New York Central Systems sleek, bullet-nosed 5445, one of ten Dreyfuss-streamlined J-3a Hudson steam locomotives, whistles for Detroits Central Avenue grade crossing as it heads Train No. 75, the westbound ten-car Chicago Mercury, November 16, 1939. The Art-Deco streamliner had just made its inaugural run four days earlier. Wednesday, November 12, 2014 marks the 75th anniversary of the most luxurious day train in Michigan The timetable advertised Detroit-to-Chicago, four hours, 45 minutes – in both directions! Try beating that on todays I-94 freeway. With the name “Mercury”, New York Central was obviously selling speed. Each of the glamorous round-end observation cars assigned to the train’s eastbound and westbound consists – 1019 DETROIT and 1020 CHICAGO – included a speedometer, which often registered speeds as high as 80 MPH. With the success of NYCs original seven-car Mercury, which had debuted on the Detroit-Toledo-Cleveland route in July 1936, famed industrial designer Henry Dreyfuss went on to modernize thirteen more 1920s-vintage heavyweight passenger coaches for Mercury service. In the meantime, Dreyfuss also created one of the most famous lightweight streamliners in history – NYCs 1938 20th Century Limited. Beginning in November 1939, two ten-car Mercury consists ran daily – one running Cleveland-Toledo-Detroit-Chicago, the other Chicago-Detroit-Toledo-Cleveland. Each train changed its name during a stop at Detroits Michigan Central Station – the westbound Cleveland Mercury became the westbound Chicago Mercury, and vice-versa. Art-Deco styling permeated the entire length of each ten-car train. Glass partitions separated the seating into smaller groups, de-emphasizing the linear nature of a traditional coach. Observation-lounge sections, at the end of each train, featured seats grouped in the center of the car, facing outward, toward some very tall windows. This pattern continued in the dining cars, with booth seating facing the aisle, in addition to traditional tables and chairs. Kitchens were located in a separate car – years before twin-unit diners appeared on the 1948 20th Century Limited. Some seating was provided in separate rooms, including a fully-partitioned smoking lounge. Round vestibules, as wide as the train, connected each car – the doors operated automatically, activated by electric eyes. Dreyfuss said his goal was to provide the atmosphere of a private club. The Chicago Mercury and Cleveland Mercury were discontinued in 1959. Years earlier, the streamlined shrouds of the fifteen Dreyfuss-streamlined steam-liners had been removed. By the mid-1950s, all 275 of New York Centrals 4-6-4 Hudson steam locomotives had been scrapped. All twenty of the modernized-heavyweight, Dreyfuss-streamlined Mercury passenger cars were also scrapped. Detroit Historical Museum’s Glancy Trains Collection includes a semi-scale, three-rail O gauge model of NYC 5445, made by MTH Electric Trains in 1996 – Al Patterson photo, Charlie Whipp collection, retrieved from RRHX (MichiganRailroads)
Posted on: Wed, 12 Nov 2014 13:19:45 +0000
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