Dynamo Baggage Cars

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This page was last updated on July 6, 2024.

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Dynamos

By August 1908, steam-driven turbo-generators installed in baggage cars at the front (head-end) of the train, were considered to be the state of the art, and best system available to provide electricity. The early axle generators were small and produced limited power. These small axle generators provided power to on-board batteries, with were large, and also provided limited power.

(Read more about the use of dynamos and the axle generators that replaced them)

To overcome these limitations and to obtain more capacity, in about 1903-1904, larger steam-driven dynamos were installed in baggage cars, with electrical wiring being run along the length of the train, usually in the form of conduits along the rooftops. Baggage cars were, in almost every case, operated at the front of the train, at the head-end, and the steam-driven dynamos soon took on the name of head-end power plants.

These head-end power plants used what were known as turbo-generators, which were steam-powered electrical generators intended for use in stationary power plants and other industrial applications where steam power needed to be converted to electrical power. The railroads were looking at having more electrical power available on their passenger trains, more power than axle generators of the period could supply. It likely seemed to be an easy solution to adapt these industrial steam dynamos for use on a moving passenger trains. The turbo-generators were big and heavy, and needed a steady supply of steam, so locating them in the baggage car (usually at the front of the train) was an obvious solution. A supply of steam was already available, since every passenger train made use of steam heat, using steam supplied by the locomotive at the front of every train. Electricity at the time was a developing combination of science and early materials engineering, and many of the components, such as switches and relays, required large panel installations. These control panels, along with the dynamos themselves, meant that a full-time attendant was needed to keep the equipment properly maintained and operating.

Union Pacific adopted the concept of head-end power plants in about 1905 with at least 15 wooden baggage cars being equipped with steam dynamos; these cars were labeled as Baggage Dynamo cars (or Dynamo-Baggage in the 60-DB and 69-DB classes), and were considered by many to be cutting-edge technology. Several steel cars were delivered in 1909 and 1910, and in about 1914, the dynamos in the wooden cars were removed and installed in the steel cars. More steel cars were delivered in 1913, 1914, and 1921, making for an overall fleet of 63 baggage cars that used large steam dynamos to furnish electricity on the passenger trains of Union Pacific and its subsidiary companies.

Research has found that in the earliest years of the Twentieth century, starting in 1905, E.H. Harriman's Common Standard Associated Lines (UP, SP and subsidiary companies), together with Chicago & North Western, received several wooden baggage cars specially equipped with steam-driven electrical generators, with the cars being labeled as "Baggage Dynamo" cars.

Those wooden baggage cars built in 1905 for Harriman's Associated companies were built on steel underframes, with steam-driven electrical generators. The cars were usually shown on diagram sheets and the pages in the equipment record book as Baggage Dynamo cars. Diagram sheets show what was called a "turbo-generator" installed in a separate compartment. The first wooden cars were delivered in 1905, with all-steel cars arriving in 1909 through 1914, with more arriving as late as 1921.

A total of 61 steel Baggage Dynamo cars were built between 1909 and 1921, with another 18 steel cars being converted from Baggage cars to Baggage Dynamo cars upon delivery in 1910. This brought the totla of steel Baggage Dynamo cars to 79 cars. When axle generators became available, these 79 cars were converted and had their dynamos removed, all during the 1924-1925 period.

Wooden Baggage Dynamo Cars

A total of seven dynamo cars were delivered in 1905. Four wooden 60' Baggage Dynamo cars were delivered from Pullman in 1905 as UP 1156-1159 (Pullman Lot 3265); renumbered to 900 series. (Photo of UP 1156 in SP Passenger Cars, Volume 3, page 211)

Three wooden 60' Baggage Dynamo cars were delivered from St. Louis Car Co. in 1905 as SPLA&SL 158, 160, 162; renumbered to LA&SL 4556-4558 in 1921-1922. The dynamos removed in 1924 and the cars were renumbered to LA&SL 4463-4465.

These seven cars were placed into service on the Los Angeles Limited, Union Pacific's premium, all Pullman sleeper train between Chicago and Los Angeles. The train was jointly operated by Chicago & North Western between Chicago and Omaha, by Union Pacific between Omaha and Ogden, and by San Pedro, Los Angeles & Salt Lake between Salt Lake City and Los Angeles (trains 7 and 8). The train used wooden cars until about 1912, and remained as the premier train until supplemented by the City of Los Angeles Streamliner in May 1936. The operation of The Los Angeles Limited ended in January 1954 when it was replaced by The Challenger.

(Read more about the Los Angeles Limited on Wikipedia)

(The portion of the run between Ogden and Salt Lake City was operated by Oregon Short Line as Trains 17 (northbound) and 18 (southbound).

