Rock Island’s Corn Belt Rocket 1947-1960s

Fred Klein, 2010, 2016

The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad named its post-depression passenger trains “rockets” not just for speed, but after the first American steam passenger locomotive of 1852. The Rock Island fielded its first Rockets in 1937 with some semi-articulated Budd built cars pulled by unique TA diesel locomotives (shorter than E units and riding on 4-wheel trucks) (see Mike Schaefer’s article Rock Islands Original Rocket Streamliners, Model Railroader, May 1980, page 52). After the war, Rock Island’s passenger cars were more standardized as independent cars and many of the earlier articulated cars were rebuilt. The Corn Belt rocket starting service in 1947 and connected Omaha with Chicago across Illinois and Iowa. It was a day train (no sleepers). The train was renamed the cornhusker in 1966 and discontinued in 1970.

 

Although this is a photo of the Rocky Mountain Rocket, the train bears similarities to the Corn Belt Rocket but without the large number of head end baggage and express cars.

 

The Corn Belt Rocket near Grinnell, Iowa, in 1967. Even at this late date, the train was earning revenue with head-end baggage and express cars, five coaches, and some unknown cars at the end. Ron Goodenow photo.

 

The consist was published by Robert Wayner in Passenger Train Consists 1923-1973, page 81, for a train departing Chicago on April 30, 1965. The composition of the Corn Belt Rocket undoubtedly changed during its lifetime, for example an E8 diesel would not have been seen before 1953 when it was introduced. The Rock Island cars in the 1960s all carried numbers, but my model cars have names assigned as they were built in the 1940s. I am not a Rock Island modeler, and the train is thus an approximation: The composition of cars is from 1965, but the appearance of cars and the E7 locomotive paint scheme (the E8 is from the mid 1950s) are as they would appear near the beginning of the 1947-1960s time period.

 

 

Diesel power

 

The locomotive paint schemes and the lettering are a gorgeous art deco. The train seems a bit overpowered with three E units, but three were in the documented consist.

 

Head end cars

 

The head end cars varied according to need, but this approximates the actual consist. The first baggage car is a Walthers model of a Pullman Standard prototype. Rock Island had a fleet of express box cars that traveled in passenger trains. The box car model was decorated by Aztec. The next baggage and RPO cars are re-decaled Concor models of Budd built cars. Rock Island had RPOs looking exactly like this and built in 1953, but the prototype car was 60’ and the Concor model is 72’ long. The UP baggage car is a factory decorated Kato model of a circa-1950 ACF baggage car. The Union Pacific had a terminal in Omaha but no rails to Chicago, and thus relied on railroads like Rock Island for freight access to the windy city.

 

Coach section

 

The three coaches in this part of the train are represented by models of 1948 Pullman Standard coaches prototypical to the Rock Island. The first model is from Walthers and the second two are from Con cor, all are factory decorated. The car names may not be prototypical for these cars, but names were used on cars in the 1940s, but by the 1960s, simpler car numbers were the norm.

 

Diner and observation section

 

The corn belt rocket used a Budd-built diner. The model diner is of a 1939 Budd diner named “Mount Evans” as built for the Rocky Mountain Rocket. Another 1948 PS coach follows. The buffet-lounge-observation is also a Budd car built for the Rock Island in 1937. The model is a re-decaled Con cor car whose windows are not exact for the Rock Island, but the general appearance approximates the prototype.

 

 

REFERENCES

Randall, David. From Zephyr to Amtrak: A guide to lightweight cars and streamliners, Prototype Publications, 1972.

Wayner, Robert, Passenger Train Consists 1923-1973, Wayner Publications, 1995.

 

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