By 1943 the United States was well and truly gearing up for the war. Automobile production had been suspended, tires and gasoline were strictly rationed, and millions of young men were serving in the Armed Forces. One of the major nerve centers of the US military was and is the Navy base and Marine barracks at Norfolk, Virginia. Many thousands of young sailors and Marines were stationed there, and I think I can safely say that without exception one of the things they all looked forward to was their annual leave or a coveted three-day pass. For the many of them who lived in the Northeast, the logical way to get home for a break would be this service along the Eastern Shore of Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad.

You should note (since I've been called on it) that not every train on this website is a streamliner, and this train (especially during wartime) was definitely one of those that was not. In point of fact, to keep up with the demand for traffic Pennsy and the other railroads were operating every piece of equipment that could run, including quite a few that would have been sent to the scrappers as junk just a few years previously. The Del-Mar-Va Express during this time period would not have been much of a feast for the eyes—but it would get you to where you were going.