Delaware & Hudson on the Ulster and Delaware or on the Delaware and Ulster!??? I am confused.

The locomotive shown on the front of this post card is an Alco RS-36 that was owned by the Delaware & Hudson Railway. In this picture, it has been restored to run on the Delaware and Ulster Railroad in Arkville, New York.

The motto of the Delaware and Ulster is “Catskill Scenic Trail”. You can see it on the back of the post card that I have scanned below. Wikipedia tells us that by the end of the Civil War, railroads were pre-empting waterways as the preferred method of transportation. Thomas Cornell, founder of the Cornell Steamboat Company and a resident of Rondout, New York, was among those who noticed. Although Cornell made plenty of money from shipping, he planned a railroad that would bring supplies from towns in central or western New York to his port in Rondout. So, Cornell chartered the Rondout and Oswego on April 3, 1866, with himself as the first president. After a couple of bankruptcies, reorganizations, and renaming of the railroad, the Ulster & Delaware Railroad (U&D) emerged in 1875. The U&D's peak year came in 1913, with 676,000 passengers carried up into the Catskills plus substantial amounts of freight. By the time of the Great Depression of 1929 and thereafter, most of the passenger traffic had been lost to private cars on improved highways, buses and shared limousines; trucks had taken most of the non-commodity freight business; and the railroad was in serious financial trouble and a shadow of its former self. The New York Central acquired the failing U&D on February 1, 1932 Today, the Delaware and Ulster Railroad (DURR) is a heritage railroad based in Arkville, New York. This is their website: https://durr.org/about/crc-background/ The last commercial train ran through the Catskills in 1976. However, in the years following the rail line’s closure, several individuals with the support of the A. Lindsay & Olive B. O’Connor Foundation Inc. endeavored to give the Catskill Mountain Branch of the once great railroad a new life as a tourist attraction. The Catskill Rail Committee was formed to purchase and take over the right-of-way and to connect the leaders and stakeholders of towns that the tracks ran through for 45 miles in both Delaware and Schoharie Counties. A workable vision to preserve the railroad was forged and resulted in the launching of the “Delaware & Ulster Rail Ride” which in 1983 started offering scenic rides aboard vintage train cars from Arkville to Fleischmanns and Highmount and back. The D&U quickly became the biggest single tourism draw that Delaware County had to offer. This is the website of the group that promotes hiking along the former rail line: https://www.catskillscenictrail.org/about Today the “Catskill Scenic Trail” is also used by a related group that promotes hiking on 26 miles of a former railroad, now used for hiking, biking, cross-country skiing, and horseback riding. Get out into the fresh air and explore the trail. The path was initially forged for the Ulster & Delaware Railroad, which operated until 1932.

The post card was published by the Jack Harmon Agency out of Stamford, New York. When I go online to find out about the company, I do not see that it still exists today.

Small can also mean Important!!

Locomotive #45 was built by Alco in 1956 as a 1600 h.p. RS-3, a B-B diesel. It is seen here as it rests in the yard of the Alton and Southern

Railway in East St. Louis, Illinois. This picture was taken on Saturday, June 19, 1965, by K. C. Henkels. Our friends at Wikipedia tell us this about the railroad and its history: The Alton and Southern Railroad was formed in 1910, and in 1913 it absorbed the Denverside Connecting Railway (founded in 1910), and the Alton and Southern Railway (founded in 1911). The company was operated as a subsidiary of the Aluminum Ore Company, which was itself a subsidiary of the Aluminum Company of America (Alcoa), to serve the Bayer process bauxite-to-alumina refinery at Alorton, Illinois. Alcoa sold the line to the Missouri Pacific Railroad and Chicago and North Western Railway (CNW) in 1968, and it was reorganized as the Alton and Southern Railway. In 1972, CNW's share was sold to the St. Louis Southwestern Railway. In 1982, the Union Pacific Railroad (UP) took ownership of the Missouri Pacific share and then became full owner in 1996 with the acquisition of SSW parent Southern Pacific Transportation Company. The Alton and Southern is still a legally separate entity but is wholly owned by UP. This is what the actual company, the Alton and Southern Railway, says about its history. You can find it on their website https://www.altonsouthern.com/about/ Founded in 1910, Alton & Southern Railway has a rich history as a crucial railroad in the St. Louis region. With approximately 30 miles of mainline track, we serve various industries like chemicals, petroleum, metals, and manufacturing. As a subsidiary of Union Pacific Railroad, we benefit from a vast transportation network, including easy access to four Interstate highways, various river ports, and six Class-1 railroads, ensuring seamless connections nationwide. We prioritize safety, efficiency, and environmental stewardship, continuously investing in infrastructure and technology, and are committed to providing reliable services through its Union Pacific partnership.

The post card was published by Audio Visual Designs (AVD) in Earlton, New York. AVD was started in 1964 by Carl Sturner for the sole purpose of providing railfans with sound recordings of locos and trains as well as with photochrome postcards of trackside photos. These stunning color images were taken all over the country by some well-known photographers such as David Sweetland. The history and product line of AVD can be found on the company's website at www.audiovisualdesigns.com

Michigan Interstate... What is that?

