The Center’s August 11 Zoom presentation is a fascinating story about long-lost railroad artwork uncovered after forty years. Emily Mizokami, assistant archivist at the California State Railroad Museum Library and Archives, will share her recent discovery of original rail art by Elizabeth “Betty” Tone Summers. Mizokami found the artist’s pieces scattered amongst other records while processing collections left untouched for decades in the museum’s vault.
Tuesday, August 11, 2026, at 7:00 pm Central Time (8 pm Eastern, 6 pm Mountain, and 5 pm Pacific)
As a young woman in the 1940s, Betty Tone Summers dreamed of becoming an architect; however, that industry was not welcoming to women during that time. Tone Summers switched to sketching and painting what she loved: steam locomotives.
While selling her silk-screened Christmas cards door to door, she met the president of the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society (R&LHS), Charles E. Fisher. After this meeting, she worked for 45 years as the art editor and lead artist for the society’s publication the Bulletin (rebranded Railroad History in 1972). She thrived in the male-dominated field and remains the only woman to create original art for the magazine’s cover.
In this upcoming presentation, Mizokami will detail how the works were discovered and later cataloged and made accessible. She will also tell the story of Tone Summers’ life and legacy and provide insight into the artist’s style and lasting impact.
Tone Summers captured the final days of steam-powered trains in her artwork. Railfans and industry experts admired her sketches for their accurate details. Tone Summers carved out a lasting graphic arts career in New York City for decades. One of her paintings is housed at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, and her work is featured in multiple magazines, books, and even a record album.
This program will be recorded and later posted to the Center’s YouTube channel at @railphotoart.