Three SPLA&SL Dynamo Baggage cars were delivered in June 1905 by St. Louis Car Company and numbered as SPLA&SL 158, 160 and 162. The three cars were renumbered to LA&SL 4556, 4557, 4558 in 1921-1922. In May 1924, they had their dynamos removed, and the three cars were converted to plain Baggage cars, then renumbered to LA&SL 4463, 4464, 4465, numbered after the six other Baggage cars delivered to SPLA&SL in June 1905, numbered as SPLA&SL 153, 154, 155, 157, 159, and 161. These six plain Baggage cars were renumbered to LA&SL 4454-4459 in 1921-1922.

SPLA&SL Mail 85, built in 1905, had a dynamo added in about 1910 and was renumbered to SPLA&SL 169, numbered after SPLA&SL Baggage Dynamo 166-168, built by Pullman in 1910. SPLA&SL 169 was likely renumbered to LA&SL 4562 in 1921-1922, and was retired before 1926, since it is not shown in the equipment record book.

The 900-series of dynamo baggage cars first appeared in the August 1910 Official Railway Equipment Record, without notation as to their construction, either wooden or steel. The same was true for the July 1911 issue, but the December 1911 issue separated the wooden cars (900-912, 916, 917; 15 cars) from the steel cars (913, 914, 915, 918-925; 11 cars).

UP wooden Baggage cars 1144-1155 (12 cars, plus one more car) may have had dynamos installed in about 1910 (or earlier), and were renumbered to UP 900-912.

UP records include a handwritten note that UP 1149 was converted to a Baggage Dynamo in January 1906. (This is the only direct reference to a wooden Baggage Dynamo car.)

Two of the original wooden dynamo baggage cars built in 1905, UP 1156 and 1158 were renumbered to UP 1163 and 1149 (dates not shown in equipment record book), indicating that their dynamos were removed, and likely installed in steel cars.

Although not yet documented, the two other wooden cars built in 1905, UP 1157 and 1159 were likely renumbered to UP 916, 917 in about 1910, when the Baggage Dynamo fleet was given its own 900-series number group.

Using the Official Railway Equipment Registers as a guide, at some time between the October 1908 issue and the May 1912 issue, Union Pacific put all of their Baggage Dynamo cars into their own 900-series number group.

(More research is needed to better identify the date of the renumbering effort, with the ORER being published on a monthly basis.)

Steel Baggage Dynamo Cars

Eight cars (UP 913-915, 918-922) were built as Baggage Dynamo cars in 1909-1910. Eighteen cars (UP 1148-1150, 1155-1169) were built as plain Baggage cars, and were converted to Baggage Dynamo cars upon delivery in 1909-1910 by having the dynamos from 18 wooden cars installed. These 18 wooden cars that gave up their dynamos in 1909-1910 were UP 900-917, which were converted to plain Baggage cars and renumbered to UP 3000-3017.

Car Number As-Delivered
Number		 Type Qty Builder Date
Built		 Date
Converted		 1915 Car Numbers
UP 900-902 UP 1148-1150 Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman 1909 ca. 1914 UP 3000-3002
UP 903-912 UP 1155-1164 Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 10 Pullman 1910 ca. 1914 UP 3003-3012
UP 913-915   Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman 1909   UP 3013-3015
UP 916, 917 UP 1165, 1166 Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 2 Pullman 1910 ca. 1914 UP 3016, 3017
UP 918-922   Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 5 Pullman 1910   UP 3018-3022
UP 923-925 UP 1167-1169 Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman 1910 ca. 1914 UP 3023-3025
Total     26        

Modernizing The Fleet

(Be prepared - it gets confusing.)

According to Pullman shipping records, the 30 UP steel arch-roof Baggage cars built in 1909-1910 were originally numbered UP 913-915, 918-922, 1148-1169 (30 cars). UP 900-912, 916-917, and 923-925 (18 cars) were renumbered from UP 1148-1150, 1155-1169 (18 cars).

UP 900-912, 916-917 (15 cars) were wooden dynamo cars that exchanged numbers with the 15 steel cars (UP 1148-1150, 1155-1166) as the dynamos were transferred. In addition, three of the steel cars, possibly 1167-1169, were equipped with dynamos and renumbered 923-925. That makes for a lot of renumbering confusion.

With conversion of UP's premier trains from wooden cars to steel cars, the 15 wooden Baggage Dynamo cars were converted to plain Baggage cars, and their dynamos installed in newly delivered steel cars in the 1100-series, which were then renumbered into the 900-series.

In the 1909-1914 era, there were 15 wooden Baggage Dynamo cars and 8 steel Baggage Dynamo cars, plus 3 wooden Baggage Dynamo cars on the SPLA&SL for trains between Salt Lake City and Los Angeles.

(Research question: What was used for trains operating over OSL tracks between UP at Ogden, and SPLA&SL at Salt Lake City? OSL received its first steel Baggage Dynamo cars in 1909, numbered as OSL 435-437.)

(Research question: What did ORR&N use for its premier trains equipped with electric lights? ORR&N received its first steel Baggage Dynamo cars in 1910, numbered as ORR&N 54-56)

Research indicates that there were a total of 15 wooden Baggage Dynamo cars, numbered as UP 900-912, 916, 917.

