RFK Funeral Train

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OG4vJxi9Kis&t=6s

The people that died were hit by the Admiral as it rounded the curve at Elizabeth station. They were standing on the local tracks watching as the Kennedy funeral train passed on the inside main tracks...

http://www.steamlocomotive.com/GG1/funeral.php

We watched it pass Glenolden, PA station.

The last gasp of a dignified Penn Central Railroad.

Here is Super 8 footage taken of the train...

Mitchell Dakelman in New Brunswick,NJ:  https://www.sfmoma.org/watch/m...runswick-new-jersey/

Barney Skibinski in Newport, Delaware: https://www.sfmoma.org/watch/b...ki-newport-delaware/

Andrew Zeek Tullytown, PA:

https://www.sfmoma.org/watch/a...lytown-pennsylvania/

Tom 

As a young boy, I was track side with my Mother in Linden, NJ. I remember the very large crowd, many even perilously standing on the bridge that the 4-track mainline crossed.

Me and some friends were standing along the tracks watching as it passed in Edgely Pa. just below Tullytown Pa.

My brother and father went to see the Kennedy funeral train pass at Odenton, Md. ( which neighbors Ft. George G. Meade ).   My brother still has the flattened penny he put on the tracks before the train came. 

I have the K line Pennsy scale observation ... number 120 ...  which was the car that carried RFK's casket.  One of the windows had to be removed in order to bring the casket aboard and then removed again to remove the casket.  

 His brother John, as POTUS,  traveled back to Washington DC in the same car some years earlier from a Army Navy game.  

Hi Tom.

Thanks for starting this historically appropriate thread...hard to believe it's been 50 years.

A late friend of mine was the Engineer on the pilot train. He had the 4932 for power. He told very interesting stories of that day.

Krieglok made mention of the tragedy involving the Admiral at Elizabeth station. A large crowd had surged onto the tracks and, as the station is on a curve, not everyone was able to get out of the way as he came through. Here's a little known image of the Admiral which was taken from the funeral train. It's a disturbing picture knowing that not everyone seen here got out of the way in time. All in all, it was a very somber day.

Thanks again for posting.

Bob

MNCW posted:

Here is Super 8 footage taken of the train...

Mitchell Dakelman in New Brunswick,NJ:  https://www.sfmoma.org/watch/m...runswick-new-jersey/

Barney Skibinski in Newport, Delaware: https://www.sfmoma.org/watch/b...ki-newport-delaware/

Andrew Zeek Tullytown, PA:

https://www.sfmoma.org/watch/a...lytown-pennsylvania/

Tom 

Thanks for the camera footage Tom.  Most interesting and informative.  It was indeed a most somber day.  

Tom thanks too for starting this thread.  

Thanks for the thread. As someone who had worked for the senator, I remember that day all too well. Lived in Albany, NY, at the time , spent the day glued to the TV with tears streaming down my cheeks more than not most of the day. It hurt more than when both my father and wife died. I knew they were dying (cancer) and was prepared for it. This event left me in a state of total shock and despair.

This was quite a challenging day along the New York to Washington Main Line. While large crowds were certainly expected, nobody anticipated the incredibly massive throngs of spectators who showed up trackside to witness the train's passing. Following the incident involving the Admiral at Elizabeth, all train movements around the special were halted and the funeral train itself proceeded at restricted speed. The challenges involved in the execution of this operation did not go unnoticed as, upon arrival at Washington Union Station,  Vice President Hubert Humphrey asked to visit the cab to thank the head end crew. In addition to the Engineer and Fireman, several Penn Central managers were aboard the locomotives as well. All were dressed in suits for the occasion.

The operation of the funeral train required a total of five GG1s: the 4932 powered the three car pilot train, the 4901 and 4903 on the special itself with the 4900 and 4910 following engine light as protect power.

Bob

Bob, 

  You mentioned the size of the crowds. Here is an interesting photo from the Washington Post  link I posted earlier that pretty much symbolizes the turnout. Here in Colonia, NJ, crowds are lined up several people deep in most places as far as can be seen and stretch up and down the steps to the platforms.

Tom 

I have read somewhere that someone in the Kennedy family made sure the funeral train looked and was run correctly.  Nationally, it was the sunset of Camelot.

I saw the train along the main line in The philly suburbs and there were lots of people along the tracks and as far as you could see. it was very sad to see.

it was also the only time I saw the PC GG1's that were clean. 

Dave

MNCW posted:

Bob, 

  You mentioned the size of the crowds. Here is an interesting photo from the Washington Post  link I posted earlier that pretty much symbolizes the turnout. Here in Colonia, NJ, crowds are lined up several people deep in most places as far as can be seen and stretch up and down the steps to the platforms.

