Journal: Railroad Heritage

Railroad Heritage is a registered trademark of the Center.

Railroad Heritage (ISSN 1530-1559) is published by the Center for Railroad Photography & Art, P.O. Box 259330, Madison, WI 53725-9330. It is mailed to annual donors of $40 or more, of which $10 is reserved for a subscription. Receive your copy with your gift of support today. Institutional or library subscriptions are $50 a year.

Railroad Heritage articles are listed in Kalmbach's Model Train Magazine Index.

No. 18, 2007, Railroading Journeys

"Railroading Journeys," Railroad Heritage® No. 18, is a special retrospective issue devoted to the life and times of Lucius Beebe and Charles Clegg whose books changed the way Americans think about--and look at--railroads and railroading. The 32-page issue has 59 photographs, 52 of them by Beebe or Clegg, some of them never before published. The issue considers their pictures afresh (each had a distinctive style), discusses some of the influences on their work, and defines their legacy. In their years of living in the West, beginning in 1950, Beebe and Clegg produced about thirty books, most of them devoted to railroading. A review in Railfan and Railroad (February 2008, page 56) calls attention to the introduction by Clegg's sister, Ann Clegg Holloway. Railroad History No. 197 (Fall-Winter 2007) devoted page five to the retrospective, praising its "analysis of composition, framing, and tonal elements" of the photographs by Beebe and Clegg. The Center's print publication, Railroad Heritage, now is complemented by an Internet archive, railroadheritage.org. You can see eight of the Beebe/Clegg photos at railroadheritage.org., with extensive text. You can obtain a copy of "Railroading Journeys" with an annual gift of at least $40, or buy individual copies for $14.95 (plus $4.50 per order for handling) on the Internet or by U.S. mail.

No. 17, 2007, Women in Railroading

No. 17 is a special issue about women in railroading with Shirley Burman as guest editor.

Contents

Railroadheritage.org, 2
Looking Ahead, 2
Conversations about Photography, 3
WOMEN IN RAILROADING
Where Were the Women? / Shirley Burman, 4
Jobs for Women "Come with a Price" / Doug Riddell, 12
The Mean Old Nontraditional Blues / Linda Grant Niemann, 20

No. 16, 2006

Railroad Heritage No. 16 looks at Glendive, Montana, a municipality where the freight trains still stop to change crews and the railroaders actively participate in the civic life of the town. This story--text by Jeff Brouws, photos by Joel Jensen--is about what many would deem an anachronism in 21st century America, the railroad town.

Contents

Railroad Work Exhibits on Display, 2
Looking Ahead, 2
Rose Program Moves West, 3
What is "Visual Culture and What Does It Have to Do With Railroads / George A. Talbot III and John O. Holzhueter, 4
Workers, Worldwide Win, 8
Ruminations on a Railroad Town: Glendive, Montana / Jeff Brouws and Joel Jensen, 12
Patents Show Diesel Development, 25
Milestones of American Dieselization, 26

More Special Issues

The Center has distributed the proceedings of the conference, "Iron Icon: The Railroad in American Art," as a special 72-page issue of Railroad Heritage (No. 14, 2005). The publication, in cooperation with the John W. Barriger III National Railroad Library, features the papers given by the nine speakers, accompanyied by 21 striking color and many more black and white images from the presentations. The cover is Willard F. Elms' Land of the Pueblos (after Villa), about 1949, one of the last images in a Santa Fe poster campaign that for some 50 years featured the southwestern landscape and its native inhabitants. The Burlington Northern Santa Fe Foundation funded the symposium, held April 22-23, 2004, at the Barriger Library. This high-quality publication is the largest ever issue of Railroad Heritage. John Stilgoe, a Harvard University professor, describes No. 14 as "a solid scholarly demonstration that railroad-industry advertising rewards close scrutiny as art and that the railroad depicted in non-industry illustration rolls deep into national and regional history and visual culture." Stilgoe is author of Metropolitan Corridor: Railroads and the American Scene (1983).

Another special issue, "Representations of Railroad Work, Past and Present," (No. 13, 2005) takes a fresh look at the people who made and make trains run: their culture, their skills, and their unseen importance to American life. For this issue, special editor Mark W. Hemphill, former editor of Trains magazine, and a former train dispatcher, brings together with photo editor John Gruber and noted authors, photographers, and historians a previously unseen sensitivity to railroad work. Is railroading "just another job?" No. To the people who do it, railroading is a lifestyle, a brotherhood, a culture with its own language and identity. To the public, railroading is unknown territory. But through photography and art, the obscuring veil can be peeled back. This special issue of Railroad Heritage is not the end product of a new understanding of railroad work, but only the beginning. The North American Railway Foundation provided major funding.

