The Rocky Mountain Rocket was a streamlined

Streamliner

A streamliner is a vehicle incorporating streamlining in a shape providing reduced air resistance. The term is applied to high-speed railway trainsets of the 1930s to 1950s, and to their successor "bullet trains". Less commonly, the term is applied to fully faired recumbent bicycles...

 passenger train of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad

Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad

The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, The Rock.-Incorporation:...

. Rock Island's train numbers 7 and 8 ran from Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

's LaSalle Street Station

LaSalle Street Station

LaSalle Street Station is a commuter rail terminal at 414 S. LaSalle Street in downtown Chicago, Illinois, serving Metra's Rock Island District. It was a major intercity rail terminal for the New York Central Railroad until 1968 and the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad until 1978. The...

 to Denver's Union Station

Union Station (Denver)

Union Station is Denver, Colorado, USA's historic train station at 17th and Wynkoop in the LoDo district. The station first opened in 1881.-History:...

 and Colorado Springs, Colorado. The Rocky Mountain Rocket ran from 1939 to 1966; the train was discontinued prior to the creation of Amtrak

Amtrak

The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...

 in 1971.

Route description

In 1942 the Rocky Mountain Rocket ran on a 19.5 hour schedule from Denver to Chicago. An extra quarter hour was required for the Colorado Springs Section. At Limon, Colorado

Limon Railroad Depot

Limon Railroad Depot was a major Union Pacific and Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad station in Limon, Colorado. It has been on the National Register of Historical Places since 2003...

 the Rocky Mountain Rocket was split on its westbound run. The bulk of the train would head northwest to Denver on the Union Pacific's Main Line to Denver, while the rest of the train would head southwest on Rock Island tracks to Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs, Colorado

Colorado Springs is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and most populous city of El Paso County, Colorado, United States. Colorado Springs is located in South-Central Colorado, in the southern portion of the state. It is situated on Fountain Creek and is located south of the Colorado...

. Eastbound, the Rocky Mountain Rocket was combined at Limon for the remainder of its trip to Chicago. A similar split was made in Belleville, Kansas

Belleville, Kansas

Belleville is a city in and the county seat of Republic County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 1,991.-Geography:Belleville is located at...

. The eastbound train was split with a section continuing to Union Station, Kansas City, Missouri

Kansas City, Missouri

Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...

, while the remainder continued on to Chicago.

Competition and demise

The Rocky Mountain Rocket faced steep competition from a number of sources. Rock Island's primary competition came from the Missouri Pacific's

Missouri Pacific Railroad

The Missouri Pacific Railroad , also known as the MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers, including the St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway , Texas and Pacific...

 Colorado Eagle, Union Pacific's

Union Pacific Railroad

The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....

 City of St. Louis, The Union Pacific and Chicago and North Western's City of Denver

City of Denver

The City of Denver was a passenger train operated jointly by the Chicago and North Western and Union Pacific railroads. The train operated on both railroads' rights of way between Chicago, Illinois, and Denver, Colorado...

, and Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy's

Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad

The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington or as the Q, the Burlington Route served a large area, including extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri,...

 Denver Zephyr

Denver Zephyr

The Denver Zephyr was a passenger train operated by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad between Chicago, Illinois, and Denver, Colorado...

. The Denver Zephyr was the Rocky Mountain Rocket's top competitor where the Burlington Route maintained a much higher market share between Chicago and Denver than the Rock Island. The Rock Island maintained much of its popularity through its Colorado Springs section, which was the only Colorado Springs to Chicago train. All other options required one or more changes at various locations.

Facing steep competition from airlines and a loss of local traffic to interstates, the Rocky Mountain Rocket lost its sleeping and dining cars in July 1965. Snack cars were added to replace the diners and remained in service until the train was discontinued 15 months later. The last train ran on October 16, 1966.