Tom 

Before the train, say a day or two prior, was the train heavily publicized? Just wondering how so many knew where and when to be. I wonder how they knew which train it would be, and on what track?

How did they know in a world before Twitter, cable news, etc.? That's a good question. While I was young at the time, I would imagine it was a combination of radio, newspaper coverage, word of mouth and maybe to a lesser extent TV. However, I did see that several TV stations gave the train live coverage and found this on another website:

"I was home from college, and the TV was turned on for it (it was rare that the TV was on during the daytime).  I just remember the 2 GG1s pulling it, and they were labled for the PC." 

Also, in digging through some more articles, I found this somewhat unusual (compared to most other photos of that day) close up of PRR Business Car #120. 

Here is the caption from the AP: 

Tom 

You wonder how so many people found out about the RK funeral train? Well back then we read newspapers, looked at the news on our local channels, read weekly magazines and we actually talked to one another instead of staring at our phones.

We have more news outlets today but we have less news or news that you can trust.  

Dave

I remember watching the train on KHOU CH 11 here in Houston.  Exect for the accident, it did show the NEC in good light.  

Everyone knew what was happening. I was five at the time and it shook my whole family. I remember seeing RFK on TV at Disneyland and then the next morning my older brothers telling me that the nice man who was at Disneyland was killed. It made no sense to me then nor does it fifty years later. On that morning a five year boy learned that life was unfair......

Miketg

We stood along the ROW in Metuchen and saw the Admiral go by eastbound. It was very odd as it was literally the only train that had passed for hours. Not even the MU locals ran.

It wasn't until later we learned of the tragedy in Elizabeth. That TV screen shot still haunts me.

david1 posted:

 

We have more news outlets today but we have less news or news that you can trust.  

Dave

In the early days of TV, the entire evening world news show, minus weather report, lasted 15 minutes. Today we have 24 hours of "breaking news".

The funeral plans, including the operation of the train, were assembled and announced very quickly following the Senator's passing. As the assassination was of course the leading story of the day, events connected with it were receiving continuous coverage so the funeral train was well publicized in both the newspapers and on television. The journey from New York City to Washington by train was appealing to the family as it would afford many more people the opportunity to pay their respects.

As I mentioned earlier, great crowds were expected but the actual turnout was far in excess of what anyone could have expected. Even many relatively isolated locations along the right of way had throngs of spectators waiting. The actual plan called for operation of the funeral train at or near track speed. Once the incident involving the Admiral occurred at Elizabeth, the challenges involved in operating traffic safely through this veritable mass of humanity crowding onto a high speed railroad became tragically apparent so the railroad immediately stopped operation of all train movements until the special had passed (refer to PRR Man's comments above about the very unusual sight of no movements other than the Admiral while they were waiting for the special to pass). The funeral train itself was then run at restricted speed, not to exceed 30 MPH if I remember correctly. There was also an incident involving several people who had climbed a freight car being shocked when one of them came in contact with the catenary.  

Bob

For those interested in modeling the funeral train, here is the consist:

GG1s 4901 and 4903
B60b baggage car 7607
Streamlined coaches 1524, 1535, 1484, 1531, 1581, 1528
D78 diner 4484
Streamlined coaches 1501, 1483, 1503, 1530
Twin-unit diner 4609-4608
Streamlined coaches 1541, 1591, 1512, 1522
Streamlined parlor car 7146 "Matthias W. Baldwin" 
Former New York Central business car 30  
Former PRR business car 120 "Pennsylvania" (Note the car name was covered for the funeral train)

The train was 21 cars long if the twin unit diner is counted as 2 cars. 

Bob

Very informative, Bob! 

Tom 

Thanks Tom. Knowledge is of no value unless it is shared with others. I've always taken a particular interest in the RFK funeral train perhaps because, as I mentioned in a previous post, I knew someone who was involved in the operation.

In a previous post. Patrick mentioned the casket had to be loaded and unloaded through one of the windows of car 120. Due to its dimensions, the casket could not be loaded through the car doors so maintenance personnel were required to remove a window and after the casket was loaded, it was replaced. The process had to be repeated upon arrival at Washington Union Station. The train was scheduled to depart NYP at 12:30 and was on the move shortly after 1 o'clock. The trip required in excess of 8 hours. The special arrived at WUS on Track 16; however, the rear 4 cars with the Senator's body, family and close friends were uncoupled and spotted separately on Track 17. These details and others were spelled out in a special bulletin order for the funeral train's operation. I should be able to attach a copy of the order on another post.

Bob