The ALCO RS2 locomotives on the front of this post card have the Ann Arbor Railroad name on the side. The lead engine has a Michigan Interstate logo on its side. When Conrail began on April 1, 1976, the Ann Arbor Railroad ceased to exist. Michigan arranged for a new company, Michigan Interstate Railway, to run it, which lasted from October 1, 1977, to September 30, 1982. This last bit of information came from this website, which has a great article about the history of the Ann Arbor Railroad: https://www.trains.com/ctr/railroads/fallen-flags/remembering-the-ann-arbor-railroad/ The Ann Arbor Railroad (AA) was as much a steamship line as a railroad. Built from Toledo, Ohio, northwest to Frankfort, Mich., it existed for one reason — to move freight in car ferries across Lake Michigan to bypass Chicago. From 1910 to 1968, “the Annie” operated 320 car ferry route-miles versus 292 miles of railroad. During the 1940s, up to six ferries made the round trip from Boat Landing, as AA called its yard in Elberta on the south side of Frankfort harbor, to two Wisconsin and two Michigan Upper Peninsula ports. The boats ran year-round on a tight schedule, timed to match with three pairs of scheduled Toledo freights, where AA interchanged with five trunk lines. Well-kept 2-8-2s powered those short, fast trains across AA’s rolling profile until 1950, when Alco FA2s took over. The Wabash had eyed the Ann Arbor since the late 1890s, as the car ferry service fit into its expansion plans. On November 2, 1925, it took stock control, and soon, Wabash ordered the last ferry built for the Annie, the Wabash. Launched March 19, 1926, she was the largest Great Lakes car ferry to date. AA began to dieselize in 1941 with a 44-ton Whitcomb, adding two Alco S1s in 1944. By fall 1951, steam was done as AA finished its roster with 14 FA2s, 4 S3s, and 2 RS1s. The Eastern mergers of the 1960s ultimately doomed the old Ann Arbor. As planning for Penn Central went on, the Norfolk & Western (N&W) merged with Wabash, Nickel Plate, and two smaller roads in 1964. N&W wanted no part of the Ann Arbor and its costly ferries, so AA was foisted off on the Detroit, Toledo and Ironton Railroad (DT&I), which was profitable by the 1960s. With Interstate Commerce Commission approval, DT&I took over the Ann Arbor on August 31, 1963, Today, the last two AA car ferries and the two RS1s still exist, and a new Ann Arbor Railroad, owned by Watco, operates Toledo to Ann Arbor. Their website has a great video that tells us about the current owners. https://www.watco.com/service/rail/ann-arbor-railroad-aa/ Ann Arbor Railroad (AA) • Primary Commodities Watco moves any commodity, and on this railroad, it’s primarily auto parts and finished vehicles, along with bulk materials like flour, sugar, grain, plastics, sand, cement, recyclables, fertilizer, paper, lumber, and petroleum. • Track Miles • 82.43 • Track Capacity • 286 • Interchange Points • Diann, MI – IORY • Milan, MI – NS • Osmer, MI – GLC • Toledo, OH – CN, CSX, NS, WE • Year Watco Operations Began • 2013

The post card was published by that great mystery publisher www.Railcards.com out of Alameda, California.

Does this Bring a Song to Mind?

The locomotive on the front of this post card is an Alco C415. The website (the best railroad history webiste in my opnion) https://www.american-rails.com/415.html tells us the following about the locomotive's history: "It is a center-cab design, which began production in June 1966 and offered a staggering 1,500 horsepower for a switcher using Alco's 251F prime mover (the builder's latest, and final, engine design). While Alco by this point typically sold its locomotives in a standard model, as EMD had been doing for years, the C415 did come with a few options such as differing cab heights for either clearance or increased visibility and two various truck setups (AAR or Alco's Hi-Ad). Built through the end of Alco's time as a locomotive builder the C415 seemed to epitomize the company's troubles. Just 26 units of the model were sold with the Rock Island and Southern Pacific accounting for 20 of those orders (ten each). Alco removed the C415 from its catalog by December 1968 as the builder was simply having no success in remaining competitive with either GE or EMD. Due to the C415's poor sales it's amazing that any of these switchers survive. However, six can still be found in the United States (at least one is operational on short line Burlington Junction as its #702) as well as one in Australia." This is taken from an article in Trains magazine; a very good read: https://www.trains.com/ctr/railroads/fallen-flags/rock-island-history-remembered/ "In 1847 the Rock Island & La Salle Rail Road was chartered to build between Rock Island, Ill., on the Mississippi River, and La Salle, where connections would be made with the Illinois & Michigan Canal to Chicago. Contractor Henry Farnam persuaded the organizers to extend the railroad all the way to Chicago to connect with other railroads. The charter was so amended, and the railroad was renamed the Chicago & Rock Island. Construction began in 1851. The first train ran from Chicago to Joliet, 40 miles, on Oct. 10, 1852. Its power was a 4-4-0 named Rocket. The line was opened to Rock Island on Feb. 22, 1854, and the contractors turned the line over to the corporation in July of that year. The Rock Island ceased operation March 31, 1980. Chartered in 1847, the Rock Island was the largest U.S. railroad to be liquidated."

Ths post card was published by Audio Visual Designs in Earlton, New York. It was started in 1964 by Carl Sturner for the sole purpose of providing railfans with sound recordings of locos and trains as well as with photochrome postcards of trackside photos. These stunning color images were taken all over the country by some well-known photographers such as David Sweetland. The history and product line of AVD can be found on the company's website at www.audiovisualdesigns.com

Anyone Going to the Moon Soon?

The locomotive on the front of this post card could have helped you get to the moon if you were going there in 1985, the year that this post card was published. It is a picture of an ALCO S-1 switcher.

Our friends at Wikipedia tells us this about the S-1s: "The ALCO S-1 and S-3 were 660 horsepower diesel-electric switcher locomotives produced by ALCO and their Canadian subsidiary Montreal Locomotive Works. The two locomotives differed only in trucks, with the S-1 using ALCO's own Blunt trucks, and the S-3 using AAR type A switcher trucks. The S-1 was built between April 1940 and June 1950, with a total of 543 completed. The S-1 and S-3 are distinguishable externally from the very similar S-2 and S-4 1,000 horsepower switchers in that they have a smaller exhaust stack with a round base and a smaller radiator shutter area on the nose sides. The S-1/S-3 radiator shutter area is taller than it is wide, while the S-2/S-4 radiator area is wider. The smaller stack is due to the lack of turbocharging." The specific S-1 shown on the post card is described by this website, https://wearerailfans.com/c/article/alco-s-series :"NASA Alco S-2 No. 2 was originally built for the United States Army and was one of a group of Alco switchers assigned to work at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Recorded in this photograph at the historic space center from which Apollo moon missions and Space Shuttle flights departed, the Alco served decidedly uncommon tasks, including the transport of spacecraft components and fuels. Today, the Alco is preserved at the Gold Coast Railroad Museum in the Miami area."

The post card was published by Mary Jayne's Railroad Specialties, Inc. in 1985. I have 243 post cards that were published by her. She ranks second in the number of post cards from the same publisher.

