Can anyone identify the nameplate on this observation car. It passed through South Bend in the early 1950s.
Roger, I've tried several tricks with Photoshop Elements, but the best I can determine is that there are two lines in a ~30 degree slant from lower left to upper right. I'm pretty sure the top line is "The". The second line appears to be a three word set from left to right. The first word is very short, followed be two medium length words. My guess would be "20th", "Century", and "Limited". It could be another name, but I don't know of any other NYC name trains that would fit this pattern of words. Then again I don't know that many of the Central's name trains. It's a pity that the weather appears to be overcast, or we could determine time of day from the sun angle. Do you know enough about the South Bend station to determine if the train is eastbound or westbound?
Good puzzle for us, Roger. Every "Drumhead" I have ever seen in photos for the 20th Century Limited are horizontal block letters like this: 20th Century Limited Have seen photos of the stainless steel obs cars with slanted "Drumhead" lettering, for The Commodore Vanderbilt, The Pacemaker, and others. A 1952 TT shows a lot of name trains passing through South Bend, which would warrant round end obs cars. I don't have the capability that Hank has to zoom in on the photo.
Jim, I believe you're correct on the Century's drumhead. I did a search after I had posted and found only two, the late one you refer to where each word is left justified, and the highly stylized one from earlier times, also horizontal. BTW, don't give my powers of observation and "zoom" that much credit, there was a heckuvalot of SWAG in that analysis also....:tb-tongue: I found this list of Central trains, http://www.innvista.com/culture/travel/rail/namerail.htm. I can't attest to its accuracy or completeness, but here it is... New York Central (NYC) Berkshire Booth Tarkington Buffalo-Pittsburgh Express Canadian Chicago Express Chicago Mercury Chicagoan Cincinnati Special Cleveland Limited Cleveland Mercury Cleveland-Columbus Special Columbus-Cleveland Special Commodore Vanderbilt Detroiter DeWitt Clinton Easterner Empire State Express Fifth Avennue Special Forest City Gateway Great Lakes Hendrick Hudson Interstate Express Iroquois James Whitcomb Riley Knickerbocker Laurentian Michigan Michigan Special Midnight Special Midwestern Minute Man Missourian Mohawk Montreal Limited Motor City Special Mountain Express New England States New York Special Niagara North Shore Limited North Star Northerner Ohio Special Ohio State Limited Ontarion Overseas Pacemaker Pittsburgh-Buffalo Express Royal York South Shore Southwestern State Special Sycamore Texas Special Tuscarora Twentieth Century Limited Twilight Limited Wolverine
It appears to show "The" at upper left. Then looks like two or three short words in middle and something at lower right. Boxcab E50
This train is eastbound at South Bend. That is the Studebaker factory in the background. It's still there today. Based on the time of day, if the train was on time, and the shapes that can be made out on the drumhead, it's likely The Commodore Vanderbilt (not scheduled to stop at South Bend) or Advance Commodore Vanderbuilt, which did have a scheduled stop at South Bend. However, not knowing the drumhead designs or if there were any that were train specific for these trains, it could also be the Interstate Express, Fifth Avenue Special, or The Pacemaker (did have a similarly styled drumhead). Mike Mohawk, Indiana
Mike, the angle of the Commodore's logo is definitely the same angle that I saw when I enlarged the drumhead. As far as the letters and words, when I said "SWAG", there was significantly less "Scientific" than there was "Wild Ass Guess" to what I hoped that I saw. Thanks for your knowledgeable input.
Mike, thanks for the answer and welcome to the New York Central Forum. You have knowledge of the System, and we like to discuss the history here. Please share your knowledge with us. :tb-biggrin:
But it had the steam locomotive with smoke on it that does not show up on the photo. I believe it was The Commodore Vanderbilt.
As I said, The Pacemaker was styled similarly. I personally think the Dreyfuss Hudson inspired Drumhead was one of the best looking ones the Central had. What I wasn't sure about is whether there might have been an updated version that I was not aware of. I am no expert on drumheads, but a puzzle to solve gets me digging in the library, both the old analog paper version and the digital one in the clouds. I love history puzzles, especially ones that I have a hunch on where to find the answers to. My NYC knowledge is limited, but growing. Working along the line from Chicago (well, it is PRR alignment to Lake Jct (CP 506/CP505) where it swings over to the Central) to Butler, Indiana, I do have some perspective on what the line looks like and can generally recognize locations if they are even close to appearance to today's railroad. Mike Big Red Beaver ¤¤¤¤ry, Indiana (next to Robert R. Young Yard on trackage rights)
