AT&SF Pullman Verde Valley is one of 26
identical
sleeping cars delivered to the railroad by Pullman Standard in early
1942.
These cars, with three different bedroom types, saw service on many
Santa
Fe sleeping car routes.
Three of the 26 Valley series sleepers originally were
assigned to Chicago-Kansas
City-Tulsa service, while the remaining cars were assigned to the
Chicago-Texas-California
California
Limited, although the cars could be found in other consists,
notably
the famous Chief, as well.
After World War II, the Verde Valley ran
regularly in Santa Fe’s Temple, Texas, to California service, originally named the Texan westbound and California Special
eastbound, with the California through cars connecting with Santa Fe
Chicago to California trains in Clovis, New Mexico. The service
was extended from Temple to Houston in 1948, and after this the Verde Valley was found regularly at Houston Union Station.
In 1954, the Texan name was dropped and the train was known in both directions as the California Special until Santa Fe discontinued the service in 1968. Santa Fe donated the car to the Gulf Coast Railroad Museum in 1969.
Verde Valley is named after an area of Arizona known
for its
non-desert qualities (verde is Spanish for green).
Facilities
in the car, which is called a “6-6-4”, include six open sections with
upper
and lower berths; six roomettes (sleeping one person each); and four
double
bedrooms (for two persons each). Bedrooms and roomettes feature
sinks
and toilets; section passengers had access to four general lavatories.
The photos below apparently were taken by a Pullman
Standard photographer
when theValley series cars were new. At left is a view of a
roomette
in a Valley series car. At right are four of the six open
sections.
Santa Fe made few alterations to the Verde Valley over the
years,
the most apparent being the blanking of small windows in the open
sections'
upper berths and a truck change.
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