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December 30, 1829 As experiments in motive power continue, six persons travel over the Baltimore & Ohio in a sail car.

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December 30, 1853 The Gadsden Purchase is finalized. The land, bought from Mexico, is acquired primarily because it includes the best rail route between Texas and California. The land is now the southern portion of Arizona and New Mexico.

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December 30, 1862 The Central Transportation Company is incorporated, merging the sleeping car patents of T.T. Woodruff and Edward Knight of Philadelphia. The new company assumes operation of sleeping cars on the Pennsylvania and other railroads.

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December 30, 1869 The Ohio & Mississippi Railroad opens its Louisville Branch between North Vernon, IN and Jeffersonville, giving the Baltimore & Ohio system access to Louisville.

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December 30, 1871 Grand Duke Alexis of Russia and his party travel through Kalamazoo on their way to Chicago from Detroit, traveling via the Michigan Central Railroad. The Grand Duke tours rebuilding efforts following the Chicago Fire.

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December 30, 1889 The Hamilton & Lindenwald Electric Transit (OH) receives its charter.

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December 30, 1906 A train wreck at Terra Cotta near present day Fort Totten in Washington DC kills 52. The accident leads to the ICC banning future wooden body passenger car construction.

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December 30, 1927 The first subway in The Orient opens in Japan: The Ginza Line in Tokyo.

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December 30, 1960 The Soo Line is formed with the merger of the Duluth, South Shore & Atlantic, Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie and Wisconsin Central railroads.

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December 30, 1963 Dayton Union Railway Company sells the old portion of Dayton Union Station to the city. The station will be demolished.

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December 30, 1968 The Long Island Railroad places its first M-1 "Metropolitan" cars in revenue service.

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December 30, 1969 RPO service between Detroit and Grand Rapids MI ends.

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December 30, 1976 Boeing LRV's begin serving on the MBTA.

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Mark Tomlonson

December 29, 1841 The Central Railroad of Michigan reaches Jackson from the east.

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December 29, 1876 The Lake Shore & Michigan Southern's train No. 5 "The Pacific Express" falls into the Ashtabula River in Ohio after the collapse of the bridge. Eleven of the passenger cars burn in a fire started by the car stoves. Sixty-four people are killed and 64 injured out of 159 people on board. It is the worst U.S. train wreck to date.

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December 29, 1901 The first test runs are made on the Grand Rapids, Grand Haven & Muskegon (MI Interurban).

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December 29, 1904 An agreement is signed to form the Vandalia Railroad (later PRR) from the merger of the Terre Haute & Indianapolis, St. Louis Vandalia & Terre Haute, Terre Haute & Logansport, Logansport & Toledo and the Indianapolis & Vincennes railroads. The agreement will take effect on January 1.

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December 29, 1925 The Pennsylvania Railroad holds its first annual Christmas Party at the Metropolitan Opera House in Philadelphia. Other parties are held at regional centers throughout the system.

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December 29, 1932 "Twentieth Century", a play by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur set on the famous New York Central passenger train opens on Broadway.

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December 29, 1939 The Pioneer Zephyr reaches one million miles in revenue service near Council Bluffs IA.

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December 29, 1953 The last electric train runs through the Detroit River tunnel. It's replaced by diesels.

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December 29, 1968 Penn Central abandons Albany Union Station in favor of a new station across the Hudson in Rensselaer. All trains now operate over formerly freight-only tracks through Albany.

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December 29, 1968 PATH announces it will build a new station beneath the under-construction World Trade Center.

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December 29, 2006 Six New Yorkers set a new Guinness World Record for riding the entire New York City subway system in the shortest period of time: 24 hours, 54 minutes and 3 seconds, breaking the previous record by over an hour and a half. The world record required that the participants visit all 468 stations in the subway system by boarding or exiting at or riding on-board a train that opened and closed its doors at each of those stations.

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December 29, 2011 An Illinois appeals court rules that the estate of a dead man can be sued by people injured by flying parts of his cadaver. The man died when struck by a METRA train in 2008. Court officials call the case "irregular, gory and creepy".

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Mark Tomlonson

December 28, 1825 George Featherstonhaugh (pronounced fen-shaw), of Duanesburgh NY, runs a newspaper notice announcing the formation of the Mohawk & Hudson Rail Road Company.

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December 28, 1829 The Baltimore & Ohio begins experimental excursions between Pratt Street and Carrollton Viaduct using a variety of cars, including a six-person car pulled by two dogs.

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December 28, 1860 The Pennsylvania Railroad Board declines a request by the American Railway Literary Union to place religious books and tracts in PRR passenger trains.