Still Going Strong since 1903

This locomotive on the front of the post card is seen on the stormy evening of July 26, 1988. It is at Whippany, New Jersey for the National Railway Historical Society Convention. The locomotive was originally built for the

New York Central Railroad in December of 1967. It is an ALCO Century 430 owned by the Morristown & Erie Railway. This short-line (very short line, I might add) railroad company still operates today. Because they are still alive today, I took the history of the company from their website: https://www.merail.com/about The story of the Morristown & Erie – now over a century long – has always been that of overcoming obstacles and adapting to changing times. Since its founding, the M&E’s small but dedicated team has been big on personable and professional service to its diverse set of customers, living up to its slogan, “Service is Our Business.” The Morristown & Erie (M&E) is a short-line with a long and proud history of serving the communities along its rails in Morris and Essex Counties, in northern New Jersey. For more than a century, the M&E has hauled freight down its short but vibrant mainline, built originally to serve the paper mills in Whippany, NJ. The progenitor of the M&E, Robert McEwan, was no railroad baron. McEwan was a Scottish immigrant who had come to the United States in early manhood, penniless. Through hard work and determination, he and his seven sons developed a thriving set of paper mills in Whippany, New Jersey. The McEwans realized the continued growth of their enterprise was hindered because the nearest railroad, the Lackawanna Railroad in Morristown, was four-miles distant over poor roads, making transportation costly. To bridge this gap, the McEwans retained a local railroad contractor to construct and operate their railroad named the Whippany River Railroad, for the meandering river it was to follow. The contractor had employed such crude and haphazard methods in the railroad’s construction that, within a year, its route had to be largely realigned and rebuilt. The McEwans took charge and sought to grow their little railroad and tap new markets. They formed another company, the Whippany & Passaic River Railroad, to construct a six-mile eastward extension. The new line tapped the Erie Railroad in Essex Fells, NJ, affording the railroad’s growing clientele access to more competitive freight rates. The two Whippany railroads were merged on August 28, 1903, forming the ten-and-a-half mile long Morristown & Erie Railroad, so named as it connected Morristown with the Erie Railroad. Passenger service was operated, too. The railroad’s genial conductors would entertain their passengers with harrowing tales of the railroad’s earliest days, endearing themselves to the local populace. The M&E even ferried passengers in a self-propelled railbus, for a time. Passenger service was discontinued in 1928, when increased automobile competition prompted its cessation. In 1929, the Great Depression struck the nation with devastating effects. Through their resolute determination, and that of the McEwan management, the railroad overcame the economic calamity. In 1940, the M&E proudly announced that it had paid off the last of its indebtedness. In 1944 and 1946, the M&E purchased the three most powerful steam locomotives in its history. After WWII had concluded, the railroad continued to prosper. In 1952, to reduce costs, the M&E retired its three costly steam locomotives and replaced them with a diesel-electric locomotive, purchased new the American Locomotive Company (ALCO). The McEwan family, by then in its third generation, invited businessmen, from outside the rail industry, to join the M&E’s management team. They were moderately successful in attracting new rail customers; however, an attempt to diversify the M&E’s earnings led to the investment in numerous non-rail business ventures, which proved calamitous. The M&E declared bankruptcy in 1978. A group of local businessmen, driven by a desire to revitalize the railroad and their own passion for the industry, acquired the railroad in 1982. Led by Benjamin J. Friedland, these businessmen worked to reinvigorate the railroad and its image. Over the ensuing years, with its big red ALCOs (longtime favorites of local rail buffs), the M&E grew to become a vibrant and visible part of northern New Jersey’s railroad freight operations. Ben Friedland, whose efforts to revitalize the M&E made him a well-respected member of the short-line railroad industry, suddenly passed in 1998. Changes in circumstances led to the last railroad operating contracts to conclude in 2017. Again, in the face of adversity, the M&E’s dedicated employees and management, now led by the Weis family, persevered. In the past several years, the M&E has refocused its efforts on developing and diversifying business along its original stretch of track, between Morristown and Roseland, NJ. The M&E has turned its Morristown, NJ, shop complex into a nationally respected passenger car rebuild and repair facility. The shop complex, coupled with the redevelopment of the Whippany, NJ, yard as a private car storage facility, makes the M&E a premier location for Amtrak-certified private passenger cars. The M&E operates, annually, The POLAR EXPRESS™ train ride for Rail Events Productions, one of their most successful operations nationwide. Also, the M&E had been a proud participant in the preservation of railroad history, frequently working with the Whippany Railway Museum, United Railroad Historical Society of NJ, and Tri-State Railway Historical Society, all 501c3 nonprofits, to support their efforts.

The photograph was taken by Steven Hepler. The post card was published by Audio Visual Designs out of Earlton, New York. They are the source of almost 10% of my post card collection. I have 333 post cards from them. This is understandable because they were founded to share pictures of trains. AVD was started in 1964 by Carl Sturner for the sole purpose of providing railfans with sound recordings of locos and trains as well as with photochrome postcards of trackside photos. These stunning color images were taken all over the country by some well-known photographers such as David Sweetland. The history and product line of AVD can be found on the company's website at www.audiovisualdesigns.com

I Think They Liked ALCO

The two ALCO C-420 units on the front of this post card are passing in front of what was once the General Office Builing of the Lehigh & Hudson River Railway in Warwick, New York on June 11, 1976.

This excerpt of the history of the Lehigh & Hudson Railway was taken from this website; it is a good read, I recommend that you go there. https://www.trains.com/ctr/railroads/fallen-flags/remembering-the-lehigh-hudson-river-railway-a-history/ L&HR’s origins date to 1860, when arrival of the New York & Erie Railroad (NY&E), at Greycourt, New York, 10 miles north of Warwick, prompted construction of the Warwick Valley Railroad under the leadership of Grinnell Burt. The Warwick Valley (WV) operated as a 6-foot-gauge feeder to the same-gauge NY&E, using the big road’s equipment for two decades. Around 1880, WV assumed its own operations, was standard-gauged, and built the 11-mile Wawayanda Railroad, which tapped agricultural and mineral sources at McAfee, New Jersey. The two competitive lines were combined as the Lehigh & Hudson River Railroad, extending from a Pennsylvania Railroad connection at Belvidere, New Jersey, on the Delaware River, to Hamburg, New Jersey, where three miles of isolated Sussex Railroad track linked it to the Warwick Valley. In 1882 the extensions were folded into the 61-mile Lehigh & Hudson River Railway. Trackage rights were obtained from the Pennsy over 13 miles of its Belvidere-Delaware Division (“Bel-Del”) to Phillipsburg, New Jersey. There, disconnected subsidiaries undertook bridging the Delaware to access Easton, Pennsylvania, and the Jersey Central and Lehigh Valley. The bridge also opened in 1890, creating a three-state route of about 85 miles. The L&HR thus fulfilled the prescient vision of the line’s 1861 directors, who reported, “It was well understood by those . . . promoting the construction of the Warwick Valley Railroad, that in all probability it would be but a link in a great chain destined to be one of the most important thoroughfares, and to effect an important influence upon the commerce and manufacturers of an extensive section of our country . . .” Additional links soon extended the chain of this “important thoroughfare.” In 1950, it replaced 16 steam engines, including the 6-year-old 4-8-2s, with 11 Alco RS3s; two more arrived in 1951. Radio communication came in 1958. Alco’s first two production C420 diesels arrived in 1963, and seven more by mid-1966 shared assignments with the six remaining RS3s. In 1976 the federal Regional Rail Reorganization Act that created Conrail took in most northeastern bankrupts including L&HR, and CR’s management proved as committed to abandonment of the Maybrook Gateway as PC’s had been. The former L&HR, reduced to a Conrail branch, limped along, bearing slight resemblance to its former proud, busy self as a few of the remaining C420s served a dwindling customer base. Rail movement of zinc ended in 1980, and the track between Limecrest and Belvidere was removed a few years later. To the credit of its president, W. Gifford Moore, and trustee, John G. Troiano, L&HR paid off its creditors and entrusted its historical records to the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania.

