June, 1945 II

'" f. A name rich in -folk lore lives on in the war record of a fleel of greal l).oains. The Milwaukee RO!ld's Ru"'ATHAS are on the'warpath. Every day these SpecJliners transport thousands of pass'engers' ... speed' military and essential travel ... contribute s.ubstantially to Vietor~'. * Only ten years ago on May 29th, 1935, the original HU"'ATHA made its initial run between Chi· cago.MiIwaukee.St.Paui.lVlinneapolis. ThisSpeed. '. ' liner was the forerunner of a series ,of train unique in type. Before -the war HIAWATHA service had ,been steadily improved. am plified and extended by popular d~~ mane!. * 'With the return of pe'ace The Mil",'aukee Road's pas sengerservice will befurther , modernized and aug· men ted to s'erv~ you eve,n better dIan in'th.e past. * Hiawatha Routes LEGEND = HOllleof the l\!Jornin!: anti Afternoon'l'""in Citic6 nIAW,\TTlAS a tiny each.way. MILWAUKEE. -2 - ROlllcof· lhe I"orlh Woods HI,\Wt\TU.\. ' CHICAGO. ~ Houle of the l\lid wc~t HIA'WATH.\ . ., ,--..-._---_.,,_.._ ... , ~_......._"---'.'-- 2 The Milwaukee Magazine TO 'IHE AMERIC.A1'l PEOPLE: Your sons, husbands and brothers who are stand ing today upon the battlefronts are fighting for more than victory in war. They are fight ing for a new world of freedom and peace. We, upon whom has been placed the responsibil ity of leading the American forces, appeal to you with all possible earnestness to invest in War Bonds to the fullest extent'of your capacity. Give us not only the needed implements of war, but the assurance and backing of a united people so necessary to hasten the victory and speed the return of your fighting men. 1, 1945 The Hiawatha Observes Its IOth- Birthday IKE the busy head of a large family, the Hiawatha L observed its birthday on May 29 without a great deal of ceremony. It arrived and departed on time, as did its two nearest of kin, the Morning and the Midwest Hiawathas. It was just another wartime day, marked by the kind of service which has won for it nationwide acclaim. Brawn by the first built-to-order streamlined steam locomotive ever constructed in the United States, the Hiawatha made history on its initial run 10 years ago. A preview of the superior new train had been held on jVIay 15, 1935, two weeks before the official inaugura tion of its schedule, when 'representatives of all de partments boarded it in Milwaukee for a tI;al run to New Lisbon, Wis. Approval and enthusiasm mounted steadily as the dynamometer car's instruments and the "fficials' own calculations made it apparent that the "new baby" was something to get excited about._ The following, concerning that historic run, is taken from a story in the June 1935 issue of the lVIilwaukee Magazine: " ... At 91 m.p.h. everyone remarked that it didn't seem as though the Hiawatha was traveling much faster than about 45. At 100 m_p.h. a shout went up. One hundred imd one, they calculated; 103.5, then 105, been here six times and it's nine minutes 105.5; faster and faster it went until at 109 miles per after on the dot.' hour the Hiawatha decided that that was a New Speedllner Gives Public' "By 8 o'clock more than 150 cars and very comfortable pace and contin.ued along a Thrill about 400 persons were waiting for the at that speed for five- or six miles without train. They. were ranged along Railroad a change, but as interest began to "-ane in Although people still stop to watch when Avenue for a mile from Dempster Street to they hear the Hiawatha th undering down seeing 109 miles per hour marked up as Oakton Street, as well as along Dempster the rails, the public has become sufficiently mib after mile went by, Ed Donahue, the and Oakton and Lincoln Avenue. used to the sight of sleek, fast trains that "Fathers boosted little girls and boys man at the throttle, gave it another notch the thrill today is as nothing compared to onto automobile tops. Others stood in and in very short order there were figures what it was 10 years ago when the Hiawatha sweet clover near the tracks and held chil· of 1l0.5, lll.3 and then ll2.5 m.p.h. was something new under the sun. dren shoulder high. A few venturesome "That's the speed that the Hiawatha at That fact is apparent in the following persons went up to the tracks and bent over, tained, not as a speed test, but just by way which appeared in the Chicago Tribune on apparently a little self-conscious,' and felt of getting from Watertown to New Lisbon July 14, 1935: the rails. A vibration allows the knowing at a pace at which it co~ld travel