Museum of the American Railroad - A Brief History of Railroads in Dallas, Texas

A Brief History of Railroads in Dallas

Go West Young Man!
Railroads & the Settling of the West

"... my trip was not in vain, Dallas is a bright young town, full of promise.

These words were recorded in a letter by an early traveler upon his arrival in Dallas. His journey was by train. The year was 1873 and the railroad had just reached Dallas from the south a year earlier. This burgeoning town would soon become the intersection of the first east-west line due to skillful maneuvering by local politicians. The arrival of these two major rail lines set the stage for a period of growth ultimately making Dallas the center for commerce in the Southwest, unprecedented for a city without a major river or seaport!

John Neely Bryan's vision of Dallas becoming a rail destination was realized in 1872 with the arrival of the Houston & Texas Central Railroad. As with many rail terminals, it wasn't long before several astute businessmen, who had followed the progression of the new line from Houston, would establish companies which are household words in Dallas today. The H&TC continued to build northward to Sherman, connecting with the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad in 1873. The connection would link Dallas with the industries in the northeast and midwestern United States providing a direct route for much needed materials and machinery for the bustling young town.

By 1873, several North Texas towns were keeping up with Dallas’ growth, but that would change before the year’s end. The Texas & Pacific Railway crossed the H&TC line near Browder Springs as it built westward towards Ft. Worth and El Paso. This junction of two major rail lines, would draw people and businesses from all over the U.S. as well as the neighboring communities, which were suddenly at a disadvantage.

The increase in rail service and the attendant growth of Dallas' Central Business District was not without problems. By the early 1900's, the city found itself in daily conflict the very source of its prosperity. Rail lines criss-crossed the downtown area with passenger and freight stations scattered throughout. These crowded and confusing conditions were suffocating Dallas. The solution came in 1911 when the Kessler Plan was unveiled. This master plan for Dallas included a detailed proposal for building a "belt" rail line around Dallas to be used by the railroads currently serving the Central Business District. Along this line on the western edge of town would be a new "union" station, a consolidation of seven railroads and four passenger depots. The city quickly adopted nearly every aspect of the plan and by October 1916, the Dallas Union Terminal Company opened its doors with its magnificent renaissance style station, the largest of its kind in the Southwest. Even though Dallas was free to move about without interference through rerouting the trains, the railroads continued to fuel the economy and Dallas continued to prosper.

Union terminal would see nearly 100 arrivals and departures a day during its peak years of the late 1920's. This marked the Golden Era of rail travel when nearly 10,000 Pullman sleeping cars provided passengers with a restful night's sleep on long distance trains. However, by 1930 the automobile would trigger an irreversible decline in rail passenger service. After a surge in business during World War II, the once busy station would see fewer and fewer trains. Finally in May of 1969 Texas & Pacific Conductor J.K. Welch would call "all aboard" for the last time and Union Station would close its doors on nearly 100 years of rail service.

But the story is far from over. In recent years Dallas has seen a resurgence in rail service. The advent of Amtrak in 1971 brought passenger trains back to Union Station two years later. Today, Amtrak is joined by DART's Light Rail and Trinity Railway Express Commuter train service. Meanwhile, the private freight railroads are setting records in the amount of tonnage hauled.

Railroads serving Dallas today include Amtrak, Burlington Northern Santa Fe, Dallas Garland & Northeastern, Kansas City Southern, Trinity Railway Express and Union Pacific.

Name trains serving Dallas/Ft. Worth:

Amtrak

Inter-American, 1971-1981 (San Antonio - Ft. Worth/Laredo - St. Louis/San Antonio - Chicago)
Texas Chief, 1971 - 1974 (Houston - Chicago)
Lone Star, 1974 - 1979 (Houston - Chicago)
Texas Eagle, 1981 - present (San Antonio - Chicago)

