously.
• 1937: The Chief receives a consist of all streamlined (lightweight) cars to replace the original heavyweights.
• 1945: The train receives a complete replacement of rolling stock, and the schedule is reduced to 45 hours.
• March 27, 1947: New sleeping car service is inaugurated to go directly to San Diego.
• December 14, 1953: The 45-hour schedule is reduced to 39 hours, 45 minutes eastbound and 39 hours, 30 minutes westbound.
• January 10 1954: The fare surcharge is dropped after the Union Pacific reintroduces its all-coach Challenger train.
• 1954: Coaches are added to the Chief and dining service is limited to a lunch-counter coffee shop car.
• May 15, 1968: The Chief ceases operations.

References

• Frailey, Fred W. (1974). A Quarter Century of Santa Fe Consists. RPC Publications, Godfrey, IL. .
• Strein, Robert, et al (2001). Santa Fe: The Chief Way. New Mexico Magazine. ISBN 0-937206-71-7.
• Wayner, Robert J., ed. (1972). Car Names, Numbers and Consists. Wayner Publications, New York, NY. .
• Zimmerman, Karl (1987). Santa Fe Streamliners: The Chiefs and Their Tribesman. Quadrant Press, Inc., New York, NY. ISBN 0-915276-41-0.

See also

• El_Capitan
• San Diegan
• Super Chief

External links

• Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway
• California State Railway Museum
• Santa Fe Railway Historical & Modeling Society