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FRRX- 1112 (formerly VIA 1112, originally Canadian National 1112)
VIA 1112 - Third in a series of 52 cars built for CN in 1954 for use on their "Super Continental." All cars in this series were named after Canadian cities and towns whose names begin with "E." Our car is named "Edenwold." It has 4 sections, 8 duplex roomettes and 4 double bedrooms.
The story of how FRXX-1112 came to be....
Through the generosity of member Jack Hathaway, our museum acquired three passenger cars. Jack thought we needed some passenger equipment to round out our collection, so he presented his proposal to the Board and it was agreed he would go to Canada to select two coaches and a sleeper from VIA's surplus equipment. All the cars were manufactured by Pullman-Standard and used by VIA until replaced by Budd stainless steel cars when train service was reduced.
The coaches were located in Montreal and the sleeper in Halifax. Jack purchased the cars in November, 1993, and we immediately made a request to the Union Pacific and Chicago North Western for free transportation between Chicago and Portola. Union Pacific responded favorably, but CNW declined our request because we were not located in their service area. UP then interceded on our behalf and the request was granted. The cars were delayed at the border due to customs problems, but finally the two coaches arrived in Portola on June 5, 1994 and the sleeper on June 9, 1994. We really appreciate this gift from Jack and also thank UP and CNW for providing free transportation, the value of which was over $3,000 per car.
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