Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Seaboard Coast Line Doodlebug


The name 'Doodlebug' is best known as the name the British gave to Hitler's V1 flying bombs during WW2, but it has other references, including rail motor-cars in America.  This one was built in 1936 by the Saint Louis Car Company for the Seaboard Airline Railroad, as it was known until 1967, and then the Seaboard Coast line as it became after the merger that year with the Atlantic Coast Line.  This pic was taken in March 1971, not not long before it was withdrawn on 30 April 1971, probably due to the birth of Amtrak. It had a 600 hp, 8-cylinder 201A engine, later replaced by a 600 hp 8-cylinder 567A engine.  The weight was 97.2 tons and the length was 72 ft (22 metres).

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