The post card was published by Mary Jayne Rowe's company "Mary Jayne's Railroad Specialties, Inc. When I realized that there was a numbering system (MJ629 in the stamp box) to her post cards I wrote a letter to her. I told her that I was cataloguing my post card collection and asked if she had an index of her publications she could share with me. I have 243 post cards that she published in my collection. Her beautiful response was to tell me that it was such a polite request that she sent it to me for free; all she asked was that I make a donation to a local charity. I made a donation to "Feeding Hungry Minds" endowment fund that provides funds for feeding free lunches in schools.

Alcophile???

The back of this post card tells us that the ALCO C-424 locomotive on the front of this post card, while now belonging to the Green Bay & Western Railroad, is still wearing Wisconsin Rapids Railroad colours.

A couple of weeks ago I posted some information about the Green Bay & Western Railroad. Today, I will provide all the information that I could find about the Wisconsin Rapids Railroad. There is a private Facebook page that contains this information: "Wisconsin Rapids Railroad, L.L.C. ("WRR"), a non-earner, hereby files this notice of exemption under 49 C.F.R. § 1150.31, et seq. to lease and operate a rail line of Wisconsin Central Ltd. ("WCL") extending from approximately milepost 0.4 to approximately milepost 1.5 in Biron, Wisconsin, a distance of approximately 1.1 miles (the "Biron Lead"). Based on projected revenues for the Biron Lead, WRR expects to be a Class III rail carrier.” And this site https://railroadfan.com/wiki/index.php/Wisconsin_Rapids_Railroad tells us the following: “The Wisconsin Rapids Railroad is a short industrial railroad running from Wisconsin Rapids to Biron. The railroad is owned by ND Paper and operated by Watco. WRR interchanges with CN at Wisconsin Rapids.” The caption on the back of the post card reads like this: Attention Alcophiles! The green Bay & Western has long been an all-ALCO Diesel railroad, making it a must visit for die-hard ALCO fans, better known as Alcophiles. C424 #312 still displays vintage colors of Wisconsin Rapids in 1969. This post card is published by RAILCARDS.COM, that ever-elusive publisher of 204 of the railroad postcards in my collection.

This Big Lug is Very Useful

The huge locomotive pictured on the front of this post card is an

ALCO Century-628 owned by the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad (CNW). The CNW acquired a fleet of these locomotives from Norfolk & Western. This locomotive was employed for lugging heavy but slow ore trains. It is seen here at Proviso, Illinois in 1977. Here is a bit of history about the ALCO C-628, part of their Century Series of locomotives. This website is the apex of railroad information, in my opinion. I use Adam Burns’ site as a reference very often. https://www.american-rails.com/628.html By: Adam Burns The C628 was Alco's first in its line of six-axle, C-C road switchers. Overall these behemoths were as powerful as they appeared. The C628 would prove to be Alco's most successful six-axle Century, selling nearly 200 units. With the C628, “C” stood for Century series, “6” was the axle number, and the last two digits were the horsepower rating (2,800 h.p.). The C628 up to that time offered the most starting (85,750 pounds) and continuous tractive effort (79,500 pounds) of any locomotive in its class, which is a significant reason why some railroads really liked them. The Alco C628 debuted in late 1963 as a replacement for the builder's RSD-15 line.

Here is the back of the post card that was published by the ever elusive RAILCARDS.COM

Arizona Apache Takes on a Different Meaning

Apache ALCO C-420 locomotives numbered 81 to 84 and an RS-36 (also from ALCO) are seen on the front of this post card near Holbrook, Arizona on August 24, 1994. The C-420s came from four different railroads and the RS-36 was delivered new to the Apache Railroad in the early 1960s.

Why ask the Wikipedia people about something when you can go straight to the source? That is what I did. The Apache Railway still has a website... and quite the varied past. This website tells it all: http://apacherailway.com/about/ The information below is from their website. The Apache Railway was incorporated in 1917, when it began construction of a rail line from Holbrook south, reaching Snowflake in 1918. It was extended south to McNary in 1920. From October 1, 1931, until 1936, amid the Great Depression, the APA was placed in receivership. A tourist railroad, the White Mountain Scenic Railroad, operated steam powered passenger excursions over the Southwest Forest Industries-owned line from McNary to the logging camp of Maverick, AZ, beginning in 1964. My dad and I rode this train in the early 1970s before I went to New Jersey to go to college. I have some post cards of this tourist train in my collection. As track conditions deteriorated, the excursions were cut back in later years to a point about half of the way to Maverick. In the final years, it operated north from Pinetop Lakes to a place called Bell Siding on U.S. Route 60. In 1976, the White Mountain Scenic Railroad ceased operations and moved its equipment to Heber City, Utah to be used on an excursion there known as the “Heber Creeper.” The line from Maverick to McNary, with some elevations exceeding 9,000 ft (2,700 m), was removed in 1982 after the McNary sawmill closed. By the 1980s, the Apache Railway was Arizona’s only remaining logging railroad. The track from Snowflake to McNary was abandoned in 1982. The Apache Railway offered passenger service until the 1950s. In July 1954, the mixed train operated on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, departing McNary at 7:15 am, arriving Holbrook at 12:15 pm, departing there at 1:30 pm and returning to McNary at 7:00 pm. The Apache Railway is now here for you!

The post card was published by Audio-Visual Designs (AVD) in Earlton, New York. It was published after October of 1983 because the 7-digit zip code has an additional 4 digits appended to it. AVD was started in 1964 by Carl Sturner for the sole purpose of providing railfans with sound recordings of locos and trains as well as with photochrome postcards of trackside photos.

Let's Go to Wisconsin to see the ALCOs!!

The picture on the front of this post card is of freshly painted C430 and C424 ALCO locomotives. They are heading out of Green Bay, Wisconsin in August of 1977. The railroad that owns these two ALCO locomotives is the Green Bay & Western Railroad (GB&W). Sadly, it is no longer operational as the GB&W.

