The Château series is a fleet of 29 lightweight

streamlined Streamlines, streaklines and pathlines are field lines in a fluid flow. They differ only when the flow changes with time, that is, when the flow is not steady. Considering a velocity vector field in three-dimensional space in the framework of ...

sleeping car The sleeping car or sleeper (often ) is a railway passenger car (rail), passenger car that can accommodate all passengers in beds of one kind or another, for the purpose of sleeping. George Pullman was the American innovator of the sleeper car. ...

s built by the

Budd Company The Budd Company was a 20th-century metal fabricator, a major supplier of body components to the automobile industry, and a manufacturer of stainless steel passenger rail cars, airframes, missile and space vehicles, and various defense products ...

for the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

in 1954. Each contained eight duplex roomettes, four sections, three bedrooms, and one drawing room. The cars were named for distinguished

French Canadian French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fren ...

Via Rail Via Rail Canada Inc. (), operating as Via Rail or Via, is a Canadian Crown corporation that is mandated to operate intercity passenger rail service in Canada. It receives an annual subsidy from Transport Canada to offset the cost of operating ...

acquired the fleet from the Canadian Pacific in 1978 and the cars remain in active service.

Design

The cars were constructed of

stainless steel Stainless steel is an alloy of iron that is resistant to rusting and corrosion. It contains at least 11% chromium and may contain elements such as carbon, other nonmetals and metals to obtain other desired properties. Stainless steel's corros ...

; save for a

Tuscan red Tuscan red is a shade of red that was used on some railroad cars, particularly passenger cars. The color is most closely associated with the Pennsylvania Railroad, which used it on passenger cars and on its TrucTrain flatcars. It also was used ...

letterboard bearing the name "Canadian Pacific" they were unpainted. Each car was named for a distinguished

but did not carry numbers. As built each contained eight duplex roomettes, four sections, three bedrooms, and one drawing room for a maximum capacity of 25 passengers. The four open sections were located at the front of the car, followed by the three bedrooms and one drawing room, and then the eight duplex roomettes. Each of the rooms contained a private toilet. Under Via Rail the cars were rebuilt to include a communal shower at the cost of one section.

Operation

Budd delivered 29 Château cars for the Canadian Pacific in 1954 as part of a massive 173-car order which equipped the new transcontinental ''

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

'' and re-equipped the ''

Dominion The term ''Dominion'' is used to refer to one of several self-governing nations of the British Empire. "Dominion status" was first accorded to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland, South Africa, and the Irish Free State at the 1926 ...

''. The ''Château Bienville'' arrived in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

on July 4, 1954, both the first of the Château series and the first car of the Budd order. It and the ''Banff Park'', the first

Park series The Park series or Park car is a fleet of lightweight streamlined dome- sleeper-observation cars built by the Budd Company for the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1954. Sixteen of the cars were named for a Canadian national or provincial park, while o ...

car, were sent on a cross-Canada publicity tour.

acquired the entire fleet from Canadian Pacific in 1978. all 29 remain on the roster and are assigned to the

Montreal – Gaspé train Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-p ...

and

Winnipeg – Churchill train Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

and the

Ocean The ocean (also the sea or the world ocean) is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of the surface of Earth and contains 97% of Earth's water. An ocean can also refer to any of the large bodies of water into which the wo ...

between Montreal and Halifax when Renaissance cars are not available or during winter.

References

External links

Château car floor plan

Complete list of Château rolling stock
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chateau series Budd Company Canadian Pacific Railway Railway coaches of Canada Train-related introductions in 1954 Via Rail rolling stock

Design

Operation

See also

References

External links