Private railroad car

A private railroad car, private railway coach, private car or private varnish is a railroad passenger car which was either originally built or later converted for non-revenueFact|date=June 2008 service as a business car for private individuals. A private car was added to the make-up of a train, providing splendid upholstered privacy for its passengers. They were used by railroad officials and dignitaries as business cars, and wealthy individuals for travel and entertainment, especially in the United States. They were sometimes used by politicians in "whistle stop campaigns".

In the late 19th century Gilded Age, wealthy individuals had finely appointed private cars custom-built to their specifications. Also, many cars built by Pullman, Budd, and other companies were originally used in revenue service as passenger cars and later converted for use as business and private cars. There are various configurations, but the cars generally have an observation platform, a full kitchen, dining room, state rooms, secretary's room, an observation room, and often servant's quarters. The railroad barons like Leland Stanford had their private cars. Abraham Lincoln disliked the ornate railroad car supplied for his service as president: he rode in it only in his coffin.

Private cars were in more common the the heyday of passenger rail service and during the pre-Amtrak era (before 1971). In modern times, some private cars have survived the decades and some are used for tour rides, leasing for private events, etc. Others are on static display. A small number of private cars (along with other types of passenger cars), have been upgraded to meet current Amtrak regulations, and may be chartered by their owners for private travel attached to Amtrak trains.

Lucius Beebe and his life parter Charles M. Clegg owned two of the last private railroad cars, the "Gold Coast" and the "Virginia City". Beebe's "Mansions on Rails: The Folklore of the Private Railway Car" (Berkeley, CA: Howell-North) 1959, presented the first history of the private railroad car in the U.S.

Dedicated railroad buffs rescued the last of the private varnish cars from scrapping; the chartering of these formerly-private cars has become a sideline in the upscale travel industry, with its own niche magazine "Private Varnish". Amtrak regulations require head-end power and train control wiring, though some cars generate their own power and can run on freight lines as well. Most restored private cars have been rebuilt to modern specifications.

Such carriages were extremely rare in the United Kingdom, although a notable example was the Duke of Sutherland's saloon, which is preserved at the National Railway Museum in York.

References

* [http://www.aaprco.com/ American Association of Private Railroad Car owners]
* [http://www.pullman-car.com/ The "Abraham Lincoln"] A 1910 corporate car made for Robert Todd Lincoln as president of the Pullman Company.
* [http://www.privaterail.com/text.htm Pennsylvania Railroad's private car, the "Francis l. Sluter"]

ee also

*The Survivor (Railroad Car)
*Abraham Lincoln (Pullman car)
*The Jamaica