No. 15, 2005

Railroad Work Exhibits Ready for Travel, 2
Looking Ahead, 2
Rose Memorial Program Gains Support, 3
Conference Moves to Marquette, 5
Awards Program Focuses on Work, 5
Ryan Wins Third Awards Program, 6
Beebe Promotes Railroad Imagery, 10
Evolution of Early Draft Gear Designs, 14

No. 12, 2004

Looking Ahead, 2
Amtrak: Basics and Posters, 2
Breck's Calendars Show Railroad's "Presence," 4
Silver Legacy, 8
From Pure Delight to Downright Frustration, 10
Program Set for Third Conference, 12
Third Creative Photo Award, 13
Stein's Passion, 14
The Great Train Robbery, 15

No. 11, 2004

.railphoto-art.org gets new look, 2
Cashin Wins Creative Photography Award, 3
Silver Legacy, 3
Looking Ahead, 3
Facing the "Conversations" Audience, 4
Gallery: Black & White, 6
Contest Winners, 8
Schnitzmeyer and Montana, 10
Robbery at 100, 13
An Artistic Approach to Poster Art, 14

No. 10, 2004

• Leo King Views Work, 2
• Looking Ahead, 3
• News of the Center, 4
• Second "Conversations" Conference, 5
• Creative, Almost Forgotten Photographers, 6
• A Designer Looks at Railroad Vision, 9
• Difficulties of Dating Images, 10

• No. 9, 2003

• A Phenomenal Journey, 2
• Looking Ahead, 3
• Second "Conversations" Conference, 5
• Images of Work, 5
• In Search of Great Photos, 5
• Jackson's Camera Turns East, 6
• Posters Boost Interurban Travel, 11

No. 8, 2003

• Representations of Railroad Work, 2
• Center Searches for Images of Work, 4
• Second "Conversations" Conference, 5
• Iron Icons, 5
• R&LHS Photography Award, 5
• Jackson Heads West on C&NW Car, 6
• KCS Pride Shows in Photos, 9

No. 7, 2003

• More Conversations, 2
• Plowden's Retirement Portrait, 3
• More about Missouri-Kansas-Texas agent R. H. Birkhead.
• Michael Rosenthal Receives Center's Award, 3
• The Pullman Photographers, 4 / Don Horn. Photographs furnished the visual documentation to make Pullman a name heard around the world.
• More Top Photographs, 8
• The Man on the Trestle, 14 / John H. White Jr. Jacob Blickensderfer, who worked on the transcontinental railroad, was a talented field engineer.

More Conversations

We're so pleased with the response to our first conference that we have started planning the second annual "Conversations about Photography" for Saturday, March 20, 2004, again at Lake Forest College in Illinois. The schedule is shaping up well. William D. Middleton, Charlottesville, Virginia, will be showing his black and white photographs. Middleton has been a transportation and engineering historian and journalist for more than 50 years. Mel Patrick of Denver will focus on color, especially his pioneering multimedia program on Chicago Union Station. In addition, we are preparing a presentation on creative, almost forgotten steam-era photographers.

Details including more speakers and topics will be announced here and on our website. In general, we will strive to maintain the informal yet informative atmosphere of this year's conference, best described by speaker and participant David Plowden. "I sensed there was an enormous involvement between the participants--those of us who were asked to speak and to show--and the people who attended. The people came because they wanted to be there," he said

"Too often you get a group of people that have a common interest, but the common interest is sort of unilateral. They are interested only in the things they are interested about in railroading or about any subject. This was a much more sophisticated audience. People asked very interesting questions. They asked about nuts and bolts, cameras, to a certain extent. But they really were asking about why these pictures were made, and what motivated me. They wanted to understand why I did what I did. They asked questions so we could have a dialogue. I felt I wasn't there giving a monologue. I felt I was having a conversation with the people, and it was sort of a big round table. That to me was something very hard to do, with a group of people, but it worked."

Brian Solomon was impressed because unlike other venues, this conference had an emphasis on long term issues, technique, and the stories behind the making of the images. "My only concern," he added, "was the lack of young blood. Where were tomorrow's photographers?"

