Our neighbor to the north hosted the
only true
transcontinental railroads to be found in North America during the
streamliner era (and still does). In addition, the Alaska Railroad
provided a commercial lifeline for the development of the city of
Fairbanks in the heart of the Alaskan wilderness.
Note:
This section includes trains with at least one terminal city in the
Canada/Alaska region. Trains which transited Canada through the
Detroit/Windsor to Buffalo corridor, but which had both end points in
the "lower 48", will be found on Track
3.
The
Trains:
The Gull
Traveling from Boston to Halifax in
the
mid-1950's? You might very well consider this leisurely overnight
service between Boston and Saint John, New Brunswick, with connecting
service and a through sleeper to Halifax. Boston & Maine, Maine
Central, and Canadian Pacific combined on the Boston-St. John
service, while Canadian National operated the service from St. John to
Halifax. The Gull
- July, 1954
The International
Limited
A premium overnight service operated by
the Grand Trunk and Canadian National between Chicago, Toronto, and
Montreal. International
Limited - February, 1955
The
Maple Leaf
Canadian National/Grand Trunk
Western's day train between Chicago and Toronto via Port Huron/Sarnia. Maple Leaf
- April, 1971
The Midnight
Sun
Overnight passenger service operated between
Fairbanks and Anchorage by the Alaska Railroad in the 1950s. Midnight Sun
- November, 1958
The Montrealer/The
Washingtonian
Overnight
service between Montreal, New York, and Washington operated by the
Canadian National, Central Vermont, Boston & Maine, New Haven,
and
Pennsylvania railroads. The Montrealer/The
Washingtonian - September, 1960
The
Montreal Limited
New York Central and
Delaware & Hudson combined on this competing service between
New York City and Montreal. Montreal
Limited - September, 1960
The
Ocean Limited
An all-Pullman train until
the late 1950s, this was Canadian National's premier service between
Montreal and Halifax, Nova Scotia. Ocean Limited
- May, 1957
The Ontarian
This
service between New York and Toronto was operated by New York Central;
Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo; and Canadian Pacific. The Ontarian
- June, 1965
