The Gull
Encyclopedia
The Gull was an international passenger train between Boston
and Halifax
. Travel time was approximately 24 hours. Westbound trains left Halifax shortly after breakfast and crossed the Canada – United States border in the late evening, as eastbound trains were leaving Boston's North Station to cross the border about dawn. Travel was over the Boston and Maine Railroad
from Boston to Portland, Maine
, then over the Maine Central Railroad
to the border between Vanceboro, Maine
and Saint Croix, New Brunswick
, then over the Canadian Pacific Railway
to Saint John, New Brunswick
, and over the Canadian National Railway
to Halifax.
s between Boston and Halifax were the core of service initiated 2 March 1930. Through coaches operated between Boston and Saint John. Canadian National operated through coaches between Saint John and Halifax with a dining car
between Halifax and Moncton, New Brunswick
, and a buffet car
between Moncton and Saint John. Through sleeping cars were carried between Boston and Bangor, Maine
, and transferred to connecting trains over the Maine Central between Bangor and Calais, Maine
, and over the Bangor and Aroostook Railroad
between Bangor and Van Buren, Maine. Connecting Bangor & Aroostook trains carried through coaches between Boston and Van Buren and a buffet car between Bangor and Van Buren.
The Gull carried a diverse assortment of baggage car
s, express cars, and mail cars from the five railroads offering through service. These were often conventional heavyweight cars, but included Bangor & Aroostook open-platform, steel-underframe wood baggage cars in the years before World War II
, and Boston & Maine converted troop sleeper
baggage cars after the war. Boston received fish
from the Maritimes
in express reefers
and milk
from Newport, Maine in Pfaudler
milk car
s leased to HP Hood
. The train often included Boston & Maine lightweight American Flyer
coaches built in the 1930's by Pullman Company
's Osgood Bradley Car Company
plant in Worcester, Massachusetts
. Stainless steel
coaches started appearing in the train after a joint order by Maine Central and Boston & Maine in 1947. Stainless steel sleeping cars were delivered to Bangor & Aroostook and Boston & Maine in 1954. The train was typically pulled by 4-6-2
steam locomotive
s; although Maine Central and Boston & Maine EMD E7
s were used in the United States
after World War II.
train using North Station when service was discontinued 5 September 1960. Head-end cars had outnumbered cars for passengers during the final years of operation; and Maine Central attempted to retain that traffic using their EMD E7s to pull merchandise-mail trains on the former Gull schedule. These trains resembled passenger trains with a string of baggage and express cars no longer needed for passenger service followed by a combine car
serving as a caboose
. Lightweight baggage cars had been unusual on this route until Bangor and Aroostook's American Flyer cars were purchased by Maine Central in 1961. Without direct connections to Boston, the service was uncompetitive with highway trucks and was discontinued 30 September 1963.
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
and Halifax
City of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
. Travel time was approximately 24 hours. Westbound trains left Halifax shortly after breakfast and crossed the Canada – United States border in the late evening, as eastbound trains were leaving Boston's North Station to cross the border about dawn. Travel was over the Boston and Maine Railroad
Boston and Maine Railroad
The Boston and Maine Corporation , known as the Boston and Maine Railroad until 1964, was the dominant railroad of the northern New England region of the United States for a century...
from Boston to Portland, Maine
Portland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...
, then over the Maine Central Railroad
Maine Central Railroad
The Maine Central Railroad Company was a railroad in central and southern Maine. It was chartered in 1856 and began operations in 1862. It operated a mainline between South Portland, Maine, east to the Canada-U.S...
to the border between Vanceboro, Maine
Vanceboro, Maine
Vanceboro is a town in Washington County, Maine, United States. The town was named after landowner William Vance. The town is located at the eastern terminus of Maine State Route 6. Vanceboro is across the St. Croix River from St. Croix, New Brunswick, Canada, to which it is connected by the Saint...
and Saint Croix, New Brunswick
Saint Croix, New Brunswick
St. Croix is a Canadian rural community in York County, New Brunswick.The community derives its name from the St. Croix River which flows along its western boundary; this river also forms the International Boundary between Canada and the United States and the community is opposite Vanceboro, Maine...
, then over the Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
to Saint John, New Brunswick
Saint John, New Brunswick
City of Saint John , or commonly Saint John, is the largest city in the province of New Brunswick, and the first incorporated city in Canada. The city is situated along the north shore of the Bay of Fundy at the mouth of the Saint John River. In 2006 the city proper had a population of 74,043...
, and over the Canadian National Railway
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
to Halifax.
Equipment
Through sleeping carSleeping car
The sleeping car or sleeper is a railway/railroad passenger car that can accommodate all its passengers in beds of one kind or another, primarily for the purpose of making nighttime travel more restful. The first such cars saw sporadic use on American railroads in the 1830s and could be configured...
s between Boston and Halifax were the core of service initiated 2 March 1930. Through coaches operated between Boston and Saint John. Canadian National operated through coaches between Saint John and Halifax with a dining car
Dining car
A dining car or restaurant carriage , also diner, is a railroad passenger car that serves meals in the manner of a full-service, sit-down restaurant....
between Halifax and Moncton, New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
, and a buffet car
Buffet car
A buffet car is a passenger car of a train, where snacks and beverages can be bought at a counter and consumed. Typically, passengers are not allowed to consume brought-along food and drinks in the car, and are therefore only able to eat in this area by buying their food in the car.- Further...
between Moncton and Saint John. Through sleeping cars were carried between Boston and Bangor, Maine
Bangor, Maine
Bangor is a city in and the county seat of Penobscot County, Maine, United States, and the major commercial and cultural center for eastern and northern Maine...
