Great Northern 2-8-2 #3059 in Williston, North Dakota, in May 2004

Photo by Cliff West

My dad, Cliff West, took this pictures of Great Northern O-1 Class 2-8-2 #3059 from the train during the westbound Empire Builder’s station stop at Williston, North Dakota, in May 2004. The Great Northern had a total of 145 O-1 Class 2-8-2 Mikados built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in four groups between August 1911 and February 1919, and the last of them were retired in April 1958. Built in February 1913, #3059 was one of the last 15 in operation when it was retired in December 1957, and is the only survivor. It was donated to the City of Williston and placed on display in Railroad Park on August 2, 1958.

Trains in Minot and Williston in September 2003

I took these pictures while riding Amtrak’s eastbound Empire Builder on September 5, 2003. The Empire Builder’s Heritage Baggage Car for this trip was Amtrak #1851, which I photographed during the train’s service stop in Havre, Montana. This car was built by the St. Louis Car Company in 1953 as U.S. Army (USAX) Hospital Ward Car #89566. It became Amtrak “Le Pub” Bar-Lounge Car #3405 in March 1974 and was used in service on the Montrealer between Washington DC and Montreal, and notably featured an electric piano. In June 1982 it was rebuilt as a baggage car with head-end power and became Amtrak 1178. In 1998 it was refurbished for service on the Adirondack between New York City and Montreal, becoming Amtrak #1851 and receiving large advertising murals for the Adirondack. It was one of several Amtrak baggage cars to be decorated for trains in the Northeast. By this time the car had been transferred into general service, but retained its special paint scheme.

I photographed Great Northern O-1 Class 2-8-2 #3059 from the train during the eastbound Empire Builder’s station stop at Williston, North Dakota. The Great Northern had a total of 145 O-1 Class 2-8-2 Mikados built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in four groups between August 1911 and February 1919, and the last of them were retired in April 1958. Built in February 1913, #3059 was one of the last 15 in operation when it was retired in December 1957, and is the only survivor. It was donated to the City of Williston and placed on display in Railroad Park on August 2, 1958.

Great Northern P-2 4-8-2 #2507 in Wishram, Washington on September 4, 2003

While riding the Portland section of Amtrak’s eastbound Empire Builder through Wishram, Washington, on September 4, 2003, I took this picture of former Great Northern Railway steam locomotive #2507 in a small park near the depot. This locomotive was one of 28 Class P-2 4-8-2 Mountain-type locomotives delivered to Great Northern by the Baldwin Locomotive Works. These locomotives were originally assigned to passenger service and were the initial power for the Empire Builder when it was inaugurated in June, 1929, but were replaced in Empire Builder service in 1930 by 14 new Baldwin Class S-2 4-8-4 Northern-type locomotives that pulled the Empire Builder until it was streamlined and dieselized in 1947. The Class P-2 Mountains were then assigned to freight service until their retirement in 1955. After its retirement, #2507 was put into storage in Minnesota instead of being immediately scrapped. Meanwhile, the Spokane, Portland & Seattle promised a steam locomotive to Klickitat County for display at Maryhill, only to end up having no steam locomotives left; #700 had been given to the city of Portland, #539 to the city of Vancouver, and the rest sold for scrap. To save face, the SP&S purchased #2507 from parent Great Northern, repainted it with SP&S lettering, and donated it to Klickitat County in 1962. For 30 years, #2507 sat on display in Maryhill in SP&S paint. An attempted restoration saw #2507 painted back to GN in 1992, and in 1994 it was moved from Maryhill to Pasco to be restored to operation. No restoration ever occurred, and eventually Klickitat County decided to put the locomotive back on permanent display. Track realignments had made a return to Maryhill impractical, so a new site in Wishram was chosen. The locomotive was given a complete cosmetic restoration and a structure was built to protect the locomotive from the elements. BNSF donated the locomotive's move from Pasco to Wishram.

Riding Amtrak's Westbound Empire Builder in May 2003

 I took these pictures while riding Amtrak’s westbound Empire Builder through Montana on May 24, 2003. The pictures begin with the train’s arrival in Havre, Montana.

