Representing the Railroad

Artists, photographers, and illustrators drafted images of the railroad, seeking to represent the technology to a wide audience. Newspapers and magazines tried to characterize the technology. The railroads too participated in this effort, sending out artists' excursions, paying advertisers for slick brochures, and commissioning artwork. As a result competing images of the railroad circulated throughout the nineteenth century in different places and different times.

Documents related to this topic

  • N.D. | Time Table

    Atlantic & Great Western Railroad

    The Atlantic & Great Western Railroad stressed its safety record and comfortable, elegant, luxurious cars. The time table quotes former Illinois Congressman Elihu B. Washburn on the road's smooth ride and "clean, light, and airy" setting. The road also boasted that its passengers traveling in its beautifully appointed Pullman cars would "not have to leave the train between Chicago, Cincinnati, and St. Louis."

  • N.D. | Artwork

    In der Tram, 1916

  • N.D. | Artwork

    Metro Station, undated

  • January 1, 1840 | Illustration

    Viaduct on Baltimore and Washington Railroad

    A steel-engraved image by Henry Adlard, from a drawing by William Henry Barlett, in American Scenery or Land, Lake, and River Illustrations of Transatlantic Nature.

  • October 29, 1850 | Illustration

    Hours of Departure of the Passenger Trains

    Note the delicate illustration of the passenger car in this advertisement.

  • December 1, 1851 | Illustration

    Railroad Results Illustrated in the case of a Railroad of 35 Miles

    An example of the ways opportunities created by railroads pushed Americans to to conceptualize space and time in new ways, this illustration for the article "Thoughts on a Rail-Road System for New Orleans and the Southwest. No. III" emphasizes the commercial opportunities offered by rail networks.

  • 1858 | Book

    The Book of the Great Railway Celebrations of 1857

    Works like The Book of The Great Railway Celebrations were published with multiple purposes - they served great publicity for railroad companies and town boosters, as well as celebrations of technological advancements and ingenuity. The detailed illustrations and descriptions of the celebrations also made them prized souvenirs for event attendees.

  • May 28, 1858 | Illustration

    Accident on the New York Central Railroad

    This image from the May 28, 1858 edition of Harper's Weekly depicts an accident on a railroad bridge near Utica, New York.

  • June 26, 1858 | Illustration

    Railroad Cars Traversing the Submerged Wabash Valley

    This image from the June 26, 1858 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a train passing through the Wabash Valley during a flood.

  • June 26, 1858 | Illustration

    Scene During the Inundation at Cairo, Illinois

    This image from the June 26, 1858 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the flooding of Cairo, Illinois.

  • July 31, 1858 | Illustration

    The Erie Railroad Accident—the Cars Going Off the Track

    This image from the July 31, 1858 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the beginning of a train derailment on the Erie railroad.

  • July 31, 1858 | Illustration

    The Scene After the Accident

    This image from the July 31, 1858 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the scene at a train derailment on the Erie railroad.

  • 1859 | Illustration

    A Brother Artist

    A visual representation of the relationship between photographers and painters.

  • 1859 | Illustration

    Anno Domini MMMM.DCCC.LIX

    The artist envisions the lasting legacy of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.

  • 1859 | Illustration

    Artists' Excursion Over The Baltimore & Ohio Rail Road

    Noteworthy for its marvelous illlustrations, this feature article portrays the joys of railroad travel.

  • 1859 | Illustration

    Ascending the Alleghanies

    A key illustration from the article features artists and guests riding the engine.

  • 1859 | Illustration

    In The Beginning

  • 1859 | Illustration

    LEFT

    The plight of the tardy traveller is part and parcel of the narrative of travel.

  • 1859 | Illustration

    Modern Chivalry

    Chivalry is part and parcel of the conductor's work.

  • 1859 | Illustration

    Nisi Pro Nobis

    "Except for us" - sun coming out after a cloudy journey.