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December 28, 1878 The Chicago & Michigan Lake Shore Railroad becomes the Chicago & West Michigan Railroad. (later PM, C&O, CSX)

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December 28, 1879 The Tay Bridge over Scotland's Firth of Tay collapses in a gale with the loss of seventy-five persons. Although it was hailed as an "engineering triumph" when it was built three years earlier, the railway bridge has collapsed due to faulty design.

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December 28, 1889 The Newark & Granville Street Railway, the first electric interurban line in the United States, begins operations in Licking County OH.

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December 28, 1901 The Escanaba & Lake Superior Railway begins regular operations between Escanaba and Channing.

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December 28, 1910 With the opening of Penn Station, the Pennsylvania Railroad disposes of its former cab fleet of 82 carriages and 60 horses. They are no longer needed to carry passengers to and from the river ferries.

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December 28, 1912 The Municipal Railway of San Francisco, the first publicly-owned transit system in a large American city, begins operations.

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December 28, 1917 The United States Railroad Administration takes over operation of all U.S. railroads at 12:00 noon.

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December 28, 1918 The USRA establishes eight hours as the basic workday, with time-and-a-half the standard for overtime.

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December 28, 1921 The Pennsylvania Railroad abandons the Central Indiana Railway between Advance and Brazil IN and authorizes the enlargement of the yard at Richmond IN.

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December 28, 1955 A parade of 12 Brilliners and 8 War Board cars highlight the end of trolley service in Atlantic City, NJ. Atlantic City is the last trolley line in the Garden State to operate on a main street.

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December 28, 1972 Amtrak's French-built Turboliners begin service.

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Mark Tomlonson

December 24, 1867 The Detroit Car & Manufacturing Company is formed.

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December 24, 1878 The Grand Trunk and the Chicago & Lake Huron Railroads reach an agreement shaping the consolidated railroad, which will eventually be known as the Grand Trunk Western.

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December 24, 1899 Boston's last horsecar ends operation.

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December 24, 1904 The Springfield, South Charleston, Washington Court House & Chillicothe Traction Company opens. It runs between South Charleston and Emory Chapel OH, and running rights on the Springfield & Xenia allow it to get from Emory Chapel to Springfield.

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December 24, 1911 The Delaware, Lackawanna & Western opens its Lackawanna cut-off. Running from near Lake Hopatcong NJ to near the Delaware Water Gap, the 28-mile line saves 11 miles from the previous route and offers some of the most spectacular scenery on the DL&W.

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December 24, 1929 The Pennsylvania Railroad reports a record number of holiday travelers, up 15% from 1928. PRR has operated 100 extra trains. All the "Blue Ribbon" trains are run in two sections and the "American" in three sections.

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December 24, 1931 The New Haven acquires its first diesel locomotive, a former ALCO demonstrator the New Haven numbers "600". In later life the locomotive will wear "0900".

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December 24, 1943 A record 178,892 passengers are carried between Washington and New York on the Pennsylvania Railroad.

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December 24, 1946 The Office of Defense Transportation cancels the Pullman contract for operation of the boxcar troop sleeper fleet. The cars are sold for conversion to freight service, as had been the intent in their design. Many of the cars will find their way, substantially without alteration, into work train and maintenance of way service.

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December 24, 1953 The head-end crew of a Czech Republic train celebrates Christmas by drinking several bottles of wine in the cab. They fall asleep and hit a commuter train in Sakvice. One hundred six people are killed.

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December 24, 1953 The Tangwai River Bridge in New Zealand is hit by a flash flood of volcanic debris a few minutes before the arrival of an overnight Wellington to Auckland express train. One hundred fifty one people are killed when the bridge gives way under the train.

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December 24, 1954 Last steam on the Detroit, Toledo & Ironton.

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December 24, 1954 Last run of regular passenger service between Cincinnati and Sturgis MI on the Pennsylvania Railroad. Summer only service continues. A gas-electric car is placed in service between Sturgis and Grand Rapids as the State of Michigan refuses to allow total discontinuance of service.

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December 24, 1959 New York Central's "Beeliner", RDC service between Jackson and Bay City MI, is discontinued.

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December 24, 1986 The Keokuk Junction Railway purchases 28.4 miles of the former Toledo, Peoria & Western from the Santa Fe. This increases the size of the KJ by more than six fold, and extends its line to La Harpe IL.

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December 24, 2008 The United States Surface Transportation Board approves the sale fo the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern to Canadian National.

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December 25, 1830 First common carrier steam train in regular service in the U.S. on the South Carolina RR, later Southern Railroad.