As the train passed the Havre engine terminal, a variety of motive power could be seen. Norfolk Southern #9086 is a 4,000-horsepower Dash 9-40CW that was built by General Electric in March 1997. Burlington Northern Santa Fe #6730 is a 3,000-horsepower SD40-2 that was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in September 1979 as Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe #5071. Following the merger of the Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe on September 22, 1995, this locomotive became Burlington Northern Santa Fe #6730 on January 20, 1998. Burlington Northern Santa Fe #7909 is a 3,000-horsepower SD40-2 that was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in June 1979 as Colorado & Southern #7909. Colorado & Southern was a subsidiary of Burlington Northern, and its locomotives were painted in Burlington Northern colors. The Colorado & Southern was formally merged into the Burlington Northern on December 31, 1981, and this locomotive became Burlington Northern #7909. Following the merger of the Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe on September 22, 1995, this locomotive became Burlington Northern Santa Fe #7909.

Near the Havre shops, BNSF #507 is a 4,000-horsepower Dash 8-40BW that was built by General Electric in October 1990 as Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe #507. Following the merger of the Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe on September 22, 1995, this locomotive became Burlington Northern Santa Fe #507 on May 8, 2001 and was repainted into Burlington Northern Santa Fe's "Heritage II" paint scheme on June 6, 2001.

Havre is only 40 miles from the Canadian border, and the Border Patrol meets Amtrak's Empire Builder in Havre, to catch illegal aliens attempting to board the train.  As a result, there are often Border Patrol vehicles parked at the station.

Leading the westbound Empire Builder, Amtrak #152 is a 4,250-horsepower P42DC that was built by General Electric in March 2001. It is wearing the first version of Amtrak’s “Phase V” paint scheme.

Trailing is Amtrak #96 is a 4,250-horsepower P42DC that was built by General Electric in June 1997. It has been repainted with the new version of Amtrak’s “Phase V” paint scheme.

The small Hands Across the Border Park at the Havre depot features a statue of an American Border Patrol officer shaking hands with a Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer.  

On display next to the depot in Havre is former Great Northern Railroad 4-8-4 steam locomotive #2584, an S-2 Class 4-8-4 that was built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1930 and was put on static display next to the Have depot on May 15, 1964.  

A sign next to the locomotive tells its history:

This Northern type locomotive, survivor of the last steam engines acquired by the Great Northern Railway for main-line passenger service, was placed on permanent exhibition here on May 15, 1964.

A powerful and speedy locomotive, this engine now looks every bit the aristocrat that it was during the yrs. of its pre-eminent association with the Empire Builder and the Oriental Limited. The Empire Builder was inaugurated in June, 1929, and was pulled by a Mountain type locomotive, but popularity of the train led to addition of cars to the consist, and this necessitated more powerful engines.

In 1930 Great Northern acquired 14 Class S-2 steam locomotives from Baldwin Locomotive Works for service on the Empire Builder and the Fast Mail trains. This engine – No 2584 - is the last of the 14 engines. Samuel Vauclain, President of Baldwin described the Class S-2 engines as "the finest, most powerful steam passenger locomotives ever built up to this time." These engines were operated in freight service after the Empire Builder was streamlines and diesel powered in 1947, and were retired in 1955.

Locomotive and tender are 103 feet 3 inches long, weight 764,680 pounds, and height from rail to top of stack is 16 feet. No 2584 was an oil burner and developed 58,305 pounds of tractive effort. Each of the 8 drive wheels is 80 inches high.

The track on which No 2584 stands is laid to Great Northern main line specifications. The creosoted ties are supported on a sub-ballast consisting of 6 inches of crushed rock chips and a ballast consisting of 6 inches of crushed pink quartzite rock. Both of which are quarried by the Great Northern in Montana. Welded rails fully tie plated and anchored, weight 115 pounds to the yard.

The depot in Havre, at 235 Main Street, is not only an Amtrak station; it also a local base of operation for Burlington Northern-Santa Fe freight operations and maintenance crews.  As a result, it is a large depot for a city of Havre's size.  The Burlington Northern Santa Fe was formed in 1995 when the Burlington Northern Railroad (successor to the Great Northern) and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad merged together.  The station in Havre still showed signs of its Burlington Northern heritage with an apparent identity crisis. In front of the depot on the street side is a statue of James J. Hill. Hill formed the Great Northern Railroad in 1889 from the bankrupt St. Paul and Pacific Railroad, and extended it to Seattle by 1893. The commercial possibilities realized in the northern United States due to Hill's Great Northern Railway earned him the nickname of "The Empire Builder."

A consist of freight locomotives approached the Havre depot, led by Burlington Northern Santa Fe #4716, a 4,400-horsepower Dash 9-44CW that was built by General Electric in November 1997.

