Side Shot Saturday starting 14 October

Okay, it's good to know that the memory is not totally shot; af, thanks for the info regarding Flyer/Hafner history.

The Century of Progress exposition was a pivotal moment in railroad history. In 1933, Carl Gray (Union Pacific president) and Ralph Budd (CB&Q president) attended the exposition where they got a first-hand look at the Winton Engine Company's (General Motors subsidiary) new diesel engine design. Gray and Budd were planning a revitalization of rail passenger travel with the introduction of streamlined equipment, and the new lighter-weight diesel that Winton had developed would prove perfect for the designs they had in mind. With this engine, combined with the design work of guys like Edward Budd (no relation), Earl Ragsdale, and Martin Blomberg, Gray and Budd returned a year later (1934) with the M-10000 (UP) and the Pioneer Zephyr (CB&Q) which blew the lid off rail design. It was not only the introduction of Streamline Moderne as a stylistic concept for equipment, but also the first deployment of diesel technology in mainline motive power. Their work, introduced in Chicago, absolutely revolutionized the industry's concepts for the direction of motive power, all during some of the toughest years of the economic calamity known as The Great Depression.

The Old Man travelled from Baltimore to Chicago with his dad (my grandfather) and his brother (my uncle) to the exposition in 1934. He came home a lifelong fan of The Streamliners, especially the Zephyrs. He said seeing the CB&Q Pioneer Zephyr was akin to something from outer space. It marked him for life.