railroadiana

By now we've all seen brakeman's lanterns with railroad names stamped into the metal or etched onto the globes. Why did they do this? Technically the lanterns were the railroads' property, so if one went missing and was found by someone else, they would know where it was supposed to go for return. North American railroads put their names on everything that could be easily carried for this reason. But did you know that some railroads are even going as far as stamping their initials onto the ties they use in their track? This BNSF tie found in Glen Haven, Wisconsin, this past weekend is evidence of this. Have you found a railroad name where you weren't expecting it yet?

Need something else to liven up your railroadiana collection without spending an enormous amount of money? One modeler I know added sheet music with railroad related themes to his collecting activities. There's quite a lot out there, even some referencing specific railroads and trains. In this image of "Hold Dat Train!" a minstrel from around 1918 is running to catch L&N's Dixie Flyer as it leaves the station.