The Official Railway Equipment Register (ORER) for 1911 through early 1914 show a mix of wooden and steel Baggage Dynamo cars in the UP 900-series:

The same issues of ORER for 1911-1914 show the following 1100-series wooden and steel Baggage cars:

The ORER for January 1915 shows that the mix had changed, with the entire 900-925 group showing as steel cars, and the 1126-1150 group and 1155-1166 group showing as wooden cars.

The quantities from issues of ORER shown above indicate that at some point in the July to December 1914 period, dynamos were removed from the 15 wooden cars in the 900-912, 916, 917 series, making them plain Baggage cars. The dynamos were then installed in the 15 steel cars of the UP 1155-1169 group, which were then renumbered to 903-912, 916, 917, 923-925. Additional research indicates that dynamos were acquired from other sources (possibly from wooden Baggage Dynamos 1156, 1158) and installed in three steel cars, UP 1148, 1149, 1150, which were then renumbered to UP 900, 901, 902.

Steel Cars (All Cars, as built and converted)

Car Number Previous
Number		 Type Qty Builder Date
Built		 Date
Converted		 1915 Car Numbers
LA&SL 4550-4555   Baggage Dynamo, 69' (steel) 6 Pullman Aug 1921   LA&SL 4550-4555 (1921)
OSL 435-437   Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman Jul 1909   OSL 3100-3102
OSL 440-442   Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman Mar 1910   OSL 3103-3105
OWRR&N 120, 121 OR&N 52, 53 Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 2 Pullman Jul 1909   OWRR&N 1919, 1920
OWRR&N 122-124 OR&N 54-56 Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman Feb 1910   OWRR&N 1921-1923
OWRR&N 126-131 (ORR&N 58-63) Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 6 Pullman May 1911   OWRR&N 1924-1930
OWRR&N 132-136 (O&W 50-54) Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 5 Pullman May 1911   OWRR&N 1931-1935
SPLA&SL 166-168   Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman Jun 1910   LA&SL 4559-4561 (1921)
UP 900-912 UP 1148-1150, 1155-1164 Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 13 Pullman 1909-1910 ca. 1914 UP 3000-3012
UP 913-915   Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman Jun 1909   UP 3013-3015
UP 916, 917 UP 1165, 1166 Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 2 Pullman 1910 ca. 1914 UP 3016, 3017
UP 918-922   Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 5 Pullman Mar 1910   UP 3018-3022
UP 923-925 UP 1167-1169 Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman 1910 ca. 1914 UP 3023-3025
UP 926-940   Baggage Dynamo, 70' (steel) 15 Pullman Dec 1914   UP 3026-3040
UP 950-954   Baggage Dynamo Buffet, 75' (steel) 5 Pullman Jan 1913   UP 2700-2704
UP 955, 956   Baggage Dynamo Buffet, 75' (steel) 2 Pullman Jan 1914   UP 2705, 2706
Total     79        

Dynamos from 18 900-series wooden cars were removed in about 1914, and re-installed in steel baggage cars in the 1100-series (UP 1148-1150, 1155-1169), which were then renumbered as 900-series cars (UP 900-912, 916, 917, 923-925).

(View a diagram of the OSL dynamo cars)

(View a diagram of the UP 60' dynamo cars)

(View a diagram of the UP 69' dynamo cars)

Steel Cars (As Built, By Year)

(18 converted cars not shown)

Date Built Car Number Previous Number Type Qty Builder 1915 Car Numbers
Jun 1909 UP 913-915   Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman UP 3013-3015
Jul 1909 OSL 435-437   Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman OSL 3100-3102
Jul 1909 ORR&N 120, 121 ORR&N 52, 53 Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 2 Pullman OWRR&N 1919, 1920
Feb 1910 ORR&N 122-124 ORR&N 54-56 Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman OWRR&N 1921-1923
Mar 1910 UP 918-922   Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 5 Pullman UP 3018-3022
Mar 1910 OSL 440-442   Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman OSL 3103-3105
Jun 1910 SPLA&SL 166-168   Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 3 Pullman LA&SL 4559-4561 (1921)
May 1911 OWRR&N 126-131 (ORR&N 58-63) Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 6 Pullman OWRR&N 1924-1930
May 1911 OWRR&N 132-136 (O&W 50-54) Baggage Dynamo, 60' (steel) 5 Pullman OWRR&N 1931-1935
Jan 1913 UP 950-954   Baggage Dynamo Buffet, 75' (steel) 5 Pullman UP 2700-2704
Jan 1914 UP 955, 956   Baggage Dynamo Buffet, 75' (steel) 2 Pullman UP 2705, 2706
Dec 1914 UP 926-940   Baggage Dynamo, 70' (steel) 15 Pullman UP 3026-3040
Aug 1921 LA&SL 4550-4555   Baggage Dynamo, 69' (steel) 6 Pullman LA&SL 4550-4555 (1921)
Total       61    

Adding the 18 converted cars brings the total to 79 Baggage Dynamo cars.

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