Welcome to Vintage Railroad Postcards!

Thank you for stopping by! This is the blog for the Russell P. Panecki Collection of vintage railroad-related postcards. The entire collection consists of nearly one thousand so far with images dating from circa 1904 to the 1950s. To leave a comment, ask a question, to contribute or correct historical information, a comment box is located to the left for your convenience.

Each page, including this homepage, has an index located in the lower portion of the page. In addition to the index, posts were updated with historical information, new postcards added from storage files, while some posts were completely rewritten or edited for corrections. Three articles have been added and are worth reading. They include how vintage postcards were made, the history of Pennsylvania Station, and the history of Grand Central Terminal.

My apologies, but the postcards in my collection and on this blog are not available for sale, copying, or for contribution to projects. Please keep in mind that I reserve all rights to the images and content of this blog.

Thursday, May 9, 2024

New Additions for Spring 2024

It's train time in Chillicothe, Ohio in this 1911 view of a B&O passenger train. The stamp is RPO cancelled.

This circa 1906 right-of-way view along the Reading Railroad shows a good example of an early signal system known as a "banjo signal" because of the signal housing shape. Invented in 1969 by Thomas Hall and were also known as Hall signals. Using an early form of electrical track current, colored red or green fabric mounted on a frame rolled up or down inside the housing and utilized daylight for illumination. There was also a small opening lit by a lantern to show the color aspect at night. Used extensively on the Reading, Hall signals were the predecessors of the semaphore signal system. For more information, follow this link.

 It's train time in Bristolville, Ohio as the engine and station crew pose for posterity circa 1915.

 



The Los Angeles Limited carried passengers in sumptuous luxury, as can be seen from this 1910 postcard.

 

This is a rare circa 1906 postcard view of the Eldorado Springs Railway Company's passenger operation. Three miles of standard gauge track connected the resort of Eldorado Springs, known as "The Coney Island of the West", to Marshall, a mining town three miles to the east. Two years later, the Colorado & Southern took over the trackage and was finally electrified by the Denver & Interurban.
 
 
 

The Central of Georgia "Man O' War", one of two name trains operated by the railroad, ran from Columbus to Atlanta, was inaugurated in 1947.
 


 
 

 
The Budd Company of Philadelphia, PA designed these self-propelled, diesel powered rail cars and began production in 1949. Although not a new concept, almost four hundred units were made for use in commuter service and in areas with lower passenger traffic that didn't require a traditional train. Several cars could be coupled together and operated as an "MU", or multiple unit, train with the lead car controlling the motors and brakes of the others. The RDCs were available in a combination of passenger, baggage, and railway post office configurations. In Canada, both the Canadian National and Canadian Pacific railroads operated the units. The Canadian National referred to their RDCs as "Railiners" while the Canadian Pacific used the term "Dayliners". For more information, click here.

 



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