The Ambassador was a passenger train that traveled from Boston, Massachusetts and New York City, New York to Montreal, Quebec. The train was jointly operated by the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad, Boston and Maine Railroad, the Central Vermont Railroad, and the Canadian National Railway.[1]^: 112 Beginning service on April 26, 1926, the Ambassador operated on a daytime schedule between Boston and Montreal, with coach, dining, and parlor cars in the consist. The route going north of White River Junction went northwest, through Montpelier and Essex Junction toward Montreal.[1]^: 112 There were also through cars to New York City offered until the mid-1950s, split from the Ambassador's consist in White River Junction, Vermont and added to the Connecticut Yankee train for points south.[1]^: 112 In its route from Boston's North Station it passed through Manchester (Union Station), Concord and Franklin in New Hampshire. [2][3]

Ambassador

The Ambassador in New Hampshire in September 1965
Overview
Service type	Inter-city rail
Status	Discontinued
Locale	Northeastern United States/Quebec
First service	April 26, 1926
Last service	September 3, 1966
Former operator(s)	Boston & Maine New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad Canadian National Railway Central Vermont Railway
Route
Termini	Boston, Massachusetts and New York City, New York Montreal, Quebec
Distance travelled	327.2 miles (526.6 km) (1949) (Boston - Montreal)
Average journey time	9 hours, 25 minutes
Service frequency	Daily
Train number(s)	307 (northbound) 332 (southbound)
On-board services
Seating arrangements	Coach seating
Catering facilities	Cafe grill car, only Montreal to White River Junction (1949)
Observation facilities	Parlor car
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Route map v t e Legend 328 mi 528 km Montreal 302 mi 486 km St. Johns QC VT 260 mi 418 km St. Albans 247 mi 398 km Milton 236 mi 380 km Essex Junction 214 mi 344 km Waterbury 196 mi 315 km Northfield 175 mi 282 km Randolph 167 mi 269 km Bethel 161 mi 259 km South Royalton 143 mi 230 km White River Junction VT NH 73 mi 117 km Concord 56 mi 90 km Manchester 39 mi 63 km Nashua NH MA 26 mi 42 km Lowell 0 mi Boston

In 1956, with traffic declining, through service to Boston from Montreal was terminated, replaced with a transfer to Boston and Maine rail diesel cars at White River Junction, and the Ambassador name was applied to the Montreal—New York City train, which by 1958 lost food service and consisted only of coaches.[1]^: 114 On September 3, 1966, the Ambassador was discontinued after its operators sought and received approval from the Interstate Commerce Commission to terminate service.[1]^: 151

References