No. 10345 4-8-2 Class U1-f "Mountain" Type Steam Locomotive #6060 and Vanderbilt Tender, heading up the "Continental Limited" Streamlined Passenger Train

Canadian National Railways

In 1923, five financially troubled railways combined to form the government-owned Canadian National Railways: the Canadian Northern, Grand Trunk, subsidiary Grand Trunk Pacific, Intercolonial, and the National Transcontinental railway systems. This created for Canada a second true transcontinental railroad, the Canadian Pacific Railway having become transcontinental in 1885 (see No. 10261). The Canadian National advertised itself as "America's Largest Railway System," based on its vast network of track in all ten provinces of Canada and eleven states of the United States. In 1971, the Canadian National rail network included 22,375 miles of track. (Canadian Pacific trackage totaled 21,000 miles).

Jet airline travel and improved roadways adversely affected travel by rail in the late 1960s and early 1970s, requiring the government to step in once again in January, 1976, creating VIA Rail Canada for the purpose of taking over all passenger train operations from Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.  Currently (2007) there is one VIA Rail transcontinental dome-equipped deluxe streamliner, the "Canadian," running between Toronto and Vancouver (see No. 10531). 

Like the Canadian Pacific, the Canadian National offered the riding public five fine Pullman-equipped transcontinental trains, the finest being the "Super Continental," (see No. 10426), with service established in April, 1955, between Montreal and Vancouver (2938 miles).  In 1964, "Sceneramic" dome cars were added to the "Super Continental" and other luxury Canadian National streamliners, the lightweight streamlined cars of 1955 having been ordered in 1953 ($60 million worth) from Canadian Car & Foundry and Pullman-Standard (the Super Dome cars were purchased from the Milwaukee Road in 1964).  Trip time for the "Super Continental" Montreal-Vancouver in 1963 was about 69 hours.  The "Super Continental" was an improved incarnation of CNR's former fleet leader, the "Continental Limited," established in the 1920s and subject of this history.  In 1955 the demoted and slower "Continental Limited" assumed the status of a maid-of-the-most-work running mate to the new train, now diesel powered.  

To power these fast passenger trains, Canadian National as early as 1923 favored the 4-8-2 "Mountain"-type design, ordering sixteen U1-a 4-8-2s from the Canadian Locomotive Company. By 1930, the fleet of U1-a through U1-e "Mountains" had grown to fifty-nine, built by Canadian Locomotive, Baldwin, and the Montreal Locomotive Works.

The engines, with their impressive speeds of up to 82 mph and long ranges, performed so well in passenger service that in 1944 Canadian National took delivery of an additional twenty 4-8-2s, from Montreal Locomotive Works. This last batch of twenty was different from the earlier "Mountains," however, in that they were semi-streamlined, with conical bullet-shaped smokebox doors, and deep valances created along the running boards, strikingly painted Canadian National's familiar Olive green. All these locomotives, designated the U-1f, were equipped with Vanderbilt tenders and were designed to operate with higher boiler pressures for increased speeds (Nos. 6060-6079). They provided reliable service for the Canadian National streamliners until their retirement in 1960, in favor of more efficient diesel locomotives (see No. 10426). They were affectionately known as "Bullet Nose Bettys" to CN employees and fans.

No. 10345 represents an accurate scale model of Canadian National's 4-8-2 Class U1-f  "Mountain"-type steam locomotive #6060 in "0" gauge by MTH, heading up the 8-car modernized heavyweight  streamlined train in olive green and black, the "Continental Limited" as it would have been seen Montreal-Vancouver in 1946-1955.  The cars are also by MTH (Nos. 10346,10347, & 10348).  There should be no dome cars on this train, as they were not introduced to Canadian National trains until 1964 (see No. 10426).

No. 10345 is modeled after Canadian National's #6060, which has been restored and survives today. In 1972, Canadian National restored #6060 and used her to haul steam fan excursions out of Toronto. In 1980, to commemorate Alberta's 75th anniversary as a province, #6060 was presented as a gift to the people of Alberta, and christened the "Spirit of Alberta."  She is currently based in Stettler, Alberta, and used for summer railfan excursions.