The ''Dan'l Webster'' was a trainset of the

New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad , commonly known as The Consolidated, or simply as the New Haven, was a railroad that operated principally in the New England region of the United States from 1872 to 1968. Founded by the merger of ...

, between

Grand Central Terminal Grand Central Terminal (GCT; also referred to as Grand Central Station or simply as Grand Central) is a commuter rail terminal station, terminal located at 42nd Street (Manhattan), 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York Ci ...

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, and

South Station South Station, officially The Governor Michael S. Dukakis Transportation Center at South Station, is the largest railroad station and intercity bus terminal in Greater Boston and New England's second-largest transportation center after Logan I ...

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. It only operated from 1957 to 1958. The trainset was built by Pullman to their lightweight Train-X design. The train had nine short cars

articulated An articulated vehicle is a vehicle which has a permanent or semi-permanent coupling in its construction. This coupling works as a large pivot joint, allowing it to bend and turn more sharply. There are many kinds, from heavy equipment to buse ...

together. The center car had two axles (one at each end), with the remaining cars having a single axle each, being supported by adjacent cars at the end opposite the axle. The ride was rough, as with most of the other lightweight trains of the period, and the train was not a success. The ''Dan'l Webster'' was powered by two

Baldwin Baldwin may refer to: People * Baldwin (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname Places Canada * Baldwin, York Regional Municipality, Ontario * Baldwin, Ontario, in Sudbury District * Baldwin's Mills, ...

RP-210

diesel-hydraulic locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the power source is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is conveyed to the driving whee ...

s connected by

multiple unit A multiple-unit train (or multiple unit (MU)) is a self-propelled train composed of one or more Coach (rail), carriages joined, and where one or more of the carriages have the means of propulsion built in. By contrast, a locomotive-hauled ...

control through the train. Under Patrick McGinnis, the New Haven ordered three experimental high-speed trainsets in 1955: the ''Dan'l Webster'', the ''

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was the sixth president of the United States, serving from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States secretary of state from 1817 to 1825. During his long diploma ...

'', and the ''

Roger Williams Roger Williams (March 1683) was an English-born New England minister, theologian, author, and founder of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, Providence Plantations, which became the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Pl ...

''. All had interiors and exterior styling designed by architect

Marcel Breuer Marcel Lajos Breuer ( ; 21 May 1902 – 1 July 1981) was a Hungarian-American modernist architect and furniture designer. He moved to the United States in 1937 and became a naturalized American citizen in 1944. At the Bauhaus he designed the Was ...

as part of the new visual identity created by Knoll Associates. A pre-inaugural trip of the ''Dan'l Webster'' on January 8, 1957 was marred by a fire started by a dragging third rail shoe. Regular service began on March 25, 1957, along with the ''John Quincy Adams'', on the New Haven–Boston run. Like its companions, the ''Dan'l Webster'' proved unreliable. Passengers also objected to the lack of a dining car on the new lightweight trains. The ''Dan'l Webster'' was shifted to New York–Springfield service – a less prestigious run – in February 1958. It appeared in schedules under existing train names rather than as the "Dan'l Webster". The ''John Quincy Adams'' and ''Dan'l Webster'' were removed from service in June 1958. The New Haven blamed the fixed consist lengths – which could not be adjusted to meet demand – and difficulty maintaining the unique trainsets. The trainset sat in

Cedar Hill Yard Cedar Hill Yard is a classification yard located in New Haven, Connecticut, New Haven, North Haven, Connecticut, North Haven and Hamden, Connecticut, United States. It was built by the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad (often known ...

until August 1964, when it was sold to Jones Tours (owned by the

Pickens Railway Pickens Railway is a shortline railroad that has operated on two separate divisions in the Upstate Region of South Carolina: * Easley to Pickens: - abandoned and lifted in 2013. * Anderson, through Belton to Honea Path: Connections are ...

). It was largely used as a parts source for the '' Xplorer'', which the railroad operated for excursion service. That service ended in 1967 and the trainsets were scrapped around 1970.

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{{Pullman rolling stock Articulated passenger trains North American streamliner trains Passenger trains of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad

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External links