Editing Observation car (section)

==Industrial design==
[[File:Skytop Lounge rear.jpg|thumb|right|One of the Milwaukee Road's [[Skytop Lounge]] cars brings up the rear of a steam excursion behind [[Milwaukee Road 261]].]]
While the cars manufactured by companies such as [[Pullman Company|Pullman-Standard]] conformed to somewhat standard [[design]]s, some railroads created their own distinctive designs for observation ends.  For example, the [[Milwaukee Road]]'s passenger trains were often rounded out with either a "[[Skytop Lounge]]" or a finned "[[Beavertail observation]]" the latter due to noted industrial designer [[Otto Kuhler]].  The Milwaukee's observations were easily recognizable as the observation end of the cars were not only rounded, but also slanted toward the front of the car, often with windows extending up from the normal window height to the roofline. The Milwaukee's observations, including the Skytops, lacked a drumhead, whose place was taken by a large oscillating rear light; instead, each tapered side carried the generic Milwaukee script name "Hiawatha" embossed on stainless steel trim flanking this light. The Milwaukee's Skytops—four parlor cars built in the railroad's own shops and six sleepers built by Pullman-Standard—were designed by noted industrial designer [[Brooks Stevens]].
Six railroads bought [[Dome car|dome]]-observation cars from [[Budd Company|Budd]] — the [[Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad]], the [[Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad]], and the [[Western Pacific Railroad]] for use on their joint ''[[California Zephyr]]'', and the [[Canadian Pacific Railway]] for ''[[The Canadian]]'' and ''[[The Dominion (passenger train)|The Dominion]]''. The WP touted this combination car type as "the best of both worlds" in passenger amenities.  Budd also built observation cars for the [[Wabash Railroad]] for their ''[[Blue Bird (train)|Blue Bird]]'' trains between Chicago and St. Louis, and for the [[Chesapeake and Ohio Railway]] for the ''[[Chessie (train)|Chessie]]'' which never went into service.  The C&O cars were sold to the Denver & Rio Grande and ran on the ''Royal Gorge''.<ref>{{cite book| title=An Illustrated Treasury of Budd railway passenger cars, 1931 to 1981| first=James W.| last=Kerr| publisher=Delta Publications| year=1981| pages=88–90; 162–165}}</ref>