May 3, 1825 Congress alters the route of the National Road, currently building to St. Louis, between Zanesville, OH and Jefferson City MO creating a route through Columbus, Richmond, Indianapolis, Terre Haute, and Vandalia IL. This alteration will influence the route of the Pennsylvania Railroad.
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May 3, 1830 The first regularly scheduled steam-powered passenger train service begins in Kent, England on the Canterbury & Whitstable. The first train is hauled by the Robert Stephenson engine "Invicta". It is also the first railroad to run in a tunnel.
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May 3, 1851 The city of Harrisburg PA puts a 4 mph speed limit on trains, after reports trains were speeding though town at 20 mph.
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May 3, 1863 The Atchison & Topeka Railroad changes its name to become the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe.
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May 3, 1867 The first Kalamazoo & Schoolcraft Railroad train arrives in Kalamazoo. (Later K&WP, LS&MS, NYC, PC, CR, NS, GDLK)
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May 3, 1875 The New York Central & Hudson River Railroad opens the first portion of its Fourth Avenue Improvement in New York City for full revenue service. The section from 56th to 94th Street has been placed in a combination cut-and-cover and tunnel with smoke vents in center of Park Avenue.
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May 3, 1880 The Mt. Gilead Short Line Railway (OH, later NYC) is chartered.
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May 3, 1881 A Mendon MI man, Leonidas Woolley receives a patent for the first electric locomotive headlight.
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May 3, 1886 The Shenango Valley Railroad (later LS&MS, NYC) is incorporated.
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May 3, 1914 Canadian Pacific begins Montreal-Toronto-Detroit-Chicago service in cooperation with the Michigan Central.
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May 3, 1930 CBS Radio broadcasts directly from the Pennsylvania Railroad's ?"Cincinnati Limited" while on route to the Kentucky Derby.
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May 3, 1947 Detroit Street Railways ends operation between 8 Mile Road and the City of Royal Oak.
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May 3, 1951 EMD produces its first six-axle freight diesel, an SD-7. It tours as demonstrator 990 before being sold to the Southern Pacific, which numbers it 1518. It is preserved at the Illinois Railway Museum.
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May 3, 1962 One hundred sixty people are killed in a three-train collision north of Tokyo.
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May 3, 1977 Secretary of Transportation Brock Adams cancels Amtrak's "Mountaineer". Running between Cincinnati and Norfolk, it averages 35 passengers between any two points. Its last day of service will come about a month later. Most of the route will be taken over by the Catlettsburg KY-Washington "Hilltopper".
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May 3, 2014 Florida¡¯s ¡°SunRail¡± begins operations.
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May 3, 2019 Union Pacific 4-8-8-4 #4014 makes its first test run from Cheyenne WY to Nunn CO and back. It had moved under power for the first time yesterday.
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Mark Tomlonson
