Observation car

A heavyweight observation on display at the Illinois Railway Museum.

An observation car/carriage/coach (in US English, often abbreviated to simply observation or obs) is a type of railroad passenger car, generally operated in a passenger train as the last carriage, with windows on the rear of the car for passengers' viewing pleasure. The cars were nearly universally removed from service on American railroads beginning in the 1950s as a cost-cutting measure in order to eliminate the need to "turn" the trains when operating out of stub-end terminals.

Configuration

The main spotting feature was at the tail end of the car: the walls of the car usually were curved together to form a large U shape, and larger windows were installed all around the end of the car. On older cars, the rear end of the car consisted of a large, canopied porch-like area. At this end of the car, there was almost always a lounge where passengers could enjoy the view as they watched the track recede into the distance, and usually (but not always) a bar or buffet where drinks and snacks could be purchased. The tail end of the car was invariably adorned with a lighted drumhead (except on the Milwaukee Road, see below), usually indicating the name of the train, or else just the name or logo of the railroad.

Among North American railroads, their observation cars often contained revenue seating or rooms in the forward section, in the form of coach seats, parlor car seats, or bedrooms, such configurations varying greatly between railroads.

History

When passenger trains were still the preferred mode of intercity transportation in America, observations often were used by those campaigning for public office, especially for the Presidency of the United States. The candidate’s train would pull into town and stop with the observation end at the station, then the candidate would appear on the observation platform to deliver his “stump speech”. The observation platform made a perfect temporary stage for just such an event. Like political candidates, famous personalities such as members of a royal family or film stars would use the open observation car end as a stage from which they would greet well-wishers and fans during public tours.

In more recent years, presidents Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama have used a heavyweight observation car built by the Pullman Standard Company in 1930.^[1]

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  The interior of a typical lightweight observation. An observation's interior could include features of a coach, lounge, diner, or sleeper.

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  1916 Republican candidate for President of the United States, Charles Evans Hughes, and his wife shake hands with supporters at Chicago's Union Station.

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  Duke and Duchess of York, the future King George VI and Queen Elizabeth on the balcony of State Car 4 in Victoria, Australia in 1927.

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  A dome/observation of the Burlington Route's California Zephyr on display in Maricopa, Arizona.

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  One of the Milwaukee Road’s beavertail observation cars about to leave Chicago Union Station with the Hiawatha in January 1943.

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  One of the former British Pullman Company’s two Devon Belle parlour-observation cars on the Paignton and Dartmouth Steam Railway, 2007-08-26.

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  One of Via Rail Canada's former Canadian Pacific Railway Park series dome-observation cars built by Budd in the mid 1950s

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  Victorian Goldfields Railway car “Tambo”, a preserved former Overland E type‎ sleeping car converted to a Parlor/Observation Car

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  An observation car from the Henschel-Wegmann Train in Germany.

Industrial design

One of the Milwaukee Road’s Skytop Lounge cars brings up the rear of a steam excursion behind Milwaukee Road 261.

While the cars manufactured by companies such as Pullman-Standard conformed to somewhat standard designs, some railroads created their own distinctive designs for observation ends. For example, the Milwaukee Road’s passenger trains were often rounded out with either a “Skytop Lounge” or a finned “Beavertail observation” the latter due to noted industrial designer Otto Kuhler. The Milwaukee's observations were easily recognizable as the observation end of the cars were not only rounded, but also slanted toward the front of the car, often with windows extending up from the normal window height to the roofline. The Milwaukee's observations, including the Skytops, lacked a drumhead, whose place was taken by a large oscillating rear light; instead, each tapered side carried the generic Milwaukee script name "Hiawatha" embossed on stainless steel trim flanking this light.

Six railroads bought dome-observation cars from Budd — the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad, and the Western Pacific Railroad for use on their joint California Zephyr, and the Canadian Pacific Railway for The Canadian and The Dominion. The WP touted this combination car type as “the best of both worlds” in passenger amenities. The Wabash used the cars on their "Bluebird", Chicago to St. Louis, and the Chesapeake and Ohio for the "Chessie" which never went into service. The C&O cars were sold to the Denver & Rio Grande and ran on the "Royal Gorge".

Modern use

As described above, the observation car on scheduled passenger trains has largely fallen victim to increased operational costs. An outstanding exception is Via Rail Canada's Canadian, which still operates on every triweekly trip between Toronto and Vancouver with the same dome observation-lounge cars in use on the train since 1955.

See also

• Private railroad car

References

1. ^ Frederick N. Rasmussen (2:37 PM EST, January 16, 2009). "Train car Obama said to be using has long presidential pedigree". Baltimore Sun. http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/politics/government/presidents-of-the-united-states/jimmy-carter-PEHST000385.topic. 

• White, John H., Jr. (1978). The American Railroad Passenger Car. Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-2743-4 (pbk.: set); ISBN 0-8018-2722-1 (pbk.: vol. 1); ISBN 0-8018-2747-7 (pbk.: vol. 2). 

Budd also built dome-observation cars for the Wabash's "Bluebird" between Chicago and St. Louis and the Chesapeake and Ohio "Chessie" which never went into service. The C&O cars were sold off to the Denver and Rio Grande Western where they served on the "Royal Gorge". RE: "An Illustrated Treasury of Budd railway passenger cars, 1931 to 1981" by James W. Kerr; Delta Publications 1981; pp 88–90; 162-165

See also

• Starlight Express, a musical about railway locomotives and carriages where Pearl the Observation Car is a character. Her costume is made to resemble that of a Pullman Observation coach.

External links

• Dome Observation history
• Skytop Lounge Coffee Creek restoration
• London and North Western Railway observation car No. 1503
• Swanage Railway’s Pullman Observation Car No. 14