Railroads: Tracks Across America - Explore Historic US Train Routes & Scenic Journeys | Perfect for Travel Enthusiasts & History Buffs

This two-disc publication offers a wide range of films dealing with the history of American railroads, maintenance of roadbeds and tracks, construction and operation of locomotives and rolling stock, research and equipment improvements, freight classification yards, train orders, central traffic control, administering freight traffic, life on passenger trains, providing services for passengers, the role of freight trains, types of cargoes transported, locations served by passenger trains (including scenic attractions), the philosophies of railroad companies, and the attitudes of railroad workers. Although most of these films were presented by specific railroads and railroad associations, some of them are focused on non-railroad subjects. The quality varies with the date of production, with the more recent films providing better images and sound. Brief descriptions of all these films are given below. Some have also been reproduced on other CDs.1. America’s Railroads: The Glory Years (2010) [color & black & white; 33 minutes]. A history of U.S. railroads, from the 1820s to the 21st Century, with thumbnail sketches of some specific railroads (especially the Baltimore & Ohio, the Pennsylvania Railroad, the Reading, the Erie, the New York Central, the Rock Island, the Northern Pacific, the Great Northern, the Santa Fe, and the Southern Pacific).2. Wheels of Progress (ca. 1950) [color; 18 minutes]. Presented by the Rock Island Lines. Role of railroads in moving raw materials, and agricultural produce. Train equipment and operation.3. A Great Railroad at Work (1942) [black & white; 38 minutes]. Presented by the New York, New Haven and Hartford. Passenger and freight operation and maintenance.4. Desert Empire (1948) [black & white; 20 minutes]. Produced for the Denver and Rio Grande Western. The history, scenery, and resources of Utah. Limited information about railroads.5. The Big Train (ca. 1955) [black & white; 26 minutes]. Presented by the New York Central. The role of railroads; improvements based on research; and track maintenance. Follows a freight train from Chicago to New York City. Includes a 6-minute commentary by Alfred Perlman, in which he criticizes the tax system in which railroads had to construct and pay taxes on their rights of way, while competing industries (e.g., trucking companies) did not have to build highways or pay taxes on them.6. New Horizons (1948) [color; 17 minutes]. Presented by Seaboard Airline Railroad. Mainly about products of the South. Little about railroads.7. Troop Train (1943) [black & white; 10 minutes]. Produced by the Office of War Information. Demonstrates how trains moved soldiers and army equipment during the war.8. The Passenger Train (1954) [black & white; 10 minutes]. Produced by Encyclopaedia Britannica, this film follows a boy’s railroad trip on the Santa Fe from Chicago to Lamy, NM. [Scientists en route to Los Alamos to develop the atomic bomb got off their trains at Lamy.]9. This Is My Railroad (1946) [color; 29 minutes]. Presented by the Southern Pacific Railroad. Covers track laying, assembling trains, maintenance, communication, and roles of various railroad workers.10. At This Moment (1954) [color; 26 minutes]. Produced by the Westinghouse Air Brake Company. Docudrama explains how railroads contributed to the U.S. by carrying mail, agricultural and industrial goods, and passengers. Describes various types of improvements.11. Big Trains Rolling (1955) [color; 24 minutes]. This is a re-make of a 1946 Association of American Railroads film bearing the same title. It employs a better recording of the earlier film’s narrative, but features more modern footage than the original (e.g., diesels in place of steam engines). It explains railroads’ role in moving freight and passengers.12. Mainline USA (1957) [color; 20 minutes]. Presented by the Association of American Railroads. Describes how railroads carried passengers and various types of freight, and stimulated the economy by purchasing fuel and steel products. Explains improvements in technology, and notes that railroads, unlike other transportation industries, not only paid to build their rights of way, but also paid taxes on them.13. Beef Rings the Bell (1960) [color; 28 minutes]. Although produced by the Union Pacific, it is not about railroads, but rather about the beef industry, from breeding, feeding, transporting, auctioning, packing, meat cutting, etc.14. Safe Roads (1935) [black & white; 8 minutes]. Presented by Chevrolet, this film urges automobile drivers to emulate railroad safety procedures.15. 