A century ago today, Great Northern wished its customers “a joyous Christmas and a happy and successful New Year” with this blotter. After a minor post-war recession, the United States had enjoyed rapid economic growth in 1923, and that growth would continue, of course, until 1930.

Click image to download a 789-KB PDF of this blotter from the Minnesota History Center.

That prosperity was not shared by America’s passenger railroads. Passenger-miles had grown in 1923, but declined in every year after that until 1934. Most of this decline was due to automobiles replacing trains for short trips. Long-distance passenger trains such as the Oriental Limited didn’t suffer as much, which probably made Great Northern’s investment in new equipment in 1924 worthwhile.

In any case, in the spirit of the season, Streamliner Memories wishes you and your family a merry holiday and happy New Year.