When the George Washington was inaugurated as C&O's top-notch train on April 30, 1932, it was one of only two all-air-conditioned, long-distance trains operating in America. (
the other was the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad's Capitol Limited, which was instituted as an all-air-conditioned train only a week or so before the George Washington).
New equipment was not built for this train; instead, older cars that were completely refurbished by Pullman and by C&O shops.
It was still a few years before the streamliner craze, so C&O persisted with the standards of the time using its solid, heavy cars.

The Pullman Company normally lettered its sleepers in a standardized fashion so that they could be interchanged and routed in any train in the United States with some uniformity, but there were some "name trains" to which specific cars were assigned on a regular basis, and C&O's George Washington was one of these.
 They differed from the standard Pullman sleepers in that they had the name of the train at the center of the letterboard where "PULLMAN" was usually placed, while the word "PULLMAN" was relocated to the end of the letterboard in small letters.

After leaving Washington, the George passed through Virginia's horse country of Blue Ridge and Shenandoah Valley before assaulting the Allegheny Mountains en route to The Greenbrier, a C&O-owned luxury resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.
It then descended through the New River Gorge before crossing into Ohio.

In keeping with the theme, all the sleeping, dining, and lounge cars on the train were named for people, places, or events connected with Washington's life.
In the sleepers the rooms were likewise given names of people associated with him.
Booklets about Washington's life, followed by descriptions of the new train, were issued in great quantity, the train appeared in advertising in major magazines and on C&O timetables, and the whole introduction was given huge attention and publicity.
A country starved for good news latched onto the railway's confidence in the future and willingness to spend money to introduce a fine new train.

The April 1952 issue of Tracks Magazine reported:
"The George is a sizeable train as it pulls into Covington,(Ky): engine, three baggage cars, a diner, three coaches, four Pullman cars.
The crew to handle it reflects its size: engineer, fireman, conductor, assistant conductor, flagman, Pullman conductor, four Pullman porters, two train porters, dining car steward, ten waiters, two baggagemen."

The George Washington was also known for its diner and its beautiful china manufactured by Buffalo Pottery.
The diners on the George traveled all the way from Washington to Cincinnati.

After World War II, C&O chairman Robert Ralph Young attempted to upgrade the George Washington route service with newer equipment and steam turbine motive power.
However, despite the C&O's substantial investment and planning, the project (which was to be called the '"Chessie") was aborted before service was to begin.
In that era, automobiles and airline travel were quickly developing in the United States as the travel mode of preference over long distance passenger rail services.

Amtrak took over intercity passenger rail service on May 1, 1971.
Amtrak kept the George Washington, including both the Washington and Newport News sections.
Starting in July, Amtrak began integrating the George with the James Whitcomb Riley, an old New York Central/Penn Central daytimer running from Cincinnati to Chicago.
The George began exchanging through Washington-Chicago and Newport News-Chicago coaches with the Riley at Cincinnati on July 12, adding a through sleeping car on September 8.
Earlier, the George had exchanged through sleepers with the Riley for most of the 1950s.

The two trains merged on November 14, 1971; the George Washington name was used for the eastbound train until May 19, 1974.
The Riley was renamed the Cardinal in 1977.
The present-day Cardinal still operates over much of the former George Washington route between Cincinnati and Washington.
The Newport News section o
When the George Washington was inaugurated as C&O's top-notch train on April 30, 1932, it was one of only two all-air-conditioned, long-distance trains operating in America. (the other was the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad's Capitol Limited, which was instituted as an all-air-conditioned train only a week or so before the George Washington). New equipment was not built for this train; instead, older cars that were completely refurbished by Pullman and by C&O shops. It was still a few years before the streamliner craze, so C&O persisted with the standards of the time using its solid, heavy cars.
The Pullman Company normally lettered its sleepers in a standardized fashion so that they could be interchanged and routed in any train in the United States with some uniformity, but there were some "name trains" to which specific cars were assigned on a regular basis, and C&O's George Washington was one of these.  They differed from the standard Pullman sleepers in that they had the name of the train at the center of the letterboard where "PULLMAN" was usually placed, while the word "PULLMAN" was relocated to the end of the letterboard in small letters.
After leaving Washington, the George passed through Virginia's horse country of Blue Ridge and Shenandoah Valley before assaulting the Allegheny Mountains en route to The Greenbrier, a C&O-owned luxury resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. It then descended through the New River Gorge before crossing into Ohio.
In keeping with the theme, all the sleeping, dining, and lounge cars on the train were named for people, places, or events connected with Washington's life. In the sleepers the rooms were likewise given names of people associated with him. Booklets about Washington's life, followed by descriptions of the new train, were issued in great quantity, the train appeared in advertising in major magazines and on C&O timetables, and the whole introduction was given huge attention and publicity. A country starved for good news latched onto the railway's confidence in the future and willingness to spend money to introduce a fine new train.
The April 1952 issue of Tracks Magazine reported:
"The George is a sizeable train as it pulls into Covington,(Ky): engine, three baggage cars, a diner, three coaches, four Pullman cars. The crew to handle it reflects its size: engineer, fireman, conductor, assistant conductor, flagman, Pullman conductor, four Pullman porters, two train porters, dining car steward, ten waiters, two baggagemen." 
The George Washington was also known for its diner and its beautiful china manufactured by Buffalo Pottery. The diners on the George traveled all the way from Washington to Cincinnati. 
After World War II, C&O chairman Robert Ralph Young attempted to upgrade the George Washington route service with newer equipment and steam turbine motive power. However, despite the C&O's substantial investment and planning, the project (which was to be called the '"Chessie") was aborted before service was to begin. In that era, automobiles and airline travel were quickly developing in the United States as the travel mode of preference over long distance passenger rail services.
Amtrak took over intercity passenger rail service on May 1, 1971. Amtrak kept the George Washington, including both the Washington and Newport News sections. Starting in July, Amtrak began integrating the George with the James Whitcomb Riley, an old New York Central/Penn Central daytimer running from Cincinnati to Chicago. The George began exchanging through Washington-Chicago and Newport News-Chicago coaches with the Riley at Cincinnati on July 12, adding a through sleeping car on September 8. Earlier, the George had exchanged through sleepers with the Riley for most of the 1950s.
The two trains merged on November 14, 1971; the George Washington name was used for the eastbound train until May 19, 1974. The Riley was renamed the Cardinal in 1977. The present-day Cardinal still operates over much of the former George Washington route between Cincinnati and Washington. The Newport News section o
George Washington (train)