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I am looking for a train my father’s family of 5 took in 1929 from Pendleton, Oregon, to Toronto to find work.
Sheilaru Member # 197931
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Any ideas where I would search to find possible passenger trains from Oregon to Toronto in 1929?
Gilbert B Norman Member # 1541
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A 1929 Official Guide of the Railways would be best. Somewhere there is a public library that has a collection of them.
But should you come in touch with one, handle with care. You will be handling 100yo newsprint. On that point, some of my '44 vintage TRAINS, when The War finally forced Kalmbach to start using newsprint (they were able to get "glossy" until then), are "getting fragile".
TwinStarRocket Member # 2142
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I have a "1928 Handy Railroad Atlas of the United States" by Rand McNally, reprinted by Trains Magazine, Kalmbach Publishing Co. of Milwaukee. Someone gave it to me as a gift many years ago.
Pendleton OR is on the Union Pacific mainline from Portland to Chicago that connected to their "Overland" route at Ogden UT, and then ran through Cheyenne and Omaha to Chicago. The Overland route is the First Transcontinental Railroad built in the 1860's. By 1936, UP was using the name "City of Portland" for this train but I do not know any prior names.
At Chicago, your family probably transferred to New York Central RR to Detroit, and then Canadian Pacific or Canadian National to Toronto.
In 1929 there were probably several trains per day on these mainlines.
It is possible, but less likely, that your family took a Northern Pacific train from Oregon to Chicago, passing through Spokane and your hometown of Missoula. If there is a train museum in Missoula, they might be able to answer some of your questions.
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