Inaugural Run of the Amtrak Cascades

On January 11, 1999, Amtrak inaugurated the Cascades service between Seattle, Washington, and Portland, Oregon, using brand-new equipment designed specifically for the route. I went to Kelso, Washington, to photograph the first train.

I believe the southbound train was operating as Train #751, with an arrival time in Kelso around 10:00 in the morning.

The train was pulled by Amtrak locomotive #467, a 3,200-horsepower F59PHI that was built in September 1998 by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors with final assembly by Super Steel Schenectady, Inc., of Schenectady, Pennsylvania. Amtrak purchased 21 of these locomotives, which were numbered from 450 to 470. Locomotives 466 to 470 were delivered in the green, brown and white Cascades color scheme, while the rest were delivered in silver and purple for Surfliner service in California. Aside from the colors, the two paint schemes are otherwise almost identical,

Here is the new Amtrak Cascades logo on one of the Talgo passenger cars. This logo was originally only used on the train cars and not on the locomotives.

At each stop along the route, there was a brief ceremony to commemorate the inauguration of the new train service.

The Amtrak conductor displayed a plaque that commemorated the occasion.

To smooth the transition between the tall locomotive and the low-slung Talgo train, the baggage car and the power car at each end of each train were fitted with tail fins.

There were originally four 12-car Talgo Pendular Series VI trainsets built for Cascades service, named Mt. Hood, Mt. Baker, Mt. Rainier, and Mt. Olympus. This is the Mt. Hood trainset. Each trainset consisted of a baggage car, five coaches, an accessible coach, a bistro car, a dining car, an accessible custom class car, a custom class car, and a power car.

At the end of the train, there was no locomotive or power car for the tailfins to meet up with. Note the red marker lights mounted near the top of the tailfins. The appearance of the tailfins at the end of the train led to comparisons with late 1950s automobiles, as well as the Batmobile.

Burlington Northern Full Dome Observation Car BNA #24 Glacier View

Glacier View was originally built by the Budd Company in 1955 as a full dome-lounge car for the Great Northern’s Empire Builder. It was originally Great Northern #1390, and was always named Glacier View. It it notable for having been painted in an experimental version of Burlington Northern Cascade Green paint scheme in 1968, two years before the merger. When the Great Northern was merged into Burlington Northern in March 1970, it became Burlington Northern #1390.

When Amtrak took over passenger rail service in 1971, the car became Amtrak #9360. It was retired by Amtrak in April 1981, and Burlington Northern re-acquired it in 1983. It was rebuilt by Burlington Northern’s Como Shops in St. Paul, Minnesota, with a fully-equipped kitchen and dining area for 22 people, a dome observation area with 16 swivel lounge chairs under the dome, and a two-level theater-style seating area with full glass end observation window.

This was one of the first cars to be painted in the new “executive” dark green and cream colors in 1993.

Burlington Northern Lounge Car BNA #10 Como

Como was originally built by American Car & Foundry in 1951 as a 60-seat coach for the Great Northern’s Empire Builder. It was originally Great Northern #1209, and was unnamed. With 60 seats, this car was used as a “short coach” for passengers who were not traveling very far. When the Great Northern was merged into Burlington Northern in March 1970, it became Burlington Northern #6012.

When Amtrak took over passenger rail service in 1971, this car was retained by Burlington Northern for company use. It was rebuilt by Burlington Northern’s Como Shops in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1977 as lounge car #10 and was named Como, and its mechanical systems were modernized in 1982-1983 by Burlington Northern’s freight car shop in St. Cloud, Minnesota.

Burlington Northern Bi-Level Car BNA #32 Flathead River

Flathead River was originally built by Pullman-Standard in 1955 as a 145-seat bi-level gallery coach for the Southern Pacific’s commuter service in the San Francisco Bay Area. It was originally Southern Pacific #3701. After the commuter service was taken over by Caltrain in 1985, all of the Southern Pacific gallery cars were replaced with new equipment and sold to Tillamook Railcar in 1986.

In 1992, this car was sold to Transcisco Tours, where it was rebuilt as #800534 and was named Lake Tahoe. It was purchased by Burlington Northern in 1994 and renamed Flathead River.

