A July, 1928 timetable recently published by Larry Thomas gives us a
picture of operations through Keokuk in the 1920s and establishes the six train
pattern which the town was to see for several decades. The first train of the day was #8. Train #8 had been running since at least
1911 when it was scheduled to depart Burlington at 11:20 pm, reach Hannibal at
2:45 am and St. Louis Union Station at 7:29 am. In 1928, having left Minneapolis at 8:30 in the
morning, it was scheduled to reach Keokuk just after midnight at 12:40 am, and
St. Louis by 7:12 in the morning ? slightly earlier than in 1911, but still a
nearly 23 hour schedule. This train
provided coach seats for the entire trip, and drawing room and section
accommodations between Cedar Rapids and St. Louis. A 12-section, 1-drawing room car had
been added for this purpose on January 1, 1926; this service was cut back to
Burlington to St. Louis as of July 31, 1932.
The next train through Keokuk was the northbound counterpart to #8,
train #7 arriving at 2:52 am.
It had left St. Louis at 7:30 in the evening and was due into Minneapolis
at 7:00 pm the following day ? slightly ahead of the scheduled time for 1924 of
7:15 pm, but still a better than 23 hour schedule. Train #7 offered the same accommodations
as #8.
Next through town was northbound #1 at 7:17 am. Scheduled to leave St. Louis at 1:45 am,
#1 offered coach accommodations, as well as a 12-section, 1-drawing room car
which was ready for occupancy by 10:00 pm, allowing passengers to get tucked in
before the train?s scheduled departure.
This car commenced operation on January 1, 1926 and was removed as of
September 27, 1931. Train #1 was
due to arrive in Burlington at 9:00 in the morning.
Just over an hour later, at 8:23 am, Keokuk saw the arrival of the first
of the day?s Limiteds, operated
jointly by the CB&Q and CRI&P.
Operating on a roughly 19 hour schedule, train #12, the St. Louis Limited, had left Minneapolis
at 6:35 in the evening and was due into St. Louis at 1:45 in the afternoon. The Limited trains offered section and
drawing room accommodation over the entire length of their run. The assigned car was a 12-section,
1-drawing room Pullman. Dining
service on the Limiteds was available
between St. Louis and Burlington and between Cedar Rapids and
Minneapolis.
In 1928, train #1?s southbound counterpart was #4, which left Burlington
at 12:40 pm, reached Keokuk by 1:52 and arrived in St. Louis at 8:20 that
evening. Rather than sleeping
accommodations, this train offered a sleeper as a parlor car from Quincy to St.
Louis.
The last train of the day was the second Limited, #15, bound for the Twin Cities
and offering the same passenger accommodations as southbound #12; in addition,
the northbound train also offered sleeping accommodation from Keokuk to Chicago
via a connecting train at Burlington.
The Twin City Limited departed
St. Louis at 2:15 in the afternoon, reached Keokuk by 7:50 that evening, and was
due into Minneapolis by 9:20 the following morning ? again a roughly 19 hour
schedule.