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Mapping a New Course
Under the Amtrak Improvement Act of 1978, President Jimmy Carter directed the United States Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) to undertake a formal study of Amtrak’s route system in an attempt to...
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Digging into the Archives: The West Side Connection
Rail travelers in the Northeast received exciting news in the summer of 1988 when Amtrak and the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) announced a plan, known as the West Side Connection...
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A Capital Connection: The Long Bridge
Delicate and fleeting, varying in color from bright pink to snowy white to white tinged with a soft pink blush, the cherry blossoms signal the start of spring in the nation’s capital. When Mayor Yukio...
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Amtrak Year-by-Year: 1979
Alan S. Boyd led Amtrak from 1978 to 1982.In 1979, the recommendations of the Amtrak Reform Act of 1978 went into effect, leading to reductions in the number of route miles served by intercity...
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Happy 23rd Birthday, Carolinian
This month, the Carolinian (New York-Raleigh-Charlotte) celebrates 23 years of connecting the Tar Heel state with the greater Northeast. The start of service on May 12, 1990 cemented a fruitful...
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Digging into the Archives: The Amazing GG-1 Locomotive
In a May 2013 ceremony held at the Siemens rail manufacturing plant in Sacramento, Calif., Amtrak unveiled the first of 70 new Cities Sprinter locomotives (ACS-64) ordered for use on the Northeast...
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Postmark Amtrak
Although we live in a world where near-instant communication is possible via the telephone, email, Facebook, Twitter and other social media resources, the traditional paper postcard still holds a...
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Digging into the Archives: The AEM-7 Locomotive
Amtrak President and CEO Joseph Boardman poses with one of the new ACS-64 locomotives during the unveiling ceremony.As Amtrak and railroad enthusiasts look forward to the introduction of the new...
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Amtrak Year-by-Year: 1980
As Amtrak entered the 1980s, President and CEO Alan Boyd declared, “[Amtrak] has achieved maturity…[we are] now positioned as a vital, well-managed business enterprise competing in commercial...
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Getting to Know Amtrak
Railroading has long been considered a “family affair” in which multiple generations of a family might work in the same craft, or take on positions across a variety of fields. Building on this sense of...
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"Somethin' Special": A Superliner History
Upon assuming the operation of the nation’s intercity passenger rail system in May 1971, Amtrak faced an obvious need to upgrade its locomotive and rolling stock fleets, which had been purchased or...
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Creating Intermodal Connections
Unlike many station stops along the Northeast Corridor (NEC) that were established more than a century ago, the Baltimore Washington International Airport-Thurgood Marshall Airport station is a recent...
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Welcoming the Next Generation: Viewliner II
In total, 130 single-level Viewliner II cars will be manufactured at the CAF USA plant in Elmira, N.Y. Amtrak invited press and media representatives to Elmira, N.Y. in late October to tour the...
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Digging into the Archives: Special Trains Memorabilia
On the first weekend in November, Amtrak is running a special train called the “Autumn Express” that will travel through southeastern Pennsylvania and northeastern Maryland. Gazing out the windows,...
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A Thanksgiving Feast
Delicious holiday meals are a railroad tradition, providing passengers a taste of home even when they are traveling the rails. The Amtrak Archives contains a specially printed menu, probably from the...
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Amtrak Year-by-Year: 1981
Amtrak marked its 10th Anniversary in 1981.Thinking back over all that had happened in 1981, Amtrak President and CEO Alan Boyd wrote, “In perspective, [it] was the corporation’s finest hour.” While...
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All Aboard for the Big Game: Amtrak Football Specials
For many, fall is all about football, when fans can revel in college and professional games on television or walk over to their local high school to enjoy a big Friday night match up. Over the years,...
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Christmas on the Rails
Following up on the vintage menu we posted for Thanksgiving, here we have its Christmas cousin. Like the other, it is decorated with a beautiful drawing incorporating a star-topped Christmas tree under...
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A Closer Look: Rolling out the Red Carpet
To kick off 2014, the Amtrak History Blog will include a new monthly feature where we’ll take a closer look at an object in the Archives, particularly recently added items. It gives us a chance to...
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Gil Reid and the Art of the Amtrak Calendar
Since their origins in the early 19th century, American railroads have been savvy in the use of imagery to advertise their services and attract riders. While passengers choose the train to fulfill the...
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