The ''Manhattan Limited'' was a

passenger train A passenger train is a train used to transport people along a railroad line. These trains may consist of unpowered passenger railroad cars (also known as coaches or carriages) hauled by one or more locomotives, or may be self-propelled; self p ...

of the

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...

which served the

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

—

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

route.

History

The ''Manhattan Limited'' was originally the ''Seashore Limited'', an eastbound-only train which was renamed in 1903. The ''Manhattan Limited'' became a westbound train as well in 1913 with the renaming of the '' Chicago Limited''. Both trains then ran with all- Pullman consists. The ''Manhattan Limited'' served as an alternative to the ''

Broadway Limited The ''Broadway Limited'' was a passenger train operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) between New York City and Chicago. It operated from 1912 to 1995. It was the Pennsylvania's premier train, competing directly with the New York Central Ra ...

''. The ''Broadway Limited'' was a

sleeping car The sleeping car or sleeper (often ) is a railway 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. The first such cars s ...

passenger train, although there were dining accommodations on the train. As with the ''Broadway'', the ''Manhattan Limited'' departed

's Penn Station in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...

''en route'' for

Union Station A union station (also known as a union terminal, a joint station in Europe, and a joint-use station in Japan) is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway companies, allowing passengers to ...

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

. The train also carried more second and third class passengers while first class passengers took the ''Broadway Limited''. Departing and arriving earlier than its flagship sister, the ''Manhattan Limited'' made far more local stops during daytime hours on a consequently more protracted schedule. It was late to receive streamlined equipment; as late as 1941 it carried just one lightweight 10-5 sleeper. The train was powered by a GG1 locomotive between New York and Harrisburg. As with the ''Broadway Limited'', it changed locomotives at

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in P ...

. The famous class K4s took the train the rest of the way. After 1957, when the Pennsylvania Railroad replaced steam locomotives in favor of the new and less costly diesels, the ''Manhattan Limited'' was no exception to dieselization, the Pennsylvania Railroad placing in charge of the train tuscan red EMD E8 passenger diesels. The eastbound ''Manhattan Limited'' received the '' Pittsburgher''s sleepers after the latter's demise on September 13, 1964. The ''Manhattan Limited'' lost sleeper service west of Pittsburgh in both directions on March 3, 1968. The ''Manhattan Limited'' was retained after the Pennsylvania Railroad merged with the

New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Mi ...

into the ill-fated

Penn Central The Penn Central Transportation Company, commonly abbreviated to Penn Central, was an American class I railroad that operated from 1968 to 1976. Penn Central combined three traditional corporate rivals (the Pennsylvania, New York Central and th ...

, but in 1970 the Penn Central petitioned the

Interstate Commerce Commission The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) was a regulatory agency in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads (and later trucking) to ensure fair rates, to elimina ...

(ICC) to abandon the train. By then the ''Manhattan Limiteds consist was down to two coaches and a snack bar. At Pittsburgh a single waiting underutilized sleeping car and one of the last operating

Railway Post Office In Canada and the United States, a railway post office, commonly abbreviated as RPO, was a railroad car that was normally operated in passenger service as a means to sort mail en route, in order to speed delivery. The RPO was staffed by highly tr ...

cars from the sidetracks of the adjacent U.S. Post Office were switched into the eastbound consist behind the locomotive for the overnight leg to New York City, evidently remnants of '' The Pittsburgher''. The train was also available to transport specialty cars of traveling performance shows such as

Holiday on Ice Holiday on Ice is an ice show currently owned by Medusa Music Group GmbH, a subsidiary of CTS EVENTIM, Europe's largest ticket distributor, with its headquarters in Bremen, Germany. History Holiday on Ice originated in the United States in Dece ...

. The ICC granted the Penn Central's discontinuation request, but the passage of the Rail Passenger Service Act kept the ''Manhattan Limited'' running while Amtrak formed.

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...

did not retain the ''Manhattan Limited'', choosing the ''Broadway Limited'' instead. The ''Manhattan Limited'' made its final run on April 30, 1971.

Motive Power

Here is a list of motive power used on the ''Manhattan Limited'': *

PRR E6 Class E6 on the Pennsylvania Railroad was the final type of 4-4-2 "Atlantic" locomotive built by the railroad, and second only to the Milwaukee Road's streamlined class A in size, speed and power. Although quickly ceding top-flight trains to the ...

4-4-2 type steam locomotive *

PRR K4s The Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) K4 4-6-2 "Pacific" (425 built 1914–1928, PRR Altoona, Baldwin) was its premier passenger-hauling steam locomotive from 1914 through the end of steam on the PRR in 1957. Attempts were made to replace the K4 ...

4-6-2 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles and two trailing wheels on one axle. The loco ...

type steam locomotive *

PRR S1 The Pennsylvania Railroad, PRR S1 class steam locomotive (nicknamed "The Big Engine") was a single experimental duplex locomotive of the Pennsylvania Railroad. It was designed to demonstrate the advantages of duplex drives espoused by Baldwin Chie ...

6-4-4-6 type steam locomotive * PRR S2 6-8-6 type steam turbine locomotive *

PRR T1 The Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) class T1 duplex-drive 4-4-4-4 steam locomotives, introduced in 1942 with two prototypes and later in 1945-1946 with 50 production examples, were the last steam locomotives built for the PRR and arguably its most ...

4-4-4-4 A 4-4-4-4 steam locomotive, in the Whyte notation for describing locomotive wheel arrangements, has a four-wheel leading truck, two sets of four driving wheels, and a four-wheel trailing truck. While it would be possible to make an articulated lo ...

type steam locomotive * EMD E8 passenger diesel electric locomotive *

PRR GG1 The Pennsylvania Railroad GG1 is a class of streamlined electric locomotives built for the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), in the northeastern United States. The class was known for its striking art deco shell, its ability to pull trains at up to 100 ...

4-6-0+0-6-4 electric locomotive

References

{{PC named trains Railway services introduced in 1903 Passenger trains of the Pennsylvania Railroad Night trains of the United States Railway services discontinued in 1971 Passenger rail transportation in Pennsylvania Passenger rail transportation in New York (state) Passenger rail transportation in New Jersey Passenger rail transportation in Ohio Passenger rail transportation in Indiana Passenger rail transportation in Illinois