Although no formal record was kept (a mistake to be corrected at the second conference), there are ways to explore further each speaker's ideas. Don Horn's comments about Pullman Company photography are featured in this issue of Railroad Heritage. Plowded's 21st book, David Plowden: American Barns, is being published in November. Many of Solomon's hints about materials, equipment, and technique are in Railway Photography, to be published in December. My presentation, "Representations of Railroad Work," is the start of a continuing effort to promote the understanding of railroad work--a missing link in the record of railroads--and to present these often-overlooked images to the public. Lake Forest College's images from its Munson Paddock Collection are available for viewing on the Internet (www.lfc.edu/library/collections/railroad/).

So far, the center has had a productive year with its programs and initiatives. We hope you (of all ages) can continue to join us in our endeavors to nuture and encourage excellence in art and photography

John Gruber, President, Center for Railroad Photography and Art

No. 6, 2002

• National Photography Award, 2
  The Center establishes a $1,000 prize for innovative visual ways of showing railroads.
• Don Wood Wins R&LHS Award, 2
  "We are all richer for his contributions," citation says.
• Conversations with Photographers, 3
  Conference Scheduled Saturday, February 22, at Lake Forest, Illinois
• Dozens Show Pacific Railroad, 4 / John Gruber
  A glimpse at 19th century photography, including bibliography.
• Bern Hill: The Master of "Feeling," 8 / Greg Palumbo
  Artist's paintings featured in Electro-Motive Division advertising.
• Renaissance in Poster Art, 11
  Travel by Train reawakens interest in long forgotten images.
• The Railroads and Digital Photography, 12 / Richard Jay Solomon
  Digital electronics brings a "wider palette" for railfan photographers.

No. 5, 2002 (out of print)

• A Preservation Discipline, 2. The rest of the world is "discovering" the power of railroad images.
• Santa Fe Photos Launch Project, 3. A gift from a retired photographer is the start of an effort to interpret company photography.
• Interurban Photos Show Style, 4. For an industry active for such a short period of time, the record is impressive.
• Chicago Union Station, 8 / Color photos by Mel Patrick. A review of photography at the station, to be redeveoped by Amtrak.
• Seeing the Metropolitan Corridor, 12 / Erik Ledbetter. John Stilgoe talks about changes since his "revolutionary" book two decades ago.
• Diet Was Forever Changed, 15 / John W. White Jr. A rare refrigerator car photo from a Wisconsin archive.

Editorial: A Preservation Discipline

Railroad photography has transcended its origins as a creative hobby or tool of railroad promotion and, over the last three decades, has emerged as a legitimate preservation discipline. Its images are becoming recognized widely as a distinct form of visual art and a powerful research tool.

Beginning with a formal exhibition at the Baltimore Museum of Art nearly 25 years ago, a succession of popular and museum exhibitions have brought the work of railroad photographers and artists before millions of people--further evidence of its mainstream recognition.

By far the most visible current exhibition, "Railroad Vision" at the prestigious J. Paul Getty Museum (www.getty.edu/museum) in Los Angeles through June 23, presents 90 images from the Americas, Europe, and South Africa. "From the 1850s onward photography and the railroad embarked on a journey together. This complex new relationship shaped a visual culture that dealt with issues of space, time, and distance in a way that never before existed," Anne M. Lyden, assistant curator in charge of the exhibition, writes in an illustrated brochure.

Another exhibit, "Traveling the Pennsylvania Railroad: The Photographs of William H. Rau" through September 20 is at the Library Company of Philadelphia (www.librarycompany.org). The railroad commissioned Rau, Philadelphia's preeminent photographer, to take hundreds of photographs to promote travel on the railway. A companion volume, edited by John C. Van Horne with Eileen E. Drelick, has been published by the University of Pennsylvania Press in cooperation with the Library Company. The book includes introductory essays by three scholars including John Stilgoe.

The Center's exhibit, "Railroads and Photography: 150 Years of Great Images," has been touring the country since 1999. We are flattered that the Getty has adopted an approach similar to ours. In brochure/catalogs published for exhibits at the John W. Barriger III National Railroad Library, St. Louis, 2000, and Nevada State Railroad Museum, Carson City, 2001-02, the center said, "Railroads and photography grew up together as two of the technologies that profoundly changed American life. We are a nation based on mobility and images, so it should not be surprising that railroads embraced photography--and vice versa." The center's exhibit also is at the Middleton, Wisconsin, railroad depot, which has offices for the city's tourism center and excursion train.

As archival collections held by nonprofit institutions continue to grow in quality and quantity, so too railroad images are continuing to become more accessible and available to the public eye. Some 18 major depositories have an estimated 2,586,000 images. At six of these locations, images are available on the Internet. Nine have at least minimal motion picture holdings. In the future, the Center plans a comprehensive review of these holdings.

