San Francisco Zephyr along the Truckee River, 1970s.
Black and white promotional photograph showing the San Francisco Zephyr (Chicago-Oakland/San Francisco) traveling along the Truckee River; image dates to 1971 or early 1972.
- Photograph Details
-
- Date Archived:
- October 28, 2014
- Geography:
- California
- Decade:
- 1970s
- Data Format:
- Image
- Route:
- San Francisco Zephyr
- Download the full-sized version of this photo
Between May 1971 and June 1972, the Chicago-San Francisco/Oakland route was covered by two trains: the daily Denver Zephyr (Chicago-Denver) and the thrice-weekly City of San Francisco (Denver-San Francisco/Oakland). In mid-1972, the route became daily and was rebranded the San Francisco Zephyr. In this image, the train travels along the Truckee River in a canyon near the California-Nevada state line.
In July 1983, the San Francisco Zephyr was rerouted from southern Wyoming onto the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad (D&RGW) line between Denver and Salt Lake City. By that time, the D&RGW had decided to turn over its Rio Grande Zephyr - the last privately operated intercity passenger train in the country - to Amtrak. Amtrak preferred the D&RGW route due to its breathtaking scenery along the Colorado River. To mark this transition, Amtrak renamed the train the California Zephyr.
Photographer: Unknown for Amtrak. From the Amtrak Corporate Collection.