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December 25, 1848 The New Haven Railroad begins operation.

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December 25, 1858 The Pittsburgh, Ft. Wayne & Chicago (later PRR) opens between Englewood and Van Buren Street, Chicago, completing the line from Pittsburgh to Chicago. The PFW&C is the third railroad entering Chicago from the east and the first from Philadelphia.

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December 25, 1865 Union Stockyards open on the southwest side of Chicago, outside what was then the city limits. The yards have been built in six months at cost of $1.4 million and are the largest stockyards in the world.

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December 25, 1871 The Cincinnati, Richmond & Fort Wayne Railroad opens between Winchester and Adams IN on the Pittsburgh Ft. Wayne & Chicago, completing the line between Richmond IN and Fort Wayne. The Grand Rapids & Indiana immediately begins operation of the CR&FtW. The added track will cause the GR&I to form two Divisions, centered on Grand Rapids MI.

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December 25, 1891 Streetcar service begins in Lincoln IL.

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December 25, 1950 The Peoria & Eastern ends the use of steam locomotives.

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December 25, 2002 The 5,758 mile Trans-Siberian Railway is completely electrified.

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December 25, 2005 The former carferry "Lansdowne", built in 1884 and at one time the largest vessel on the lakes sinks in its moorings at Erie, PA. Converted to a barge after leaving Detroit ferry service in 1956, she carries two ex-MILW "Skytop" observation cars as she sinks.

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December 26, 1870 The 12.8 kilometer (7.95 miles) Frejus (or Mt. Cenis) Rail Tunnel is holed through, connecting France and Italy. The project was expected to take 25 years, but pneumatic drilling has reduced the time to 14 years.

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December 26, 1896 The Lake Manitoba Railway and Canal Company operates its first train from Dauphin to Portage la Prairie. Within two years the company is renamed the Canadian Northern Railway Company.

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December 26, 1903 High winds extinguish a kerosene warning light, and two Pere Marquette passenger trains collide near Grand Rapids, killing 22 and injuring 30.

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December 26, 1913 The landmark Michigan Central depot in Detroit opens, rushed into service after fire damages the previous station. It will serve the city as a railroad depot until 1988, with the platforms in use until 1994.

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December 26, 1917 President Wilson announces that the federal government will be taking over operation of the railroads under the authority of the Army Appropriations Act of 1916. The railroads will be administered by the United States Railway Administration (USRA).

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December 26, 1934 The Pullman Car & Manufacturing Co. merges with its subsidiary Standard Steel Car Co. to become Pullman-Standard.

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December 26, 1944 New York Central locomotive 5219 suffers a boiler explosion while standing at the passenger station in Elkhart IN.

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December 26, 2004 A tsunami hits the express train "Samudradevi", or "Queen of the Sea" in Telwatta, Sri Lanka. Eight hundred two bodies are recovered out of an estimated 2,000 dead, making it the worst train disaster in history. Of the 2,000 dead, 700 were people who had climbed upon the train after the first wave thinking they would be safe.

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December 27, 1853 A force of 300 New York railroad workers from Buffalo arrives at Harbor Creek (near Erie PA) and intimidates citizens of Harbor Creek tearing up the Erie & North East Railroad. When a Buffalo & State Line (later NYC) conductor wounds a townsman, citizens drive the railroad workers back into the train. Locomotives and some cars are cut off and some workers manage to flee across the state line. The mayor, militia, and a large mob of citizens of Erie arrive and take possession of track.

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December 27, 1879 The Ft. Wayne & Jackson Railroad (later LS&MS, NYC) is incorporated.

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December 27, 1890 Streetcars begin running in Zanesville OH.

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December 27, 1899 The Copper Range Railroad is completed between Houghton and McKeever MI.

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December 27, 1902 During a raging blizzard, the “Pacific Express” slams into a freight train near Wanstead ONT. The two Grand Trunk trains collide as the freight was pulling into the siding for the meet. Thirty-one people are killed.

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December 27, 1906 Michigan Central buys the Chicago, Kalamazoo & Saginaw (later NYC, PC, CR; one branch GTW, CN) to thwart plans by the Pere Marquette to make it a link in a shorter Chicago-Detroit route. The MC has little interest in operating the line and the Sergeant family continues to run it much as they had before the purchase.

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December 27, 1937 The Long Island Railroad places two experimental double-deck MU cars (motor-trailer) in service.

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December 27, 1937 A new "City of Los Angeles" is placed in service via the Overland Route.

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December 27, 1937 The Illinois Power Company shuts down the streetcars in Springfield IL.

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December 27, 1941 The Office of Price Administration begins the rationing of rubber. The lack of rubber for automobile tires will lead many travelers to choose the train.