  • 1859 | Illustration

    The Model Conductor

    The characters encoutered along the rail journey are part of the artist's experience.

  • 1859 | Illustration

    The Old World and the New

    American railroad progress is compared with the adoption of the technology in England.

  • 1859 | Illustration

    View From the Bluffs at Catawissa

  • July 16, 1859 | Illustration

    Scene On The Morning After The Late Terrible Accident On The Michigan Southern Railroad

    This image from the July 16, 1859 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a scene on the morning after a terrible train accident on the Michigan Southern Railroad.

  • September 10, 1859 | Illustration

    The City of Chicago, Illinois

    This montage of images from the September 10, 1859 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the city of Chicago, Illinois.

  • September 10, 1859 | Illustration

    Three in the Morning

    This image from the September 10, 1859 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a man dressed for a morning on the town.

  • October 9, 1859 | Illustration

    Farewell!

    This image from the October 9, 1859 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a farewell exchange between a man and woman.

  • August 11, 1860 | Illustration

    An "After Donkey Engine"

    This image from the August 11, 1860 issue of Harper's Weekly offers a cartoonist's rendering of the misleading term "AfterDonkey Engine."

  • August 25, 1860 | Illustration

    The Victoria Tubular Bridge at Montreal, Canada

    This image from the August 25, 1860 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the Victoria Tubular Bridge at Montreal, Canada.

  • March 13, 1862 | Map

    Field of Operations on the Potomac

    This map from the New York Daily Tribune is an example of the methods newspapers used to help Americans visualize the geography of warfare — shaping their perceptions of the war and the landscapes on which it was fought. This map illustrates the position of Union forces along the Potomac just days before many of the troops headed south to begin the Peninsula Campaign.

  • May 6, 1862 | Map

    The Battle of Camden, North Carolina / Fort Macon and Vicinity

    Also known as the Battle of South Mills, the Battle of Camden depicted here took place April 19 and the seige of Fort Macon lasted from March 23 to April 26; both were part of General Ambrose Burnside's North Carolina Expedition. On May 6, 1862, these New York Daily Tribune maps provided readers with detailed images of fields of battle and transportation resources hundreds of miles of away - bringing images of warfare and the geography of an enemy region into their homes.

  • May 6, 1862 | Map

    The Seat of War in Eastern Virginia

    This map from the front page of the May 6, 1862, New York Daily Tribune helped Americans unfamiliar with the geography of eastern Virginia sort out the landscape and resources associated with the names of towns and railroad junctions coming from newspaper reports. The constant flow of war information and visual representations like this map kept Americans abreast of far-away developments.

  • May 9, 1862 | Map

    Movements near Corinth, Mississippi

    Although small, this map illustrates the interconnection of railroads and battle lines in the South.

  • May 9, 1862 | Map

    The Defenses of Yorktown

    In the wake of the Seige of Yorktown (April 5 - May 4, 1862), readers of the New York Daily Tribune are provided with a map and description of the city's defenses, even as they read about the retreat of rebel forces from Yorktown.

  • May 12, 1862 | Map

    New York Daily Tribune, May 12, 1862

    This front page image illustrates the importance of maps of space and resources (including railroads) to readers of Civil War-era newspapers. Note the Richmond, Fredericksburg, and Potomac Railroad running up the center of the larger map; a number of other rail lines criss-cross the map.

  • May 12, 1862 | Map

    Norfolk and Vicinity

    In the wake of the Battle of Hampton Roads, the New York Daily Tribune prints a map of the waterways and fortifications near Norfolk, Virginia.

  • May 12, 1862 | Map

    The Seat of War in Eastern Virginia

    During the Peninsula Campaign, the New York Daily Tribune provides readers with a detailed picture of the eastern Virginia; the Table of Distances at the bottom of the map further informs readers about the space and landscape being described in reports and dispatches. Note the Richmond, Fredericksburg, and Potomac Railroad running up the center of the image; a number of other rail lines criss-cross the map.

