Continuity & Change: The Lure of North American Railroads

Continuity & Change: The Lure of North American Railroads is a dazzling publication by the Center for Railroad Photography & Art that explores the photography of contemporary railroading in North America and the passage of time. 230 photographs and thirteen essays delve into a wide range of topics: railroads and nature, pathways of commerce, passenger railroading, heritage activities, workers, international connections, continent-crossing networks, and how the passage of time marks both railroads and photography.

That last notion is at the heart of this 384-page book. Railroads and photography came of age together in the nineteenth century and share a dynamic relationship in the twenty-first. That relationship flows from the traditions of both photojournalism and commercial photography, and it is defined today by the paradox of continuity and change.

Drawing from the Center’s talented community of image-makers and from their own lifelong interests in railroads and the visual arts, editors Alexander Craghead and Scott Lothes present a stunning body of work in a lavish production. As a bonus to commemorate the Center’s 25th anniversary, eight foldouts are included with spectacular railroad images that could not be limited to two pages of coverage.

Continuity & Change is a landmark book that makes the compelling case that the union of railroads and photography is as rich and potent as ever.

  • Hardcover, 11×11 inches, 384 pages, 230 photographs including eight foldouts
  • $65 plus $9 for domestic shipping (It weighs 6.5 pounds!)
  • International shipping is available; please inquire by email at info [at] railphoto-art.org

The Railroad and the Art of Place: An Anthology

The imprint of the railroad on the North American landscape remains indelible across space and time. A handsome hardcover book from the Center for Railroad Photography & Art, The Railroad and the Art of Place: An Anthology, examines the industry’s history and physical presence to match its status as an economic or cultural force. Noted editors and authors Jeff Brouws, Alexander Craghead, David Kahler, and Kevin Keefe have assembled the work of 25 contemporary photographers who explore the post-industrial railroad landscape beyond the mere portrayal of passing trains. Narrative essays by many of the photographers offer historical context and deeply personal insights into what drives their art.

In The Railroad and the Art of Place: An Anthology, readers experience a rich world of isolated prairie towns, once-grand railway terminals and small-town depots, imperious mountain main lines, sprawling locomotive facilities, congested factories and steel mills, and lonely grade crossings. In every image, the emphasis is on exploring the broader railroad environment — its architecture, its sense of place, its essence, its feeling.

Produced to the highest standards and featuring 230 color and black-and-white photographs, this deluxe 372-page book is printed on heavy stock and portrays a storied industrial culture in an entirely new context. Generously funded by the Kahler Family Charitable Fund.

$60 plus $5 for domestic shipping, hardcover, 11×11 inches, 372 pages, 230 photographs

International shipping is available; please inquire by email at info [at] railphoto-art.org

Cover of the book "The Railroad and the Art of Place: An Anthology"

Digital Excerpts

The Railroad Photography of Donald W. Furler

Donald W. Furler helped write the rules of railroad action photography. From taking engine pictures as a teenager in the early 1930s, he joined an elite group of railroad photographers who created a new aesthetic to portray the drama of steam railroading in motion. From the late 1930s through the 1950s, he dedicated nearly all of this free time to documenting operations throughout the northeastern United States and Canada, using a succession of ever-larger cameras for maximum detail and clarity. The Furler Collection is a cornerstone of the Center for Railroad Photography & Art’s archive, and we are proud to present this monograph.

Scott Lothes, the Center’s president and executive director, wrote the text and selected the photographs. His lead essay examines Furler’s life and photography, his relationship with the first editors of Trains magazine, and the changing railroad landscape of the Northeast. Maps by David Styffe present those railroads as they appeared in 1946 at the height of Furler’s activity and as they are today. Alan G. Furler, the photographer’s son, provides a poignant and personal Afterword.

$60 plus $5 for domestic shipping, hardcover, 10×11 inches, 216 pages, 200 duotone photographs

International shipping is available; please inquire by email at info [at] railphoto-art.org

The Railroad Photography of J. Parker Lamb

J. Parker Lamb broke new ground in railroad photography. His exceptional collection came to the Center for Railroad Photography & Art in 2015, and his work is now the subject of a book, published by the Center.

The text comes from Kevin P. Keefe and Fred W. Frailey. Frailey wrote a foreword that presents Lamb’s life story while contextualizing his work within the pantheon of railroad photography. Keefe served as editor, writing captions as well as an afterword focused on the singularity of Lamb’s photography in the South. Jeff Brouws and Wendy Burton did the design work, while Scott Lothes assisted with photo editing and digital prepress production.

$60 plus $5 for domestic shipping, hardcover, 10×11 inches, 208 pages, 160 duotone photographs




International shipping is available; please inquire by email at info [at] railphoto-art.org

After Promontory: 150 Years of Transcontinental Railroading

After Promontory: One Hundred Fifty Years of Transcontinental Railroading, edited by the Center and published by Indiana University Press in 2019, is part of a major project examining the histories and impacts of all of the nation’s transcontinental railroads. The 10×10-inch hardcover book features 19th-century photographs by some of the most ac­complished photographers in the nation’s history—artists such as William Henry Jackson, Timothy H. O’Sullivan, and Car­leton E. Watkins. Also included is recent photogra­phy from artists who explore the lasting impact the railroads have had on the landscape, both to the benefit and the costs of the region. At stake in all of these images, both period and more contemporary, is not only the railroad itself as a subject, but how photographers of different eras, with different motivations and different sensibilities, have thought of the transcontinental railroads and their legacies.

Expanding on the visual themes in the companion exhibit, the book offers a deeper look at the circumstances, histories, and impacts of the railroads that came to connect the Midwest with the Pacific Coast. Essays by railroad historians Keith L. Bryant, H. Roger Grant, Don Hofsommer, and Maury Klein add context and depth to the book’s 240 photographs. Robert D. Krebs, who served in the executive offices of railroads in all three regions, including as chairman and CEO of the BNSF Railway, wrote the foreword. Photographer Drake Hokanson, in the book’s concluding essay, reflects on photographing the transcontinental railroads then and now, and what these images can teach us.

$60 plus $5 for domestic shipping, hardcover, 10×10 inches, 320 pages, color and b/w





International shipping is available; please inquire by email at info [at] railphoto-art.org