In my mind, there is no better source for the history of a “Fallen Flag” railroad than that railroad’s historical society. The information below is taken from the Green Bay & Western Railroad Historical Society. I strongly recommend that you visit their website for their unique perspective on the history of the Green Bay & Western Railroad (GB&W). This is their address: Green Bay & Western Historical Society, Inc. P.O. Box 940 Plover, WI 54467 This is their website address: https://www.gbwhs.com/gbw.html All the information below was taken from their website. Please go in and take a look around; it is very interesting. The Green Bay & Western Railroad packed a lot of fascination into just 248 miles of mainline and precious few branch lines. The GBW was chartered in 1866 as the Green Bay & Lake Pepin Railway. At the time, many railroads tried to link major waterways, and in 1873 the railroad, then called the Green Bay & Mississippi, linked the Great Lakes with the Mississippi River. Ultimately it ran from the Lake Michigan port of Kewaunee to Green Bay and west through the paper mill town of Wisconsin Rapids to the Mississippi River at Winona, Minnesota, the only place where it left the state of Wisconsin. The GBW even had a subsidiary on its east end, the Ahnapee & Western, which was twice independent and twice a part of the GBW. But the Great Depression dealt a heavy blow to the marginal railroad. Its frugal president, Frank B. Seymour, managed to keep the railroad alive. But it took a visionary man to see a prosperous future for the GBW. Homer E. McGee, a former Katy executive, became president of the GBW in 1934 and began an upgrading program that would improve the railroad’s track, rolling stock and financial health over the coming decades. Early on, however, the railroad was a financial failure. Traffic was sparse in the Wisconsin wilderness; passenger trains never found a real home on the “Grab Baggage & Walk.” The railroad’s resources were drained by derailments, roundhouse fires and floods. The GB&M would emerge from bankruptcy in 1881 as the Green Bay, Winona & St. Paul Railroad, only to go bankrupt again and emerge in 1896 as the Green Bay & Western Railroad. On August 28, 1993, the GBW was purchased by the Wisconsin Central Limited. Its traffic and employees were absorbed by the WC, and the remaining ALCOs were dispersed to other short lines across the U.S. Today, two-thirds of the GBW’s mainline remains in service as part of the Canadian National. The GBW was famous for ALCO power, the Harley-Davidsons of diesel locomotion. They were an ALCO customer since the 19th Century, even before steam locomotive builders like Brooks, Dickson and Schenectady merged to form the American Locomotive Company (ALCO). Every diesel the GBW ever owned – from the HH660 they bought in 1938, to the FA1s and RS2s that banished steam, to their 16-unit fleet when the railroad passed into history in 1993 – was a snorting, smoking, four-stroke product of Schenectady, New York. But the GBW was much more than ALCOs. For most of their history, their eastern connection was a fascinating cross-lake car ferry operation. From 1892 to 1990, sturdy vessels of the Ann Arbor Railroad and the Pere Marquette Railway (later the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway) battled November storms and winter ice to force railroad reliability upon treacherous Lake Michigan. In the 1950s, hundreds of freight cars moved across the lake every day, and even though this market would eventually vanish, you can still ride a car ferry across Lake Michigan.

This is the back of the post card. You can see that it was published by RAILCARDS.COM , a no longer existing company about which I can find no information.

Collecting Cabooses

Thanks to Scott Woods, president of the Greenville Railroad Park: "Those cars were acquired about 40 years ago when the Park started. There's no one left from those days. When I joined 17 years ago, I went thru the records we had to come up with signs to put on our rolling stock." This is what he wrote and posted on the signs in front of the cabooses. "1 of 60 built in 1948 by Wheeling & Lake Erie at their Toledo Ironville shops Steel framed caboose is 34'- 3" long & weighs 22,700 lbs Became Nickel Plate #705 in 1949 Became Norfolk & Western #557705 in 1964 Caboose was donated in 1989 by Norfolk Southern to Richard Rowlands, Hubbard Ohio Donated to the Park by Rowlands, repainted by Trinity Industries, and placed here in 1992" AND "Built in 1959 by the Union Pacific at their Omaha shops Was used all over the UP system Special trucks make this a high speed caboose for priority freight trains Donated by the UP, repainted by Trinity Industries, and placed here in 1992"

The post card was published by Mary Jayne's Railroad Specialities in 1997.

What do you mean by "Dashing Commuter"?

The locomotive pictured on the front of this post card is an ALCO model C420 built in 1968. It is pictured in a fresh paint job with the colours of the Long Island Railroad. This view is at Oyster Bay Yard in February of 1976.

Some would say that this paint scheme makes the engine look “dashing”, which would fit nicely with the slogan of the railroad: “Route of the Dashing Commuter.” I am sure that this is what they meant by the slogan, not the commuter dashing to catch the train because he or she is late!! The details about the ALCO C420 locomotive are gleaned from this website. I recommend that you go to this website for any railroad-related questions: https://www.american-rails.com/420.html American Locomotive's first new Century models was the C420. It was a four-axle design that offered sufficient horsepower. The C420 was meant to be a less powerful version of the C424, which was being produced at the same time. As John Kirkland points out in his book, "The Diesel Builders: Volume Two," it was essentially an extension of the earlier RS32. On a broader perspective, the C420 did prove one of Alco's more successful in the Century line and could be found on numerous railroads. The Alco C420 used the builder's new 261C prime mover that was much more reliable over its earlier designs. The model began production in June of 1963. As the designation suggests, which was a completely new system unveiled by Alco, the "C" stood for Century, "4" regarded the number of axles, and "20" referred to the horsepower), the C420 could produce 2,000 horsepower and fuel efficiency. They found buyers among several Class I railroads.

The post card was published by that elusive publisher, Railcards.com

Let's Go to France!

The pictures on the front of these two postcards do not feature trains and locomotives; but they do feature a set of rails that have been abandoned by a railway company. The rails have been revived by the “Velorail de Point-Erambourg” company. The company does not operate locomotives; it operates (or rather, the tourists operate) velorails – a pedal-powered sidecar that can fit up to four people.

This operation is headquartered in the old train station and the grounds include some static displays of locomotives and train cars. My wife and I visited this location while we were on vacation in France several years ago. We did not ride the velorails. This is the official website of the tourist attraction. https://www.rails-collinesnormandes.fr/ It tells us that, “During your outings with family or friends, come and ride on the rails of the Suisse Normande! Go to Pont-Erambourg, 2 km from Condé-sur-Noireau, and discover the picturesque Noireau valley (to the Gouttes tunnel, in the municipality of Pont-d'Ouilly) by railbike for a 13 km round trip, lasting 1 hour 45 minutes.”

