Greg,
Purchase, or look at a copy of Kalmbach's soft cover book "Passenger Trains
of Yesteryear - Chicago Westbound" (just released a few months ago).
Turn to page 68, and check out the great photo by Bob Borcherding of the
eastbound Vista Dome Twin Zephyr sporting the flat-top parlor in it's
traditional position ahead of the Vista Dome Parlor Observation. The diner,
you'll see, at that time operated between first class and coach sections.
That was subject to change years later, or under special circumstances.
If you can, refer to a Burlington timetable in the early fifties. (I
checked out one from 1951), the line number for the Twin Zephyr Vista Dome
Parlor car was P-21, or P-31, the flat top Parlor was then P-211, or P-231
northbound. Southbound the line number for the Vista Dome Observation was
P-22, P-24, hence the flat top parlor P-221, or P-241.
Reviewing Burlington timetables, it looks as though the flat top parlors
"Silver Chair" and "Silver Parlor" operated (after their construction)
regularly up until 1955 at least. I don't have a 1956 timetable, and my copy
for 1957 reflects only the Vista Dome Parlor Obs as regularly assigned.
Perhaps someone with a 1956 timetable could answer what happened in 1956.
Sitting here I can think of 4 photographs in 4 different books showing the
flat-top Parlor car running behind the diner as originally intended. So it's
seems for the years it operated not many photographers recorded it.
They were interesting additions to the "Zephyr" fleet!
Hubert Hanrahan
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