CPR Passenger Equipment in NB

By Don Scott, Coquitlam, BC

On July 15, 1950 I spotted the "R" class sleeping car at St. Andrews, New Brunswick. At that time this sleeper had not been rebuilt.

The "Richford" and other sleepers were assigned during the summer tourist season from about mid-June to early September on trains #41 and #42 "Atlantic Limited" from Windsor Station, Montreal-McAdam, N.B. and switched to the late morning McAdam-St. Andrews passenger train. The same would apply westbound out of St. Andrews, N.B.-McAdam early evening to connect with the westbound Saint John-McAdam-Montreal train #41. I have seen up to 4 sleepers on this run enroute to and from St. Andrews.

When at least 49 of the "R" class sleepers were rebuilt and refurbished out of the company's Montreal Angus Shops-they were a very distictive looking sleeping car fleet.

One of CPR's top passenger service staff at Saint John, the "R" class were beautiful riding cars. During the tourist season the McAdam-St. Andrews connection with through sleepers to and from Montreal was known by railway workers as "The Champayne Special".

There were lots of "money people" in those days travelling the CPR route Montreal-St. Andrews, a good many passengers staying at Canadian Pacific's stately "Algonquin Hotel". Montreal-McAdam-Saint John train #40 and westbound counterpart train #39 as far as I can remember never operated with St. Andrews sleepers-these two trains were known as the "Boat Train" making connections at Saint John to CP's "Bay of Fundy Service" to Digby, N.S. via the former "Princess Helene" and Dominion Atlantic Railway (CPR) westward to Yarmouth from Halifax, and the eastward run Yarmouth-Digby- Kentville-Windsor-Halifax, with connections at Windsor with passenger service to and from Truro, N.S.

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©2000, Donald Scott, all rights reserved.