The post cards are sold to tourists like us in order to support the enterprise. The top left-had corner says that the Velorail of Pont-Erambourg, in Swiss Normandy is open from Easter to All Saints’ Day on weekends and public holidays except in July and August, it is open every day. The publisher information is written sideways; it says: Friendly for the development of the railway Caen-Flers Railway Station of Pont-Erambourg Then it shows us the Address and contact Phone number

Dependable Lifting

The picture on the front of this post card shows the Soo Line’s steam crane Number W2 hard at work picking up a derailment at the Soo Line’s Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin Yard. The derailment was in front of the Soo Line’s yard office. The photo was taken on February 16, 1958. “What is a steam crane?” you ask. Our friends at Wikipedia tells us that in the early days of the railways, locomotives and rolling stock were small enough to be re-railed manually using jacks and tackle, but as they became bigger and heavier this method became inadequate. Enter into this situation the steam crane and cable winch. Appearing around 1890, the cranes (the proper rail terminology is “Derrick”) increased in size, commensurate with the rise of steel Pullman cars, so by 1910 steam cranes reached their peak of development (on the railroad). Many of these 1910-era cranes were so useful and powerful, that they remained in service until the 1980s. The combination of a quick-firing steam boiler, heavy steam winch, and cable hook could little be improved upon, and thus remained in service. Also, steam engines did not mind being parked for months, with a little care, and were ready to go to work when needed.

This post card was published by Mary Jayne’s Railroad Specialties, Inc. The photograph was taken by A. Robert Johnson. The code in the stamp square tells us that it was copyrighted in 1985.

A Round House on a Rectangular Card

The picture on the front of this post card is an aerial view of Steamtown National Historic Site's roundhouse and yard. Our friends at Wikipedia tell us that the Historic Site is a railroad museum and heritage railroad located on 62.48 acres in downtown Scranton, Pennsylvania, at the site of the former Scranton yards of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (DL&W). The museum is built around a working turntable and a 1902 roundhouse that are largely replications of the original DL&W facilities; the roundhouse, for example, was reconstructed from remnants of a 1932 structure. The visitor center, theater, technology and history museums are built in the style of and on the site of the missing portions of the original roundhouse, giving an impression of what the original circular structure was like. This website below is a good way to find out why some thing or some place was designated to be historical. This website shows us historical markers across the United States and tells us what is written on the markers. Regarding Steamtown the website tells us the information below: https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=19833 "The roundhouse was and is the heart of the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western (DL&W) yards. Here, mechanics perform daily maintenance on steam locomotives - routine inspections, light repairs, and boiler washes. Hissing steam, pounding hammers, and the drone of engines provide a constant backdrop for the mechanics' work. During the 1940s and 50s, the diesel electric locomotive, with its different maintenance requirements, rendered the roundhouse obsolete. The DL&W removed two-thirds of its Scranton roundhouse in the 1950s. You are about to enter the largest of the three remaining DL&W roundhouse sections. The National Park Service has carefully restored the remains of the DL&W's 1902/1937 roundhouse to working condition. Once again, it is used to house and service steam locomotives."

The post card was published by Steamtown National Historic Site, based on a photograph by Calin Photography. It was printed by Dynacolor Graphics, Inc. There is a bar code where the stamp is to be placed, so this post card was printed after 1974.

It Certainly doesn't look like a Goose!!

The picture on the front of this post card is of what is fondly known as a “Galloping Goose”.

This one was built May 4, 1932, by the Rio Grande Southern Railroad using a Pierce Arrow. Later the body was rebuilt by the Wayne Bus Company and the engine was rebuilt by GMC. It once was used to carry freight, mail, and passengers. Number 4, seen here, was finally converted for the Tourist and Rail Fan. Unfortunately, it is no longer operational. This website gives some detailed history of the entire “Galloping Goose” line of rail cars: http://drgw.free.fr/RGS/Goose/Goose_en.htm I have taken some of those details and added them here. The Galloping Goose (the plural should be 'Geese'), or Motors as they were officially called by the railroad, were for sure among the most original railroad vehicles ever built. They largely contributed to the fame of the Rio Grande Southern and were its most prominent symbol from the thirties until its closure in 1951. These engines, built during the thirties, resulted from the absolute necessity for the Rio Grande Southern, then on the verge of bankruptcy, to cut its operating costs. They were meant to replace conventional steam trains becoming too expensive to operate. They were a kind of hybrid between a car or a bus riding on railroad tracks and a truck. They constituted single-car mixed trains, cheap to operate and able to carry a small amount of freight, mail and express, and the few remaining passengers travelling between Durango and Ridgway. The Galloping Geese were built by the Rio Grande Southern shops in Ridgway, with very little means and a lot of ingenuity, from whatever material was available, spare car parts and other used parts. There are several hypotheses regarding the origin of the weird unofficial nickname (Galloping Goose) of the Motors. One of them claims that the name came from the waddling of the Geese on the uneven Rio Grande Southern track, another attributed the nickname to the goose-like honk of the horn of the Motors, very different from the usual whistle of steam engines. All the Geese have survived until now, except one (of which a replica has been built). Among the survivors, all but one are operational and are used occasionally on the loop track of the Colorado Railroad Museum, on the Cumbres & Toltec or on the Durango & Silverton. Goose #1 Two different Motors of the Rio Grande Southern bore the number 1. The first Motor #1, built in 1913, was an inspection speeder derived from a Model T Ford and may be considered as the ancestor of the Geese. The second Goose #1 was built in 1931 following an idea of the Rio Grande Southern superintendent and its chief mechanic officer in Ridgway. It may be considered as the first true Goose and the prototype of the whole series. She was based on a Buick Master Six sedan, converted to rail operation and fitted with an open platform on the rear to carry and express. She was equipped with a front truck and a single rear powered axle. She is the smallest and the lightest of the Geese built by the Rio Grande Southern. The design of the Motor was an immediate success and Goose #1 soon replaced the passenger steam train between Dolores and Durango. She was scrapped in 1933. A replica was built in 2000 and is today displayed at the Ridgway Railroad Museum in Ridgway. The success of Goose #1 and the cuts in operating expenses it allowed soon prompted the Rio Grande Southern to considered building more Geese based on the same principle. Goose #2 was born in 1931. She is based on the same type of Buick sedan as #1 but runs on two trucks (the rear one is powered) and is twice as heavy as #1. She has space for four passengers and her freight compartment is completely enclosed and bigger than #1's. The livery of Goose #2 was originally of the same black as the Buick sedan she was derived from. All the Geese were repainted silver in 1935 and had kept this colour since then. In 1939, Goose #2 was rebuilt with a 1926 Pierce-Arrow car body and was equipped with a new and more powerful Buick engine. At that time, Goose #2 didn't see much use because newer Geese were put into service, so #2 was most of the time on stand-by duty. Today, #2 is preserved at the Colorado Railroad Museum and is operational. Goose #3 was also built in 1931, following #1 and 2. She is 50% heavier than #2 and is longer too. She was the first Goose running on three trucks (the middle one being powered) and to be articulated. She was mostly made of 1926 Pierce-Arrow parts for the body of the passenger section and for the engine. She has a capacity of ten passengers and is rated 39hp. The rear freight and mail section is almost the size of a boxcar and is supported by two trucks. Geese #4, 5 and 7 were built following the same principle (Pierce-Arrow parts and an articulated frame on three trucks). At the Rio Grande Southern closure, Goose #3 was sold to an amusement park in California (Knotts Berry Farm), where she runs occasionally. Goose #4, the Goose on the front of this post card: Number 3 was so successful that the Rio Grande Southern started to build another Goose (#4) the following year (1932). She is almost the same as Goose #3 (Pierce-Arrow parts and an articulated frame on three trucks). She is the only non-operational Goose among those who survived today. She is displayed in the city of Telluride, , the terminal of a Rio Grand Southern branch.

