Shawnee (Amtrak train)

Shawnee
Overview
Service type Inter-city rail
Status Discontinued
Locale Illinois
Predecessor Shawnee
First service May 1, 1971
Last service January 2, 1986
Successor Illini
Former operator(s) Amtrak
Route
Start Chicago
No. of intermediate stops 7
End Carbondale
Distance travelled 310 miles (500 km)
Average journey time 5 hours 25 minutes
Service frequency Daily
Train number(s) 391/392
On-board services
Class(es) Unreserved coach
Technical
Gauge 4 ft 8 12 in (1,435 mm)
Track owner(s) Illinois Central Gulf

The Shawnee was a train operated by Amtrak between Chicago, Illinois and Carbondale, Illinois. The train was one of the few Illinois Central Railroad trains Amtrak retained after the end of most private-sector passenger service in the United States on May 1, 1971. The Shawnee operated until January 12, 1986, when budget cuts led to its consolidation with the Illini.

The Shawnee took its name from the Shawnee, an Algonquian-speaking people native to North America who formerly lived in southern Illinois.[1] At the dawn of Amtrak the Shawnee was one of several trains the Illinois Central operated over the Chicago—Carbondale corridor, including the Southern Express, Creole, Louisiane and Seminole.[2] Along with the Panama Limited, also retained from the IC, the Shawnee continued to use Central Station instead of Union Station in downtown Chicago.

Notes

  1. ^ Sanders (2006), 100.
  2. ^ Sanders (2006), 93.

References

External links