With the United States coming out of the Great Depression, the railroads were in need of something to make passenger rail travel popular again. In response to the Diesel-Powered Pioneer Zephyr of the Burlington Route that came a few months prior, Carl F. Kantola designed an Art Deco streamlined shroud for New York Central 5344, the last of the J-1E Hudsons built for that railroad. Debuting on December 27th 1934, the locomotive was displayed at Grand Central Terminal marking a new era of locomotive design and earning it's name "Commodore Vanderbilt".
Hailed as the world's first streamlined steam locomotive, the Commodore Vanderbilt would go on a tour to major cities of the New York Central before being put to use on the 20th Century Limited. The streamlining of the locomotive would be followed up by similar designs on several other North American railroads. In fact, L-2A Mohawk No. 2873 would be equipped with a similar streamlining for the Million-Dollar Rexall Streamlined Train in 1936.
With the advent of J3A Hudsons No. 5445-5454, No. 5344 would lose it's shroud in favor of the Henry Dreyfuss streamlining that was used for the last ten J3As and was reassigned to the Mercury in 1939. But as streamlining would only increase the maintenance, the 5344 would become a regular Hudson again but would eventually gain a centipede tender. No. 5344 would continue to serve the New York Central until it was eventually retired and scrapped alongside all the other Hudsons in the late 1950s.
Although the locomotive was lost to history, its legacy carries on with model railroading, various forms of media, and a tender from No. 5313 that was converted into a steam generator car and can be seen on static display Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton, Pennsylvania. In addition, a few steam locomotives from the NYC have made it into preservation such as L-3A Mohawk No. 3001, which The Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society plans to restore to oprating condition once enough funds are raised.
Models and Route by: TrainzProRoutes, Auran, and Download Station