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December 27, 1943 The War Department takes possession of all U.S. railroads.

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December 27, 1956 Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton ships its last locomotives, New Orleans Public Belt #61 and #62.

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December 27, 2008 Phoenix opens its new light rail line with a performance by the 1970's rock group "Grand Funk Railroad". The new line runs 20 miles between Mesa and north-central Phoenix.

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December 27, 2011 General Electric announces it will open a new locomotive remanufacturing facility in Erie PA. The plant is expected to be in operation in 2013.

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Mark Tomlonson

December 23, 1852 The first train to run west of the Mississippi travels five miles from St. Louis to Cheltenham, a modest beginning on building plans that have aimed towards a transcontinental rail connection ever since gold was discovered in California in 1848.

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December 23, 1867 The first section of the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad opens between Grand Rapids and Cedar Springs, MI, meeting the deadline set by the State of Michigan for the land grant. The GR&I is operated by a contractor with cars provided by the Pittsburgh, Ft. Wayne & Chicago. This small amount of construction has exhausted all of the GR&I's available funds.

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December 23, 1873 The First section of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe opens, between Topeka and the Colorado/Kansas border.

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December 23, 1877 The Indianapolis Belt Line handles a record 108-car train.

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December 23, 1907 The first all-steel passenger car is unveiled, built by the Pennsylvania Railroad.

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December 23, 1926 The Pennsylvania Railroad holds its second annual system-wide Christmas party, held simultaneously across the system at 8:00 PM EST. The party is broadcast on WJZ New York, KDKA Pittsburgh and other stations. At Philadelphia, PRR President Atterbury greets employees at the Metropolitan Opera House.

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December 23, 1926 Atlantic Coast Line inaugurates new Pullman lounges on the "Havana Special", equipped with two shower baths and a soda fountain-buffet. Also offered: afternoon tea with “Filipino” (i.e. non-Union) attendants.

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December 23, 1930 The Detroit-Toledo Railroad merges with the Detroit, Toledo & Ironton. Detroit-Toledo has been a DT&I subsidiary for the last 15 years.

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December 23, 1944 Washington Union Station is temporarily closed when 100,000 customers fill the concourse, which has been designed for 25,000. Some passengers are unable to get to their trains before departure and many trains leave the station with empty space.

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December 23, 1946 8,872,244 people ride the New York City subways, the current one-day record.

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December 23, 1968 Canadian National Railways begin using Turbos in revenue service.

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Mark Tomlonson

December 22, 1851 The first railroad opens in India, hauling construction material in Roorkee.

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December 22, 1886 The Duluth, South Shore & Atlantic Railroad is created from the merger of the Sault Ste. Marie & Marquette, Mackinaw & Marquette and Wisconsin, and Sault Ste. Marie & Mackinac Railroad Companies.

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December 22, 1898 Interurban service begins between Elkhart and Goshen IN.

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December 22, 1914 The New York Central & Hudson River, the Lake Shore & Southern Michigan and several other subsidiaries consolidate with the New York Central. The Boston & Albany, Big Four and Michigan Central remain leased lines.

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December 22, 1928 A record 854 long distance trains enter and leave Grand Central Terminal over 24 hours.

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December 22, 1939 Two trains collide head-on near Genthin, Germany. Two hundred and seventy-eight are killed, 453 injured.

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December 22, 1954 The board of the Pennsylvania Railroad is briefed on the status of lightweight train projects, Pullman has received no orders for its "Train X". General Motors is building two lightweight sets to be powered by a special 1,200 hp diesel.

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December 22, 1984 New York City resident Bernhard Goetz shoots and wounds four youths on a Manhattan subway, claiming they were about to rob him.

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Mark Tomlonson

December 21, 1829 The first stone arch railroad bridge in the U.S. is dedicated in Baltimore.

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December 21, 1833 The Georgia Railroad, the first railroad in Georgia, is chartered.

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December 21, 1841 The Albany & West Stockbridge Railroad (later B&A) completes its line between Greenbush and Chatham NY.

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December 21, 1901 Arthur E. Appleyard assumes control of the Dayton, Lebanon & Cincinnati Railroad. He plans to unite it with other railroads, including the Ohio River & Western, as part of an interurban system to be known as the Ohio Union Traction Company.

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December 21, 1903 The Harbor Beach & Port Hope R.R. Co. (MI) is merged into the Pere Marquette.

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December 21, 1926 The Chambersburg & Gettysburg Electric Railway (PA) quits.

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December 21, 1929 The Albany Southern (NY Interurban) quits.

