Bern Hill Posters 5

Posted on by October 15, 2024
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If Bern Hill did 46 paintings for General Motors before the end of 1952, why did GM only print posters for 31 of them? Greg Palumbo suggests that “the posters were limited to customers who were either going to or had recently ordered locomotives.”

This image is from the Palumbo collection. Click image to download a 6.8-MB PDF of this poster.

This might explain why the Union Pacific painting didn’t make the cut. At least for freight, UP was a reluctant adaptor of Diesels, preferring its Big Boys and other steam and, in 1952, beginning its experiments with gas turbines built by Alco and General Electric. Continue reading →

Bern Hill Posters 4

Posted on by April 29, 2024
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I’ve shown these posters before, but I’m including them here because some of them are in higher resolutions than the ones I’ve shown before and the others are for the sake of having a complete set available on line in a few posts. All of these images are from Greg Palumbo’s collection.

Click image to download a 6.8-MB PDF of this poster.

The colors in this one were difficult because the magazine cover leans towards blue while the poster images I’ve seen lean toward green. This one leans to green. Continue reading →

Bern Hill Posters 2

Posted on by April 29, 2024
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All of the poster images in yesterday’s post were from Greg Palumbo’s collection, but none of today’s are. Instead, I’ve used the highest-resolution images I could find for each poster. I’ve placed them all in consistently-sized PDFs, but in most cases the actual resolution will be lower than for yesterday’s.

Click image to download a 4.5-MB PDF of this poster.

As I noted about this image on the magazine cover, Hill had taken his usual liberties with reality in placing a Frisco train in a scene of oil wells that really existed, but not on the Frisco rail line. It made for a colorful scene and the colors of this image appear to accurately reflect the poster. Continue reading →

Bern Hill Posters

Posted on by October 13, 2024
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Counting the Southern Railway cover from February 11, 1950 and the 1952 Christmas cover, Bern Hill did 46 paintings that appeared on Railway Age magazine covers in 1950, 1951, and 1952. Near the end of this period, General Motors printed up a series of 18″x24″ posters featuring most of Hill’s paintings. Since the last cover painting used on a poster was from the December 15, 1952 issue, I assume the posters were printed in 1953.

All of the images in this post are from Greg Palumbo’s collection. Click image to download a 6.9-MB PDF of this poster.

The posters excluded the thumbtacked blurb that appeared on all of the magazine covers. In its place was the logo of the featured railroad in the lower left corner and a small black band across the bottom with a one- or two-line statement about the picture usually printed in the Coronet typeface (although the first two posters shown here are exceptions), beneath which was usually written, “Powered by General Motors Diesel Locomotives.” Continue reading →

Even More 1952 Bern Hill Covers

Posted on by October 10, 2024
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Hill did six more paintings in 1952 including the Christmas cover.

Another worm’s-eye view painting shows an attractive Monon Diesel locomotive overshadowed by the friction bearing of a freight car. Unless otherwise noted all images today are from Greg Palumbo’s collection. Click image to download a 2.6-MB PDF of this magazine cover. Click here for a 9.9-MB higher-resolution version of this PDF.

In the 1990s, friction bearings were banned from cars used in interchange service because they were too prone to accidents. But in 1952 they were common enough that no one was bothered by the prominent role one played in this painting. The blurb quotes Monon president John Barriger, who headed a succession of small railroads but was one of the most respected executives in the industry. Hill’s signature is near the lower right corner. Continue reading →

More Bern Hill 1952 Covers

Posted on by October 9, 2024
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Hill’s mid-year paintings in 1952 ranged from mundane to highly creative. The Kansas City Southern/New Orleans image is perhaps most creative as it gives a definite feel of historic New Orleans even if it isn’t geographically accurate. A painting of a train along what is likely the Tennessee River is the least interesting.

A Kansas City Southern passenger train passes within sight of St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans. This and all other images today are from Greg Palumbo’s collection. Click image to download a 2.2-MB PDF of this magazine cover. Click here for a 9.0-MB higher-resolution version of this PDF.

Hill managed to combine iron work typical of the New Orleans French Quarter, St. Louis Cathedral, and the Southern Belle passenger train all in one painting. I’m pretty sure Kansas City Southern tracks did not pass within sight of the St. Louis Cathedral but the painting conveys a real sense of New Orleans. No signature is visible on this cover. Continue reading →

Bern Hill 1952 Paintings

Posted on by October 8, 2024
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Bern Hill had another banner year in 1952, with 15 locomotive paintings on the cover of Railway Age. He also did the Christmas painting for the year.

A Texas cowboy looks down on a Texas & Pacific passenger train passing through cattle country. This and all other images today are from Greg Palumbo’s collection. Click image to download a 2.4-MB PDF of this magazine cover. Click here for a 10.2-MB higher-resolution version of this PDF.

This cover is a cowboy’s-eye view of the Texas & Pacific Texas Eagle passenger train passing a fenced-in area holding an improbably small number of cattle. Hill’s signature is near the lower right corner. Continue reading →

Still More 1951 Hill Paintings

Posted on by October 8, 2024
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With seventeen paintings in one year, many were closely scheduled. Yesterday I noted that Hill had three in the month of August, while today’s first painting is from a Railway Age dated just one week after the last of yesterday’s paintings.

A Rio Grande passenger train passes through the Royal Gorge of the Arkansas River. This and all other images today are from Greg Palumbo’s collection. Click image to download a 1.6-MB PDF of this magazine cover. Click here for a 7.1-MB higher-resolution version of this PDF.

The sky is unusually red considering that the westbound Royal Gorge passenger train was scheduled to pass this spot at about 1:30 pm. No signature is visible but only Hill would use a red sky for a midday train. Continue reading →

More 1951 Paintings by Bern Hill

Posted on by April 29, 2024
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It is worth noting that, not only did Railway Age allow GM to extend its ads behind the magazine’s masthead, it apparently allowed Bern Hill to select the colors of that masthead. The colors not only made the lettering visible, they often reflected one of the principal colors in the painting.

An engineer’s view of the Atlantic Coast Line’s Champion passing through Florida orange groves. Click image to download a 2.2-MB PDF of this magazine cover. Unless otherwise noted, all images on this page are from Greg Palumbo’s collection. Click here for a 9.6-MB higher-resolution version of this PDF.

Atlantic Coast Line was one of the few if not the only railroad to paint its Diesel locomotives purple. In this scene, not only is the locomotive of the on-coming train purple, the interior of the cab is purple. To affirm this color, not only the masthead but the General Motors logo are also purple. Hill’s signature is near the lower right corner. Continue reading →