  • November 1, 1862 | Illustration

    The Railroad in Broadway

    This image from the November 1, 1862 issue of Harper's Weekly offers a cartoonist's conception of the impact of the railroad on Broadway.

  • 1864 | Illustration

    A Diagram Exhibiting the difference of time between the places shown & Washington

    A time atlas, illustrating the time and mileage distances between Washington and numerous other world locations. Conceptualizng space and time in a way that was meaningful to an increasingly mobile population became an increasingly important task during the 19th Century.

  • July 23, 1864 | Illustration

    The Great Railway Disaster Near Montreal, Canada

    This image from the July 23, 1864 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a major railway disaster near Montreal, Canada. The conductor failed to heed a signal that the Belacil Bridge was open for barge traffic and the ensuing accident killed ninety people and wounded one hundred more.

  • June 30, 1866 | Illustration

    The Mosquito

    This image from the June 30, 1866 issue of Harper's Weekly offers a stinging cartoonist's criticism of the nature of the Camden and Amboy Railroad Company.

  • November 2, 1867 | Illustration

    A New Cure

    This image from the November 2, 1867 issue of Harper's Weekly offers a cartoonist's conception of the relationship between railroads and rheumatism.

  • December 7, 1867 | Illustration

    Railroad Disaster in Ohio

    This image from the December 7, 1867 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a tragic November 21, 1864 railroad disaster near Lockland, Ohio in which two trains collided. At least four people were killed.

  • December 14, 1867 | Illustration

    Shooting Buffalo from the Trains of the Kansas Pacific Railroad

    This image from the December 14, 1867 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts men shooting buffalo for sport from Kansas Pacific Railroad cars.

  • March 14, 1868 | Illustration

    The Great Trunk Railroad to the Pacific

    This image from the March 14, 1868 issue of Harper's Weekly offers a cartoonist's conception of the railroad to the Pacific as the movement of a line of trunks.

  • November 28, 1868 | Illustration

    Earthquake in San Francisco, California, October 21, 1868

    This image from the November 28, 1868 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts four scences of damage in San Francisco, California following a severe earthquake: the Coffey and Risdons Building, the Railroad house and Rosenbum's Tobacco Warehouse, the Gas Works, and California Street.

  • 1869 | Artwork

    The Union Pacific Railroad - A Prairie on Fire in Nebraska, about 1864-69

  • May 22, 1869 | Illustration

    Railroad Disaster at Buckfield, Maine, April 27, 1869

    This image from the May 22, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a railroad disaster following a bridge collapse at Buckfield, Maine.

  • September 25, 1869 | Illustration

    Hudson River Railroad Depot

    This image from the September 25, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the new railroad depot on Hudson Street in New York City, New York.

  • September 25, 1869 | Illustration

    The Vanderbilt Bronze Monument

    This image from the September 25, 1869 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the Vanderbilt bronze monument at the Hudson River railroad depot in New York City, New York.

  • February 25, 1871 | Illustration

    The Railroad Accident At New Hamburg—Recovering The Bodies

    This image from the February 25, 1871 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts the recovery of bodies following a serious railroad accident at New Hamburg, New York.

  • February 25, 1871 | Illustration

    The Railroad Accident At New Hamburg—The Burning Car

    This image from the February 25, 1871 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a burning railroad car following an accident at New Hamburg, New York.

  • February 10, 1872 | Illustration

    Danger Ahead

    This image from the February 10, 1872 issue of Harper's Weekly offers an artist's conception of the response of a train crew to a warning of impending disaster.

  • March 23, 1872 | Illustration

    Accident to the Boston Express

    This image from the March 23, 1872 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a train derailment on the Boston Express near Springfield, Massachusetts.

  • March 30, 1872 | Illustration

    Justice On The Rail

    This image from the March 30, 1872 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a cartoonist's view of justice "derailing" a corrupt ring on the Erie Railroad.

