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Fall 2026: Painting Cass Shays, Water, Route 66, Seattle’s Monorail Murals, and more
$9.75 The Fall 2026 issue is a rollicking road trip with the railroads of Route 66, which celebrates its 100th anniversary in November! U.S. 66 largely followed the GM&O, Frisco,…
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Zoom program: Crossing the Mojave Desert with Steinheimer
The Center’s September 15th Zoom presentation is a long-awaited look at the California desert photography of the great Richard Steinheimer! We’re diving into “Stein’s” collection to show you his photographs…
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Collection Tracking: California’s Mojave Desert with Richard Steinheimer
“For the Santa Fe there is always the desert,” wrote Richard Steinheimer in the August 1977 issue of Trains. That line opened his landmark photo essay, “Mojave Crossing,” which explored…
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Collection Tracking: Chicago’s 21st Street with Wally Abbey
Chicago is the railroad hub of North America and the most-represented city in the archives of the Center for Railroad Photography & Art. We’ll likely return to the Windy City…
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Zoom program: The Lost Railroad Art of Elizabeth Tone Summers
The Center’s August 11 Zoom presentation was a fascinating story about long-lost railroad artwork uncovered after forty years. Emily Mizokami, assistant archivist at the California State Railroad Museum (CSRM) Library…
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Summer 2026 Railroad Heritage: The Poetry of Railway Bridges, Out of the Archives, Conversations 2026
$9.75 Lovers of bridges and railroad photography will be overjoyed with the Summer 2026 issue of Railroad Heritage, our quarterly journal. In this unique issue, we devote most of it…
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Zoom program: Traqueros in Chicago and the Midwest on July 14
Over a century has passed since the first wave of Mexican immigrants arrived in Chicago, many directly recruited by railroad companies. However, the history of Mexican and Mexican-American traqueros (railroad…
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Collection Tracking: Switzerland’s Lötschberg Pass with Karl Zimmermann
On July 13, 1977, Karl Zimmermann disembarked from a Bern-Lötschberg-Simplon (BLS) train at Hohtenn, a lonely station on the southern flank of Switzerland’s Bernese Alps. The station sits 800 feet…
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Zoom program: The Poetry of Railway Bridges
This program was recorded and is available at the link below. Lovers of bridges and great railroad photography will be thrilled with our June 30th Zoom program, featuring Todd Halamka,…
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Conversations West a big success in Colorado
CRP&A’s special one-day conference at the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden, Colorado, on Saturday, August 22, attracted an enthusiastic crowd of 65, who enjoyed photography and art presentations, train rides,…
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Collection Tracking: Madison, Wisconsin, with John Gruber
Madison, Wisconsin, might be the only place in the world where two railroad lines cross at grade on causeways in the middle of a lake. The Badger State’s capital city…
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David Kahler, 1937-2026
All of us at the Center for Railroad Photography & Art mourn the passing of David Kahler, who died on April 14, 2026 at the age of 89. He was…
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David Plowden, 1932-2026
We’re deeply saddened to report the passing of David Plowden, one of the giants in American photography and a friend of the CRP&A from its founding. Plowden passed away on…
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Zoom program: Four decades of Northeast rail photography with Ken Karlewicz
Thanks to the nearly 150 who joined us Tuesday, May 12, for “Lure of the Rails,” an evening with Northeast photographer Ken Karlewicz. Ken developed an early appreciation for photography…
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Introducing our new site
Our newly overhauled website was a two-month project that we’ve been wanting to do for the past five years. Staff members Jordan Craig and Scott Lothes will take you behind…
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PBS Wisconsin program: Railroads of Madison and South Central Wisconsin
On March 19, 2026, PBS Wisconsin aired the Center’s program “Railroads of Madison and South Central Wisconsin,” a presentation by Scott Lothes about the history and development of railroads in…
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Spring 2026: Freedom Train, Hudson Highlands, Travels with Don, and more
Just in time for the America 250 celebration, the Spring issue of Railroad Heritage will take readers back fifty years, to a time when the American Freedom Train crossed the…
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Zoom program: Charting the Wolverine with artist Elaine S. Wilson
In the Center’s March 2026 Zoom presentation, artist Elaine S. Wilson describes her ongoing project, Charting the Wolverine, a series of digital prints about the views from Amtrak’s Wolverine train…
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Zoom member-exclusive program: “Dining in Motion – Railroad Cuisine History”
The Center’s Zoom presentation “Dining in Motion” is a members-exclusive feast for the eyes! Staff members Adrienne Evans and Lisa Hardy, along with CRP&A board member Justin Franz, combine to celebrate the…
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Zoom program: “Focus on Texas” spotlights Springer and Lamb railroad photography
This program is available at the Center’s YouTube page, below. See railroading in the Lone Star State through the eyes of J. Parker Lamb and Fred Springer, two photographers who…
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Register today for Conversations 2026
Registration is now available for Conversations 2026, the annual conference hosted by the Center for Railroad Photography & Art, on the weekend of April 24-26. This year’s conference will be…
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Winter 2026: Rio Grande spectacular, Mississippian Railway, colorful steam art, and more
$9.75 From spectacular Rio Grande photography in Colorado to the 24-mile Mississippian Railway and much more, Railroad Heritage has something for everyone! The Winter 2026 issue of our quarterly member…
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Conversations moves to Indianapolis for 2026
The Center’s annual Conversations conference is moving to the Indiana History Center in downtown Indianapolis in 2026. The dates are April 24-26. The venue’s auditorium has seating for 290 and…
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Zoom program: “Railroad Photography – The Old Way” with Jim Ehernberger
The Center’s December Zoom program is an evening with the legendary James Ehernberger. During the past 65 years, Jim has authored (or co-authored) about 50 books and numerous magazine articles,…
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Zoom program: Curating All Aboard: The Railroad in American Art
Julie Novarese Pierotti will share her insights as curator of the exhibition All Aboard: The Railroad in American Art, 1840-1955, which explores the depictions of trains and train infrastructure in…
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Fall 2025: Victor Hand steam, Canadian Pacific art, “Smoke” and archives galleries
$7.95 To celebrate 200 years of railroading, Railroad Heritage magazine rolls into Fall with a cover story about Victor Hand’s British steam photography, Canadian Pacific artwork in the Rockies, a…
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Zoom program: Northern Light—Creating a Portrait of BC Rail
Attendees of CRP&A’s annual conference, Conversations 2025, selected their favorite presentation from a stellar lineup of presenters—a very difficult choice for everyone. In a very close decision, Dale Sanders’ presentation,…
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Zoom program: 200 years of the Stockton & Darlington Railway
Born in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1951, Dutch’s interest in railroads was ignited after a family trip on the New York Central when he was three years old. Prior to his…
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Chicago Union Station at 100: Stories in photography
Join the Center for Railroad Photography & Art as we celebrate the 100th anniversary of Chicago Union Station, a cathedral of railroading made famous in films like The Untouchables and…
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The Kalmbach Art Collection
The Kalmbach Art Collection: Pairing Words and Imagery showcases the artwork of Kalmbach Publishing Co., which donated their collection to the Center for Railroad Photography & Art in 2024. Fifty-three…