![]() Nonetheless he attracted tens of thousands of supporters and people keen to see the famed old train car on the tracks again. He took the same route Truman had taken - but on a much reduced scale, campaigning for only one day on board. Just like his predecessors in the office, Reagan delivered speeches from the back of the train to voters in small towns. When campaigning for re-election in 1984, President Ronald Reagan decided he wanted to recreate Truman's epic whistle-stop tour of 1948, and brought the Ferdinand Magellan out of retirement. President Ronald Reagan speaking into mike while standing on former President Harry Truman's train The Ferdinand Magellan during his campaign for re-election.ĭirck Halstead/The LIFE Images Collection via Getty Images/Getty Images ![]() The paper had erroneously called the election for his rival, Thomas E Dewey, before the real result became known, in one of the most famous moments in US electoral history. ![]() The moment of his stunning victory is best conveyed in an iconic photo, in which a grinning Truman can be seen standing on the back of the Ferdinand Magellan holding aloft a copy of the Chicago Tribune. The political elite had written off his chances, but ordinary Americans warmed to the direct and plain-spoken approach he took - conveyed in speeches in hundreds of towns from the back of the Ferdinand Magellan. His shock election victory in 1948 is largely credited to his decision to embark on an epic tour of the US between June and November in election year. His successor, Harry Truman, wasn't as fond of the train as Roosevelt, but like him saw it as a vital campaigning tool. The LIFE Picture Collection via Getty ImagesįDR died in office only a year after his successful re-election. headline DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN which overconfident Republican editors had rushed to print on election night, standing on his campaign train platform. Harry Truman jubilantly displaying erroneous CHICAGO DAILY TRIBUNE w. Source: White House Historical Association The redesign doubled its weight to 285,000 pounds - heavier than a tank. There were also two secret escape hatches, through which the president could be hauled in case of an emergency. With Roosevelt disabled by polio, it was also redesigned to allow him to access all parts of the carriage in his wheelchair. Its undercarriage was strengthened, in case would-be assassins planted bombs on the rail track. It was encased in layers of half-inch thick nickel plated armor, and bullet-proof windows. The Ferdinand Magellan after the redesign was also known as US Car No 1. They commissioned famed train maker Pullman to redesign for the president's exclusive use one of the six private carriages it had available, all named after famous explorers. 1 (The Ferdinand Magellan) in April 1943.įranklin Delano Roosevelt had travelled across the depression-ravaged US on trains to pitch his 'New Deal' to voters in the 1930s.īut with World War II raging, his security team in 1942 decided that he needed a specially designed car to defend his security. Roosevelt on the observation deck of U.S. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. ![]()
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