  • March 30, 1872 | Illustration

    The Depot at Moss Neck

    This image from the March 30, 1872 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a railroad depot at Moss Neck, North Carolina.

  • April 27, 1872 | Illustration

    The Proposed Harbor at Dover

    This image from the April 27, 1872 issue of Harper's Weekly depicts a proposed harbor at Dover, Delaware, that includes a railroad depot for shipping cargo.

  • March 14, 1874 | Illustration

    A Patient Railroad Traveler

    In an apparent commentary on the slowness of some railroad companies, this image from the March 14, 1874 issue of Harper's Weekly offers a cartoonist's conception of a patient railroad traveler.

  • 1877 | Artwork

    View of the Town of Sydney, The Nearest Railraod Station to the Black Hills, 1877

  • 1877 | Artwork

    View on the Platte Valley Plains, near Columbus, Nebraska, as seen from the Union Pacific Railroad

  • 1880 | Time Table

    Baltimore and Ohio R.R.

    The Baltimore and Ohio was one of the oldest railroads in the nation and the first to break through the Allegheny Mountains to reach the Ohio River in 1857. In its 1880 time table the railroad stressed the natural features and wonders along its route and its picturesque sites. The road also used a massive map of the nation to expose its western connections.

  • September 1, 1881 | Time Table

    Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Ry.

    The Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway's 1881 time table featured linkages to "leading business centers" and "summer resorts of the Great North-West."

  • August 1, 1884 | Time Table

    Chicago and North Western Railway

    The Chicago and Northwestern Railway's 1884 time table listed detailed times and maps for its extensive regional system.

  • 1885 | Time Table

    Chesapeake & Ohio Railway

    The Chesapeake and Ohio's 1885 time table featured excursion rates to "Old Point Comfort" on the Chesapeake Bay in Virginia. Pitched to male travelers, the brochure described "nymph-like bathers" at the resort hotel and "the merry laugh of some bewitching beauty." Travelers could also take steamship to Barbados, Rio de Janiero, or Para, Brazil, at "the mouth of the Amazon." The brochure also emphasized the picturesque scences of the Alleghenies and Virginia, where Civil War battlefields could be toured. "The battle of the Seven Pines was fought near where the railway runs," the brochure explained, "and McClellan's peninsular campaign has made this entire section of Virginia interesting."

  • March 1, 1885 | Time Table

    Boston and Albany

    The Boston & Albany's 1885 time table emphasized its connection with the New York Central and its modern safety, as the "only double track route from New England to the West."

  • 1885 | Time Table

    The Santa Fe Route

    The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe's 1885 time table emphasized its connections not only to California but also to Mexico City on the Mexico Central Railroad. Its large map featured detailed insets of Baja California and Mexico for tourists and travelers, and its inside folds described special rates for "land explorers" and emigrants.

  • 1886 | Time Table

    Chicago and Atlantic Railway

    The Chicago and Atlantic Railway's 1886 time table emphasized its "straight line" to the East and the "smoothness and evenness" of its grade. The road used "the best of steel rails only" and boasted "three thousand oak ties to the mile."

  • 1886 | Time Table

    Chicago and Alton R.R.

    The Chicago and Alton time table stressed the regional, midwestern connections for St. Louis and Kansas City.

  • 1887 | Time Table

    Atlantic and Pacific Railroad

    The Atlantic and Pacific Railroad's 1887 time table featured the speed of its route from St. Louis, Kansas City, or Chicago to Los Angeles. The time table emphasized express trains and fewer changes of cars than competing lines.

  • December 10, 1888 | Time Table

    Chicago and North-Western Railway

    The 1888 Chicago and North-Western Railway emphasized "cheap farms and free homes" in Northern Nebraska along the Elkhorn Valley, the Niobrara Valley, and into the Black Hills in South Dakota. The time table included detailed descriptions of homestead policies and land availability for immigrants and settlers.

