Opening Hours
Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
Rare Books
Rare Books
Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
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Rare Books
Includes train(s): The Georgian; The Humming Bird; The Dixieland. Note: These two railroads merged in 1957.
646607
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Rare Books
Includes train(s): The Georgian; The Humming Bird; The Dixieland. Includes (selected items): pamphlet. "The Louisville and Nashville Railroad--A brief biography of a railroad which has served the South for over 100 years" (1959?); "L & N, A pictorial history of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad." These two railroads merged in 1957.
646607
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Rare Books
Includes train(s): City of Memphis.
646607
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Rare Books
This collection of railroad ephemera, photographs, prints and posters concerns only streamliner trains--the wind-resistant, "streamlined" designs first appearing on major U.S. railroads in 1934 and peaking in the glamour years of the American streamliner, late 1930s to 1955. The sleek, fast trains were promoted for their speed, luxury and comfort compared to older, heavyweight steam locomotives. The bulk of the collection is composed of passenger brochures, with especially extensive files on Union Pacific; Southern Pacific; New York Central; Chicago, Burlington and Quincy ("the Burlington"); and the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe ("the Santa Fe") railroads. There are also many materials on Amtrak (formed in 1971), and foreign railroads, particularly in Canada, Europe and Japan. Besides brochures, other printed materials include: manufacturer's pamphlets, employee newsletters, press releases, blueprints of railcars, copies of U.S. Patent Office design applications, menus, lounge car stationery, baggage stickers and other items. The photographs are mostly railroad-issued 8 x 10-inch prints showing train exteriors and richly designed dining cars, lounge cars, sleeping cabins and domed observation cars. There are also many high-quality small-format photographs made by Leslie Merrill and other amateur photographers, 1938 to 1960s. The prints and posters mostly consist of promotions for U.S. railroads, with several notable pre-World War II posters for European railroads. An important section of the collection covers early streamlining experiments of the late-19th century: Samuel R. Calthrop's "air-resisting" train of 1865; Frederick U. Adams's "Windsplitter" of 1893; Joe V. Meigs' "Meigs Elevated Railway" monorail in 1880s Boston; and William Riley McKeen Jr.'s aerodynamic McKeen Motor Car of the 1900s. In addition to railroad history, other topics of social and cultural historical interest are: Depictions of African Americans and Native Americans in mass-marketed train travel brochures. There are many examples that reflect American cultural and class stereotypes in the early- to mid-20th century. History of food and drink: See numerous dining car and beverage menus (not always noted in container list). History of advertising, graphic design and typography represented in 20th-century railroad print advertising.
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Rare Books
Includes train(s): The Lake Cities; Erie Limited; Atlantic Express; The Phoebe Snow. Includes photographs. Includes (selected items): one item for DM&IR: 1957 letter and photograph of Budd RDC coach car. One item for EJ&ER: 1947 letter and freight diesel bulletin. Several items for Erie railroads.
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Rare Books
Includes train(s): The Rebel; Gulf Coast Rebel. Includes (selected items): some materials for the Alton Railroad, which merged into the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad in 1947.
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