This post card was published by Mary Jayne's Railroad Specialities, Inc. The photo credit goes to William Moore. Evidently it is now part of a collection called the Glen Young Collection. The post card was printed by International Graphics in Hollywood, Florida. It is copyrighted as of December 1, 1985. That is what the number code (30806) in the stamp box tells me.

May I have your Autograph, Please?

The picture on the front of this post card is of the back end of the famous movie train Emma Sweeney.

The “Silver Vista” – the coach at the end of the train – is seen here on the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad in southwestern Colorado. This is one of the last narrow-gauge railroads left in the United States. The train operates in the Summer from Alamosa to Durango and to Silverton through some of Colorado’s grandest scenery. The move in which the train was featured was called “A Ticket to Tomahawk”. This website https://www.drhs315.org/emma-sweeney-2/history/ gives some very good history about the train and the making of the movie. I have included some excerpts from the website below. In 1949 Twentieth Century Fox produced the color film “A Ticket to Tomahawk”. The premise of the movie, set in 1876, was that to save the franchise of the Tomahawk & Western Railroad, a train must reach Tomahawk along with at least one paying passenger by a fast-approaching deadline – and the competing stage line will do everything it can to prevent it. The problem is that 40 miles of track from Epitaph are missing, because the rails from England were lost at sea. The plan is to pull the train (just the locomotive Emma Sweeny) over the mountains with a team of mules. Anne Baxter is the deputy marshal whose must protect the train. Dan Dailey is the reluctant paying passenger. Walter Brennan is the engineer, and Arthur Hunnicutt is the fireman. Rory Calhoun leads the gang that is supposed to stop Emma Sweeny. Mary Loos and Richard Sale, wife and husband, as well as avid railroad fans, wrote the script, and Richard Sale directed the film. The filming in the San Juans took place over about six weeks during August and September of 1949. The film premiered in Durango and Denver in April of 1950. The 1899 Schenectady locomotive Rio Grande Southern Railroad’s locomotive #20 (4-6-0, Ten-Wheeler), originally Florence & Cripple Creek locomotive #20, acted as Tomahawk & Western’s locomotive #1, the Emma Sweeny. It was adorned with a false funnel stack, a long wooden pilot, a link and pin coupler, and an oil or kerosene headlight box over the electric light with a set of six-point antlers on top. The fancy and colorful paint scheme included three-masted sailing ships on both sides of the tender. The train consist (part of which you can see on this post card) was Rio Grande Southern Railroad caboose 0409 lettered as “Route of the Bloody Basin Cannonball,” Denver and Rio Grande Western flat 1026, boxcar 3745, and combination car 212, all repainted and re-lettered. The train with Rio Grande Southern Railroad #20 was used in shots in Silverton, Animas Canyon, and on the old, wooden Rio Grande Southern Railroad trestle over Lightner Creek.

The post card was published by the Sanborn Souvenir Company, Incorporated in Denver, Colorado. It was printed by Dexter Press, Incorported out of West Nyack, New York. They used their exclusive "Genuine Natural Color" process for the printing. I scanned the back of the post card against a brown background so that you can see that the corners are rounded.

The American Car & Foundry Company has been busy!

The car pictured on the front of this post card is the first of 400 R-10 subway cars built after World War 2 by the American Car & Foundry Company.

Here, it poses for its portrait at the builder’s plant. These 400 cars, delivered in 1948 and 1949, were intended for joint Independent-Brooklyn Manhatten Transit service but they were used initially on the New York City built Independent Lines. I posted a picture earlier this month (June 4, 2025) of another car that was built by this company. Here is the link to that post: https://www.blogger.com/u/1/blog/post/edit/2934863145319975648/1792440136948994381 In this post I will focus on the builder of the car. I have taken the information below from this website which gives great information about the history of the American Car & Foundry Company: https://www.midcontinent.org/rollingstock/builders/amercar&foundry1.htm By 17 March 1899, when the American Car & Foundry Company (AC&F) came into being at New York City, a few all-steel cars were being built, most cars were still built largely of wood, though with an ever-increasing amount of steel. Hopper cars were early made entirely of steel, with gondola and flat cars following (though with wood floors). House cars first had steel frames with wooden sheathing. It would be almost the time of the 1st World War before the majority of box cars, tank cars and passenger cars were made entirely of steel. There were 13 independent car builders consolidated into AC&F in 1899. During the previous year, those 13 had accounted for 53% of all freight cars built outside the railroads’ own shops. Additional companies were added in ensuing years such that there were 18 by 1920. AC&F was incorporated in New Jersey, with capital of $60 million. The initial Directors of the company were W.K. Bixby of Missouri Car & Foundry, George Hargreaves of Michigan-Peninsular Car Company, J.L. Swyser of Ohio Falls Car Mfg. Company, Fred H. Eaton of Jackson & Woodin Mfg. Company, J.J. Albright of Union Car Company, H.B. Denton of St. Charles Car Company and Charles T. Schoen of Pressed Steel Car Company. William Keeny Bixby (1857-1931) is credited with forming the American Car & Foundry Company. Born in Adrian, MI, he began his railway career in 1870 as a night watchman and baggage man for the International Great Northern Railroad at Palestine, Texas. He was soon promoted to the post of general baggage agent in San Antonio. He next moved to St. Louis, where he became printing and stationery buyer for all the Gould lines. After several years he became a lumber agent for the Missouri Car & Foundry Company of St. Louis. He was promoted to Vice-President within two years and later became its President. As head of Missouri Car & Foundry, Bixby engineered a consolidation with the Michigan-Peninsular Car Company of Detroit, then added 12 other independent car builders to become the American Car & Foundry Company, of which he was the first President, serving from 1899 to 1901. He thereafter became Chairman of the Board, then retired in 1905.

