The Flamingo, now an unnamed train, led by Louisville and Nashville Railroad E8A 797 at Union Station, Atlanta, GA on November 25, 1967.
FLAMINGO
The Flamingo was an 886-mile Cincinnati to Atlanta passenger night train operated by the Louisville and Nashville Railroad (L&N) from 1928 to 1965. The train continued to run un-named until 1968.
History
Inaugurated on September 27, 1925, it operated between Cincinnati and Atlanta, Georgia, with sleeper service between Cincinnati Union Terminal and Atlanta Union Station. It was operated in conjunction with the Central of Georgia Railway and the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad. From Albany to Jacksonville the Flamingo ran in tandem with the Illinois Central's Seminole, departing stations with an identical schedule for that final segment. In Jacksonville riders could continue their trips to elsewhere in Florida on various ACL branch lines that served different parts of the state, such as St. Petersburg, Sarasota (via Orlando and Tampa), Ft. Myers and Miami. Travelers to Miami would transfer in Jacksonville to the FEC's Havana Special. The Southland operated on similar route from Cincinnati to Albany portion, however, the Southland ran overnight through Georgia.
An empty oil tanker that had been attached to a north-bound freight train came loose and hit and wrecked the Flamingo near Falmouth, Kentucky in 1957. The injured received care at a local hospital.
Service was truncated to Atlanta in 1962; by September 8, 1965 the name was removed from the train. It was discontinued on March 7, 1968.
The dining car, originally built in 1948, was restored and returned to service by the Kentucky-Indiana Rail Advocates in 1998, serving up food on the dinner train from original recipes like seafood gumbo, lamb, plum pudding, and ham with red eye gravy.
Flamingo Route Map. Click to enlarge.
(Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0)
Major stations served
Cincinnati Union Station
Covington, Kentucky
Winchester, Kentucky
Corbin, Kentucky (with connections to and from Louisville to the west)
Knoxville L&N Station
Cartersville, Georgia
Marietta Depot
Atlanta Union Station
Albany Union Station
Jacksonville Union Station
Ink blotter advertising from the 1920s showing 5 trains to Florida including the Flamingo.
Click image to download a 376 kb PDF file, courtesy StreamlinerMemories.info)
Overview
Service type: Inter-city rail
Status: Discontinued
Locale: Midwestern United States/Southeastern United States
First service: September 27, 1925
Last service: March 7, 1968
Former operators: Louisville and Nashville Railroad, Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
Route Termini: Cincinnati, Ohio / Jacksonville, Florida; Atlanta, Georgia, beginning in 1962
Stops: 17 - Winchester, KY; Knoxville, TN; Cartersville, GA; Marietta, GA; Atlanta, GA; Albany, GA
Distance traveled: 886 miles (1,426 km)
Average journey time: Southbound: 25 hrs 30 min / Northbound: 24 hrs 5 min
Service frequency: Daily
Train numbers: 17 (southbound), 18 (northbound)
On-board services
Seating arrangements: Reclining seat coaches
Sleeping arrangements: Sections, roomettes, and double bedrooms (1955)
Catering facilities: Diner