I was thinking of Washington State, too, particularly Spokane. My dad worked for the Great Northern Railway, and one of the passenger trains that ran along the highline through Glacier and on to Seattle was called the Empire Builder... Check this out -Empire Builder

..."Spokane calls itself "Monarch of the Inland Empire" and lies in the midst of country rich in productive farmlands, lumber and mining. Railroading was responsible for much of the city's early growth. Here the Empire Builder route (the Great Northern route from Seattle) is joined by the Portland route at Spokane. During the night, the train stops at SANDPOINT [Idaho] and LIBBY [Montana]..."