Trains No 105 And No 106, The Kansas City-Florida Special - Kansas City-Birmingham And Beyond

Discussion in 'Passenger Operations' started by Joseph Toth, Aug 31, 2011.

  1. Joseph Toth

    Joseph Toth Member

    I would appreciate any known information on the Frisco´s Kansas City-Florida Special.

    There is the excellent TRRA publication #69 on the Texas Special but I know of nothing of the Florida trains except the information that has been posted regarding the Sunnyland.

    Thanks,

    Joe Toth
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 6, 2024
  2. TAG1014 (Tom Galbraith RIP 7/15/2020)

    TAG1014 (Tom Galbraith RIP 7/15/2020) Passed Away July 15, 2020 Frisco.org Supporter

    The Kansas City-Florida Special ran from Kansas City, MO to Birmingham, AL.

    It carried sleeping and chair cars carried by other railroads including the Southern (SR), Atlantic Coast Line (ACL) and Florida East Coast(FEC) to Florida. It was a heavy mail and express hauler from the Southern states for California and the West through Kansas City connections.

    It was dieselized in 1950. The consist around 1960 through Springfield was usually eleven cars. There were typically four to six heavyweight baggage cars with storage mail and express, a 30' RPO-baggage, two chair cars, a heavyweight diner-lounge, and three sleeping cars.

    An all silver SR chair car was in the "pool" and "foreign" line express cars were frequently seen in the train including ACL, SAL, SCL, N&W, SR, CofGA and IC. A full 60' RPO ran from Memphis to Birmingham.

    Tom
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 6, 2024
  3. Rancho Bob

    Rancho Bob Member

    Frisco trains No 105 & 106

    The train ran Kansas City-Memphis-Birmingham on the Frisco. At Birmingham there were connections with the ACL - Birmingham-Jacksonville and the Southern - Birmingham-Jessup. There was a Jacksonville-Miami through car via FEC.

    Of course the route was cut back and cut back and even included some strange consists. Please see the "Oh, Mr. Pullman" article by David P. Morgan which appeared in Trains magazine in the 60's.

    For a short time Pullman assigned Union Pacific (UP) Railroad equipment Kansas City to Birmingham. I want to say for a time that the KCFS was routed to Jacksonville, in early heavyweight days, via the Georgia Southern & Florida from Atlanta to Jacksonville. Need to dig out my research material.

    One "Cliff Notes" reference is Lyle Key's book Midwest Florida Sunliners. Also , Mike Condren's site contains all sorts of interesting KCFS stuff.

    I have an interesting chart of car assignments I made up for an article on the KCFS I wrote years ago for the Southern Railway Historical Association that was never published. I will post as soon as I can dig it up.

    Buck
    (Rancho Bob)
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 6, 2024
  4. Joseph Toth

    Joseph Toth Member

    What a neat train to model in any scale!

    Your artical Buck, belongs in The Meteor!!!

    Like TRRA H&TS´s issue #69 on the Texas Special, it has been a long time coming.

    Thanks to all, so far, for the info on the KCFS!

    Joe Toth
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 6, 2024
  5. arkrail

    arkrail Member Frisco.org Supporter

    The Kansas City-Florida Special was apparently inaugurated in, approximately, November 1911.

    One source gives the inaugural date of the KC-Florida Special as being November 26, 1911.

    Another source (a joint Frisco-ATSF public timetable) states that the name change from Southeastern Limited to Kansas City-Florida Special was effective November 12, 1911.

    At this late date, the two week difference is perhaps inconsequential, but for historical purposes, it would be nice to have the exact date.

    Can anyone verify either date?

    Also, it appears that the St. Louis-Memphis section of this train did not originate until Nov 24, 1912.

    Bill Pollard
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 6, 2024
  6. arkrail

    arkrail Member Frisco.org Supporter

    Can someone provide the dates for the various cutbacks to the KC-Florida Special south of Birmingham, starting perhaps in 1964 when the train still carried cars to Florida?

    The story of losing the Florida connection is generally known, but details are fuzzy. They stopped running over the ACL and terminated in Brunswick, GA,

    Was that an ACL initiative or Southern doing what they were known for doing at that time --killing trains by cutting off critical pieces?

    Was there a later time, before September 1965, when the KC-Florida Special ended at Birmingham with no direct connection beyond?

    Thanks!

    Bill Pollard
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 6, 2024

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