3rd Avenue El (1955) [color; 10 minutes]. An art film by Carson Davidson that was nominated for an Academy Award. Lacking a spoken narrative, but accompanied by Wanda Landowska’s harpsichord performance of Haydn’s Concerto in D, this film follows the Third Avenue Elevated train in New York City, showing the street scenes it passed, and the variety of passengers it served.16. Operation Fast Freight (1950) [color; 25 minutes]. Follows a Norfolk & Western time freight from Columbus to Norfolk, describing cargoes, equipment, and personnel.17. The Modern Coal Burning Steam Locomotive (1944) [color; 25 minutes]. A Norfolk & Western presentation. Explains how steam locomotives were made, and how service was reduced and simplified by roller bearings and mechanical lubricators. Emphasizes the low cost, dependability, and reliability of modern steam engines.18. Flight of the Century (ca. 1935) [black & white; 17 minutes]. Produced by the New York Central. Follows the Twentieth Century Limited from Chicago to New York City, showing the preparation, personnel, and operation of this famous train.19. The Steam Locomotive (ca. mid-1930s) [black & white; 10 minutes]. Explains the operation and servicing of steam engines.20. Railroads and Western Expansion (1978 ?) [color; 15 minutes]. Presented by the BFA Educational Media. Describes railroads’ role in settling the West, waging the Civil War, spanning the continent, and transporting agricultural and manufactured goods and the mail.21. The Nickel Plate Story (1952) [color; 19 minutes]. Mainly about freight service, follows freight trains en route to Buffalo from St. Louis, Peoria, and Chicago.22. End of An Era (1962) [color; 18 minutes]. Covers the conversion of the Rayonier Lumber railroad from steam to diesel.23. The California Zephyr (ca. 1950) [black & white; 9 minutes]. Follows this train (with its five vista dome cars) as it travels from Chicago to San Francisco, describing its equipment and the scenery it passes.24. Return of the General (ca. 1962) [color; 10 minutes]. The “General” became famous for its role in the Great Locomotive Chase during the Civil War. This film documents the General’s activities in the 1960s following its restoration. (It is not the same locomotive that appears in the 1956 Walt Disney movie.)25. The Freight Train (1954) [black & white; 10 minutes]. Follows Santa Fe Train No. 40 from Kansas City to Chicago, explaining how trains were assembled and operated.26. Railroad Man (1967) [color; 28 minutes]. Presented by the United Transportation Union. Railroad men talk about their experiences, railroad policies, public perception of railroad men, their dangers and grievances, and union activities.27. The Railroad Story (ca. 1955) [color; 23 minutes]. Presented by the Illinois Railroad Association. Describes how railroads promoted agriculture and industry, and improved their technology. Includes a long monologue arguing that the tax system is unfair to railroads, making them pay to subsidize their competitors (e.g., trucks).28. Song of the Pioneer (ca.1955) [color; 21 minutes]. Docudrama, begins with flashback to mid-19th century skepticism about railroads, and moves ahead to show how railroads improved, carrying freight, passengers, and mail, thus promoting settlement, agriculture, and industry.29. Rolling the Freight (1947) [black & white; 29 minutes]. Mainly deals with the freight operations of the Chicago and Northwestern System, with a little information about its passenger trains. Describes the types of freight carried (including less-than-carload lots), how trains were assembled, communication, and administration.30. Snow on the Run (ca. 1953) [color; 18 minutes]. Describes how the Southern Pacific used spreaders, rotary snow plows, and flangers to clear snow from its Sierra Nevada Mountain tracks.31. The Power Behind the Nation (ca. 1945) [color; 31 minutes]. A Norfolk & Western presentation. Primarily about the coal industry (a major customer of the N&W), explaining how coal was mined, and the many products made from coal. Very little information about the N&W.32. Clear Track Ahead (1946) [black & white; 26 minutes]. Docudrama with flashback to 1846, covering growth and improvement of railroads. Follows a freight train and a passenger train (powered by the Pennsylvania Railroad’s unusual T1 [4-4-4-4] steam engine), and describes operation, equipment, and personnel.33. A Railroad At Work (1946 ?) [black & white; 26 minutes]. Presented by the Milwaukee Road. (Same film was published on another CD as “The Milwaukee Road,” but with narrative freshly recorded by Dale Reed.) Covers freight and passenger service, rolling stock construction, equipment maintenance, and accounting.34. Last of the Giants (ca. mid-1950s) [color; 23 minutes]. Describes the development and operation of Union Pacific’s 4-8-8-4 “Big Boy,” the largest steam engine ever built, with a capacity of 28 tons of coal and 25,000 gallons of water.35. Progress on the Rails (1952) [black & white; 15 minutes]. Presented by the Pennsylvania Railroad. Railroad operation, including construction of freight and passenger cars, track maintenance, communication, signals, and ticket sales.36. Wheels of Steel (1954 ?) [black & white; 14 minutes]. Follows a GG1-powered passenger train from New York City to Washington.37. Opening a New Frontier (1955) [black & white; 13 minutes]. Describes the transportation of semi-truck trailers on special railroad flat cars.