The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The 'Newfie Bullet' was an ironic name placed on the Newfoundland train due to its snail's pace. According to legend the affectionate name was given by one of the hundreds of servicemen at the U.S. Base in Argentina during World War II. The first Newfie Bullet steamed out of St. John's on the evening of June 29, 1898, hauling two baggage cars, two coaches, two sleepers, and a single diner. Arriving 27 1Ú2 hours later at Port-Aux-Basques, its passengers transferred to the S.S. Bruce for an overnight voyage across the Cabot Strait to North Sydney. The final Bullet departed Port-Aux-Basques on the morning of July 2, 1969, having taken on passengers from the William Carson. Its three diesel units hauled a baggage car, four coaches, two diners and eight sleepers. At 8 a.m. on July 3, it sighed to a halt at the St. John's station. That run marked the end of a era, and the last opportunity to cross Newfoundland by rail, on a 547.8 mile stretch of narrow-gauge track only three feet, six inches wide, through many communities. People used to swear they could hop off one of the forward coaches and pick a cup of blueberries before the caboose came into sight, and 25 mph was good going on the flat. Certainly it was one of North America's most unusual trains. Something to Ponder: A horse may be coaxed to drink, but a pencil must be lead.
