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On May 29, 1935, the Milwaukee Road inaugurated its Hiawatha high-speed passenger service between Chicago and the Twin Cities. The service featured all new equipment, led by the Class A streamlined Atlantic (initially loco nos. 1 and 2, with Loco nos. 3 and 4 added in 1936).

Here's a brief tribute with a photo of No. 3 from steamlocomotive.com plus a video of my Hiawatha Atlantic (2006, Lionel) pulling the 1936 ribbed cars on the Lionel Railroad Club of Milwaukee.

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A great thread; thanks for starting it. The Milwaukee Road's Hiawatha was one of the true high points in the history of passenger service on the North American continent. The train has always been a favorite in our family. Those Class A 4-4-2s were remarkable locomotives. 

Posted below is a Hiawatha print I have hanging in my house  

Bob

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Last edited by CNJ 3676

It would be hard not to have admiration for the Milwaukee Road, for creating the Hiawatha, which became its public image.  I never could understand why David Morgan was so fond of the Milwaukee Road until I rode the route of the Hiawatha in a Skytop parlor car.  Throughout the 1930's my mom rode the original (and also the second) Hiawatha several times, to visit my grandparents in the TwinCities.  I rode Milwaukee Road home-built chair cars with wood interiors on Union Pacific, after the Milwaukee Road became the Chicago connection for UPRR's trains.

The Milwaukee was a quirky, creaky railroad in many places, but they were as big-time as New York Central or Santa Fe on the route of the Hiawatha.

Hats off to the Hiawatha.

Jim R. posted:

On May 29, 1935, the Milwaukee Road inaugurated its Hiawatha high-speed passenger service between Chicago and the Twin Cities. The service featured all new equipment, led by the Class A streamlined Atlantic (initially loco nos. 1 and 2, with Loco nos. 3 and 4 added in 1936).

Here's a brief tribute with a photo of No. 3 from steamlocomotive.com plus a video of my Hiawatha Atlantic (2006, Lionel) pulling the 1936 ribbed cars on the Lionel Railroad Club of Milwaukee.

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Jim R.,

         Your garden video of the Hiawatha is absolutely stunning.  It looks great running in low light with all of that natural scenery.

OKHIKER posted:
Jim R. posted:

On May 29, 1935, the Milwaukee Road inaugurated its Hiawatha high-speed passenger service between Chicago and the Twin Cities. The service featured all new equipment, led by the Class A streamlined Atlantic (initially loco nos. 1 and 2, with Loco nos. 3 and 4 added in 1936).

Here's a brief tribute with a photo of No. 3 from steamlocomotive.com plus a video of my Hiawatha Atlantic (2006, Lionel) pulling the 1936 ribbed cars on the Lionel Railroad Club of Milwaukee.

image

Jim R.,

         Your garden video of the Hiawatha is absolutely stunning.  It looks great running in low light with all of that natural scenery.

The video is of my O gauge Lionel Hiawatha Atlantic and ribbed streamlined cars, all released in 2006, running on the indoor Lionel Railroad Club of Milwaukee.

Just to chime in:  As a Milwaukee born and raised kid, the Hiawatha has always been my favorite train.  Of course, having been born the same year that the train went into service, might have also helped a bit.  Of course, there are some four or five different incarnations of the Hiawatha, but the Class "A" Atlantics were always my favorite.  They were the first Atalntics constructed in over 20 years and they outweighed many Pacific types.

Love that train!

Paul Fischer

As a kid, we would take the city bus to downtown Minneapolis to use the new library. Seeing the solarium cars backed into the Milwaukee's sandstone stub terminal permanently etched the Milwaukee Road onto my memory banks. Repairing a playmate's prewar 250E sealed the deal and made it my favorite railroad.

Last edited by RoyBoy

The Hiawatha has always been one of my favorite trains if not the favorite.  I currently live less than a mile from the tracks of the Milwaukee Road's Valley Line that carried the North Woods Hiawatha to Star Lake Wisconsin.  I often wish that I had been able to see the North Woods "Hi" stopped at the station, or rounding the curve to make the run north.  I've scoured the internet and books to see if I could find a photo of the Hiawatha in town.  So far no luck.  But what I have found has been disturbing at times.  

Have you ever wondered what happened to all those beautiful engines?

Sad end for an iconic beauty.

Greg

Northwoods Flyer

 

Last edited by Greg J. Turinetti

Greg:  Very interesting photos.  Obviously the #2 was being used as a steam boiler.   I wonder where those pics were taken?  My understanding is that the "A"'s lasted until the very early '50's.  This just shows to go you that one just might have been saved with a little help from management and fans.  Problem, at that time was that we were just getting into the Korean War, guys were leaving to join the military and there was a concern for scrap metal, just then.  

Wow!  Wouldn't that have been something?  Eat your hearts out #611 fans!

Paul Fischer

I showed the photos of #2  to several of the members of the MRHA and the general feeling was that it was taken at the Milwaukee Road shops.  I haven't come across any other information about it.  Model Railroader did a fantasy piece for their 50th anniversary about finding one of the engines stored here in Wisconsin.  In the story it was refurbished and sent around the country to run on a number of well known layouts of the day.

I also came across some photos of #3 and #4.  Their fate wasn't any better apparently.

Greg

Northwoods Flyer

 

I live in Sioux City, IA which had quite a history with the Milwaukee Road. During the 20-30-40s Sioux City yard was the second largest repair facility on the road. It had more than 500 employees back then. A 27 stall roundhouse handled the locos in and out. Between grain, cattle and hogs, a good passenger business the Milwaukee yard stayed busy until the end of steam. More history and photos can be seen at www.milwaukeerailroadshops.org.

Dick 

CBQer posted:

I live in Sioux City, IA which had quite a history with the Milwaukee Road. During the 20-30-40s Sioux City yard was the second largest repair facility on the road. It had more than 500 employees back then. A 27 stall roundhouse handled the locos in and out. Between grain, cattle and hogs, a good passenger business the Milwaukee yard stayed busy until the end of steam. More history and photos can be seen at www.milwaukeerailroadshops.org.

Dick 

Thanks for posting that information. I had no idea there was a Milwaukee Road-related museum in Sioux City. Next time I get to that part of the country on a road trip, I'll have to take a look. 

I found it especially interesting that the museum has a pair of passenger cars painted in the short-lived Brooks Stevens1947 Olympian Hiawatha paint scheme. The striping was too complex to survive, but I sure would love to see an 0 gauge passenger train painted in that scheme.

 

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