June 17, 1902: The 20th Century Limited Begins Operation

June 17, 1902: The New York Central Railroad begins the 1st run of the 20th Century Limited, a new train service from New York to Chicago. It becomes known as the fastest train in the Eastern United States.

The luxury train left Grand Central Terminal in New York, went up the Hudson River to Albany, then turned west, crossed New York State to Buffalo, then hugged the coast of Lake Erie, stopping in Cleveland, and in Toledo for a connection to Detroit, and terminated at Chicago's LaSalle Street Station. The 1st one completed its run in 20 hours, 4 hours faster than any previous New York-to-Chicago train. The introduction of Art Deco diesel cars in 1938 allowed them to cut the run to 16 hours.

Starting in 1938, the timetable was as follows: Leave New York at 5:00 PM; Harmon, New York at 5:46; Albany at 7:39; Syracuse at 10:05; Buffalo at 12:25 AM; Toledo at 3:06; Englewood, on the South Side of Chicago, at 7:26; and La Salle Street at 8:00 -- with the switch from Eastern Time to Central Time, 16 hours exactly.

The return trip: Leave Chicago at 3:00 PM, Englewood at 3:10, Toledo at 7:30, Buffalo at 10:01, Syracuse at 12:21 AM, Albany at 5:02, Harmon at 7:00, and Grand Central at 8:00.

The 20th Century Limited was the setting for a Broadway play in 1932, Twentieth Century, which was adapted into a film in 1934. and then into a Broadway musical in 1978, On the Twentieth Century. The train also figured prominently as a setting for major scenes in both Alfred Hitchcock's 1959 North by Northwest and George Roy Hill's 1973 The Sting -- which incorrectly had the train arrive in Chicago at night, not in the morning as it did in reality.

The increasing prevalence of the automobile ruined the passenger rail industry. The New York Central, and its competitor, the Pennsylvania Railroad, with its New York Penn Station-to-Chicago Union Station-running Broadway Limited, went bankrupt in the 1960s.

On December 2, 1967, at 6:00 PM, a 20th Century Limited left Grand Central Terminal's Track 34 for the last time. It was only due to the nostalgia factor that it was even half-full. As always, carnations were given to men boarding the train, and perfume and flowers to women. The next day, it arrived at LaSalle Street Station in Chicago, 9 hours 50 minutes late due to a freight derailment near Conneaut, Ohio, which forced a slow rerouting over the parallel Nickel Plate railroad freight line.

The competing railroads were merged in 1968, becoming Penn Central. In 1976, it was still bankrupt, and reorganized into Conrail. In 1971, Amtrak took over national passenger service. In 1975, Amtrak copied the 20th Century Limited, and created the Lake Shore Limited, running it from Grand Central to Chicago Union. In 1991, Penn Station became its New York terminus.

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June 17, 1902 was a Tuesday. These baseball games were played:

* The New York Giants were swept in a doubleheader by the Boston Beaneaters, 6-3 and 13-2 at the South End Grounds in Boston. The Beaneaters became the Braves in 1912.

* The Brooklyn Superbas beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 4-3 at National League Park (later Baker Bowl) in Philadelphia. The Superbas became the Dodgers in 1911.

* The Cleveland Bronchos swept a doubleheader from the Boston Americans, 7-3 and 4-3 at the Huntington Avenue Grounds in Boston. Addie Joss beat Cy Young in the nightcap. The Americans became the Red Sox in 1908. The next season, the Bronchos renamed themselves for their best hitter and 2nd baseman, and even named him their manager: Napoleon "Nap" Lajoie. They became the Cleveland Naps in 1903, the Cleveland Indians in 1915, and the Cleveland Guardians in 2022.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Washington Senators, 4-0 at Bennett Park in Detroit. Win Mercer pitched a 3-hit shutout.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Philadelphia Athletics, 6-2 at at South Side Park in Chicago.

* Rain stopped the game between the St. Louis Browns and the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park in Baltimore, ending it 2-2 after 11 innings at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. The Orioles folded at the end of the season, and were replaced by the New York team that would become the Yankees in 1913. After the 1953 season, the Browns moved, becoming... the Baltimore Orioles.

* Not scheduled for that day: The Chicago Orphans, the Cincinnati Reds, the Pittsburgh Pirates and the St. Louis Cardinals. The Chicago team, formerly known as the White Stockings and, for their youth, as the Colts, had long been led by 1st baseman and manager Adrian Constantine Anson. He was known as "Cap," for "Captain," until he got older, and became known as "Pop." He retired after the 1897 season, and the team became known as the "Orphans," because "they missed their Pop." They were renamed the Chicago Cubs in 1903.