Gulf Colorado &Santa Fe Railway

Angelo, Train 77-78, 1945-1968 (Ft. Worth - Brownwood)
Antelope, Train 27-28, 1927 - 1948 (Kansas City - Ft. Worth)
Kansas Cityan, Train 11, 1960 - 1968 (Kansas City - Ft. Worth - Dallas)
Chicagoan, Train 12, 1960 - 1968 (Dallas - Ft. Worth - Chicago)
Ranger, Train 5-6, 1916 - 1960 (Chicago - Galveston)
Texas Chief, Train 15-16, 1948 - 1971 (Chicago - Houston)
Texas Chief, Dallas connection, Train 115-116, 1955-1968 (Gainesville, TX - Dallas - Ft. Worth)
Chicago Express, Train 15/112, 1905 - 1960 (Galveston - Newton, KS)
Texas Express, Train 16/111, 1905 - 1960 (Newton, KS - Ft. Worth - Galveston)

Burlington Route - Ft. Worth & Denver Rwy.

Gulf Coast Special, Train 7-8 (8 ended 1966, 7 ended 1967) (Denver - Dallas)
Texas Zephyr, Train 1-2, 1940 - 1967 (1 ended 1966, 2 ended 1967) (Denver - Dallas)

Burlington - Rock Island

Sam Houston Zephyr, Train 3-4 , 1936 - 1966 (Ft. Worth - Houston)
Texas Rocket, Train 509-510, 1937-1959 (Kansas City - Ft. Worth - Dallas - Houston)

St. Louis Southwestern "Cotton Belt"

Lone Star Special 1916 - 1918 (Memphis - Dallas - Ft. Worth)
Lone Star Limited, 1923 - 1930 Train 1-2 (Memphis - Dallas - Ft. Worth)
Morning Star 1930- Train 5-6 (Memphis - Dallas - Ft. Worth)
Evening Star 1930- (Memphis - Dallas - Ft. Worth)

St. Louis San Francisco Railway "Frisco"

Tulsa Texan, 1936 - 1938 (Tulsa - Dallas)
Black Gold, Train 507-508. 1938-59 (Tulsa - Dallas)
Texas Flash, Train 117-118 1946-47 (Kansas City - Tulsa - Dallas)
The Bluebonnet, Train 7-8, 1927-1948 (St. Louis - Dallas)

Missouri - Kansas -Texas "Katy"

The Bluebonnet, Train 27-28, 1927-1957 (St. Louis - Kansas City - Dallas - San Antonio)
Katy Flyer , 1893,1895-96,1899-1965 (St. Louis - Dallas - Ft. Worth - San Antonio)
Texas Special, Train 1-2 1915-1964(St. Louis - Dallas - Ft. Worth - San Antonio) (joint with Frisco)

Rock Island Lines

Mid-Continent Special, Train 17 - 18, 1925 - 1945 (Houston - Dallas - Minneapolis)
The Firefly, Train 31 - 32, (Ft. Worth - Kansas City)
Twin Star Rocket , Train 507-508/17-18 1945 - 1964 (Minneapolis - Houston)

Southern Pacific Lines

Sunbeam, Train 13 - 14 1925 - 1955 (Houston - Dallas/Ft. Worth )
Hustler, Train 15 - 16, 1938 - 1954 (Houston to Dallas)
Owl, Train 17 - 18, 1911-1958 (Houston to Dallas)

Texas & Pacific

Louisiana Limited, Train 2-22, 1921- (Ft. Worth - New Orleans)
The Southerner, Train 7-8, ended 1948 (St. Louis - El Paso)
Sunshine Special, Train 1-2, 1915 - 1932 (St. Louis - El Paso)
Tennessean Hot Springs Special, Train 18 (Ft. Worth - St. Louis)
The Ozarker, Train 3-4, (St. Louis - Ft. Worth)
The Texan, Train 25-26/3-4, 1932 - 1968 (St. Louis - Ft. Worth)
The Texas Ranger, Train 5-6, 1920-21 (Dallas - El Paso)
Texas - Colorado Limited Train 23-24, 1921-
Texas Eagle, Train 1-2/21-22, 1948-1969 (St. Louis - El Paso)
The Westerner, Train 7-8/27-28, 1948-1968 (St. Louis- El Paso)
Train 26-27, 1962-67 (Ft. Worth - El Paso)
Daylight Local, 1921- (Texarkana - Ft. Worth)