Railroad photography as an artistic discipline often has been overlooked, as I pointed in the Preservation Points column in Trains (June 2002). But after 160 years in a pivotal role in the industry's life and evolution, it should be no surprise that the rest of the world is "discovering" the power of railroad images. We can look forward to more respect for what we have for so long taken for granted.

No. 4, 2001

• The Diesel Commemoration, 2
  The first diesel-electric locomotive was built in 1905 for the Southern Pacific.
• Link and Model Builder, 3
  Lionel's magazine published photos by O. Winston Link on at least four covers.
• Planning Begins for Link Museum, 4
  Roanoke groups reach agreement with trustees of his estate for museum.
• Animas Canyon, a Photographic Landmark, 5
  William Henry Jackson's famous images appears in Harper's Weekly in 1886.
• Ted Rose Sees Industrial Landscape, 8
  Many of his watercolors include railroads and railroad workers.
• Hine's Depiction of Railroaders, 12
  Pennsylvania Railroad people introduce "Men at Work" series in 1920.

Editorial: The Diesel Commemoration

In a wide ranging address last fall, historian John Hankey challenged the railroad preservation and museum community with a simple question: Who is going to commemorate the centennial of the diesel-electric locomotive in two or three years? For decades, the railroad history community more or less uncritically accepted the mid-1920s as the beginning of the diesel-electric locomotive era. But important precursors stretched back to the turn of the century, and Kyle Williams Wyatt, now a curator at the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, wrote about what likely is the first North American diesel-electric locomotive in the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society Newsletter (fall 1996). Planning started in 1904, and the locomotive was built for the Southern Pacific in 1905.

Wyatt's research, sparked by a two-page article in the December 1904 Marconigram (published in New York City), establishes that the SP worked creatively with the newly-formed American Locomotive Company to design a locomotive similar in concept and layout to today's AC behemoths. The Railway Master Mechanic (April 1905) described it thus: "The Southern Pacific company has been making a series of experiments with a motor car which is driven by electric motors at the axles, the current being furnished by dynamos, direct connected to large Diesel oil engines, located in the car." The New York Times (March 15, 1905) and Chicago Tribune (March 14, 1905) wrote about it.'

'Even a century ago, American railroading was part of a global technological community. "The diesel-electric locomotive is based on a prime mover perfected by German engineers (Nikolaus Otto and Rudolf Diesel), based on the thermodynamic theory of a couple of mid-nineteenth century French mathematicians (Sadi Canot and Alphonse Beau de Rochas). The electrical gear included the dynamo perfected by Thomas Edison, but it was merely an elaboration of the dynamo invented by Werner Siemens in Germany a few years earlier. The English chemist Michael Faraday and Scottish physicist James Clerk Maxwell had laid the theoretical groundwork for applied electromagnetism. And it all began with Alessandro Volta, who perfected the battery in Italy two centuries ago," Hankey noted.

Hankey's challenge went much farther than recognition of the centennial. An act of commemoration would probe deeply. It would look for causes, connections, motivations. It would search out what is real and important and novel. The diesel locomotive changed the railroad industryÐbut where did it come from? These questions should be part of a thoughtful commemoration."

It has been a year since Hankey issued the challenge. He cast it as a very broad effort shared by railroad history organizations across the continent. The Center is ideally poised to work with many different kinds of institutions interested in how this revolutionary technology was represented in the visual arts. Almost every aspect of the diesel electric era in American railroading is well documented in photos and art, and any serious presentation of its history has to rely on images.

The Center is ready to do its part in this exciting and important commemoration. Who else will accept the challenge?

John Gruber, President, Center for Railroad Photography and Art

No. 3, 2001 (out of print)

• The Visual Record, 2
• Stitt's B&O Legacy Continues, 3
  Artist's magazine covers show railroad's historic events.
• Ganaway Captures Train's Spirit, 4
  20th Century Limited photo wins Wanamaker prize in 1921.
• "Photo by Rittase," 6
  Philadelphia pictorial photographer finds dramatic railroad scenes.
• Nickel Plate Road by Bob Lorenz, 10
  Paintings shows a scene in the west Bellevue yard.
• Patten's Distinctive Designs, 12
  General Electric industrial designer styles PA/FA locomotives.
• Two PAs Return for Restoration, 15
  Former Santa Fe units are in Albany, Oregon.
• Bubley Builds Photo Archive, 16
  Second in a series about Roy Stryker's Standard Oil Project
• Diary of a Wartime Boxcar, 18
  Magazine ad tells about Pennsylvania's 59944.