  • February 7, 1891 | Time Table

    Canadian Pacific Railway

  • August 20, 1891 | Time Table

    The Burlington

    The Chicago, Burlington & Northern's 1891 time table adopted a compass-like circular image representing the major points accessible on the line. This table also featured the history of the line and the picturesque sites along its route.

  • 1892 | Time Table

    Santa Fe Route

    This 1892 Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe time table featured detailed insets with maps of its subsidiary lines.

  • 1893 | Time Table

    Chicago Great Western Railway

    The Chicago Great Western Railway's 1893 time table placed its line in the center of a globe-like image. The road stressed its comfortable "compartmented sleeping cars."

  • March 1, 1907 | Time Table

    Santa Fe

    By 1907 railroads were producing elaborate time tables with detailed connecting information, rates, and times. The Santa Fe Railroad emphasized detailed times and schedules for this large system.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    A Freight Crew and Its Hack

    This image from The Modern Railroad (1911) captures a railroad freight crew posing with an Erie Railroad car in the background.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    A Manicure on the "Modern Train"

    This image from The Modern Railroad (1911) captures a white, female passenger receiving a manicure from an African-American woman while aboard the railroad.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    A Railroad Engineer "Fussing At His Machine"

    This image from The Modern Railroad (1911), shows a railroad engineer, "oil-can in hand," lubricating the wheel of a locomotive.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    A Railroad Fireman Shoveling Coal

    This image from The Modern Railroad (1911), captures a railroad fireman shoveling coal into the firebox.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    An Army of Clerks

    This image from The Modern Railroad (1911), depicts a room full of freight department clerks.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    An Early Locomotive

    This image from The Modern Railroad, published in 1911, shows one of the earliest locomotives built for the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    Crane Recovering a Damaged Locomotive

    This image from The Modern Railroad(1911) captures two cranes removing a badly damaged Mogul locomotive from the site where it derailed.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    Great Northern Locomotives: Old and New

    This image from The Modern Railroad(1911), shows the first engine of the James J. Hill system sitting next to one of the Great Northern Railroad's more recent models.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    Interior of a Dining Car

    This image from The Modern Railroad (1911) captures the interior of an elegant dining car, including several of its male and female passengers.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    The "Industrial Army of America"

    This image from The Modern Railroad (1911) depicts a large number of railroad mechanics posing with a locomotive.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    The "John Bull" Locomotive

    This image from Edward Hungerford's The Modern Railroad (1911) features the "John Bull," a historic locomotive of the Camden and Amboy railroad.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    The Biggest Locomotive in the World

    This image from The Modern Railroad (1911), showcases "the biggest locomotive in the world," a huge engine built by the Santa Fe Railroad in its Topeka, Kansas shops.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    The Railroad Conductor

    This image from The Modern Railroad (1911), shows a railroad conductor at work.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    The Railroad Track Walker

    This image from The Modern Railroad (1911), captures a track walker, lantern in hand, performing his nightly duties.

  • 1911 | Photograph

    The Wrecking Train

    This image from The Modern Railroad (1911) shows a number of railroad workers standing atop a wrecking train.

  • September 15, 1912 | Time Table

    The Chicago Milwaukee & Puget Sound Railway

    The Chicago, Milwaukee & Puget Sound Railway in 1912 stressed the opportunities in the Northwestern United States. This "new land" would allow the farmer to "pay for his land in two crops" and the "investor" to "make large and quick profits."

  • 1913 | Artwork

    Newburgh at Noon, 1913

  • 1925 | Map

    Map Showing the Centers Of Population, 1790-1920

    These two maps from the 1925 Statistical Atlas of the United States offer regional and national geographical representations of the changing centers of population in the United States from 1790 to 1920.

  • March 4, 1928 | Time Table

    Chicago and North Western Line

    The Chicago and Northwestern Railway's 1928 time table emphasized planning "your summer vacation" to Yellowstone, Rocky Mountain, Zion, Grand Canyon, Bryce, Yosemite, and Ranier National Parks, as well as other western mountain sites.