The second unit is Norfolk Southern #7062, a 3,500-horsepower GP50 that was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in November 1980 as Southern Railway #7062. Following the merger of the Southern Railway and the Norfolk & Western in 1982, this locomotive became Norfolk Southern #7062.

A sign near the Havre railroad depot tells the story of Havre's early days.

WELCOME TO HAVRE
(pronounced Have'er)
The naming of Havre, according to William T. Cowan's memoirs.
The coming of the railroad in 1887 and '88 brought many workers and their families to Bull Hook Bottoms, later called Havre, according to William T. Cowan's memoirs.
The name Havre came from the following story:
"Two French-Canadian squatters on Bull Hook Bottoms were French Gus Descelles, a little sawed off man, and Joe De Mars, a very large, strong man.  They got in a fight over the affection of a charming girl and Joe De Mars got the best of the struggle.  Little French Gus reportedly said 'you can have her' and this is how Havre supposedly got it's name." The Great Northern Railway was the main supply line for Fort Assinniboine, located 5 miles southwest of Havre.  The railroad is still one of the main economic forces in the community.

On the Havre depot is this handmade Telecommunications sign featuring a depiction of a General Electric Dash 9-44CW locomotive and the slogan “We Move Information.”

As Amtrak’s Empire Builder continues west through Montana, it enters Glacier National Park and begins crossing the Rocky Mountains.

The westbound Empire Builder eventually crosses the Middle Fork of the Flathead River near Nimrod, Montana on Java Trestle, at the point where Java Creek flows into Middle Fork of the Flathead River. This view from Java Trestle shows the clear blue water of the Middle Fork of the Flathead River.

The railroad passes through Snowshed #12, the last of a series of structures that protect the railroad from winter slides and avalanches. Just after leaving Snowshed #12 is this view of the Middle Fork of the Flathead River. The bridge carrying U.S. Highway 2 Bridge over the river is visible in the background.

As the train made its station stop in Essex, Montana, it passed a number of rustic residences.

There is a small Burlington Northern Santa Fe rail yard at Essex where helper locomotives and maintenance equipment can be found.

Adjacent to the yard is the Izaak Walton Inn. Named after English writer Izaak Walton, for whom the Walton Ranger Station in Glacier National Park is also named, the inn was built on railroad property in 1939 in three months at a cost of $40,000 by the Addison Miller Company, which also operated it under contract for the Great Northern Railway as lodging for railway workers. Measuring 36 feet by 114 feet, the Tudor Revival inn featured 29 guest rooms, 10 bathrooms, a lobby, dining room, kitchen with a two-ton stove, drying room, store room and general store. 

Located at the south end of Glacier National Park 27 miles from West Glacier and 30 miles from East Glacier, it was anticipated that Essex would become a southern gateway to Glacier National Park, however World War II prevented that development. With the inn never living up to its tourism potential, the Addison Miller Company sold it to Harry Stowell in 1965 for $5,000. George A. Walker purchased it in 1968. Sid and Millie Goodrich bought it in 1973. Larry and Linda Vielleux acquired it in 1982. The inn was added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 18, 1985, and was renovated in 1995 with bathrooms added to every guestroom.

West of Essex, Montana, the route of Amtrak's Empire Builder parallels U.S. Highway 2, which featured red-tinted pavement near Nyack, Montana.

In addition to U.S. Highway 2, Amtrak's Empire Builder also parallels the Middle Fork of the Flathead River as it skirts the south edge of Glacier National Park, as seen here near Nyack, Montana.

At Nyack, Montana, there is a wye for turning helper locomotive consists. Here we see Burlington Northern Santa Fe #7868, a 3,000-horsepower SD40-2 that was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in October 1978 as Colorado & Southern #7868. Colorado & Southern was a subsidiary of Burlington Northern, and its locomotives were painted in Burlington Northern colors. The Colorado & Southern was formally merged into the Burlington Northern on December 31, 1981, and this locomotive became Burlington Northern #7868. Following the merger of the Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe on September 22, 1995, this locomotive became Burlington Northern Santa Fe #7868.

Kayakers can sometimes be seen on the Middle Fork of the Flathead River.

As the Empire Builder makes its station stop at West Glacier, Montana, the Travel Alberta Visitors Information Centre on Going-to-the-Sun Road can be seen from the train. This centre features visitor information and interpretive displays promoting the Canadian province of Alberta, along with restrooms, telephones, and picnic areas.