com "Abollt 7 :30 o'clock every evening in the to tell when the train is approaching. fortably. neighborhood of the Milwaukee Road tracks "Then there were many cries of "Here it "Anyone who saw Mr. Gillick as the and Dempster Street in Morton Grove, auto comes!" and the crowd was quiet and still. mobiles are ,driven up and parked. Couples train was performing need never ask him "The high, insistent tooting of the train and families, for the most part, their oc what he thought of it. His beaming counte was heard, its one searching light and its cupants sit staring to the northward, climb single giant figure '2' bore down upon the nance was a hul and complete answer to out and stretch their limbs, or look about the unasked question. It was not necessary waiting crowd, and it thundered by. Necks for their neighbors or acquaintances and craned, except for those of persons too for him to tell anyone how happy he was.' fellow enthusiasts. From that time on until dazed to think. The alert caught a glimpse "Upon arrival at New Lisbon, Mr. Gillick 8:10 o'clock the crowds increase. of the train's beaver tail vanishing in the dispatched a telegram to Mr. Scandrett and "'Waiting for the train to come in?' say distance." Mr. Pierpont [chief traffic officer at that early arrivals casually, one to another. Evolution of Train Has Been time] as follows: "At approximately 8:12 o'clock the Hia watha careens down the track and flashes Rapid "'Left Milwaukee 9:40 a. m. Stopped at past. Since the time of i.ts inception 10 years Watertown to look at engine, which was "To the faithful who come nightly to ago, the Hiawatha has changed considerably, 1'lInning cool. With this stop passed Port watch the Hiawatha's fleet passing, 'approxi. particularly in the matter of motive power, age 11 :03 a. m., one minute less than mately 8:12' will not be a satisfactory way and as its popularity has increased, two schedule. Maximum speed 97.3 miles per of timing it. A reporter who joined the other fast trains have borrowed its name. hour. Arrived New Lisbon II :33 a. m. watchers last night found this a touchy The Morning Hiawatha, also operating on Schedule calls for 34 minutes. Maximum subject in the desultory discussions carried a fast schedlue between Chicago and the speed 112.5 m.p.h. Train rode beautifully. on before 8 o'clock. fwin Cities, was placed in service on Jan. Joues [1. ]VI. Jones, at that time superin "'She gets in at 8:12 on the dot', Edward 21, 1939. On Dec. 11, 1940 the Midwest tendent of sleeping and dining cars] has a Grosnick said contentedly, pushing back his Hiawatha began operations between Chicago cnp and glass of water on table that has sO'aw hat.' 'It ·\~i)l·be about ,25ffiinutes yet. and Omaha, Sioux City and Sioux Falls. not spilled yet.' I've watched her .~very nig-htthis week.' The tradition of on·time service, courtesy "Engineer Donahue epitomized the train's "A woman with straw colored hair and a and superior accommodations established by performance. remarking, 'the faster it ran, sun tan overheard him. the parent train, has characterized these the better it rode'." "'Pa.rdon me', she said indignantly. 'I've trains also. The Milwaukee Magazine garded as the first all-welded passenger cars placed in service in full trains by any American railroad. Traffic Figu.res Reflect.Popnlarity As might be expected, the proof of the superiority of the Milwaukee's Road's Hia watha service is evinced by more than the smoothness with which it slips along' the rails, the excellence of the food served in its diners, and the unsurpassed friendliness of its crews. There is also proof in the traffic figures. When the original Hiawatha took to the rails, it immediately went into first place among all trains in the volume of traffic carried between Chicago and the Twin Cities. It has never relinquished its leading position. From the time of its inauguration on May 29, 1935, until the end of May, 1945 (April and May, 1945 estimated), the After noon Hiawatha has carried 3,951,766 revenue passengers, including those who' availed themselves of the Northwoods Section service during the summer months since 1936. Since it went into service on Jan. 21, 1939, the Morning Hiawatha has carried 1,963,095 rev was considered unprecedented in railroad enue passengers, and the Midwest Hiawatha history. The third set of new cars (the has carried 1,200,313 since its inauguration second replacement) was made in the fall on Dec.

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