, and transferred to connecting trains over the Maine Central between Bangor and Calais, Maine
Calais, Maine
Calais is a city in Washington County, Maine, United States. The city has three United States border crossings or also known as a Port of entry with the busiest being on the St. Croix River bordering St. Stephen, New Brunswick, Canada...
, and over the Bangor and Aroostook Railroad
Bangor and Aroostook Railroad
The Bangor and Aroostook Railroad is a defunct United States railroad company, that brought rail service to Aroostook County, Maine. Brightly painted BAR box cars attracted national attention in the 1950s. First-generation diesel locomotives operated on BAR until they were museum pieces...
between Bangor and Van Buren, Maine. Connecting Bangor & Aroostook trains carried through coaches between Boston and Van Buren and a buffet car between Bangor and Van Buren.
The Gull carried a diverse assortment of baggage car
Baggage car
A baggage car or luggage van is a type of railway vehicle often forming part of the composition of passenger trains and used to carry passengers' checked baggage, as well as parcels . Being typically coupled at the front of the train behind the locomotive, this type of car is sometimes described...
s, express cars, and mail cars from the five railroads offering through service. These were often conventional heavyweight cars, but included Bangor & Aroostook open-platform, steel-underframe wood baggage cars in the years before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and Boston & Maine converted troop sleeper
Troop sleeper
In United States railroad terminology, a troop sleeper was a railroad passenger car which had been constructed to serve as something of a mobile barracks for transporting troops over distances sufficient to require overnight accommodations...
baggage cars after the war. Boston received fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
from the Maritimes
Maritimes
The Maritime provinces, also called the Maritimes or the Canadian Maritimes, is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. On the Atlantic coast, the Maritimes are a subregion of Atlantic Canada, which also includes the...
in express reefers
Railway Express Agency
The Railway Express Agency was a the national monopoly set up by the Untied States federal government in 1917. Rail express services provided small package and parcel transportation using the extant railroad infrastructure much as UPS functions today using the road system...
and milk
Milk
Milk is a white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. Early-lactation milk contains colostrum, which carries the mother's antibodies to the baby and can reduce the risk of many...
from Newport, Maine in Pfaudler
Pfaudler
Pfaudler, Inc. is an American multinational company best known for the invention of glass-coated steel, its successful commercialization and the subsequent production of storage tanks, reactors and other vessels for the brewing and chemical process industries....
milk car
Milk car
Milk cars are a specialized type of railroad car intended to transport raw milk from collection points near dairy farms to a processing creamery. Some milk cars were intended for loading with multiple cans of milk, while others were designed with a single tank for bulk loading.-Origins:Milk has...
s leased to HP Hood
HP Hood
HP Hood LLC is an American dairy company based in Lynnfield, Massachusetts. Hood was founded in 1846 in Charlestown, Massachusetts by Harvey Perley Hood. Recent company acquisitions by HP Hood have expanded its reach from predominantly New England to the broader United States...
. The train often included Boston & Maine lightweight American Flyer
American Flyer
American Flyer was a popular brand of toy train and model railroad in the United States in the middle part of the 20th century.- The Chicago era, 1907–1938 :...
coaches built in the 1930's by Pullman Company
Pullman Company
The Pullman Palace Car Company, founded by George Pullman, manufactured railroad cars in the mid-to-late 19th century through the early decades of the 20th century, during the boom of railroads in the United States. Pullman developed the sleeping car which carried his name into the 1980s...
's Osgood Bradley Car Company
Osgood Bradley Car Company
The Osgood Bradley Car Company manufactured railway passenger cars and streetcars in Worcester, Massachusetts.-History:The company was founded in 1822 to manufacture stagecoaches and sleighs. The company's first railway passenger cars were built for the Boston and Worcester Railroad in 1835. ...
plant in Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
. Stainless steel
Stainless steel
In metallurgy, stainless steel, also known as inox steel or inox from French "inoxydable", is defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of 10.5 or 11% chromium content by mass....
coaches started appearing in the train after a joint order by Maine Central and Boston & Maine in 1947. Stainless steel sleeping cars were delivered to Bangor & Aroostook and Boston & Maine in 1954. The train was typically pulled by 4-6-2
4-6-2
4-6-2, in the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and two trailing wheels on one axle .These locomotives are also known as Pacifics...
steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s; although Maine Central and Boston & Maine EMD E7
EMD E7
The EMD E7 was a , A1A-A1A passenger train locomotive manufactured by General Motors' Electro-Motive Division of La Grange, Illinois. The cab version, or E7A, was manufactured from February, 1945 to April, 1949, and 428 were produced. The booster version, or E7B, was manufactured from March, 1945...
s were used in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
after World War II.
Merchandise-Mail trains
The Gull was the last non-RDCBudd Rail Diesel Car
The Budd Rail Diesel Car, RDC or Buddliner is a self-propelled diesel multiple unit railcar. In the period 1949–62, 398 RDCs were built by the Budd Company of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States...
train using North Station when service was discontinued 5 September 1960. Head-end cars had outnumbered cars for passengers during the final years of operation; and Maine Central attempted to retain that traffic using their EMD E7s to pull merchandise-mail trains on the former Gull schedule. These trains resembled passenger trains with a string of baggage and express cars no longer needed for passenger service followed by a combine car
Combine car
A combine car in North American parlance, most often referred to simply as a combine, is a type of railroad car which combines sections for both passengers and freight....
serving as a caboose
Caboose
A caboose is a manned North American rail transport vehicle coupled at the end of a freight train. Although cabooses were once used on nearly every freight train, their use has declined and they are seldom seen on trains, except on locals and smaller railroads.-Function:The caboose provided the...
. Lightweight baggage cars had been unusual on this route until Bangor and Aroostook's American Flyer cars were purchased by Maine Central in 1961. Without direct connections to Boston, the service was uncompetitive with highway trucks and was discontinued 30 September 1963.