The final remnant of the Portland Rose at Denver Union Station, reduced to just two coaches on the eve of Amtrak.
(Photo by Roger Puta, courtesy Marty Bernard, railfan 44, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
PORTLAND ROSE
Portland Limited redirects here.
The Portland Rose (renamed from Portland Limited in 1930) was a named passenger train that featured through-service to Portland, Tacoma, and Seattle. It was operated by the Union Pacific Railroad, but sections of the train scheduled east of Omaha operated over the Chicago and North Western Railway before 1955, and after over the Milwaukee Road.
Front and Back of Portland Limited brochure, Union Pacific, 1928. (Union Pacific Railroad, Public) domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
Pages 2 and 3 Portland Limited brochure, Union Pacific, 1928. (Union Pacific Railroad, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
Pages 4 and 5 of Portland Limited brochure, Union Pacific, 1928. (Union Pacific Railroad, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
Features
The Portland Limited featured a lady's lounge, men's club, sightseeing salon, library, barbershop, and bath with shower which remained intact through the entire route. Renamed Portland Rose in 1930, the train was assigned heavyweight passenger equipment, but was regularly upgraded with streamlined equipment in line with the premiere "city trains". The 1930s service continued these features, adding a fully equipped soda fountain, a radio, and a glass-enclosed sun parlor.
Postcard depiction of the club car on the Union Pacific Portland Rose, ca. 1930s. (Union Pacific Railroad, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
Postcard depiction of the dining car on the Union Pacific Portland Rose, ca. 1930s. (Union Pacific Railroad, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
UP sign for the Portland Rose at Denver Union Station in April 1971. (Photo by Roger Puta, courtesy Marty Bernard, railfan 44, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
Service changes and demise
The 1935 introduction of the City of Portland replaced the Portland Rose as the premier Union Pacific train to the Northwest, but the Rose remained important and operated through to the establishment of Amtrak in 1971.
In 1937, the year that Union Pacific introduced the Chicago–Los Angeles discount tourist-class train, The Challenger, Portland Rose split sections at Omaha, one through section to Chicago over the CNW, the other through to St. Louis over the Wabash. A section of Challenger sleepers were at that time exchanged between the Portland Rose and The Challenger (San Francisco No. 87/88) at Green River.
In 1942, Cheyenne, Wyoming, then became the east terminus of the Pacific Rose, (temporarily designated as trains 11/12) with a through section carried between there and Chicago by the Los Angeles Limited (trains No. 1/2), and another section via Denver and through Kansas to Kansas City and St. Louis carried by the City of St. Louis.
With the demise of the Pony Express, with which it had been combined east of Denver, the Portland Rose operated under that name alone from Portland to St. Louis as trains 17/18 by way of Cheyenne and Denver.
But by 1964, the Portland Rose terminated in Kansas City and in late 1969, service was curtailed to Denver.
In continuous service from its inception, the Rose outlasted some other more premiere Union Pacific trains until 1971, when Amtrak took over the nation's passenger services.
Legacy
As part of the Union Pacific Heritage Fleet, 44-seat coach No. 5473 was renamed the Portland Rose in 1990.
Overview
Service type: Inter-city rail
Status: Discontinued
Locale: Central and Western United States
First service: 1923
Last service: 1971
Former operators: Union Pacific; Chicago & North Western; after 1955 Milwaukee Road
Route Termini East:
Chicago, Illinois
Cheyenne, Wyoming (1942)
Denver, Colorado
St. Louis, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri (1964)
Route Termini West:
Portland, Oregon
Pool service to: Tacoma and Seattle, Washington
Train numbers: 17 (westbound), 18 (eastbound)
Lines used: Overland Route
Technical
Track gauge: 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)