  • 1932 | Map

    Federal Land Grants for the Construction of Railroads and Wagon Roads 1823-1871

    This map from the 1932 Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United States reveals the United States land grants available for the construction of railroads and wagon roads between 1823-1871. As the key indicates, dark lines represent the limits of the land grants, while white and striped areas differentiate between unforfeited and forfeited Federal land grants for railroads.

  • 1932 | Map

    Railroad Travel Rates, 1800-1930

    This series of maps from the 1932 Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United States shows the progressive decrease in travel time by depicting the time required to travel from New York to various western locations in 1800, 1830, 1857, AND 1930.

  • 1932 | Map

    Railroads 1850 and 1860; Overland Mail, 1850-1869

    These two maps from the 1932 Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United States display overland mail routes and railroad lines in the United States during the mid-nineteenth century. The maps show the extent of railroads in 1850 and 1860 and overland mail from 1850 to 1869.

  • 1932 | Map

    Railroads in Operation, December, 1840

    This map from the 1932 Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United States depicts the various railroad lines operating in the United States in 1840.

  • 1932 | Map

    The James J. Hill Railroads, 1914

    This map from the 1932 Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United States depicts the vast railroad system James J. Hill owned in 1914.

  • 1932 | Map

    United States Railroads Lines, 1870

    This map from the 1932 Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United States displays the United States' railroad lines in 1870 as well as some of the major cities they connected.

  • 1935 | Artwork

    Lime Mill, 1935

  • 1935 | Artwork

    Railway Station, about 1935

  • 1935 | Artwork

    Railway Station, about 1935

  • 1935 | Artwork

    Traffic, 7th Ave. Subway, about 1935

  • 1937 | Artwork

    Subway Drillers, 1937

  • 1938 | Artwork

    Slag Heaps, 1938

  • 1939 | Artwork

    Railroad Crossing, 1939

  • 1941 | Artwork

    Slow Train Through Arkansas

  • 1955 | Artwork

    Cow 13 and Train Number 3, Shawsville, Virginia, 1955 (printed 1987)

  • 1967 | Artwork

    Entrance to Elevated - Randolph at Lake, Chicago

  • 1967 | Artwork

    Railroad Station, Providence, Rhode Island, 1967

  • 1973 | Artwork

    Great American Perspective, 1973

  • 1974 | Artwork

    Prairie Boxcars, 1974

  • 1975 | Artwork

    Manhattan (from the "Tubes" portfolio)

  • 1975 | Artwork

    Paris (from the "Tubes" portfolio)

  • 1975 | Artwork

    Railroad Switching Yards, 1975

  • 1975 | Artwork

    The London Underground (from the "Tubes" portfolio)

  • 1980 | Artwork

    Rainbows on a Train, 1980

  • 1982 | Artwork

    Choo-Choo Train (from Johnnie's Toys portfolio)

  • 1995 | Artwork

    White Stone Junction (Buffalo & Shenandoah Railroad, No. 23)

  • 2010 | Photograph

    Long Bridge, 2010

    When Kate Brown crossed the Potomac River on this bridge in 1868 and was forcibly removed from the ladies? car in Virginia, the Washington Monument was only half-completed. Brown?s work at the U.S. Capitol placed her in contact with powerful Republican Party lawyers and politicians. Her lawsuit against the company went to the U.S. Supreme Court five years later.

  • 2010 | Photograph

    Ruins of the Blue Ridge Railroad Tunnel near Crozet, Virginia

    The ruins of the Blue Ridge Tunnel, as it appears today. The Blue Ridge Railroad and Blue Ridge Tunnel were built by the state?s Board of Public Works. When the railroad company?s chief engineer, Claudius Crozet, requested slave labor, the board had to decide whether the state should purchase slaves for the project. The tunnel has long since been abandoned, but the brick and stonework is the original, much of it slave-built.

  • unkn | Artwork

    Pennsylvania Station, New York