The Illinois Railway Museum has received via donation the second to last PV in heavy weight configuration every built by Pullman. RPCX 6378 was received on our interchange today at 2:58 PM today. The Pawnee, as it was named by Harry Payne Bingham was built in 1930. It moved first on the NS, then interchanged in Chicago to the BRC and finally delivered to the UP in Proviso rail yard. It was received by Irm on our interchange with the UP, today. Donations to this fantastic private car can be made to the Pawnee fund, care of IRM. Thanks Roger Kramer

In early 2017, this car was offered to Railroad Museum of New England. In April 2017, I inspected the car, and was amazed by it's condition and originality: 32VDC battery electrical system, steam heat, etc. Interior needs to be completed, the exterior had body work about 18 years ago. A very nice car, with lots of documentation. But, outside our scope of regional preservation, and we didn't have the resources to give the car what it needed.

I suggested to the owner that IRM would be a good home for Pawnee, as there would be no impetus to "modernize" or "Amtrak" it, and it would be preserved with no alterations. I facilitated an on-site meeting and inspection between IRM and the car's owner in November 2017, and was pleased that IRM decided to take the car.

A good outcome for a very nice original car, and a great addition to IRM's passenger car collection.

Howard P.

Here's a link to IRM's site on the car with a photo.

At this end of the world the raised center windows are reminiscent of Perry Shoemaker's office cars on DL&W and CNJ.

https://www.irm.org/in-the-news/museum-acquires-pawnee/

Phil Mulligan

Hello Howard Yes, thanks for recommending us to the donor. The Irm members that have already viewed the Pawnee, PV, were very impressed by its condition. Very unusual to find a car like this, now days, in this great of original form. One has to see it to believe it! R Kramer

I should also mention this acquisition is reminiscent of Peter Tilp's donation of Pullman 8 section-Restaurant-Lounge Lotos Club to the RR Museum of PA. The car is now on prominent display in Rolling Stock Hall.

https://rrmuseumpa.org/wp-content/uploa ... s-Club.jpg

Photo is GG1 4934 at Gap moving the car to Leaman Place for SRC to deliver to RRMPA.

Phil Mulligan

The Pawnee is quite a different car than what you have mentioned. The Lotus Club and Pullmans like it were either in Pullman pool service or were used by a particular railroad in regular service. This car was built for a rich millionaire owner. His wife picked out the interior designs and appointments she wanted from the Pullman catalog. The railroads paid very particular attention to them for they were classified as PV. They were painted differently than ordinary Pullman sleepers.
In todays market buying a Boeing jet private airliner and outfitting what you want would be comparable! The people who had money in the gilded age spent it on top quality items. They had a different lifestyle and lived maybe on fifth avenue in New York City and spent their winters in Florida.
This car has three bedrooms and had room for two porters. Its has a similar configuration as the Ferdinand Magellan and weighs 90 tons not 130. We all know who road in the Magellan. In their younger days the Harry Payne Binghams knew John D Rockefeller, Henry Flagler, and J. P. Morgan. Not a bad group of friends to be associated with!

Understood. Lotos Club was always in Pullman service. It was built in 1913 as 10 Section-Observation Lounge car El Quivera and rebuilt in 1936 to its current configuration. Despite the 1948 sale of most heavyweight cars to the participating railroads, Lotos Club remained in Pullman ownership until 1968(!), when Peter Tilp bought the car and maintained it, donating it to RRMPA in intact condition.

The previous post states Pawnee was a privately-owned PV similar to the Explorer-series PV's which had been built by Pullman for its own service. Chartering a Pullman-owned PV would be similar in today's world to chartering a private jet, versus owning the jet.

Pullman built 5 PV's in 1927 and 2 in 1929, including the Ferdinand Magellan. Magellan was sold to the US Government and rebuilt with armor, bulletproof glass and an elevator for Pres. F. D. Roosevelt. The other Pullman PV's later became RR Office Cars. The Roald Amundsen, the 1929 sister to the Magellan, is preserved in Scottsdale AZ. The Magellan is preserved at the Gold Coast RR Museum in Miami FL.

The similarity is that both Pawnee and Lotos Club have been donated in good condition.

I do have a question: are the raised windows in the center of the car original or do they represent a later rebuild?

Phil Mulligan

Photos of the car after arrival at IRM can be seen on the Hicks Blog:
https://hickscarworks.blogspot.com/2019/12/private-car-pawnee.html