The trailing unit of a freight train in the BNSF yard in Whitefish, Montana, Norfolk Southern #6707 is a 3,800-horsepower SD60 that was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in August 1989 as Conrail #6852. Following the breakup of Conrail between Norfolk Southern and CSX Transportation on June 1, 1999, this locomotive was acquired by Norfolk Southern, becoming #6707, though it still wore its Conrail colors at this point.

Part of a freight train in the BNSF yard in Whitefish, Montana, Milwaukee Road #4512 is a boxcar that was built in 1972 and still wears its original paint over 30 years later, despite the bankrupt Milwaukee Road having been taken over by the Soo Line in February 1985.

Making its station stop in Whitefish, Montana, Amtrak’s westbound Empire Builder stopped alongside Great Northern NW3 #181 in Whitefish, Montana. Built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in March 1942 as Great Northern #5406, this 1,000-horsepower diesel locomotive was the last of the only seven NW3s built, all for the Great Northern. It was renumbered to #181 in 1943. 

On August 30, 1965, the Great Northern sold #181 to Anaconda Aluminum in Columbia Falls, Montana, where it became their #900. When no longer needed, Anaconda Aluminum donated the locomotive to the Stumptown Historical Society in Whitefish, Montana. It was restored to Great Northern colors and placed on permanent static display next to the Whitefish depot on November 19, 1990.

It was getting dark when Amtrak’s westbound Empire Builder departed Whitefish, Montana, but I was able to get one last photograph of a pair of Burlington Northern Santa Fe 4-axle EMD locomotives, only one of which can be identified. Burlington Northern Santa Fe #2257 is a 2,000-horsepower GP38-2 that was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in June 1973 as St. Louis-San Francisco (also known as the Frisco) #402. The Frisco was merged into the Burlington Northern on November 21, 1980, and this locomotive became Burlington Northern #2257. Following the merger of the Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe on September 22, 1995, this locomotive became Burlington Northern Santa Fe #2257 on April 25, 1998.

ArTrain in Hillsboro, Oregon in June 2002

In 2002, the ArTrain was displayed in Hillsboro, Oregon, on the tracks of the Portland & Western in SW Washington Street from June 29 until July 4. ArTrain USA was founded in 1971 by the Michigan Council for the Arts in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Initially intended to operate only in Michigan, it began operating beyond Michigan in 1973. The train made three-year tours of the continental United States to display art exhibits in towns across the country. This exhibit was called “The Artistry of Space,” a collection of 78 pieces of NASA artwork from the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum in Washington DC and the Kennedy Space Center in Florida by artists such as Andy Warhol, Norman Rockwell, Peter Max, and Robert Rauschenberg among others.

Since its founding in 1971, the ArTrain has used a variety of rail equipment. In 2002 the ArTrain consisted of four converted streamlined passenger cars and a caboose. The ArTrain cars were purchased from Illinois Transit Assembly. Three of the passenger cars were used as gallery cars while the fourth served as the gift shop and studio. The caboose was used as an office for the onboard staff and as an apartment for a staff member while the train was in transit.

ARTX #101 was built by the Budd Company in December 1948 as a sleeping car for the New York Central. It was originally named Missouri Valley and featured 10 roomettes and six double bedrooms. It was part of a group of cars that were originally assigned to the New England States, the Ohio State Limited, the Southwestern Limited, as well as general service. In 1950, the New York Central assigned five-digit numbers to all of its lightweight sleeping cars, although the numbers weren’t actually applied to the cars until after they had been withdrawn from Pullman service in 1958. This car was assigned #10136. It became Penn Central #4276, and then Amtrak #2836.

ARTX #102 and #103 were built by the Budd Company in July 1949 for the Pennsylvania Railroad. Each car formed one part of a twin-unit dining-kitchen-dormitory car. Seven such twin-unit dining-kitchen-dormitory cars were built and assigned to the Broadway Limited, the General, and other trains. Each unit consisted of a 68-seat dining table car with a four seat waiting room, and a kitchen car with dormitory space for 19 crew members. While designed to operate as a set, the units were separate cars and not articulated. The cars were numbered 4610-4623; the dining units had even numbers and the dormitory-kitchen cars had odd numbers. ARTX #102 was originally Pennsylvania Dormitory-Kitchen Car #4621. It later became Penn Central #4621 and then Amtrak #8805. ARTX #103 was originally Pennsylvania Dining Table Car #4618, and was later Penn Central #4618.

