Pennsylvania’s Congressional, 1952-1967

Fred Klein, 2013

The Pennsylvania railroad PRR was the largest in the US by revenue and traffic, and called itself the standard railroad of the world. The Congressional was the premier day train connecting New York City with Washington DC. It catered to businessmen, politicians and government people as well as travelers in the northeast corridor. Various trains covered this route almost hourly through the day, but the Congressional featured first class parlor cars for an upscale clientele. The trains made the run in less than 4 hours with 7 stops.

 

The PRR began passenger service from New York City to Washington in 1885 that eventually spawned the "Congressional Limited Express." In the 1920s, all-steel heavyweight cars were the norm. In January 1935 the line was electrified and the Congressionals were the first train to get the new GG1 electric locomotives. Meanwhile, the competition including the Reading Railroad’s Crusader (1937) was upgrading to streamliners while the Pennsylvania ran stodgy heavyweight trains. In 1952, PRR served the New York to Washington route with new 18-car streamliners called the “Morning Congressional” and “Afternoon Congressional”. Two trainsets were bought for the Congressionals. They departed New York and Washington in the early morning, were turned on arrival, and arrived back in the evening. Another streamliner introduced the same year, also with new Budd cars, was the Senator. It ran from Washington to Boston with the segment north of New York City carried by the New York and New Haven railroad. NY&NH coaches were used in the Senator in addition to PRR coaches. There was no need for a sleeper on a day train, although parlor cars offered first class service and business meeting rooms.

 

The new Budd cars were stainless steel with a tuscan stripe in the letterboard. Six of the GG1 electric locomotives (that dated from 1936) were painted Tuscan in 1952 for the Congressional and Senator to match the stripe on the passenger cars. Three more GG1s were painted silver with a wide red stripe and large keystone herald in 1955 for these trains.

 

 

A Pennsylvania Railroad advertisement from 1952 showing the new train outside Washington DC.

 

The Congressional train in October 1965.

 

The Senator train crossing the Susquehana River bridge at Perrysville Maryland circa 1952. If there are any New York & New Haven Railroad coaches in the consist, they are obscured by the bridge. The appearance of the Senator and Congressionals were very similar, though the Senator used New Haven locomotives north of New York. Photo by Lawrence Williams.

 

Models of an exact Congressional train have not been made in N scale, but Concor makes a series of Budd passenger cars whose prototypes were the Budd cars of the 1949 California Zephyr and other Burlington cars. The Concor cars are from the same era as the 1952 congressional and each car type (with some substitutions) has an approximate model in the Concor lineup. The window placements may not match the PRR cars exactly, but the model paint scheme is for the Congressional and Senator. Of course the factory painted car numbers are often not prototypical. The Concor Budd coach is a near match to the Pennsylvania P82 60-seat coach. The Concor “chair car” with window dividers approximates the reclining seat PRR coaches. The parlor cars are very similar to the PRR prototype. It is thus possible to make a beautiful train with a prototypical consist with factory-painted model cars.

 

This afternoon Congressional consist was published by Robert Wayner in Passenger train consists 1923-1973, page 76, for a train arriving at Newark NJ on August 29, 1961. A coffee-shop-tavern car was within the coach section when the train was launched, but apparently it was not in the train in 1961.

Table of prototype and model consists

 

Alternative Power (post 1955)

 

In 1955, three GG1s were painted silver to add sparkle to some of the Congressional and Senator trains. The large keystone herald and wide stripe were introduced in the late 50s.

 

Power and ferried sleeper

 

The GG1 locomotive that normally powered the Congressional after 1952 was one of the six that were painted in Tuscan to complement the Tuscan stripe on the passenger cars. The model is a factory painted Kato locomotive. Speed was essential for the Congressional and it normally did not carry baggage cars for making express deliveries along the way. No checked baggage was taken on the Congressional. If it did need a baggage car for end-to-end use, it would likely be one of the Pennsylvania’s B60b 60’ cars. The baggage car is a Hellgate Models kit. Wayner’s consist lists a Canadian National sleeper being ferried from Washington to New York. It could be a dead head car or one that had special convention attendees, for example. The duplex sleeper is a factory painted Rapido model.

 

Coach section

 

The train consist has 5 coach cars. I use two different types of coach cars, one with window dividers and one without.

 

Diner, lounge and parlor cars

 

The food cars were the pair PRR 4626 and 4627, with a dining room in the first car and the kitchen and second dining area in the second car. The cars were not articulated but were always coupled together. I do not have a model of these cars, but substitute a coach for the diner and Budd diner car with kitchen and a smaller seating area for the second car. The Congressional consist then had four or five parlor cars. Each parlor car also had a drawing room.

 

Parlor cars, meeting room car and observation lounge

 

The four parlor cars were for passengers travelling first class. They were followed by a 7-conference room/drawing room car whose rooms could be rented for business meetings. A 10-6 sleeping car is a stand in for this unusual car. The last car had two drawing rooms, a double bedroom and an observation lounge. The prototype car had a squarish end, but the stand-in Concor model car has a round end.

 

 

 

References

Schaefer, Mike and Joe Welsh, Classic American Streamliners, Motorbooks International, 1997.

Schaefer, Mike and Brian Solomon, Pennsylvania Railroad, Voyageur Press, 2009.

Wayner, Robert, Passenger train consists 1923-1973, Wayner publications.

http://www.streamlinerschedules.com/concourse/track3/congressionals195212.html

http://www.streamlinerschedules.com/concourse/track3/extras/ra19520317congressionals.pdf

 

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