Recalling a Midnight Ride Aboard the Flying Yankee in 1936

Editors note:  The following is reproduced from the Flying Yankee website newsletter.  Persons interested in subscribing to the FY newsletter may do so at this link - Hume Kading

I recently had the opportunity to interview Mr. Charles Downing of York Beach, Maine, one of our Friends of the Flying Yankee. As it turns out, Mr. Downing had the distinct pleasure to ride aboard the Flying Yankee in 1936. Mr. Downing, a teenager at the time, lived in South Berwick, Maine and had taken a steam train from Portsmouth, NH to see the Circus in Boston during the fall of 1936. When it was time to make the return trip to Portsmouth that evening, Mr. Downing chose to ride aboard the Flying Yankee on its midnight run from Boston’s North Station knowing it would make a brief stop in Portsmouth on its way to Portland, Maine for the night.

He remembers boarding the Flying Yankee in North Station and sitting in the third seat from the rear in the Coach Car on the right hand side. He sat facing towards the front of the train and as he settled back into his seat, he was amazed at how comfortable the seat actually was. Up to this point, he had only ridden on steam trains with hard, horse-hair filled seats surrounded by small, rattling windows. The brightly colored mohair seats and the large windows of the Flying Yankee however, reminded him of sitting in his family’s living room.

He also remembered the controlled climate of the Flying Yankee. It wasn’t too hot, and it wasn’t too cold, it was extremely comfortable. When the Flying Yankee left North Station that evening and headed towards Portsmouth, Mr. Downing was amazed at how quickly the train got up to speed and how quiet it was in the Coach Car. Being surrounded by the large windows of the Flying Yankee, he said he really didn’t feel as though he was going that fast. That is, until he fixed his eyes on something! At 70, 80 or 90 miles per hour, Mr. Downing commented that the Flying Yankee was incredibly quiet and very comfortable. He remembers seeing the lights of Newburyport and a few other towns that evening as the Flying Yankee rolled along quietly making very few stops on its midnight run from Boston to Portland. This was a very elegant way to travel he thought! The only noise Mr. Downing remembered hearing from the train while it was moving was some light clicking noises as the brakes were applied from time to time. This was nothing like the harsh, metal to metal noises heard when the brakes were applied on the old steam trains.

After this memorable midnight trip from Boston to Portsmouth in the fall of 1936, Mr. Downing would stand in awe every time he saw this magnificent streamliner. He told me that a number of years later, while he was a member of the Grange near Knights Pond in South Berwick, Maine, the Flying Yankee would often roll by on the way to Portland on its evening run. He and others would stand quietly behind the Grange Hall and watch as the Flying Yankee cruised by, it was always a welcomed sight. He also remembered going to an area he referred to as Jewett and Rosemary Junction, not far from South Berwick, where he would be able to stand near the track and watch the Flying Yankee roll by at speeds upwards of 70 or 80 miles per hour.

The last time Mr. Downing visited the Flying Yankee up close, it was at the Edaville Railroad in South Carver, MA many years ago. He told me he used to bring his family camping near South Carver when his children were young. They would often plan a trip to Edaville to see and ride the trains while there. Every year when the family visited the Edaville Railroad, Mr. Downing would take his children aboard the Flying Yankee as part of their tour. He would often remind them of the time he rode the shiny streamliner from Boston to Portsmouth on the midnight run. He was also quite bothered by the damage inflicted to the streamliner by souvenir hunters and railroad buffs as the years went by. He couldn’t understand why anyone would want to damage this train.

However, now that Mr. Downing knows the Flying Yankee is being restored to run again, he’s very excited. After recently looking at pictures of the Flying Yankee’s Coach Car on the Flying Yankee’s web site, he told me it looked just like it did when he last rode aboard it in 1936! Mr. Downing also shared with me that his dream is to ride aboard the Flying Yankee once it’s restored. He wants to sit in the very same seat, the third seat from the rear on the right side in the Coach Car and relive that magical midnight ride from Boston to Portsmouth one more time.

(Paul Giblin)

New Steam Loco for SRI

Editor's note: Even though this subject already received extensive coverage on the Interchange, we decided to publish the official press release for posterity's sake - Hume Kading

The Steam Railroading Institute (SRI) announces the purchase of steam locomotive #76 (2-8-0) from Jerry J. Jacobson. The locomotive was part of the Ohio Central Railroad Steam Department’s collection. A history of that locomotive can be viewed at this link.

SRI will fulfill the original plan of the OC Steam Department by restoring and operating this locomotive for passenger activities. The lower operating costs of the 120 ton #76, compared to the museum’s 400 ton #1225, will allow SRI to offer its visitors regularly scheduled steam train rides and the chance to experience the sights, sounds and smells of the steam era.

This purchase furthers the SRI’s mission to: Educate the public of steam era railroad technology and its impact on the culture and economy of the Great Lakes region.

SRI will begin restoration at its Owosso site in June and expects to have Locomotive #76 back in service for the 2006 operating season.

(SRI press release)