ARTX #104 was built by the Budd Company in September 1947 for the New York Central as Baggage-Dormitory Car #8976. It was retired in 1968 and sold to Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. It went to the New Orleans Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society in the 1980s, then to the Seminole Gulf Railway in 1989.

ArTrain Caboose ARTX #0005 was built in 1971 as Detroit, Toledo & Ironton #141. The Detroit, Toledo & Ironton was acquired by the Grand Trunk Western in 1980, and was merged into the Grand Trunk Western in 1983. ArTrain acquired the caboose from Grand Trunk Western in 1994.

The ArTrain was pulled from Brooklyn Yard to downtown Hillsboro by 4449 on June 28. 4449 remained in Hillsboro until the end of the ArTrain’s exposition on July 4.

A member of the fourth type of Southern Pacific's "General Service" or "Golden State" 4-8-4 locomotives (the GS-4 Class), it was built in 1941 for glamorous service pulling Southern Pacific's premier Daylight streamlined passenger trains in Southern California, it too found itself replaced by diesels and was retired on October 2, 1957 and donated to the City of Portland, Oregon on April 24, 1958 and placed on display at Oaks Park with SP&S #700 and Union Pacific #3203. It would be the only Daylight steam locomotive to survive (though similar Southern Pacific non-streamlined GS-6 Class 4-8-4 #4460 also survives and is on display at the National Museum of Transport in Kirkwood, Missouri, it never wore Daylight colors). While in the park, a railroad employee named Jack Holst voluntarily kept the moving parts of the three locomotives oiled until his death in 1972. This would set the stage for #4449's resurrection.

In the early 1970s, as America's Bicentennial approached, Ross Rowland, Jr., with help from actor John Wayne, began planning a steam-powered museum train of American artifacts called the American Freedom Train that would travel the United States in celebration of the Bicentennial in 1976. By 1973, the project was underway, but a locomotive still had to be chosen. A number of locomotives were considered, including Union Pacific #8444, but in the end, Southern Pacific #4449 was selected to be the American Freedom Train's primary locomotive. On December 14, 1974, #4449 was removed from Oaks Park and moved to Burlington Northern's Hoyt Street Roundhouse near Union Station for restoration.

Though #4449 would actually be one of three steam locomotives that pulled the Freedom Train, it would become the most famous, at it pulled the train throughout the American Midwest and West. Former Reading Railroad #2101 (as AFT #1) was used in the east and former Texas & Pacific #610 was used in Texas. The Freedom Train opened in Wilmington, Delaware on April 1, 1975. As it was in the east, it began its tour with the AFT #1. Meanwhile, newly restored #4449's boiler is put to steam on April 18 for the first time since 1957. She moves under her own power on April 21, and was christened on May 16. She left Portland on June 20 to take over the Freedom Train in Chicago on August 4, after display stops in Sacramento and Ogden (and an unfortunate encounter with a dump truck in Nebraska). #4449 will pull the Freedom Train for the rest of its tour until it ends in Miami on December 31, 1976, except for a brief period in the fall of 1975 when the Freedom Train was pulled by diesels while #4449 was undergoing repairs, about a month in February-March 1976 when Texas & Pacific #610 pulls the Freedom Train in Texas, and four months in the summer when it is pulled on the East Coast again by AFT #1. After the Freedom Train tour, #4449 returned to Portland by pulling a series of Amtrak excursions across the South and West in April, 1977, still in its Freedom Train paint but with the "Amtrak" name added to the tender. This was known as the "Amtrak Transcontinental Steam Excursion." #4449 arrived in Portland on May 1, having visited at least 30 states (many more than once) during its Freedom Train and Amtrak Excursion travels, and was placed in storage, although this time it would be stored indoors, protected from the elements.

For more information about the American Freedom Train, visit The Museum of America's Freedom Trains.

In 1981, #4449 emerged, restored to the post-WWII version of its Daylight paint (with "SOUTHERN PACIFIC " in large lettering in the orange band) to travel to Railfair at the newly-opened California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento. It would retain this paint scheme for nearly 20 years (far longer than it had worn it while in regular service & even longer than the locomotive had even been IN regular service), as its travels included a trip to New Orleans to promote the 1984 World's Fair, a trip to Hollywood to be featured in the 1986 motion picture Tough Guys, a trip to Los Angeles to be a guest at the 50th Anniversary of the Los Angeles Union Passenger Terminal in 1989, additional trips to Sacramento for the 1991 and 1999 Railfairs, and numerous excursions in the Pacific Northwest.