Burlington Northern Bi-Level Car BNA #31 Fox River

Fox River was originally built by Pullman-Standard in 1955 as a 145-seat bi-level gallery coach for the Southern Pacific’s commuter service in the San Francisco Bay Area. It was originally Southern Pacific #3703. After the commuter service was taken over by Caltrain in 1985, all of the Southern Pacific gallery cars were replaced with new equipment and sold to Tillamook Railcar in 1986.

In 1992, this car was sold to Transcisco Tours, where it was rebuilt as #800532 and was named Club High Sierra. It was purchased by Burlington Northern in 1994 and renamed Fox River.

Burlington Northern Bi-Level Car BNA #33 Skagit River

Skagit River was originally built by Pullman-Standard in 1955 as a 145-seat bi-level gallery coach for the Southern Pacific’s commuter service in the San Francisco Bay Area. It was originally Southern Pacific #3702. After the commuter service was taken over by Caltrain in 1985, all of the Southern Pacific gallery cars were replaced with new equipment and sold to Tillamook Railcar in 1986.

In 1992, this car was sold to Transcisco Tours, where it was rebuilt as #800533 and was named Donner Lake. It was purchased by Burlington Northern in 1994 and renamed Skagit River.

Burlington Northern Sleeping Car BNA #22 Stevens Pass

Stevens Pass was originally built by Pullman-Standard in 1951 as a sleeping car for the Great Northern’s Empire Builder. It was originally Great Northern #1260 and was named Skykomish River. It had 7 duplex roomettes, 4 sections, 3 double bedrooms, and 1 compartment. In 1963 it was rebuilt with 7 duplex roomettes, 6 double bedrooms, and 1 compartment. When the Great Northern was merged into Burlington Northern in March 1970, it became Burlington Northern #1260.

When Amtrak took over passenger rail service in 1971, this car was retained by Burlington Northern for company use. In 1973 it was renamed Stevens Pass.

Burlington Northern Power Car BNA #30 Snoqualmie Pass

This car was originally built by Pullman-Standard in 1965 as Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe baggage-express car #3931. It was converted by the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe to Steam Generator Car #138 in 1970. 

The car was sold in the late 1980s and became DLWX #138 in 1990. It was purchased by Burlington Northern in 1995, rebuilt as power car BNA #30, and named Snoqualmie Pass.

Burlington Northern F9-2 BN-2

BN-2 was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in August 1954 as Northern Pacific F-9B #7002C. It became Burlington Northern #809 after the merger of March 2, 1970. It was retired in November 1982 and was rebuilt as Rotary Snowplow Power Plant #972574.

In September 1990 it was rebuilt by Burlington Northern’s West Burlington Shops in Burlington, Iowa into F9-2 BN-2. The rebuild included replacing the original 1500 horsepower engine with a new 2000 horsepower 16 cylinder engine.

Burlington Northern F9-2 BN-1

BN-1 was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in February 1954 as Northern Pacific F-9A #6700A. It became Burlington Northern #9800 after the merger of March 2, 1970.

After the creation of Amtrak, #9800, originally a passenger unit, was assigned to freight service and renumbered #766.

It was retired in November 1981 and was rebuilt as Rotary Snowplow Power Plant #972567. 

In September 1990 it was rebuilt by Burlington Northern’s West Burlington Shops in Burlington, Iowa into F9-2 BN-1.

The rebuild included replacing the original 1500 horsepower engine with a new 2000 horsepower 16 cylinder engine.

Kelso Intermodal Facility Dedication

Rail service first came to Kelso, Washington, in 1872, when the Northern Pacific Railway built north from a river connection at Kalama, Washington toward Seattle. This brick depot opened on February 12, 1912, replacing an earlier wood-frame depot built in the 1800s. On March 2, 1970, the Northern Pacific Railway was merged into the Burlington Northern Railroad, and Amtrak took over passenger service on May 1, 1971. By the early 1990s, the depot was locked up. Amtrak trains still stopped at the station, but there were no personnel at the station and passengers had to wait outside. Tickets had to be purchased in advance, either from a travel agent, or from another station with Amtrak personnel.

In September 1994, after years of neglect, a major renovation and restoration of the depot was started to turn the depot into a multimodal transportation hub for Cowlitz County. The renovation included the addition of a clock tower and putting a full basement under the depot, which had never had one before, to be used for retail space. The renovation was completed and the depot was dedicated at 2:30 PM on September 23, 1995 at the Grand Opening of the Kelso Intermodal Facility and the "Keeping Kids on Track" festival. 

