Chessie (train)

Chessie

#500, one of three Class M1 steam turbine locomotives delivered to the C&O for the Chessie. The locomotives proved unreliable and were quickly scrapped.
Overview
Status	not introduced
Locale	Eastern United States
Current operator(s)	Chesapeake and Ohio Railway
Route
Start	Washington, D.C.
End	Cincinnati, Ohio
Average journey time	11 hours 45 minutes
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Operating speed	up to 100 mph (160 km/h)

The Chessie was a proposed streamlined passenger train developed by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O) in the late 1940s. The brainchild of C&O executive Robert R. Young, the Chessie would have operated on a daylight schedule between Washington, D.C., and Cincinnati, Ohio. The train's luxury lightweight equipment was built new by the Budd Company. A revolutionary new steam turbine locomotive would have provided power, including speeds up to 100 miles per hour (160 km/h). Although the equipment was delivered, a worsening financial outlook led to the cancellation of the train before it operated in revenue service.

Robert Young became chairman of the C&O in 1942. Chairman Young proved himself an innovator and pushed for improved passenger service on the C&O. He intended the Chessie as a vehicle for his ideas, naming the train after Chessie, the small cat who served as the C&O's mascot and alter-ego. The Chessie would operate between Washington and Cincinnati in daylight, with connections to Newport News, Virginia, and Norfolk, Virginia, at Charlottesville, Virginia, and Louisville, Kentucky, at Ashland, Kentucky. Passengers would travel in unprecedented comfort: coaches would contain just 36 seats, while standard configurations at the time had between 44 and 60, and the extra space would carry lounge seating. A year before the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad (CB&Q) demonstrated the "Silver Dome" dome car, Young planned to have domes on the Chessie. A section of the twin-unit dining car on the train's rear would show first-run movies. All the cars would be newly built lightweight equipment. Finally, the Chessie would be hauled by a revolutionary new steam turbine locomotive, the M1 which would enable the train to cover the 666 miles (1,072 km) between Washington and Cincinnati in 11 hours 45 minutes.