The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1899-12-07
THE FIRST SLEEPING CAR.


A dingy sleeping car, OF antiquated
pattern and showing plainly the effects
OF hard usage. has stood in the rail
way yards back of the Union station
for several days past - the casual
observer there was little about II TO at
tracl'a second glance. Yet that car
was the first sleeping car built by
George NJ. Pullman, and laid the foun-
dation OF his and many other fortunes,
says the st. Louis Globe Democrat.
Built I'm 1861 at Bloomington, H.. IL
Travelled for years between 81. Louis
and Chicago on the Chicago and Alton
road. In 1889 1t was decided To pension
the car, and 1t was placed in the yards
at Pullman, where 1t remained until
1888, when IL became a part OF the Pull
man Palace Car company's exhibit.
When the war with Spain broke out
the car was put put back into service,
and il has been IN constant usage until
IL was sent few days ago 10 san
Francisco In a troup train.
ON it's arrival In st. Louis on Novem-
Der IL the car was cond dsmned, and
WAS started for Chicago on it's last
journey. such in brief Is the history OF
the car Pioneer"
Mnen George ~. Pullman made his
ride over the New York Central I'm the
latter 40s he spent one night what was
termed a sleeping car. Three berths,
one above the other. gave the car the
appear ance OF the hold of canal
boat. The roughness OF the road and
the jolting Of the bed was SO severe that
Pullman could not sleep, and he spent
the night i'm thl-king OF possible
remedy. The idce came 90 him. but ne
did not have tho opportunity To use IL
until In 1858. when ne transformed sew
eral day coaches belonging TO the Chi
cago a Alton road into sleepers. They
were not satisfactory, rhe jolting,
though lessentd, being still noticeable
Then he rskcd his fortune on his judg-
ment. Securing the services of a
master mechanic. he went 10 work in
the same shops in Bloomington in
which he had been building makeshifts.
The car he conceived and there built
cost btween $ls.0C0 and $4,000, being
so expensive that railroad men thought
Pullman insane. It was Gssidcd To
charge s. for a berth, and as the price
for tho cheaper cars was only 80 cents,
the officials OF the road thought the
charges excessive.
The first trio out proved that the in
Pioneer" was filled, and when people
made a second trip over the line on a
RATHER" as the sicepers then in vogue
We're called, they complained of the in
convenience of the old cars. More
sleepers, similar I'm design 60 the Pion-
ecr when built and Pullman began max
ing money. The ear travelled exclusive
ly between Chicago and ST. Louis until
1866. when ii was sent east to return
with the funeral cortege Of Abraham
Lincoln. So wide was the new car that
depot platforms had 10 be cut away
and other changes made along the
route. The trip was made without
event OF note in the history OF the car.
and after it's mission had been COM
pleted at Springfield. the car went back
TO the Chicago and Alton.
In this service IL remained for many
years. Each day IL travelled 2s3 miles.
and, estimating on the basis OF one trip
every other day, 1t averaged over 5O,-
900 miles yearly. In the opinion OF the
representatives of the Pullman COM
pany i'm st. Louis the car has been in
use not less than twenty-five of the
thirty-seven years OF It's life. Cutting
this in half and allowing the car to
make one trip between 81. Louis and
Chicago every othsr day. the car has
Travelled over forty times the circum-
ferences Of the world-a record that no
other car used IN the passenger ser
vice OF any road can surpass. Aside
from the improvements I'm Workmanship
and added convenience. the car con-
tanned the ideas I'm an elementary form
which are still in use to-day.
The car was one OF the principal
features Of the Pullman companys ex-
hibit at the Worlds Fair at Chicago
and stood on a track alongside the lat
est improve sleeper that had been
turned out by the concern. When the
fair was over the car was hauled out
to Pullman where il remained I'm the
yards until the war with Spain broke
out. Then IL was used as q tourist
sleeper and did its share OF the work OF
carving Uncle Sans troops to the
South and TO the West. One month
ago II formed part of train which
carried t'he Forty third Infantry 10 the
coast ON it's arrival i'm ~. Louis. on its
return trip the car was condemned. and
last night saw IL on it's way TO the
''boneyard" az Pullman. By fitting
coincidence the Pioneer travelled it's
first and last mile over the Chicago and
Alton tracks.
In it's day the Pioneer has carried the
prominent men Of Illinois, both in the
political AMI business worlds for three
decades the remains or one president
and at least ten governors OF the
state.