A few classic cars had been gathered for the event.

1950 Ford Fordor Sedan Police Car

1949 Chevrolet Styleline DeLuxe 2-Door Sedan

1955 Chevrolet Two-Ten 2-Door Sedan

The grand opening also featured an appearance by Burlington Northern’s executive train, though a couple of other trains passed by first.

Burlington Northern GP39E #2914 was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in May 1964 as Chicago, Burlington & Quincy GP35 #986. It was originally powered by a 2,500-horsepower turbocharged 16-cylinder 567 engine. After the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy was merged into Burlington Northern on March 2, 1970, it became Burlington Northern #2532. In March 1990, it was rebuilt by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors as 2,300-horsepower GP39E Burlington Northern #2914.

Burlington Northern #2914 led a local southbound freight train with Burlington Northern extended-vision caboose #12510 bringing up the rear. This caboose was originally Burlington Northern #12088. It was built by Pacific Car & Foundry in September 1975. It was rebuilt by Burlington Northern subsidiary Western Fruit Express at Yardley Yard in Spokane, Washington, on July 3, 1990. 

Amtrak F40PHR #319 was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in August 1979. It was built using parts from retired Amtrak SDP40F #583. I think the train it is pulling is the northbound Pioneer, which ran between Chicago and Seattle via Denver and Portland. The Pioneer was inaugurated on June 7, 1977, and would continue until May 10, 1997, when it was discontinued.

The Burlington Northern executive train arrived from the south with the following consist:

• F9-2 Locomotive BN-1
• F9-2 Locomotive BN-2
• Power Car #30 Snoqualmie Pass
• Sleeping Car #22 Stevens Pass
• Bi-Level Car #33 Skagit River
• Bi-Level Car #31 Fox River
• Bi-Level Car #32 Flathead River
• Lounge Car #10 Como
• Full Dome Observation Car #24 Glacier View

Each of these will be covered in more detail in its own post.

Northwest Railroad Depots: Kelso, Washington

I originally posted this information on my old website on March 26, 2009, and last updated it on December 18, 2009.

Depot in Kelso, Washington on December 17, 2005

Rail service first came to Kelso in 1872, when the Northern Pacific Railway built north from a river connection at Kalama, Washington toward Seattle. This brick depot opened on February 12, 1912, replacing an earlier wood-frame depot built in the 1800s.

Depot in Kelso, Washington on September 5, 2005

By the early 1990s, the depot was locked up. Amtrak trains still stopped at the station, but there were no personnel at the station and passengers had to wait outside. Tickets had to be purchased in advance, either from a travel agent, or from another station with Amtrak personnel.

Clock Tower at Depot in Kelso, Washington on September 5, 2005

In September 1994, after years of neglect, a major renovation and restoration of the depot was started to turn the depot into a multimodal transportation hub for Cowlitz County. The renovation included the addition of a clock tower and putting a full basement under the depot, which had never had one before, to be used for retail space.

Depot in Kelso, Washington on November 27, 2008

The renovation was completed and the depot was dedicated as the "Kelso Intermodal Facility" at 2:30 PM on September 23, 1995.

Depot in Kelso, Washington on November 27, 2008

Since then, the depot has become a Greyhound bus station in accordance with the multimodal plans, but the basement has never had a tenant and while Amtrak trains continue to stop here, no Amtrak personnel are assigned to the station. For a time it was possible to buy a Greyhound ticket but not an Amtrak ticket, but an automated Amtrak ticket machine has since been installed.

Depot in Kelso, Washington on November 27, 2008

NOTE: The clock tower does not have a permanent pointed spire on top of it; in the photos that shows it, it is a temporary holiday decoration (though I think it makes the clock tower look better).

Depot in Kelso, Washington on November 27, 2008

The renderings below were used for the invitations to the Grand Opening of the Kelso Intermodal Facility and the "Keeping Kids on Track" festival on Saturday, September 23, 1995. There are a number of differences between these renderings and the finished project, including the covered platform and the design of the clock tower and its base.

Historical Photos:
Kelso Depot, 1920s (Washington State Railroads Historical Society)
Passenger Train at Kelso Depot, 8/21/72 (RRPictureArchives.net)
Freight Train at Kelso Depot, 8/22/72 (RRPictureArchives.net)