Editorial: Railroads and Society, the Visual Record

As the larger field of railway heritage grows and evolves, it becomes more and more important for organizations to both take the lead in their own areas of expertise and collaborate with others to move projects forward. that is the situation the Center finds itself in today.

Indiana University Press, along with several other academic presses throughout the United States, has made a commitment to publish both scholarly and trade books on railroad subjects. These respected publishers have realized that there is a market for quality railroad books, and that such works are important contributions to the growing literature of railroading.

One of the most important works IUP has in the works is a comprehensive encyclopedia of North American railroading, being assembled under the general editorship of William D. Middleton and George Smerk. The encyclopedia will involve hundreds of authors, almost a million words, and several years of effort.

The result will be the first truly comprehensive source on railroading ever produced in this country. It will be an important resource for libraries, scholars, and anyone interested in railroad history and heritage. There will be the usual short entries on the usual subjects. But the encyclopedia's editors hope also to include many forgotten and obscure topics and to correct some of the myths and misunderstandings which have crept into railroading's vast literature.

One of the primary objectives of the Center is to document the history of railroad artists, photographers, and the use of imagery throughout the industry. Recognizing that expertise, John Hankey, editor of the encyclopedia's section on railroads and society, approached the Center about collaborating on a series of encyclopedia articles treating its area of expertise--railroad art and photography.

This is just the kind of collaboration which benefits the center, the encyclopedia project, and the larger goal of presenting a complete and accurate story of North America's rich Railroad Heritage. It represents a common sense approach - the Center has a large and growing database and the ability to solicit high-quality articles from people knowledgeable in its field of interest.

But it also represents the fruits of our efforts over the past few years to create an active and useful organization. The fact that Hankey reached out to the Center for its participation - and that he, as one of the editors, recognized the importance of railroad art and photography - is evidence that the Center is on the right track.

The details remain to be worked out. But we are pleased to be part of the Indiana University Press railroad encyclopedia project. We look forward to giving the men and women who created the visual record their due.

No. 2, 2000

• Why an Archive? 2
• Barriger's Unique Visual Record, 3
  John W. Barriger III emphasized the interaction of the railroad and the landscape.
• Gallagher Wins R&LHS Photo Award, 5
  His remarkable black and white views have made a lasting impression on the railroad scene.
• Starlight's Images Shine, 6
  New book shows night photography in all its splendor.
• Bennett Builds Railroad's Image, 9
  Wisconsin Dells photographer boosts train travel in the 1880s.
• Miner's Railroad Art Collection, by Don Arends, 12
  Manufacturer's calendars feature 36 Howard Fogg paintings.
• Roy Emerson Stryker and the Elusive, by Robert Doherty, 16
  His hidden agenda: a "sweeping record" of the American earth and culture
• Libsohn Views Southern Changes, 18
  Standard Oil photographer records steam/diesel transition in 1947.
• Bonds to Past, Hidden from View, by William Watt, 21
  The best of the corporate securities are now consider works of art.

Editorial: Why an Archive?

The response to the first issue of Railroad Heritage was rewarding. We were pleased to hear from so many people, with comments such as this one from Virginia: "It is about time that someone started a center for railroad photography and art. After all, railroads and railroading are as much a part of the American culture, as say, the automobile. There is just such a wealth of excellent rail art/photography in this country that most of the American public is totally unaware of."

We described our vision for the magazine itself, and its part in our efforts to showcase the best in railroad photography and art. Already, the size (24 pages) of the quarterly is proving inadequate. To preserve space for art and articles, and to make the information timely and even more useful, we placed some features, such as the exhibits and events calendars, on the Center's Internet site at www.railphoto-art.org.

In this issue, we want to begin a conversation with our readers and supporters about a second initiative of the center: building an archive. You may ask, Why is it important to build an archive? Why don't we use other collections as the foundation for our exhibitions and publications?

We use as many sources as possible for our research, education, and service activities, and list resources on our web site. We scour the country for images and information, often finding evidence and insights in the most unlikely places. That is the nature of research in general, and the rich and complex story of railroading in particular. But sometimes that just isn't enough. It's important to have images easily and quickly available, first and foremost so you can set the standards for high quality and usage.

What the center can do is provide models for the use and administration of railroad images. With its own collections as a basis, the center can be more effective as a coordinating body for the millions of images potentially available.

