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Posted by: Kristi Finefield
In my most recent selection of railroad-related images on Flickr, All Aboard!, the photo that received the most attention was this one of the Manitou & Pike’s Peak Railway. I’m imagining the seemingly backwards and tilted locomotive drew some curiousity. This is a cog railway, used to climb steep grades. The boiler in this steam …
Posted in: Flickr, Photographs
Posted by: Jan Grenci
Take a look at this colorful poster, designed by Robert E. Lee, a California-born painter and commercial artist who lived in New York City, and published in 1929. The company advertised on this poster, the Railway Express Agency (REA), was an American package delivery service. Operating between 1918 and 1975, they used railroads as one …
Posted in: FSA/OWI, Photographs, Posters, Prints
Posted by: Kristi Finefield
The following is a guest post by Ryan Brubacher, Reference Librarian, Prints & Photographs Division. In late November, the winners of the 2021 HALS Challenge were announced. The announcement offers a good opportunity to highlight the Historic American Landscapes Survey (HALS) collection, including the historical reports found within this collection, as well as the National …
Posted in: Architecture, Drawings, HABS/HAER/HALS, Photographs
Posted by: Lara Szypszak
The following is the fifth in a series of guest posts by Micah Messenheimer, Associate Curator of Photography, Prints and Photographs Division, that discuss the parallel development of two technologies in the 19th century: railroads and photography. Capturing the entirety of the Central Pacific Railroad from 1864–69, photographer Alfred Hart (1816–1908) traveled east from Sacramento, …
Posted in: Photographs, Series: Camera and Locomotive
Posted by: Barbara Orbach Natanson
The following is a guest post by Helena Zinkham, Chief, Prints and Photographs Division. The Historic Vehicle Association (HVA) displays amazing cars on the National Mall each spring. Their Cars at the Capital event tells the stories that make these rare automobiles, motorcycles, and trucks come to life. Once added to the National Historic Vehicle …
Posted in: News & Events, Photographs
Posted by: Barbara Orbach Natanson
Photo preservation specialist Donna Collins recently added this photo to the “eye catching” images we share on our conference room wall. Donna noted, “For those of us who’ve shared the joyful experience of inviting an enthusiastic dog (or two) to hop in the car for a ride, the composition of this photo recently caught my …
Posted in: Photographs, Series: Caught Our Eyes
Posted by: Barbara Orbach Natanson
The following is the fourth in a series of guest posts by Micah Messenheimer, Assistant Curator of Photography, Prints and Photographs Division, that discuss the parallel development of two technologies in the 19th century: railroads and photography. A previous blog post examined Andrew J. Russell’s background as a photographer during the Civil War and his …
Posted in: Photographs, Series: Camera and Locomotive
Posted by: Barbara Orbach Natanson
The following is the third in a series of guest posts by Micah Messenheimer, Assistant Curator of Photography, Prints and Photographs Division, that discuss the parallel development of two technologies in the 19th century: railroads and photography. The catalysts for a transcontinental railroad lie in the increasing industrialization of the country and the rapid expansion …
Posted in: Photographs, Series: Camera and Locomotive
Posted by: Barbara Orbach Natanson
The following is the second in a series of guest posts by Micah Messenheimer, Assistant Curator of Photography, Prints and Photographs Division that discuss the parallel development of two technologies in the 19th century: railroads and photography. Picking up the story after John Plumbe’s successes as a daguerreotypist and his disappointments in plans for a …
Posted in: Photographs, Series: Camera and Locomotive