The post card was published by Audio Visual Designs (AVD) from Earlton, New York. AVD was started in 1964 by Carl Sturner for the sole purpose of providing railfans with sound recordings of locos and trains as well as with photochrome postcards of trackside photos. These stunning color images were taken all over the country by some well-known photographers such as David Sweetland. The history and product line of AVD can be found on the company's website at https://www.audiovisualdesigns.com/

A Real Team Effort

This information below may sound familiar. I posted about the Horseshoe Curve back in February of this year. Here is the link to that post: https://www.blogger.com/u/1/blog/post/edit/2934863145319975648/5578340278373810654 The famous Horseshoe curve on the Pennsilvania Pailroad's four track main line to the West, is still regarded as one of the world's most striking examples of railroad construction work. Located near the centre of the state, about 5 1/2 miles west of Altoona, the view to the south, stretching across Pennsylvania to the East and West incline of the Allagheny Mountains, near the Maryland border, is considered to be the most beautiful and impressive in the state. This website is the official website for the National Historic Landmark: https://www.railroadcity.org/horseshoecurve

Today I would like to focus on the companies involved in getting this post card into the hands of the public. There are three of them, Curt Otto Teich's company, The Minsky Brothers from Pittsburgh, and the United News Company. Each had a unique role to play.

First, it was printed by Curt Otta Teich. This is a "C.T. ART-COLORTONE" card. The process used to print this card was registered by Teich's company with the United States Patent Office. This post card is a sample of, in my opion, one of the finest of the "linen card" era. The texture of the front of the card is amazing; yet, the picture is sharp. The code (8A-H2199) at the top-middle of the card's back tells us that it was printed in 1938. The A tells us that it is from the 1930s and the 8 says specifically 1938. The H tells us that the method used for printing the card was the ART_COLORTONE method. That is the company's logo at bottom-middle of the card's back.

Second, the publisher, the one who asked Curt Otto Teich's company to print the card, was the Minsky Brothers and Company out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This company was around from 1935 to 1948. They published mostly linen cards with pictures of Pennsylvania.

The Third group that had a hand in this post card's existence was the company whose logo is in the bottom, left corner of the back of the post card - partially obscuring the Minsky Brothers name. Based in New York between 1908 and 1969 this was a wholly owned subsidiary of the American News Company they became major distributors of postcards and other printed items through their newsstands at hotels, rail and subway stations. Their cards were published by a variety of different companies including American News, Curt Teich, Robbins Brothers, and Valentine & Sons. Sometimes only their logo appears on a card, but it is often hand stamped on cards not originally published for them. That is the case with today's post card!!

How did Cyrus K. Holliday earn getting his name on a railroad car?

The picture on the front of this post card is of a car built in March of 1921 by the American Car & Foundry Company in St. Charles, Missouri. It was built for the Soo Line Railroad and acquired in 1962 by Tom Sefton and a group of private investors. It is now owned by the San Diego Trust & Savings Bank. It is on display at the former Santa Fe train station in San Diego.

The name on the side of the car is “Cyrus K. Holliday”, one of the founders of the Atchison, Topeks and Santa Fe Railroad. The information below is taken from the website https://www.american-rails.com/holliday.html The article there written by Adam Burns provides this information: Cyrus Holliday was born on April 3, 1826, in Carlisle, Pennsylvania the youngest of seven children. His father died when he was about 4 years old, so his mother took the family to live with his older sister in Wooster, Ohio. He attended Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania from 1848 to 1852. That is when he started his experience with the railroads. He was hired to help build one from Meadville, Pennsylvania to the Ohio border. That company went under but his payment included bonds that helped to finance his move to Lawrence, Kansas and then to the town that he helped to set up – Topeka. He recognized the huge potential of railroads for the development of the Wild West and devoted his energy and resources to this cause. His railroad's origins began humbly in Lawrence, Kansas hotel room when he wrote up the charter for the Atchison & Topeka during January 30-31, 1859. According to this document the system would connect its namesake towns and then head towards Santa Fe, New Mexico before continuing to the west coast and reaching out to the Gulf of Mexico. It was officially chartered on February 11, 1859. On November 23, 1863 the company's name was changed to the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad. The task of building the railroad officially kicked off at a small ceremony in Topeka along Washington Street on October 30, 1868. The Santa Fe brought significant changes to Kansas and the American Midwest. It provided a much-needed transportation link for people and goods, bringing growth and prosperity to several areas. Holliday died on March 29, 1900, in Topeka, Kansas.

This post card was published by the bank that owns the car: the San Diego Trust & Savings Bank. Their motto is "Where money matters...but, people count" The little logo at the top tells us that the bank has celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1989.

Isn't that a Train, not an Airplane?

Yes. It is a train, not an airplane. The name of the railroad is a marking tool to demonstrate how fast their locomotives were expected to travel. The

picture on the front of this post card is of the Seaboard Air Line #2028 power car. It was built in 1936 by the St. Louis Car Company and it was used to pull two or three other cars from branch lines to the main connection points with Seaboard Air Line’s main line. Our friends at Wikipedia tell us this: “The Seaboard Air Line Railroad (reporting mark SAL), which styled itself as "The Route of Courteous Service", was an American railroad that existed from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime rival, to form the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad. Predecessor railroads dated from the 1830s and reorganized extensively to rebuild after the American Civil War. The company was headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia, until 1958, when its main offices were relocated to Richmond, Virginia… At the end of 1925 SAL operated 3,929 miles of road, not including its flock of subsidiaries; at the end of 1960 it reported 4,135 miles. The main line ran from Richmond via Raleigh, North Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia to Jacksonville, Florida, a major interchange point for passenger trains bringing travelers to the Sunshine State. From Jacksonville, Seaboard rails continued to Tampa, St. Petersburg, West Palm Beach and Miami… The complex corporate history of the Seaboard began on March 8, 1832, when its earliest predecessor, the Portsmouth and Roanoke Railroad was chartered by the legislatures of Virginia and North Carolina to build a railroad from Portsmouth, Virginia, to the Roanoke River port of Weldon, North Carolina. After a couple of months of horse-drawn operation, the first locomotive-pulled service on this line began on September 4, 1834, with a twice-daily train from Portsmouth to Suffolk, Virginia, 17 miles away." This complex history can be better followed by going to this website: https://www.american-rails.com/seaboard.html

Once again the mystery publisher strikes!!!