Inter-American (train)

Inter-American
Overview
Type	Inter-city rail
System	Amtrak
Locale	Midwestern United States
Termini	Chicago, Illinois Laredo, Texas Houston, Texas
Operation
Opened	1973
Closed	1981
Operator(s)	Amtrak
Technical
Line length	1,452 mi (2,336.77 km) (Chicago-Laredo) 1,333 mi (2,145.26 km) (Chicago-Houston)
Route map Legend 0 mi (0 km) Chicago 37 mi (60 km) Joliet 127 mi (200 km) Bloomington 185 mi (300 km) Springfield 257 mi (410 km) Alton Mississippi RiverIllinois/Missouri border 284 mi (460 km) St. Louis 446 mi (720 km) Poplar Bluff Missouri/Arkansas border 502 mi (810 km) Walnut Ridge 542 mi (870 km) Newport(F) 626 mi (1,000 km) Little Rock 669 mi (1,100 km) Malvern(F) 770 mi (1,200 km) Texarkana Arkansas/Texas border 837 mi (1,300 km) Marshall(F) 860 mi (1,400 km) Longview 987 mi (1,600 km) Dallas 1,018 mi (1,600 km) Fort Worth 1,046 mi (1,700 km) Cleburne 1,121 mi (1,800 km) McGregor 1,146 mi (1,800 km) Temple 1,238 mi (2,000 km) Brenham 1,298 mi (2,100 km) Rosenberg(F) 1,333 mi (2,100 km) Houston 1,185 mi (1,900 km) Taylor 1,219 mi (2,000 km) Austin 1,250 mi (2,000 km) San Marcos 1,299 mi (2,100 km) San Antonio 1,452 mi (2,300 km) Laredo

The Inter-American was a passenger train operated by Amtrak between Chicago, Illinois to Laredo, Texas. Its route changed over time and was eventually replaced by the Eagle.

History

Upon its inauguration in January 1973, the Inter-American connected Laredo with Fort Worth. At Fort Worth, travelers could connect with the Texas Chief, but doing so required an overnight layover. At Laredo, it was possible to cross the border to Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, and connect with Ferrocarriles Nacionales de México ("N de M") trains to points in Mexico. The train operated three times a week.

In March 1974, the train was extended to St. Louis, following the route of the former Missouri Pacific Texas Eagle. From St. Louis passengers could connect to Chicago, and the extension finally added service to Dallas itself. In October 1976 Amtrak extended the Inter-American all the way north to Chicago. This train operated daily between Chicago and St. Louis and tri-weekly between St. Louis and Laredo. On October 31, 1978, a St. Louis-Chicago Inter-American became the last train to serve Union Station in St. Louis. In October 1979 budget cuts forced Amtrak to combine the Inter-American with the Lone Star (formerly the Texas Chief). The new train, still called the Inter-American, operated daily between Chicago and Laredo, with a section to Houston, Texas which split at Temple, Texas.

In the fall of 1981 Amtrak, forced to make service cuts, truncated the Inter-American to San Antonio, Texas and eliminated the through cars to Houston. The new service was named the Eagle, and is a forerunner of the current Texas Eagle.^{[citation needed]}

References

• Goldberg, Bruce (1981). Amtrak: The First Decade. Silver Spring, MD: Alan Books. 

See also

• Texas Eagle

External links

• Photos of the Inter-American