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December 21, 1938 The Pennsylvania Railroad's class S1 6-4-4-6 duplex steam locomotive is completed at Altoona, save for the streamlining. It also undergoes its first tests.

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December 21, 1948 Grand Trunk Western opens a new passenger depot in Grand Rapids MI. The structure and associated trackage costs $250,000. ($2.6 million in 2018 dollars.)

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December 21, 1962 The Budd Company delivers its last RDC, to the Reading Railroad.

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December 21, 1971 Joseph Easley, longtime cartoonist for "Railroad" magazine dies at the age of 86.

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December 21, 2004 Marklin introduces "condom" cars in HO and Z scale. Packed with a car lettered for German condom maker "Blausiegel" is one of the company's products. The cars are sold in a cigar-box like presentation case and are not marketed to children.

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Mark Tomlonson

December 18, 1867 The Cleveland. Painesville & Ashtabula’s (later NYC) “New York Express” derails at Angola NY when a passenger car with “compromise” trucks (allowing it to run on both 56.5” and 58” gauge) picks the point of a frog and derails. The derailed car rolls off a bridge and kills 49.

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December 18, 1881 The Michigan Central reaches the Straits of Mackinaw, building north from Bay City. (Some sources say December 31)

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December 18, 1936 The "Twin Cities Zephyr", an articulated trainset pulled by a separate diesel locomotive, is placed into service by the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy between Chicago and Minneapolis-St. Paul MN.

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December 18, 1946 The Pennsylvania Railroad ends its commitment to steam with the $16.375 million (2020: $198 million) purchase of 19 6,000 HP passenger diesels (5 EMD E7's, 5 Alco PA's and 9 BLW Sharknoses), completing dieselization of Blue Ribbon trains. Also included: 6 EMD F3 7,500 HP freight diesels to experimentally dieselize one freight train each between Harrisburg/Chicago and Harrisburg/St. Louis.

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December 18, 1952 "Train X" makes its last test runs. Pennsylvania Railroad officials note that while the train can reach 106 mph, the ride is very unstable and uncomfortable.

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December 18, 1956 Aerotrain service, "City of Las Vegas", between Los Angeles and Las Vegas begins on the Union Pacific.

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December 18, 1962 The Interstate Commerce Commission approves Detroit, Toledo & Ironton control of the Ann Arbor Railroad.

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December 19, 1881 The land grant railroad Detroit, Mackinac & Marquette (later DSS&A, SOO, WC, CN) reaches St. Ignace, spanning Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

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December 19, 1910 The Chicago City Council considers following New York's lead and requiring all railroads to electrify within a radius of seven miles no later than January 1, 1913. The motion does not pass.

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December 19, 1919 The Canadian National Railways is created by an Order in Council. The creation is meant to unite and rescue five bankrupt railroads: the Grand Trunk, Grand Trunk Pacific, Canadian Northern, Intercolonial and Canadian Government Railways. The new CNR is the longest railroad in North America, with over 50,000 km (31,000 miles) of track in Canada and the United States.

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December 19, 1926 The Boston & Albany opens a new union station in Springfield MA. It replaces two earlier stations and cost $5.87 million ($84 million in 2018) to build.

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December 19, 2000 The Adrian & Blissfield Railroad acquires the former Lenawee County Railroad (ex-NYC, LS&MS) from the State of Michigan.

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December 19, 2006 For the first time since Hurricane Katrina, streetcars return to the St. Charles line in New Orleans. Only 10% of the route and just two of the 35 cars inaugurate the service.

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December 19, 2017 CSX files with the STB to abandon the former Monon trackage between New Albany and Bedford, 62.3 miles. CSX ended service on the line in 2010, and the tracks have been used for rail car storage since then.

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December 20, 1869 The Michigan Central begins joint operations with the Great Western Railway of Canada.

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December 20, 1880 A shipment of Chinese silkworms and silkworm eggs valued at $1.2 million leaves Chicago on the Pennsylvania Railroad bound for Jersey City and France.

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December 20, 1900 The first Cascade Tunnel on the Great Northern opens, replacing a series of switchbacks.

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December 20, 1904 An acute water shortage in central and western Pennsylvania is delaying Pennsylvania Railroad trains. Water trains are brought in from the east. Next year a program will begin to create reservoirs in the area.

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December 20, 1905 The rebuilt Louisville Union Station opens.

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December 20, 1918 The first Boyne City, Gaylord & Alpena train arrives in Alpena MI.

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December 20, 1918 "Canadian National Railways" is approved as the new name for Canadian Government Railways.

