The San Francisco Chief was a streamlined passenger train on the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway ("Santa Fe") between Chicago and the San Francisco Bay Area. It ran from 1954 until 1971. The San Francisco Chief was the last new streamliner introduced by the Santa Fe, its first full train between Chicago and the Bay, the only Chicago–Bay Area train running over just one railroad, and at the longest run in the country on one railroad. The San Francisco Chief was one of many trains discontinued when Amtrak began operations in 1971.

History

The Santa Fe introduced the streamliner on June 6, 1954; it was Santa Fe's last new streamliner and its first direct train from Chicago to the San Francisco Bay Area. It ran via Topeka and the Belen Cutoff through Amarillo, Texas, instead of Raton Pass.

thumb|left|The San Francisco Chief at Chicago on December 26, 1967

Tragedy struck the train on March 2, 1960, just outside of Bakersfield, California, when a tanker truck filled with oil stalled or got stuck on a crossing along the Chief's route. The engineer hardly had time to slow down, and collided with the truck, resulting in an explosion that could be seen, heard and even felt over a great distance. 17 people were killed and around 60 were injured.

The San Francisco Chief was one of few Santa Fe trains to survive the purge in 1967–1968, as dozens of trains were discontinued. The discontinuances were prompted in large part by the cancellation of railway post office contracts in 1967.

  • 1954 timetable