The Empire Express

The following information was gleaned from this article: https://www.american-rails.com/york.html#History

The modern New York Central Railroad map was a collection of predecessor properties which merged or were acquired over many years. The earliest component was one of the industry's pioneers, the Mohawk and Hudson Railroad (M&H). The M&H was incorporated on April 17, 1826. The M&H holds historical significance as one of the earliest railroads ever chartered and built, opening 16 miles between Albany and Schenectady on August 9, 1831. At first, it primarily handled only passenger traffic since New York had recently opened the Erie Canal. Six other small roads comprised what later became the NYC's main line between Albany and Buffalo. These systems included the Utica & Schenectady, Syracuse & Utica, Auburn & Syracuse, Auburn & Rochester, Tonawanda Railroad, and Attica & Buffalo. At the time in which the company was still known as the New York Central & Hudson River Railroad as it would not become known as the New York Central System until around 1914. The Empire State Express's creation was thanks to George H. Daniels who was then the railroad's General Passenger Agent but had only been with the company since 1889. On May 10, 1893 the train broke a land speed record of 112.5 mph using 4-4-0 #999. Interestingly, the rather small American, at just 37 feet in length, maintained the record for an entire decade. Over the years the train lost a bit of its allure, especially after the 20th Century Limited was unveiled as the line's flagship ran to Chicago. However, during the streamliner era the NYC upgraded the Empire State with such status, including a sleek and matching steam locomotive that truly made the train stand out. That is the train you see on the front of this post card.

The picture is actually a painting that is kept as part of the Merrill Collection at the Huntington Library in San Marino, California (all rights are reserved). The post card was published by Pomegranate Publications out of Petaluma, California.