An important goal in having collections is making them widely available, and demonstrating how they can be presented in new and innovative ways, to contribute to public understanding. In our organization, the creation and use of image archives will be a priority. Perhaps that sets us apart from other institutions in another way, also. Our goal is not collecting in itself, but for the role of the images in telling the bigger story of the visual heritage of railroading.

No industry has a closer relationship with the growth of America. Main line and tourist railroads continue to draw impressive public attention. If you have any doubt, listen to author Stephen E. Ambrose who saw crowds along the tracks while riding a Union Pacific steam train: "It was then I learned how America has lost her heart to steam-driven locomotives." And he might well have added details about the other aspects of railroads people find interesting.

We ask for your suggestions. Your gifts are vital for our continuing success. Please take a few moments to reflect on our achievements and our goals. If you like what you see, help make it happen by sending contributions. It will be a rewarding journey though railroading's grand artistic accomplishments.

John Gruber, President, Center for Railroad Photography and Art

No. 1, 2000 (out of print)

• Photo Archives in the Donnelley Railroad Collection, by Arthur H. Miller, Archivist, Lake Forest College, 3-5. Information about the library's Munson Paddock and Arthur Dubin Collections.
• Memorable Rail Photographs of the 20th Century, 6-11. The Center lists 20 creative railroad photographers, with images from 10 of them.
• Inventor of the Limited Booklet, by Michael Zega, 12-13. The Pennsylvania Railroad's pamphlet advertising the Pennsylvania Limited "has seldom been equaled."
• Storm Limits Exposure, 14-15. Torkel Korling tells how me made a photograph of eight Chicago & North Western locomotives in 1930.
• Diesel Styles & Styling, by Greg Palumbo and John Gruber, 16-19. Electro-Motive's design and styling came from the same Detroit staff that styled automobiles.
• Profile: Artist Gil Reid, 20-23. Reid's proud record covers 60 years of artistic accomplishment.
• Sweet Memories, 24. Reid's painting, in color, of the New Haven for railroader Chris Burger.

Editorial: The Image of Railroading

Railroading has strong visual traditions, stronger than you may realize at first glance. The imagesÐin silver, on canvas, negative or positiveÐhave been a part of the industry from its beginnings in the 1830s.

The goal of the Center for Railroad Photography and Art is to share this exciting story with you in as many ways as possible: this quarterly, exhibitions, Internet, workshops, an archive, and more. We will explore the visual impact the industry had on the life of America, and look closely at railroading itself in all its splendor and glory and color.

The Center has accomplished a great deal since its founding. The exhibition, "Railroads and Photography: 150 Years of Great Images," opened in June 1999 in Sacramento. It has since traveled to Altoona, Pennsylvania; Madison, Wisconsin; Lake Forest, Illinois; and Champaign and Franklin Park, Illinois; and reopens June 13 at the John W. Barriger III National Railroad Library. A web site (www.railphoto-art.org) provides complementary information including an up-to-date events calendar.

The next step in the Center's growth is Railroad Heritage, which you see here for the first time. This quarterly will showcase the best railroad photography and art. We want to illustrate with dramatic images how railroading touched the lives of people everywhere. The Center and its quarterly plan to encourage creativity, bring new work to public view, and provide a forum for discussion and explanation of creative works of earlier years.

The Center has invited knowledgeable artists, photographers, curators, and educators to form an editorial advisory board. Railroad Heritage will represent the very best work being done in the fields of railroad art and cultureÐand it will strive to advance a broader appreciation of all forms of the visual representation of railroading. The second issue will include coverage of books and articles about rail photography and art. Your ideas are welcome.

Railroad companies themselves made a stunning visual record of the building of the network and the opening of the Continent. Today an ever-increasing number of artists and photographers portray the romance, history, and continuing development of railroading.

These spectacular sights and sounds are alive and well today on tourist railroads and America's main lines. No industry has a closer relationship with the growth of America. Steel rails, the "iron horse," and the railroader made much of the country's development possible. Scarce indeed is the American whose family tree does not include a railroader or whose life has not been influenced by the railroad. Through the preservation and presentation of art and photography, the Center offers a new and unprecedented view of the railroad's influence on American culture.

We ask for your suggestions and support. Your gifts are vital for our continuing success. Please take a few moments to reflect on our achievements, review our goalsÐand if you like what you see, help make it happen by sending contributions. It will be a rewarding journey though railroading's grand artistic accomplishments, and a glimpse at an equally bright future.

John Gruber, President, Center for Railroad Photography and Art