New York Central’s all-Pullman 20th Century Limited departs Chicago for its nightly run to New York in the 1950s. The deluxe train carried a staff of Pullman Porters, Pullman Conductors, waiters, maids, chefs, cooks, train conductors, brakemen, stewards, along with a train secretary,

CRUISING THE PAST: AMTRAK IS SEEKING THE LAST OF THE PULLMAN PORTERS TO HONOR ON NATIONAL TRAIN DAY IN MAY.

Amtrak is seeking former Pullman Porters for a ceremony honoring them during a celebration of National Train Day on May 9, at Amtrak’s 30th Street Station in Philadelphia.

Former porters should contact Amtrak’s Saunya Connelly at (202) 906-4164 or connels@amtrak.com with the following information: Porter’s full name, telephone number, mailing address, age, years of railroad service, and routes if known.

The deadline for response is April 14.

The following is a story about Pullman Porters appearing in today’s NEW YORK TIMES by Jennifer B. Lee

For more than a century, Pullman porters were a part of luxury American train travel until the pressures of jet and car travel started the demise of high-end sleeper cars about 40 years ago.

Now the last generation of porters — who played a critical role in African-American history — is rapidly dying off. And Amtrak is in a desperate attempt to locate the last few for National Train Day.

In 2001, the A. Philip Randolph Museum compiled a national registry of black railroad employees who worked for the railroad from the late 1800s to 1969, which could be useful for historians and genealogists.

“There are a thousand people on this list — as we mark it up, it’s not looking like the same list anymore,” said Hank Ernest, who is coordinating the publicity for Amtrak. Asked how many they had found, he said, “Double digits.” [Read more...]