When the summer 1960 timetable was printed it had probably not yet been decided that the 1961 service would not use the Mountaineer name. That would depend on whether it would operate as a separate train every day during the summer. However it may already been known that off-season service through Portal would soon be canceled.
To back up a bit, it should be noted that the Mountaineer name was only used officially during summer, and only when it was scheduled as a separate train from CPâs regular transcontinental train west of Moose Jaw every day. The âSoo-Pacificâ was the St Paul-Vancouver through train from before the first world war, which was combined with a transcontinental west of Moose Jaw but ran separately on a similar schedule during summer. During the summers of 1923 to 1927 the train was called Soo-Pacific when it was combined with the Imperial Limited west of Moose Jaw off season, and Mountaineer when it ran separately during the summer. During these years the Mountaineer was also extended east of St Paul to Chicago on Soo Line.
In 1928 and 1929 the Soo-Pacific continued to run through the summer (west of St Paul) and ran separately from the Imperial west of Moose Jaw, with the Mountaineer as an additional summer-only train also serving Chicago. In 1930 and 1931 the former pattern of 1923-27 returned, except that on the westbound leg the Soo-Pacific was combined with the Dominion, due to changes made to CPâs transcontinental schedule when the Toronto and Vancouver Expresses were renamed the Dominion and speeded up in late 1929.
In 1932 and 1933 there was not enough business to justify the Mountaineer as a separate train every day. Also, CPâs transcontinental Imperial Limited was downgraded and most through business transferred to the Dominion in both directions. The Soo-Pacific was renamed Soo-Dominion, and it operated year round during 1932 and 1933. On days when volume of business warranted, the Soo-Dominion section would operate as a separate section on the CP mainline west of Moose Jaw. Depending on the level of business this might operate only to Banff, say, rather than all the way through to Vancouver.
The Mountaineer returned as a daily through Chicago-Vancouver train in the summer of 1934. The Chicago-St Paul service was now provided by Chicago & North Western, which had a much faster line than Sooâs. This routing apparently made it possible to operate the service with one fewer consist. During the summers of 1942 to 1946 the Mountaineer did not run and the Soo-Dominion operated all year. Again, when there was sufficient traffic it would nevertheless operate separately from the Dominion west of Moose Jaw.
The Mountaineer returned in 1947 and operated as a Chicago train through the 1949 season. From 1950 it was a St Paul train only, with tour cars operating east of St Paul on other railroads.
In 1959 and 1960 the Mountaineer was a bid of a hybrid. Eastbound it ran as train 14 from Vancouver through Moose Jaw, separate from the Dominion. Westbound however it operated as train 13 only to Moose Jaw, and then became train 7, the Dominionâs number. There are photos of the Mountaineer running as Second train 7 so it is likely that it operated as a separate section most days, but not every day.
In 1961 there would be no separate summer train every day, so the Mountaineer name was not used. Summer service was provided as the Soo-Dominion running through Portal but there was no off-season through or connecting service on the route. Off-season connections had to be made between trains at Winnipeg. The Soo-Dominion was transferred to the Winnipeg route for the summers of 1962 to 1965, running as part of the Winnipeger and the Dominion, or as a separate section of these trains, depending on the volume of business each day.
Through car service from St Paul to points west of Moose Jaw ceased to operate outside the summer season after the 1960 season. This is consistent with the fact that through car service on the off-season Dominion similarly ceased after September 1960.
The name Soo-Dominion is confusing because it referred to both a train and a service. Initially the name referred only to the off-season service, although during the depression in 1932-33 and wartime 1942-46 it ran year-round. From 1961 to 1965 it was a summer-only service. During all these times the name Soo-Dominion represented a through service between St Paul and Vancouver.
As the name of an actual train however, the Soo-Dominion was more limited. From 1932 to 1960 the Soo-Dominion was the name of a train operating between St Paul and Moose Jaw, interrupted only during the summers of 1934-41 and 1949-60 when the name changed to Mountaineer. Officially, even when the Soo-Dominion ran as a separate section on the CP main line it was part of the Dominion, with no hyphen. In practice though, when it was operated as a separate section it often seems to have been referred to as the Soo-Dominion even on CPâs main line. Confusingly, during the 1960s some staff and perhaps also passengers continued to refer to the service as the Mountaineer, and tothe Mountaineer section when it operated separately.
A long and complicated answer Iâm afraid, but it seemed the best way to get the big picture.
Don Thomas
From: Canadian-Passenger-Rail-***@public.gmane.org [mailto:Canadian-Passenger-Rail-***@public.gmane.org]
Sent: October-05-14 8:54 AM
To: Canadian-Passenger-Rail-***@public.gmane.org
Subject: [CanPassRail] Soo-Dominion (was Re: Lower Berth Baggage)
My understanding is that from 1962 through the end in 1965 the
St. Paul cars were routed through Winnipeg. The Mountaineer
was discontinued at the end of August 1960 (the summer of my
first-ever trip west on the Canadian). In the summer of 1961
the through cars continued to be routed through Portal on the
Soo Dominion, but starting the following year they went via
the Winnipegger after the St. Paul to Moose Jaw trains came off.
The April 1960 public timetable says that the Mountaineer was
to end on Aug 23 westward and Aug 26 eastward. Was it known in
April that it was ending forever, or was it just the usual end
of the summer-only service?
That same April 1960 timetable shows the Soo-Dominion resuming
service via Portal after the Mountaineer stopped, and combining
with The Dominion at Moose Jaw. The equipment table for the
Soo-D ominion lists "Coach - St. Paul-Moose Jaw; Moose Jaw-Vancouver,
8 Sec., D.R., 2 Cpts. - St. Paul - Portal, Dining-Club Lounge -
St. Paul - Portal", so there was no through sleeper, and it
looks like coach passengers may have had to change cars in Moose
Jaw, too.
The October 1960 timetable shows the Soo-Dominion as running via
Noyes and Winnipeg, on the same schedule as The Winnipeger. The
equipment table lists St. Paul - Winnipeg and Winnipeg - Vancouver
coaches, a St. Paul - Winnipeg sleeper, and a St. Paul - Winnipeg
dining club lounge. It appears that there were no through cars at
all, and the winter Soo-Dominion was really just a connection
between the Winnipeger and The Dominion.
The October 1960 does show a local North Portal - Moose Jaw train,
but says that its last run would be on Dec 31. There's no sign
of any St. Paul - Portal service, but coverage of Soo Line service
was limited in the CPR timetables, so I wouldn't assume there was
none.
I don't have a summer 1961 timetable. Can someone confirm that
the Soo-Dominion did resume running via Portal?
October 1961 no longer shows the Soo-Dominion at all in the
actual timetables, unlike in October 1960. It is listed in the
equipment table, showing "Coach - St. Paul-Winnipeg, Winnipeg-
Vancouver; Bedrooms, Standard Berths - St. Paul-Winnipeg". As
in the previous winter, it appears the so-called Soo-Dominion was
just a connection between The Winnipeger and The Dominion, with
no through cars. The index says that Estevan and Weyburn, on
the former Soo-Dominion route, had only bus and mixed train service,
while North Portal doesn't appear at all.
The April 1965 timetable does show "Bedrooms, Roomettes (July
and August) - St. Paul-Vancouver; Dining Car (July and August) -
Thief River Falls-Vancouver ", but they are listed for The
Winnipeger, and the Soo-Dominion name doesn't appear at all.
Were through St. Paul - Vancouver sleeping cars a summer-only
thing from 1961 to 1965?
Tom Box
tbox at ncf dot ca
Port Hope, ON, Canada