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December 20, 1967 United Aircraft's "Turbotrain" sets the current United States rail speed record: 170.8 mph between New Brunswick and Trenton NJ.

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December 20, 1970 Pullman-Standard closes its Michigan City IN shops.

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December 20, 1984 A freight train derails in Summit Tunnel near Todmorden, England. Over 1 million liters (260,000 U.S. gallons) of gasoline ignite, creating the world’s largest underground fire. Two of the train’s tank cars melt in the 2,970 degree (F) fire. Flames rising out of the ventilators rise 148 feet into the air. No one is hurt in the blaze.

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December 20, 2003 Hong Kong Railways (KCRC) opens its West Rail extension.

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December 20, 2010 The Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society receives an SD-9, donated by Norfolk Southern. The locomotive, delivered to the Nickel Plate in 1957 as its number 358, was retired in 2007.

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December 20, 2017 The Byron Bay Railway Company, in Byron Bay Australia claims the world’s first solar powered train. Using two refurbished rail-diesel cars, the train has been converted to use solar energy from curved panels built into the cars’ roofs. Along with panels on the station roof used for recharging the train when it is parked, the train rarely needs its standby diesel engine as it takes beachgoers from the town center to the ocean.

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Mark Tomlonson

December 17, 1830 Former President John Quincy Adams, following his re-election to Congress, travels over the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad between Baltimore and Relay MD en route to Washington DC. President Adams rides in his own carriage that has been placed on a horse-drawn B&O flat car.

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December 17, 1834 The first railroad in Ireland opens.

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December 17, 1853 The Brooklyn City Railroad, the oldest streetcar line in Brooklyn, is opened.

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December 17, 1859 The first train crosses the Victoria Bridge in Montreal. The multiple-span bridge, now serving Canadian National trains, is the first to span the St. Lawrence River.

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December 17, 1862 Theodore T. Woodruff exhibits two sleeping cars of a new design at West Philadelphia.

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December 17, 1870 The Kalamazoo & South Haven RR (later MC, NYC, PC, CR) is completed.

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December 17, 1887 Southern Pacific begins service to Portland OR.

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December 17, 1888 The Great Northern receives its first Leslie snowplow.

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December 17, 1890 Cable car service begins in Cleveland OH.

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December 17, 1894 The Detroit & Mackinaw Railway is formed as a reorganization of the Detroit, Bay City & Alpena.

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December 17, 1911 Northern Pacific's "North Coast Limited" extends service to Chicago. The former eastern terminal was St. Paul.

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December 17, 1913 The Detroit, Toledo & Milwaukee Railroad becomes the Michigan & Chicago Railway. (MI interurban)

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December 17, 1924 First Diesel-electric locomotive enters service, on the docks in the Bronx.

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December 17, 1940 The last interurban runs between Canton and Massillon OH.

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December 17, 1947 The New York Central Railroad announces it has ordered 111 diesel locomotives.

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December 17, 1951 The Rock Island converts all of its Chicago-area commuter runs to diesel. Seventeen new units replace the 23 Pacific types previously used.

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December 17, 1954 First fully-automated railroad freight yard opens, on the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern in Gary IN.

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December 17, 1962 The Interstate Commerce Commission approves Chesapeake & Ohio control of the Baltimore & Ohio.

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December 17, 1964 Atlantic Coast Line introduces train television on its "Florida Special".

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December 17, 2008 Rail-Runner commuter service begins between Santa Fe and Albuqueque NM.

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December 17, 2017 Tacoma WA dedicates a new Amtrak station

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Mark Tomlonson

December 16, 1910 In Kinmundy IL, a standing Illinois Central freight is struck by another train that could not slow on a grade due to icy track. No injuries are reported, but the collision breaks open a live poultry car. Many residents of Kinmundy enjoy a Christmas turkey dinner courtesy of the railroad.

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December 16, 1915 The United States Attorney General rules that New York Central's ownership of the Nickel Plate, Lake Shore & Michigan Southern and Michigan Central violates U.S. anti-trust laws and orders divesture.

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December 16, 1932 The New York & Harlem Railroad sells its remaining trolley lines.

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December 16, 1941 Union Pacific streamliner "M-10000" is retired.

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December 16, 1943 Two Atlantic Coast Line passenger trains collide after a broken rail derails the first one, putting it in the path of the second. Seventy-one people are killed, most of them U.S. troops.

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December 16, 1957 Boston & Maine opens a new service facility exclusively for its RDC's. It can hold 16 of the B&M's 108 "Highliners".

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December 16, 1965 The Atlantic Coast Line introduces candlelight dinners on the "Florida Special".

