LOS ANGELES — An original Santa Fe Super Chief lounge car is being made available at no cost to any group interested in it. The catch? The new owner must handle the shipping and handling.
The San Bernardino Railroad Historical Society, known for its operation restored Santa Fe 4-8-4 steam locomotive No. 3751, is seeking serious inquiries from groups that are interested in acquiring the historic, stainless-steel passenger car, ATSF No. 1391, one of six lounge cars ordered in 1941 for the Super Chief.
“With so many other large-scale projects right now, including the continued maintenance of 3751, we would like to see the 1391 go somewhere that it can have a promising future,” said SBRHS Vice President Alex Gillman. “The fact that this car is still with us shows that it deserves to have that second life.”
While ordered in 1941, because of World War II, the six 1390-class cars were not delivered until the spring of 1946. At the time of their delivery, the cars boasted a club-lounge-dormitory floor plan that included a bar, barbershop, and shower. No. 1391 initially began service on Santa Fe trains like the El Capitan and Grand Canyon before exclusively serving on the Super Chief when the train went into daily operation in February of 1948.
The car was assigned to Santa Fe’s lesser streamliners in the 1950s as the railroad reequipped the Super Chief with its latest equipment. In 1971, No. 1391 became the only car of her class to go into service with Amtrak where it was renumbered AMTK No. 3382. The car saw much of its Amtrak service on the Texas Chief before it was stripped from the roster in 1981 when it was not selected for head-end-power upgrades.
After coming into private ownership between 1980-1990, the car eventually made its way to Southern California where a restoration to turn it into a private car commenced but was never completed before the car was given to the SBRHS. Since it was acquired by the SBRHS, the society has done its best to keep the car secured at its current location near downtown Los Angeles.
The SBRHS hopes to find a new owner for the car within the next year or else it will be forced to consider scrapping it.
The society is also making an SP baggage car, No 6673, available at no cost.
Serious inquiries about the cars can be sent to Gillman at vicepresident@sbrhs.org
Have you checked with the group in Albuquerque New Mexico with the Sante Fe # 2926? I sure the two groups 2926 and 3751 share information, and they have already been contacted.
It seems like an opportunity not to be missed for interested train enthusiasts.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
I d like it but my HOA group probably would not lol
Considering the dogs, cats, people, illegally parked pickup trucks, unpaid assessments, etc., my HOA puts up with, a Santa Fe passenger car might be seen as an improvement.
Another point of information: Is it certified for transport by rail?
Agreed. What is it we’re not being told? $$$
Please inform SBRHS that they need to post interior photos (somewhere) either on their website or on Facebook. Thanks!
I would imagine the interior is rather bleak since it says a private owner started a restoration but never finished it and the SBRHS has done nothing but store it and keep vandals away from it. But if you have the cash and the ambition. it could be a worthy project. Someone should contact the Railroading Heritage of the Midwest. They may wish to add it to their own inventory of passenger cars, including the many UP donated to them. And its safe to say they have the facilities to get it out of the weather…they might take both.