Most ticket envelopes are pretty ho-hum, but this one stands out. For one thing, what looks like a mailing label on the front is actually a cellophane window with pictures of the Empire Builder and Western Star locomotives printed on … Continue reading
When Great Northern introduced its streamlined Empire Builder in 1947, it used five pairs of E7 locomotives to haul the five twelve-car train. These were illustrated by five locomotive noses on the 1947 timetables. The old heavyweight Empire Builder consists … Continue reading
Passengers on Great Northern trains were allowed to stopover at Glacier National Park at no extra rail fare, at least when this booklet was issued. The booklet briefly describes one- to seven-day tours people could take in the park, but … Continue reading
We’ve previously seen a photo of one of the replicas of an Astor medal that I found on line. I’ve since acquired my own copy of one of these replicas and the photos here are much clearer. Click image for … Continue reading
In 1743, French explorers from Quebec reached a point near what is now Pierre, South Dakota and buried a lead plate on a hill to claim the land for France. One hundred and seventy years later, three children playing on … Continue reading
Members of Great Northern’s 1925 Upper Missouri Historical Expedition apparently received a pin such as this one to wear during the trip. It probably made it easier to identify who was and who was not a member of the expedition … Continue reading
As we’ve seen in the last few days, Great Northern engaged in a major public relations campaign when it inaugurated the new Oriental Limited, a nearly-all-steel train, in 1924. We’ve previously seen two booklets issued about this train, and this … Continue reading
After putting the New Oriental Limited into service on June 1, 1924, Great Northern sent a variety of promotional letters, cards and brochures to members of the public. We’ve already seen several of these including one claiming outright that it … Continue reading
In addition to blotters, GN sent out brochures such as this one (which I found at the Minnesota History Center) inviting people to compare the railway’s new Oriental Limited with a vintage 1861 train consisting of the William Crooks, two … Continue reading
When Great Northern introduced its all-steel Oriental Limited in 1924, it sent one of the train sets on an exhibition tour together with the William Crooks and passenger cars that were its contemporaries. This blotter, which is similar to ones … Continue reading
