The Piedmont Limited was a named passenger train operated by the Southern Railway in the southern United States. For most of its life it was a New York—New Orleans train, operating over the same route as the more famous Crescent Limited. The Southern Railway introduced the train on March 12, 1899, and it was known as the crack train of the route until the introduction of the Crescent in 1925.[1][2] The Southern Railway discontinued the Piedmont Limited in 1976.[3]
 EMD FP7s leading the Piedmont Limited in 1974. | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Service type | Inter-city rail |
| Status | Discontinued |
| Locale | Southeastern United States |
| First service | March 12, 1899 |
| Last service | 1976 |
| Former operator(s) | Southern Railway |
| Route | |
| Termini | New York, New York New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Service frequency | Daily |
| Train number(s) | 33 (southbound), 34 (northbound) |
| On-board services | |
| Seating arrangements | Reclining seat coaches |
| Sleeping arrangements | Pullman open sections, roomettes and other closed rooms |
| Catering facilities | Dining car |
| Entertainment facilities | Lounge-coach with radio |
Route details
In its prime the Piedmont Limited operated over the following roads:[2]
- Pennsylvania Railroad: New York—Washington, D.C.
- Southern Railway: Washington—Atlanta, Georgia
- West Point Route: Atlanta—Montgomery, Alabama
- Louisville and Nashville Railroad: Montgomery—New Orleans
Major cities served
Aside from the above cited cities, the train served Newark, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Lynchburg, Charlottesville, Greensboro, Charlotte, Spartanburg, Greenville, Gainesville, Mobile and Gulfport.[4]
A spur branch served Birmingham, but this was eliminated by 1964.[5] With the decline of passenger rail in the 1960s and 1970s, the train was eventually cut back to an Atlanta-Washington daytime service, supplementing the then-Southern Crescent along its middle leg. In 1975, its southern terminus was truncated to Charlotte.
By the time it was discontinued in 1976, the once-proud train had seen its southern terminus cut back to Salisbury, North Carolina.[3]
References
- ^ "This date in Southern Railway history". Southern Railway History. Southern Railway Historical Association. Retrieved 2011-06-19.
- ^ a b "New Southern Train Will Be Put On April 26". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. March 7, 1925. Retrieved 2011-06-19.
- ^ a b Cox, Jim (2011). Rails Across Dixie: A History of Passenger Trains in the American South. Jefferson, NC: McFarland. ISBN 9780786445288. OCLC 609716000.
- ^ Southern timetable, July 1952 Table B http://streamlinermemories.info/South/SOU52TT.pdf
- ^ Southern timetable, April 1964, Table B http://streamlinermemories.info/South/SRR64-4TT.pdf
External links
Media related to Piedmont Limited at Wikimedia Commons