Choo Choo Chuesday

Today is Tuesday Travel day (but not for you or anyone else on this planet right now), and today’s mode of travel is TRAINS. My granddad loved trains, often joining the engineer up front, donning the requisite engineer cap. While most of his train schedules and pamphlets are normal map-sized (the kind we once bought at gas stations), none of today’s images are larger than your hand. Most measure only five inches tall.

The majority are from 1934-1935, but this one is about to hit the century mark.

Folks back then would have needed a good pair of glasses to read the small font to find a route and a fare to their destination.

Advertising air conditioning was very important.

Even if was glaringly racist.

It certainly sounds necessary, after reading about the “torrid, sooty blasts from open windows.”

The font and artwork are still eye-catching after all these years.

The luncheon options, however, would not fare so well today. Ox tongue? Prune whip? Prune cornbread? What on earth?

Perhaps you’d be better served by keeping your appetite until you hit the Fred Harvey counter at Union Station (where Harvey Girls served up lunch). Fred Harvey advertisements were ubiquitous on time cards.

Why, even Judy Garland was a Harvey Girl in the movies!

And she sang about the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe, which were all train routes.

What about you all? Have you ever ridden a train? Did you get a cool time card? Where were you going?

 

17 thoughts on “Choo Choo Chuesday”

  3. What a fascinating collection. I wish I had taken a train cross country.when I was younger. Now it is probably too late. The only time I was on a train was in 59 or 60 when I rode one from downtoin Indy to the racetrack in Speedway. Maybe an hour long. Great fun and noisy. As far aa the food goes you must like those prices.

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  4. Wow, that’s some really cool stuff! Can you imagine Chicago to New York in *only* 17 3/4 hours? My favorite trains are the Japanese shinkansen. These super-dooper bullet trains are very quiet, always on time, luxurious and soooo fast! Also, tasty snack, too. They are currently testing a new mag-lev version a speed of 603 km/hr, over 350 mph! I’ve ridden the current 240 mph one and also the French TGV which dogs along at 200 mph.

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    1. When you were riding in the 240 mph one, you weren’t worried that you were going to plummet into a wall and crumble into pieces? I realize you’re on a track, but still. That sounds intense.

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      1. The feeling is like in a plane. Same sort of sounds and the seats are the same but much wider and more leg room. The startling thing is when another super train comes from the opposite direction and they pass. There is a slight buffeting but the shock of closing at over 500 mph combined speed wakes you up. I trust Japanese trains 100%. Amtrak? Nope, not gonna happen.

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  5. Another cool find, Kerbey! I rode on a train to Oakland from Sacramento once. It was so much fun. And air conditioned which I didn’t realize was code for fancy way back when! I hope you’re doing well. ❤️

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  6. I’m with you 100%, buddy. Where’s the bottom, aren’t we there yet?

    It was a short trip so no meal. During the day. I took my mom to a knitting conference for her birthday. 🧶

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