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Mark Tomlonson

December 15, 1859 Gas lighting is installed at the Pennsylvania's Altoona PA shops.

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December 15, 1872 The Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad opens between Clam Lake (Cadillac) and Walton Jct. MI. (Some sources say September 1872).

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December 15, 1891 Kokomo IN begins streetcar service.

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December 15, 1893 High winds topple a construction crane on the Big Four Bridge, under construction at Louisville KY. The crane, one of the through truss spans and 41 workers are thrown into the Ohio River. Twenty-one of the workers lose their lives.

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December 15, 1907 The New York Central & Hudson River Railroad extends the running time of the Twentieth Century Limited by an hour and a half to allow for delays due to snowstorms.

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December 15, 1925 Long Island RR 401 is demonstrated for the first time. It pulls a seven car freight from ALCO in Schenectady NY to Long Island, making it the first mainline freight in the U.S. pulled by diesel-electric power.

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December 15, 1926 The Denver & Interurban (CO) ends operations.

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December 15, 1930 Dayton (OH) Union Station sees its first trains.

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December 15, 1930 The Pennsylvania Railroad begins allowing passengers traveling to Florida resorts to ship their cars by freight train.

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December 15, 1937 A merger agreement is signed placing eight New York Central subsidiary lines into the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway.

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December 15, 1938 The first diesels in the southeast appear on the "Orange Blossom Special": EMD E-4's. They are also the first locomotives to be fitted with EMD's "567" diesel prime mover.

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December 15, 1953 The Osage Railroad (OK) is abandoned.

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December 15, 1969 Penn Central opens Buckeye Yard northwest of Columbus OH. The computer-controlled yard has 88 miles of track and can hold 4,550 cars. It replaces 5 smaller yards in the Columbus area. The yard will not be finished until next year.

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December 15, 1988 Chief Wawatam, the former ferry between Mackinaw City and St. Ignace MI, is towed to Sault Saint Marie, Ontario for conversion to a barge.

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December 15, 1992 The Hulett machines unload their last lake ore boat at the Cleveland docks. After this, the boat-rail transfer will be accomplished by machinery carried on each boat.

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December 15, 1994 VIA's "Atlantic", which also serves six stations in Maine, makes its last run.

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December 15, 2010 For the first time, a model train circles the National Christmas Tree. The G-Scale set, provided by Amtrak, will run as long as the tree is up.

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Mark Tomlonson

December 14, 1878 William H. Vanderbilt contracts with a British steamship company to ship grain from the New York Central & Hudson River's new terminal at 65th street in New York. Previously, the NYC&HR has used the infrastructure associated with the Erie Canal for its shipments but now has to make its own arrangements.

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December 14, 1903 The New Haven inaugurates the "Merchants Limited", a premier first-class train between New York and Boston on a five-hour schedule. Trains leave Boston and New York at 5:00 pm.

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December 14, 1934 New York Central unveils the "Commodore Vanderbilt", the first streamline steam locomotive and the inspiration for one of Lionel's most popular toy locomotives.

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December 14, 1961 Near Evans CO, 20 students are killed and 16 injured when their school bus is hit by the Union Pacific's "City of Denver". The driver of the bus had let the vehicle roll onto the rural crossing in front of the oncoming train. After this incident, Colorado will pass a law requiring certain vehicles, such as school buses, to come to a full stop before proceeding across railroad tracks. Other states will follow suit.

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December 14, 1974 Southern Pacific 4-8-4 4449 is moved from static display in a Portland OR park to Burlington Northern's Ninth Street roundhouse for restoration to active service pulling the second iteration of the American Freedom Train.

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December 14, 2008 A mock hold-up of a Santa Train in Random Lake, WI becomes too real when a live round of buckshot is accidentally loaded into one of the guns. One of the actors and a 14-year old spectator receive non-life threatening wounds. Santa was not hurt.

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December 14, 2010 CSX removes the last semaphore signals from the former Monon. The last blade to fall was at milepost 147.1 at North Crawfordsville IN.

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December 14, 2017 The Irish Sun newspaper reports that Dublin’s new tram (light rail) line is so slow due to traffic, long loading time at stops and urban congestion that it is faster to walk the route than to ride.

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Mark Tomlonson

December 11, 1845 The Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis is chartered in Tennessee.

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December 11, 1867 Cornelius Vanderbilt is elected President of the New York Central railroad without opposition, giving him control of railroads between New York and Buffalo.

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December 11, 1879 The Lake Erie & Western (later NKP) is formed by the merger of several railroads linking Fremont OH and Bloomington IL.

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December 11, 1889 John Frank Stevens along with Coonsah, a Flathead Native guide, find Marias Pass, which will enable the Great Northern to cross the Continental Divide in Montana.