In 2000, #4449 had the opportunity to pull Burlington Northern Santa Fe's Employee Appreciation Special. As BNSF didn't want to have a locomotive painted for one of the predecessors of its competition, #4449 had to be painted black with white pinstripes and BNSF heralds for the trip. After the BNSF trip, the black scheme was modified to recall the all-black paint applied during World War II as a cost saving measure and to make locomotives less visible in the event of an aerial attack by the enemy.

In 2002, rather than retuning to Daylight paint, #4449 returned to its American Freedom Train paint in remembrance of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

During the ArTrain’s exposition, #4449 made at least one short excursion run along the Portland & Western rail line south down SW Adams Street to at least the wye junction with the line between Beaverton and Forest Grove.

The ArTrain was displayed near the end of the Westside Line of TriMet’s MAX light rail system. The line to Hillsboro opened on September 12, 1998. In conjunction with the opening of the Westside Line, MAX also introduced its new Type 2 light rail cars numbered 201 to 252. These Siemens SD-660 light rail vehicles began operation on August 31, 1997, and were the first low-floor light rail vehicles in North America. Pictured here is TriMet MAX Type 2 Siemens SD-660 #237 turning across the westbound lane of SW Washington Street toward the Hillsboro station.

The end of the Westside Line is the Hatfield Government Center station, adjacent to the Washington County Courthouse, the Hillsboro Civic Center, and the Hillsboro Post Office. TriMet MAX Siemens SD-660 light rail vehicles #245 and #228 are pictured here at the Hatfield Government Center station.

Having turned at the Hillsboro wye, #4449 returned with its train. This train consisted of the Yes, Dear, the Clackamas River, and the Plum Creek. DLMX #5811, Yes, Dear, was originally Union Pacific RPO/Postal Storage Car #5811. It was one of three built by American Car & Foundry in 1949. Union Pacific transferred it to maintenance of way service as #903672 in 1973. It was sold to Doyle McCormack for use as #4449’s tool car in 1985. DLMX #9201, the Clackamas River, was built in 1941 for the Southern Pacific, Union Pacific and Chicago & North Western's City of San Francisco as 10 roomette-5 bedroom sleeper Rincon Hill. It was transferred to SP in 1947 as #9201 & was retired in 1966. The Friends of SP 4449 acquired it in 1990 from a private individual in North Dakota for use as #4449’s crew sleeper. Though an SP car, the Daylight paint isn't correct as it was only used on day trains, not sleeping cars.

DLMX #1210, Plum Creek, was built in 1950 by American Car & Foundry for the Great Northern Railroad. It was originally a 60-seat, short-distance coach. 1210 is the car's original number. Unlike many passenger cars, this coach was not sold to Amtrak and remained with the Great Northern's successor, Burlington Northern, who removed the coach seats in 1977 to use the car as a mobile classroom, though the car's original overhead luggage racks and lighting remain. In 1981, the car was sold and was kept in Minnesota, where it was named Plum Creek, until 1999, when it was purchased by the Friends of SP #4449 for use as a parlor/lounge car. Though it wears its original number of 1210, the car's official number, which can be found in small lettering on the side of the car, is PPCX #800235. It is maintained in its original Omaha Orange and Pullman Green of the Great Northern Railroad.

Also nearby, but not part of the train, was DLMX #5659, Gordon N. Zimmerman, aka PPCX #800634, in service as a concession car. It was built by American Car & Foundry in April, 1954 as Union Pacific Baggage Car #5659. It was renumbered to UP #24427 in April 1969 and to UP Maintenance of Way #904227 in 1975. It was purchased from Union Pacific by the Friends of SP #4449 in July, 1997. It initially operated in light gray paint with a black roof and wore the name Better Idea. It was later painted in Daylight colors and renamed Gordon N. Zimmerman, after a crew member who has been an active volunteer co-coordinating and selling souvenirs on every SP #4449 trip since 1981 and helping to restore 1937 Daylight car SP #3300, former UP mail car #5811, now #4449's tool car and #9201 Clackamas River, #4449's crew sleeper. The Gordon N. Zimmerman was making its debut with #4449 at the ArTrain display.