Black Diamond (passenger train)
The Black Diamond was the flagship passenger train of the Lehigh Valley Railroad (LV).[1] It ran from New York to Buffalo[1] from 1896 until 1959, when the Lehigh Valley's passenger service was reduced to four mainline trains.[2]
History
Service between New York and Buffalo began on 18 May, 1896,[3] though it originally had to use the Pennsylvania Railroad's Exchange Place station as an eastern terminus because the Lehigh Valley did not have a route into New York.[3] In 1913, the train was forced by the PRR to vacate the station, and so the eastern terminus was changed to the Central Railroad of New Jersey's terminal in Jersey City.[3] That lasted only five years, as the United States Railroad Administration decided in 1918 to re-route all Lehigh Valley trains into Penn Station to centralize traffic.[3]
The Black Diamond competed with services offered by the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad and the New York Central Railroad; although slower than either of these, its level of service won it the nicknames "the Handsomest Train in the World" and "the Honeymoon Express."[4] In 1940 the train was provided with the line's first set of lightweight streamlined coaches, designed by Otto Kuhler, who also designed streamlined shroudings for the existing 4-6-2 Pacific locomotives that hauled the train.[1] Later, the Pacific engine was replaced by Alco's PA-1, which was painted Cornell red with black playing a secondary role.[1] The black was used in a role similar to the "cat whiskers" that appeared on the PRR's GG-1's.[1]
The train's last run was on 12 May, 1959,[5] due to widespread cuts to all Lehigh Valley passenger service;[1][2] all passenger service was ended on February 3, 1961.[6]
Origin of Name
The train was named for the railroad's major cargo, anthracite coal, which was known as "the black diamond" because of its exceptional hardness and high value. As a result, the railroad used "The Route of the Black Diamond" as its slogan.[1]
Miscellaneous
The Lehigh Valley Railroad also operated trains #28 and #29 (the John Wilkes) which also boasted Otto Kuhler-designed streamlining shrouds very similar in design to the Black Diamond.[1]
Sources
- Archer, Robert (1977). The Lehigh Valley Railroad, The Route of the Black Diamond. Berkeley, California: Howell-North Books. ISBN 0831071133.
- Schafer, Mike (2000). More Classic American Railroads. MBI Publishing Company.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 The Black Diamond, The Lehigh Valley Railroad's Flaghip Passenger Train. American-Rails.com (2007-2008). Retrieved on 2008-08-26.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 (1959) "One Buffalo, One N.Y. Run". Geneva Times. Retrieved on 2008-08-27.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 The Black Diamond (LV). New Jersey Railroad Information. Retrieved on 2008-08-28.
- ↑ Schafer (2000), p. 77
- ↑ Timeline, 1942-1966. Village of Manchester. Retrieved on 2008-08-26.
- ↑ (1961) "Last of the Railroad - Era Passes Tonight as Lehigh Ends Service". Geneva Times. Retrieved on 2008-08-27.
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