The 1926 Cardinal's Train

The 1926 Catholic Cardinal's Train to Chicago

Timeline for the 1926 Cardinal's Train

*	*	*	This timeline is very much a work-in-progress. Any additions or corrections, please email.
DAY	CITY	DATES	NOTES
*	*	May/June 1926	The Cardinal's Train came together very quickly. The cars were repainted and rapidly refurbished at the Pullman factory. The train crews were reported to be 'all Catholic'.
1	New York City	Wednesday June 16, 1926	The special train left New York's Grand Central Terminal in New York City at 10 AM and basically followed the route of the New York Central Railroad's 20th Century Limited. The train was pulled by an electric locomotive to Harmon, NY where the change was made to a Pacific-type steam locomotive. Sixty-six people were aboard, among them engineer John A. Hoyt, fireman W.P. Kelly and two Chicago Policemen -- Hugh McCarthy and John Leddy. The Pullman conductor was James A. McNamara. Luminaries on the train included Papal Legate Cardinal Bonzano from the Vatican, George William Mundelein the Archbishop of Chicago, Cardinal Patrick O'Donnell of Ireland, Cardinal Patrick Hayes of New York, Allessius Charost the Archbishop of Rennes, France, Henry Reig Y Casanova of Toledo, Spain, Louis Ernest DuBois the Archbishop of Paris, Michael Von Faulhaber the Archbishop of Munich, Gustave Frederick Piffl the Archbishop of Vienna and John Czernoch the Archbishop of Hungary. The train stopped in Utica for 10 minutes where 10,000 people showed up. Then Syracuse where 25,000 people greeted the train. At Rochester (from 7:50 to 8:15PM) 30,000 people were reported. Arriving in Buffalo at 10:42 PM, 5,000 people were on hand. A change of locomotives was made (to another Pacific-type steam locomotive) and the train continued on.
2	Chicago, Illinois	Thursday June 17, 1926	The train arrived at Chicago's Park Row Station (Illinois Central Railroad) on Michigan Avenue just before 10 AM, right on schedule. Chicago's La Salle Street Station was the usual end-of-the-line for the 20th Century Ltd, but this routing put the Cardinal's right were they wanted to be -- set for a procession down the lakefront to Soldier Field.
*	Chicago, IL and Mundelein, IL	Sunday June 20 to Thursday June 24, 1926	The 28th International Eucharistic Congress was held in Chicago and at St. Mary on the Lake Seminary in the city of Mundelein. At Mundelein, the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad built a loop of temporary track around the station for turning the large number of commuter trains routed between the main Congress locations (the Seminary and Soldier Field).
*	*	Late June 1926	The steam locomotives and cars of the Cardinal's Train were repainted (the Pullmans in Pullman green) and returned to regular service.
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