"The Pioneer Zephyr - 1934" Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway 2004 Limited Edition Plate

This 2004 limited-edition plate commemorated the Pioneer Zephyr, the diesel-powered streamline train that set the long-distance non-stop railroad record by running the 1015 miles from Denver to Chicago in 785 minutes on May 26, 1934. Across Nebraska and Iowa people flocked to stations and railroads to see the silvery train pass by at hitherto unseen speeds. Averaging 77.6 miles an hour, the streamliner topped 100 in its Great Plains run. In 1945 with 25 dollars in hand Bill Moore boarded the Zephyr in Nebraska to report for military service, setting off on his own for the first time in his life. A token of this experience, the plate was a gift to "all the BNSF people who worked injury free in 2004."

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