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December 11, 1906 The first revenue MU electric train on the New York Central & Hudson River Railroad enters Grand Central Station. (Some sources say December 13)

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December 11, 1946 A report requested by Pennsylvania Railroad Vice President-Operations J.M. Symes compares projected results of freight service with 80 A-B-B-B-A diesel sets vs. 202 4-4-6-4 Q2's. The diesels would save over $14 million per year ($165 million in 2018 dollars) plus an additional gain of $6.5 million ($76.4 million) annually if the diesels can improve on-time performance.

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December 11, 2000 Amtrak's "Acela" service begins between Washington and Boston.

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December 11, 2006 NJ Transit's new multi-level cars make their first run, leaving Trenton at 12:01 p.m. on Train #3844.

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December 12, 1859 The first through passenger service via the Shore Line begins between New York and Boston. Ferries take the passengers over the Thames and possibly the Connecticut Rivers.

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December 12, 1859 The Grand Trunk Railway opens the Victoria Bridge, crossing the St. Lawrence River between Montreal and St. Lambert. It is the first bridge to span the river.

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December 12, 1891 Streetcars begin running in Defiance OH.

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December 12, 1900 The Wabash Railroad agrees to operate the Eel River Railroad (later PRR, PC, CR) for the receiver.

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December 12, 1917 In Mouane, in the French Alps, a grossly overloaded troop train jumps the tracks after the brakes fail on a steep mountain grade. At least 543 are killed, hundreds more are injured by official count. The actual count is assumed to be higher. Until 1981 it was the worst train disaster in history. It remains the worst train wreck. [Ed. Note: I am making a distinction between a wreck, which is a catastrophe resulting from a moving train, and a disaster, which is a catastrophe involving a train in some way.]

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December 12, 1926 The Pennsylvania Railroad completes an improvement of the ticket facilities at Penn Station, making it possible to buy railroad and Pullman tickets at the same window instead of waiting in two lines.

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December 12, 1946 Seaboard Air Line restores the "Orange Blossom Special" as a winter-only Florida train after a hiatus during World War II.

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December 12, 1949 The Norfolk & Western begins using new, lightweight cars on its "Powhattan Arrow".

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December 12, 1956 Last regular passenger train on the Escanaba & Lake Superior.

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December 12, 1968 United Aircraft's "Turbotrains" are placed in regular service on the Canadian National. On the press run two days earlier, the train hit a meat truck, an accident viewed on closed circuit TV by over 300 newsmen on board.

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December 12, 2001 The last Alco-powered locomotive in regular service on a Class 1 Railroad makes its final run, as VIA retires LRC locomotive #6907.

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December 13, 1836 The Republic of Texas charters its first railroad.

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December 13, 1877 The Allegan & South Eastern Railroad is organized in Michigan to take over the part of the Mansfield, Coldwater & Lake Michigan Railroad between Allegan and Monteith. The papers will be filed in January.

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December 13, 1902 For the last time, the New York Central Yard in Elkhart IN switches a car equipped with a link and pin coupler.

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December 13, 1907 Interurban service begins between Mukwonago and East Troy WI, extending the line from Milwaukee. The line now serves the East Troy Electric Railroad museum.

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December 13, 1909 The Vancouver, Victoria & Eastern Railway, a Great Northern subsidiary, reaches Princeton BC.

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December 13, 1930 The first Sperry Rail Detector car is shown to the public at Pittsburgh.

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December 13, 1937 The Reading Railroad places a new steam-powered streamlined train in service between New York and Philadelphia. The 5-car train with an observation car at each end will be named "The Crusader" after a naming contest.

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December 13, 1945 New York Central places an order for 420 new passenger cars. It is the largest passenger car order placed by any railroad to date.

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December 13, 1945 The 1,000,000th returning soldier passes through Camp Kilmer on a Pennsylvania Railroad troop train.

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December 13, 2005 Conrail closes Schaefer Tower in the Detroit area. It will be demolished three days later.

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December 13, 2006 The Ohio Central uses its recently restored Lake Superior & Ishpeming 2-8-0 to pull a revenue freight train (including three dead-in-tow diesels).

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December 13, 2008 Italy begins a new high-speed link between Milan and Bologna, part of a line that is expected to reach Rome next year. The train averages 120 mph, twice the speed of conventional service. Long-term plans are to give rail a 60% market share between any two Italian cities.

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December 13, 2016 Detroit’s “Q-Line” light rail makes its first test run along its 3.3 mile Woodward Ave. right of way.

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Mark Tomlonson