The Phoebe Snow, Lackawanna's Beloved Flagship Passenger Train

Perhaps more than any other passenger train the Phoebe Snow evoked heartfelt emotions of a warm, classy passenger train that was intent on making you feel right at home when you were aboard. The name itself for the train, which would become the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western’s premier run between Hoboken, New Jersey and Buffalo, New York had actually been around for years in the railroad’s passenger services (such as the Lackawanna Limited, the flagship train before the Phoebe) meant to describe the snow white, clean services the railroad offered since it transported and used clean-burning anthracite coal.

The Phoebe Snow, a beautiful streamlined train featuring lightweight equipment from the Budd Company, American Car & Foundry, and Pullman-Standard in a stylish livery of maroon and gray, was born in November 1949 to directly compete with the New York Central between New York City and Buffalo (although the Lackawanna’s service only went as far as its Hoboken Terminal). The personal service and charm of this train, coupled with its brilliant marking campaign of a fictional young lady dressed in white welcoming you to either ride the train or while you were aboard with photos of her showcased throughout the train made the Phoebe Snow a “down to earth,” beloved operation (the railroad also for some hired a real life actress to portray Phoebe).

For more information regarding the Phoebe Snow's consist and timetable please click here. After the merger of the DL&W and Erie Railroad in 1960 to form the Erie-Lackawanna Railroad the train briefly disappeared into the new Erie Lackawanna Limited. However, this discontinuance would last only a few years as she was reinstated in late 1963, albeit now running all of the way to Chicago, not just Buffalo, along former Erie rails.

Still, despite fine service and great views, as with the rest of the railroad industry, the Phoebe Snow could not stave off increasing losses as passengers took to their cars and the air for faster, more efficient means of travel. With the loss of the US Postal Service mail contracts in 1966 the Erie Lackawanna decided it was time to retire the Phoebe for good and she made her last run on November 28th of that year.

As can probably be expected with a route that was not nearly as popular or competitive as those offered by the NYC’s and PRR’s main lines, the Phoebe Snow was not resurrected by Amtrak when the carrier took over intercity passenger rail operations in 1971. Today, much of the former Erie main line in Ohio and Pennsylvania itself is gone as well (again in favor of the PRR’s and NYC’s lines). However, with the fond memories and exemplary service offered by the Phoebe Snow the train will likely never be forgotten as another of our nation’s classic passenger trains of yore.

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